Hamilton’s on my son’s very short list right now, and I’m kind of nervous about how complicated it would be to get him to and from campus if he goes there. We’re near Atlanta, so he’d need to fly for any shorter breaks…I was already a little bummed about the scarcity/cost of direct flights out of either Syracuse or Albany…but then I was scouring the website tonight and can’t find any information about any kind of shuttle services to and from the airports. What do people do? Others schools he’s looking at or has looked at give extensive lists of options for this sort of thing. Transportation headaches might be the number one thing keeping me from rooting for Hamilton at the moment.
Hamilton’s site states that “[f]or school breaks Hamilton offers shuttle service to the Syracuse and Albany airports and the Utica train/bus station.” Good luck!
https://www.hamilton.edu/campuslife/transportation/recess-shuttle-schedules
@apple23 thank you! I was trying to find something like that and coming up empty (other than a page for international students that basically said maybe they can help you out if you fly in on a specific day in August). I feel a little better now!
@kokotg My son is a first year and one of his good friends lives near Atlanta. He travels in/out of Syracuse airport which is about an hour’s drive west of the college. Hamilton provides shuttle service at all the major breaks to/from the airports in Syracuse and Albany. My son had to fly from Syracuse to Ft. Myers, Florida (with a change of planes in Newark, NJ) for Spring break and took and Uber from campus to the Syracuse airport without any hassle.
Regarding the student who lives near Atlanta, his older sibling recently graduated from Hamilton. I asked his mother about travel to/from campus and she said it was not a problem.
thanks @123France --very good to hear! He’s also looking at Macalester, and I have to say that the airport a 20 minute ride away and a gazillion $150 non-stop flights a day have a lot of appeal…but it’s a relief to know there are reasonable options for Hamilton as well.
When I went there, there was an airport much closer. But a friend of mine once had a long delay and arrived very late at night. The school sent a shuttle to pick her up. I wouldn’t worry about it unless flight availability and cost are an issue.
You could also call admissions and ask what the travel options are. I’m sure they would be very happy to help you.
A couple of weeks ahead of break, they will email asking who needs a shuttle. My student usually shuttles to syracuse for a $25 fee. You can also uber from the airport for about $50-$60 if shuttle timing doesn’t work.
Students also set up ride shares together once they know a few folks.