Make Parent's Weekend Travel PLans ASAP

Colleges and Universities A-Z Air Force Academy - Colorado Springs
1

<p>Parent’s Weekend in Colorado Springs is one of the busiest times for area hotels. Once your son or daughter accepts their Appointment, I would strongly suggest that you make reservations for hotel and flights. </p>

<p><strong><em>If you are a parent that cannot attend PW, DO NOT WORRY! There are plenty of cadets that spend the night with host parents. *</em></strong></p>

<p>Prices for hotels are usually higher than normal and you will may not be able to book them on line because the hotels block them. The hotels may also require a minimum of three nights stay per reservation. There was also a cancellation fee. Our family prefers to stay at the Embassy Suites which includes a large breakfast buffet and indoor pool. I booked two adjoining rooms for my husband, cadet and two younger teen siblings (and allowed room for any cadet who’s parent(s) could not attend). **Ask if a corner room suite is available - our’s was musch larger than normal rooms". We spoiled our cadet with one of the private bedrooms, my husband and I got dibs on the other bedroom and each of the younger teens slept on the pull out beds. </p>

<p>In order to make the reservation, I located hotels on a Mapquest search, then called the LOCAL number. I later found out that because I booked early, our room rate was much cheeper. </p>

<p>One way to save on costs is to fly in and out of Denver, rent a car and drive south to Colorado Springs. We arrived on the Thursday before PW and drove to Col Springs. To avoid the mass exodus at the airport on Monday, we checked out of the hotel Monday morning, spent the day with our cadet, drove back to Denver, and spent the night before flying home on Tuesday.<br>
After checking into the Denver hotel, I returned the rental car on Monday night, took the shuttle back to the hotel and requested four seats on the 5:00 am shuttle for the next morning. </p>

<p>As for PW, your Doolie will spend MOST of their free time SLEEPING!!!
SLEEP, ROOM SERVICE, MOVIES, REPEAT! SLEEP, ROOMSERVICE, MOVIES!</p>

<p>I would not recommend planning a full day of sight-seeing or fancy dinners out. Keep in mind, a 4 degree MUST be in FULL UNIFORM any time they are outside of their hotel room. That includes the hotel lobby. There were plenty of upperclass cadets staying at the same hotel. I visited with many parents in the laundry room while my son slept.</p>

2

<p>Momof3 is very correct. Book early for Parent's Weekend and I think this year could be an especially crowded one.</p>

<p>Our first year as Cadet Parents, there was no football game to attend (2006). Last year for PW (2007) there was a football game amd we noticed the difference in crowds in and around COS. This next PW in Aug/Sept will be another football weekend and a football weekend coming off of a spectacular previous football season. GO FALCONS!</p>

<p>On top of that, the Democratic Convention will be in Denver the week before PW so I am hoping, not for political reasons, all the Dems go home and leave us some space in COS and Denver!</p>

<p>And, yes! SLEEP, SLEEP, SLEEP is what the cadets do PW. If possible, and it works for your family, a suite is a good option. We, too, stay at the Embassy Suites most every time we come in town and the biggest reason is for the separate sleeping quarters, even now with a three degree.</p>

3

<p>What weekend is PW this year?</p>

4

<p>As the Parent Liaison person, Barbara Guiterrez, at USAFA told me - it is always Labor Day Weekend. </p>

<p>Friday Aug 29 - Begin activities
Saturday the 30th - football game
Sunday the 31st - free day
Monday, Sept 1st - holiday for cadets, too
Tuesday the 2nd - back to school and work </p>

<p>A lot of people fly in on Thursday because activities start on Friday.</p>

5

<p>Making travel plans early is a good idea, and being early for everything Parent's Weekend should be the rule. Get there early on Thursday so you can get settled in before the crowds cover the city. Get to the Academy early on Friday morning so that you don't have to park 2 miles away. Get to the game with your cadet early on Saturday so that you don't miss the kick-off due to traffic. Get to the Chapel on Sunday early so that you aren't standing outside looking at the door because it is full. Get your cadet back to the Academy Monday evening a bit early so that they aren't one of the cadets who has to bail out of the car stuck in traffic, and try to run back to the cadet area on time.
You get the idea. Just remember that there are 4400 cadets with family in town, and they all want to do the same things that you do. Plan to being early for everything, and you'll be just fine.</p>

<p>Stealth_81</p>

6

<p>To add to Stealth's point about getting cadets back to the Hill EARLY on Monday is not an exaggeration. I'm sure they will have many items such as Sam's Club snack stock or Office Max printers,paper... that will require multiple trips from the car. We made a point to get items up to our son's room on Saturday AND Sunday to avoid the rush. Don't forget to purchase stackable storage containers for the goodies - I recommend lockable file drawers that stack. I know it seems odd that you have to lock up the snack food, however if a cadet does not establish the ground rules for sharing care package goodies, other cadets may take advantage of "what's mine is your's". At first my son was happy to share the goodies until he would find his stash wiped out by good friends. This does not make the cadets thieves, it makes my son aware that he has to establish limits and ask that his friends at least ask. </p>

<p>Enjoy your last day with your cadet and avoid "have to's". Saying goodbye is NEVER EASY, especially the first year (I just got choked up!). Removing the stress will be better for the entire family.</p>

7

<p>We left Colorado Springs after the football game, and got well off the beaten path staying at a ranch that had a 9 mile long driveway. We did some horseback riding and were able to "chill." Your cadet will truly love sleeping UNDER the covers. Son opted to be dropped off at 1500 Monday completely avoiding the 1700 rush. So our trip was a blended trip - Thurs and Friday night in the Springs, Sat and Sunday night out of town, Monday night back up towards Denver for flight out next AM.</p>

8

<p>Freshman year (2004) we stayed at the Cheyenne Mt. Resort, they frequently give special rates for military. It was far enough from the Academy that our cadet felt that he was getting away. The down side of that is that it is about 20-30 mins to get to the Academy grounds. We bought his printer on Friday night after the squadron open house and were able to avoid some of the crowds later that weekend at Best Buy. There was a football game which started at 10:00 AM so our cadet had to be back at the Academy at 7:00AM, hopefully that won't happen this year. My advise is not to plan too much for your cadet. Our son wanted to go to the movies, eat about five times a day, play golf and sleep. We had dinner the first night with a family from our state which worked out very well because we learned so much from the two cadets talking about their experiences. I'm sure we wouldn't have heard nearly as many stories if we had just had dinner with our cadet. Don't be surprised if your cadet doesn't want to give you the grand tour--we didn't get the tour of Jack's Valley until his Junior year.
We have always come in on Thursday and returned home on Tuesday. It makes for a much more relaxed day on Monday and allows you to spend the entire day with your cadet without having to deal with the stress of checking out of the hotel and trying to get to the airport. Don't be surprised if your cadet gets quiet on the last day of the weekend. Make sure you have lots of tissues with you, it is gutwrenching for parents when you have to take them back. It gets easier each year as you see them settling in and progressing at the academy. </p>

<p>In subsequent years we have stayed at the Residence Inn at Interquest pkwy. It is right across I25 from the Academy Air field and very convenient to both the North and Sought gates. There is also a Hampton Inn across the street there. Our son is on the Wings of Blue Parachute team, so it is very convenient for us to watch him and for him to get back and forth from the air field to the hotel. They have studio, 1 and 2 bedroom units. They raise the rates for Parents Weekend, but each unit has a full kitchen and they have a hot buffet breakfast every day. The kitchen is great since your Doolie may not want to go out since they have to be in uniform whenever they are out in public. </p>

<p>Downtown Denver is also a great place to stay over Labor Day weekend. Most of the hotels have special weekend rates and the 16th St Mall and Lodo are very walkable with lots of great restaurants. There is also a festival with a taste of Denver near the 16th st Mall. If your cadet wants to try skiing there is a huge warehouse ski sale called the Sniagrab (bargains spelled backwards) where you can get great bargains on last seasons equipment. We were abel to outfit our cadet for about 1/3 the regular cost of equipment.</p>

9

<p>Usafamom,</p>

<p>Your info is priceless! --thank you. I checked that Residence Inn you mentioned and the two bedroom is $349 a night!! I know it's normally around 189. I've made other arrangements but how sad they gouge the prices that much.</p>

<p>Please keep the inside info coming. It helps to know what to expect.</p>