<p>Is anyone getting to Penn by plane, or is everyone driving? If you are flying the “friendly skies”, how do you plan on getting all of your belongings up there? Please share any suggestions you may have. On a plane, you can only take no more than three (3) suitcases and they cannot be more than 50 lbs. a piece(which isn’t a lot).</p>
<p>Thomas... I plan on driving this year, but I know lots of people who flew in (including my roommate, who flew in from California). First, check with your airline... many airlines only allow you to check two bags and carry on one... and the carry one must be substantially smaller. And yes, the two checked bags must be under 50 lbs. Perhaps your airline has different requirements, but in my flying experience I've only ever been allowed to bring two.</p>
<p>If I were you, I'd try to bring all of the clothes you'll want in your suitcases, and then cram in whatever little things you can. If you're flying with your parents, if they can pack lightly and bring stuff for you in their bags that would also help. You can always make a run to Target, Wal-Mart, etc when you're here (they're kind of far away... you may need to rent a car though) and pick up all of the bits and pieces you'll need as basic living supplies.</p>
<p>I know that this is the approach my roommate took, and he basically was able to fit everthing he needed except a refrigerator and microwave, which he bought out here :). Good luck!</p>
<p>I fly Southwest always, and you didn't hear it from me, but if you quietly bring medium sized suitcases as carry on's, they are not going to care ;)</p>
<p>Case in point, I did not put any of my belongings in storage at the end of the school year, but brought EVERY single item back to my house by plane (I went with just one parent). So yes, these things can be done!</p>
<p>i'm flying from Louisiana...i'm planning on flying home for thanksgiving/christmas/spring break...i've heard that it's really convenient to just take clothes for the first season and then just switch them out when you go back home for break, so i'll probably do that</p>
<p>
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I did not put any of my belongings in storage
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i'm glad you brought that up, knightmare...do most people rent some type of storage for the summer? like, at least for a microwave/refrigerator, or do most ppl just rent that from penn?</p>
<p>LAgal, most people that do not have the luxury of lugging all their stuff home by car because they live nearby definitely do put their stuff in storage for the summer (I'm an exception). Storage is usually done per box with certain restrictions, but if you can get a group of friends together to rent a storage room downtown, it's tons of space for very little price per person. </p>
<p>As for renting from Penn, most people do that. However, I would personally advise anyone to be wary of renting refridgerators. They're very old and have been heavily used, and the one I had did not work well at all and quickly turned food into mold (no joke!). It turned out to be a waste of money. Microwaves are safe tho, can't think of any risks with them. But generally speaking, it's probably best to not bring anything from home or rent from Penn, but rather just go to Walmart or something once you arrive on campus and buy your own stuff.</p>
<p>when i moved last year i flew. I took my 3 bags (50 lbs each) and my dad came along and he brought a carry on for his clothes (he stayed 2 days) and he took another 2 suitcases with the rest of my stuff. All of those suitcases were pretty much just clothes. When we got to penn we went to buy stuff at places like ikea, costco, etc.</p>
<p>Thanks for all of the replies!
How far is the Walmart, Target, etc. from campus?</p>
<p>IKEA: about 15 minutes (6.31 miles)
WALMART: practically next to ikea (a block away)
TARGET: practically next to ikea (a block away)
OFFICE MAX (maybe it was a staples?): next to Target
KMART: about 10 minutes away in Center City (Market & 11th) at the Gallery which is a really ghetto mall.
COSTCO: at King of Prussia. Which is only like 13 miles but there is always traffic so it takes like 30 minutes.
KING OF PRUSSIA: one of the largest malls on the east coast, they have pretty much any store you want.</p>
<p>Also Best Buy, Bed Bath and Beyond, Office Max, Target Barnes and noble and a bunch of other big retail stores about 25 minutes away (that's including the traffic you'll hit). Definitely the best place to go for picking up anything you need/ have forgotten.</p>
<p>mnasty- do you refer to the King Of Prussia? Or another location?</p>
<p>btw yeah all of those are available at KofP.</p>
<p>Do you get there (retail stores) from...bus, train, cab...??</p>
<p>you can take the bus if you want. from center city it's like an hour ride. it costs more than the 2.00 base far - but since i've never taken the bus (it's route 124/125) to KOP, i'm not sure how that works. i would suggest renting a car or something once you get here - because there are other places where you can buy things that aren't easily accessible via public transportation.</p>
<p>First - always keep in mind you're walking distance from Center City where you'll find:</p>
<p>Barnes and Noble
Borders
OfficeMax
Lord & Taylor, Gap, Banana Rep. etc. </p>
<p>Center City is like a huge outdoor mall but with adult food. </p>
<p>The #124/125 bus will get you to KoP. It stops at 30th Street Station and takes about 35-40 minutes on a good day.</p>
<p>There's a group of "big-box" stores including Ikea in the 2200 block of south Columbus. From Penn, take the Market/Frankford subway to Spring Garden, them take the #25 bus to Ikea.</p>
<p>Honestly, there is nothing you will need that you can't get within walking distance. And how many malls can offer, oh say, Midori playing Brahms Violin Concerto followed by Beethoven Symphony #5 (Sat Oct. 1, 8:00 PM)?</p>
<p>while williamc has a point but he is also forgetting that during move in you have many many purchases that would be extremely hard to walk 15-20 blocks back to penn or even take public transportation. You just have too many purchases. Especially, ThomasH, since you'll be living in Sansom. You have a kitchen to stock up, a living room and bedroom to make cozy, and a bathroom to stock up. Between all your purchases it would take many trips in public transportation or walking to get everything back to campus.</p>
<p>Personally, for MOVE-IN, I'd suggest renting a car for a day or two. You'll save a lot of time and you'll have all the space you need for your purchases. There is an entreprise car rental agency on penn's campus (at the Sheraton). You can rent and drop off there. Plus if you use penn's corporate account you get a large discount...</p>
<p>Hello, I just moved out here from California (drove) and picked up many things for my apartment. I had to rent a car because everything is so spread out and even with a car, carrying everything was a pain in the azz. A car for a few days would be a good idea. Your apartment will be furnished so it won't be as troublesome for you as it was for me.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Thanks, everyone!
I am trying to sign up for "Early Move-in" or become a "Move-in Volunteer" to Sansom, so that I am not caught up in the sea of people moving in on the same day.</p>
<p>I really want to buy all of my linens and stuff down here (it's way cheaper in Texas), box it up, and ship it to my dorm a couple of days before I arrive, so that it will be there when I get there. Although, I'm not sure if that way works are not.</p>
<p>that'll work for linens and such but furniture would be tough...get a car go to ikea...that place is ridiculously cheap</p>
<p>Or you can do what I did and hang around the Penn for-sale newsgroups looking for used stuff. There are lots of people moving out (right now at least) and selling stuff real cheap! Craigslist.com is also a good resource for used furniture and such.</p>