<p>Thanks for all the info!</p>
<p>I did not go for parents weekend, which was just 3 weeks after move in. Did not see him until he came home for Thanksgiving. Cell phone and skype make it pretty easy. We will probably go down for a game next fall.</p>
<p>I hope all of you know that every time I get onto this site, the people on here make me more and more excited and happy to be attending 'bama. The only school that was aslo in the mix was OSU but the you guys just make me so happy when I read about the university. I just want to thank you all for really helping me in this decision process.</p>
<p>DustinG - That’s great! My S is so excited to start at Bama in the fall also.</p>
<p>re: Parents Weekend - ask your child. I was planning to come a different weekend to avoid all the craziness, and never dreamed my independent child would care one bit. But when I mentioned something about it, he seemed pretty disappointed that we wouldn’t be there for parents weekend. I think he is more nervous than he lets on and didn’t want to be “the only one” without parents there (which he obviously wouldn’t be but it’s hard to imagine that when you’ve never been a college freshman before!). So of course we switched gears and are now planning to go for parents weekend.</p>
<p>We went parent’s weekend and, unfortunately, my son had a lot of studying to do and wasn’t able to spend much time with us. It’s not really the fact that it was parent’s weekend (the same could happen any weekend) but this year we are considering going down over fall break instead - in the hope that he will have more free time.</p>
<p>Agree with lisa6191 from the <em>other</em> perspective. DH and I were knocking ourselves out making arrangements to attend Parents weekend. When I called DS to apprise him of our plans, he asked, in a horrified tone, “WHY would you want to do THAT?”</p>
<p>Trip cancelled.</p>
<p>Oh, and ROLL TIDE, DustinG!</p>
<p>Yeah particularly if your son is pledging, little free time on parents weekend. Reserve a hotel that you can cancel. but I would see how things were going before booking flights.</p>
<p>We went to parents weekend this year. DS spent most of his weekend in the band and we got to watch them play a lot but we knew that going in. Still enjoyed the game and all of the festivities. With that said, we will be going on a different weekend next year hoping he will have a bit more “down time.” Glad we went because it was/ is his freshman year but probably wont do that weekend again. Roll Tide!</p>
<p>Yeah, I’m assuming freshman year will be the only year for parents weekend. I hate crowds, but if that’s what he wants this year, that’s what I’ll do.</p>
<p>DustinG, my son was accepted into OSU too but chose Alabama based on the campus, atmosphere and Accounting program. We also plan on attending parents weekend. I am looking forward to seeing my DS ( I have never been away from him for any great deal of time before) and attending a game with him. Probably spend time re-upping his supplies and goodies stash.</p>
<p>Hi, I live in suffok county on long island and Islip airport is closest for us. We fly Southwest to Birmingham. There can be connections in Baltimore, Orlando, Tampa or other areas. It is working well for us. From the airport I have been using a limo service to bring my son back and forth to campus. It is usually a shared ride and well worth the cost- no worry because they track his flight. It really has worked quite well so far. We did attend parents weekend and arrived on the direct delta out of LAG on the Friday night. TO my surprise my son missed us on Friday so this year I am planning to attend and arrive early Friday. It is a fantastic weekend and I expect this year to be the same. Any other questions please feel free to private message me.</p>
<p>“Yeah, I’m assuming freshman year will be the only year for parents weekend. I hate crowds, but if that’s what he wants this year, that’s what I’ll do.”</p>
<p>My H hates crowds, abhors crowds…however, for some reason, he tolerates the crowds for Bama events. Maybe all the hoopla will be so interesting that it will compensate for the discomfort from crowds. :)</p>
<p>That said, if nothing will help, then you can try to stay more on the “outskirts”. Avoid going deep into The Quad or walking down The Strip. Get seated in the stadium early, too.</p>
<p>We went to Family Weekend this past fall (D’s freshman year). It was nice to experience once, and we met the parents of a few of her friends, which was nice. I think in the future, though, we’ll pick a different weekend to visit.</p>
<p>We attended parents weekend as well (S’s freshman year) and I am generally glad we did. It was crowded, but fun to be immersed in the atmosphere. Especially game day. However, I did find the reception/BBQ to be rather overcrowded and overwhelming. It was tough to find seating for the meal. I am on the fence as to if we will attend that weekend again, or go a different time. </p>
<p>We missed the boat on a room at our preferred hotel (Hampton nearest campus) and stayed at another Hampton in B’ham. The traffic back to the hotel after the game (even with eating dinner and trying to wait it out) was still a bit much.</p>
<p>Overall, and with all things considered (especially the explosive growth) I’d say UA is doing a fairly admirable job managing it. I do ask myself at what point is a much larger enrollment worthwhile (until they can expand into Bryce) though.</p>
<p>My single biggest outstanding complaints were the lack of shuttle transportation during move-in weekend and Fresh Foods in the Ferg being closed after Friday. When you have that influx of people, ALL the resources need to be available. The Crimson Ride (big) buses should have been rolling all weekend.</p>
<p>bamamomfromny, that is great info about Southwest Airlines and the limo service, what company do you use? We live in Nassau County and I do believe that my daughter is going to BAMA this fall. :0</p>