<p>ProudNJMom - </p>
<p>Thanks so much for the information… yes I am getting crazy too 
with preparing for both OA and the dorm essentials, there are just so much to do.</p>
<p>Good luck everyone… We will make it to the Labor Day!</p>
<p>I’m reminded - it was much easier to move in stuff when dropping off for OA. Remember, when the dorms open to everyone, you’ve got three extra classes (plus those that don’t participate in OA) moving in on one day. That day was horrendous in terms of traffic. Dropping off stuff the day the dorms opened to OA kids was very smooth in comparison.</p>
<p>Do upperclassman move in on the same day as freshmen?</p>
<p>lefthandofdog: I wasn’t even thinking about the upper classmen moving in too. So I will second mrscollege’s question. Do upperclassmen move in the same day as freshmen not attending OA or CA?</p>
<p>I don’t know if they do, but on the day after kids return from OA (it was a Saturday) traffic leading into Princeton was practically stopped. I think if you go in very early in the day you’d have better luck (we arrived midday). When you get to campus, you are allowed to drive up to the dorms to unload. At least by Whitman and Butler Colleges, there is no real parking by the dorms. You drive onto access roads and park as close as you can to the dorm entrance. Once you unload your car, you move it down to a parking lot and can either walk back to the dorm and main campus, or take a shuttle bus. If you planned to pick up room supplies along Route 1 on that day, you’d have to factor in extra time due to the traffic heading back to campus. </p>
<p>I’m not sure when upperclassmen are allowed into dorms, but since the Saturday after OA falls on the weekend before classes begin, there’s bound to be a lot of traffic on that day.</p>
<p>they have changed move-in process since when i was in school-- they used to have upperclassmen move in the day or two before the freshman. Now I think they move in the next day? But i’m not sure. There is usually a lot of walking with stuff on move in day, no dorm is really drive-up, so be prepared for that and pack into boxes that its possible to carry. Also most dorms do not have elevators, so be prepared for stairs.</p>
<p>Upperclassmen arrive the day after the “regular” move-in day for freshmen. If you arrive on the regular day for freshmen, there will be some upperclassmen around to help you move your child’s belongings into his/her dorm. Look for kids standing around in bright orange shirts and hats. These upperclassmen are called “Orange Caps,” and they get to move-in before the big rush in return for doing this.</p>
<p>Is anyone here going to ship stuff ahead? If so, what’s best? UPS directly to the dorm, or via USPS to the PO Box in Frist?</p>
<p>It seems much more convenient to have stuff shipped directly to the dorm (especially if you ship something big like a television), but maybe that’s not allowed or safe. Is everything supposed to be shipped to Frist?</p>
<p>mrscollege -</p>
<p>From what I understand, everygthing needs to be shipped to the Frist then the student will get a notice via princeton email when a package is ready for pickup. I read on the mail service webpage that the packpage pickup room is open on 9/4 and 9/11 and 9/12. So I am guessing that if the packages arrive before each of the move-in dates, students (and parents) can pick them up during move-ins. </p>
<p>We are still planning to fit everything in one car load, haven’t tried yet, almost need to do a ‘dress rehearsal’ for loading to see how it goes :-)</p>
<p>Correct^^. All boxes are mailed to Frist, both UPS and USPO. (UPS cannot access dorm rooms, and you certainly would not want to have the boxes left outside. The dorms have no mail or concierge-type staff.)</p>
<p>Frist is efficient, and I believe the students can borrow dollies for the heavier boxes.</p>
<p>Thanks guys! Good to know about the dollies. ;)</p>
<p>Thanks lefthandofdog and fauve for parents weekend info. I will book the ticket.</p>
<p>BTW, a friend of mine called Pton today to ask this very question. Here’s the response she got:</p>
<p>If you want to send UPS or Fedex, address it directly to the dorm room address. They will attempt to deliver it there first, but it will require a signature. If you have heavy stuff, it is better to have it delivered directly to the room if you can coordinate delivery times with somebody being in the room. If nobody is there, the package will go by default to Frist, where they will sign for it and hold it.</p>
<p>The Pton person said it gets crazy with boxes that week, so they prefer you try to get it to the dorm room (but it was not clear if there will be people there for signature).</p>
<p>mrscollege - </p>
<p>thanks for the information!</p>
<p>That would be nice, it will save the trips to Frist, which could be quite a walk (with boxes) depending on which dorm you are in. But it’s unlikely someone would be in the room if we arrive for OA, I wonder if the residential college office could sign and store the boxes for a few days before we arrive for OA.</p>
<p>Do you know which office did your friend call?</p>
<p>Thanks so much!</p>
<p>What’s the easiest way from JFK to campus?</p>
<p>the easiest way is probably to rent a car and drive. Alternatively, a not so hard way, is to take the airtrain from JFK-Jamaica station, the LIRR to penn station, NJtransit to princeton junction and then the dinky to princeton. It’s a lot of transfers, not all of which are always timed well. I wouldn’t do it with too much luggage, penn station tends to not have escalators working, so you may have to carry it.</p>
<p>And I thought flying into Philly was a pain…</p>
<p>Philly is about the same-- septa to 30th street, septa to trenton, njtransit to princeton junction, dinky to princeton. Those transfers are generally even worse timed, as the dinky follows the from NYC schedule when leaving pjc. The one plus is that if you are driving, philly is much much closer.</p>
<p>What furniture do the quads and triples come with for the common area? Are there couches and/or coffee tables for example?</p>
<p>there is no common room furniture.</p>