<p>I just got back today from visiting Purdue. I have posted in the College Visits section, those of you from far away who have not visited might find my observations helpful. Let me know if I can answer anything else based on my recent trip!</p>
<p>thanks#$%^</p>
<p>Thanks mootmom! </p>
<p>I am having a REALLY hard time scheduling a visit for us. The airfare is consistently hovering around $360 round trip. Seems like an expensive prospect at the moment, but I know we have to do it eventually. Husband wants to just drive it (it's 13 hours - on the other hand by the time we transfer planes someplace etc.), so if the weather isn't too horrible maybe we'll head out on Feb break. (The problem with that is Rose-Hulman isn't in session...) </p>
<p>So, thanks for the report. I visited vicariously!</p>
<p>I don't know where you're flying from, but look into flying into Chicago. It is a 3 hour drive to Purdue, but the fares might be much cheaper!?</p>
<p>Great suggestion! The website reports that O'Hare is 125 miles from Purdue and can be driven in around 2 hours. Express Air Coach Shuttle operates between that airport and Purdue campus and takes 3 hours, with a fuel and rest stop in the middle.</p>
<p>Oh my gosh, we have the WORST airport in the world. There was no significant difference in fares between Rochester-Chicago or Rochester-Indianapolis or Cleveland or Cincinnati. About the only thing cheaper ($158 RT) was to fly to Columbus and drive 4 hours.</p>
<p>take Amtrak then? Where is the closest train station to Purdue either way?</p>
<p>How much does it cost on-way from New York City? Does anyone here have an estimate?</p>
<p>Using travelocity.com, searching several weeks in advance, and including a Saturday night stay-over, I found flights as cheap as $143 round-trip, or $173 non-stop round-trip (plus taxes and fees).</p>
<p>There is one Amtrak route, the Cardinal/Hoosier</a> State, which runs from NY-Chicago, with a stop in Lafayette. It is an overnight train, looks to take a bit more than 24 hours (schedule here</a>).</p>
<p>Thanks for the tour. My son has applied for computer engineering but we have no experience with the campus or state. Living in California, we worry about the winters. I hope he hears soon so we can make a deposit. Not sure where it ranks on his list. We keep looking for good pictures of the campus but the website has small pictures that don't really give a good feel for the campus. I think that is one problem with evrything being on the net and no one sending out brochures anymore.</p>
<p>Weenie - try Dayton. It's an hour closer than either Cincinnati or Columbus and usually has cheaper fares. Dayton is often cheaper than Indy, too. </p>
<p>Two hours drive time from O'Hare is optimistic unless you have a heavy foot on the pedal. Furthermore, the Tri-State around Chicago is under construction. You can expect some stop and go traffic. Don't take alternate routes through downtown. The Dan Ryan, which goes from downtown towards Indiana, is also under construction and has much longer delays than the Tri-State.</p>