<p>We have to be in Philadelphia Saturday evening, so we were thinking of stopping by the Haverford campus and walking around for a while. This would be our first tour of the campus and we're thinking that even if we don't get to speak to a single person, there's still some value in seeing the campus at this time of year; we've heard that late April is the best time to see the campus in terms of visual appeal. And we only have to go a few miles out of our way to get there.</p>
<p>Any thoughts or suggestions? Good idea or bad idea? If we do visit, any place special to go to? </p>
<p>BTW, I should mention that the candidate here is my son, who is a junior. I'd like him to see every college we visit at its best.</p>
<p>Hi</p>
<p>Although you won’t be on a formal tour, I recommend just walking up to any random student and asking them if they would let you check out their dorm room or if they would point you to some areas of interest… I think you can get a good sense of a place by informal interactions such as these. </p>
<p>I think it’s also valuable to take the college’s Blue Bus or drive 5 minutes down the road to Bryn Mawr and walk around there. Not only is their campus one of the best examples of collegiate gothic architecture in the US, it will give your son an idea of the full academic and social opportunities available at HC.</p>
<p>The Philly suburbs are gorgeous in the Spring.</p>
<p>You’ll, of course, check out the library and Founders Hall. I also highly recommend driving down the road and taking a look at Bryn Mawr. If your son goes to Haverford, he’s going to be spending some time there and it’s really worth seeing.</p>
<p>If you’re in the area, why not? I went on the Haverford tour and was very impressed. But it wasn’t so much the architecture, which is nice, but the small, personal feeling of the school (1200 kids) and the enthusiasm of the tour guide. She was from some big city (Detroit? Las Vegas? I forget) and had an uncle from Philly who had recommended Haverford for her, an option she had never considered because she was expecting to go to a big state school. Her confident manner as a Haverford senior showed that the place had let her blossom as an individual. Even though my child didn’t end up going there, it seemed like a very appealing place for a certain kind of kid–the kind who likes to talk to teachers after class, who isn’t afraid to try new things, who likes personal attention, etc.</p>
<p>Thanks so much for the responses so far. It would never have occurred to us to go to Bryn Mawr. We were thinking of stopping by this other LAC about 14.8 miles away, but since nobody thinks that’s worthwhile we’ll pass.</p>
<p>Actually, Villanova is a small university. :)</p>