<p>Collegefreedom, if Whitman offered to pay your airfare that means that you are in contention for a full scholarship, am I right? The trip to Whitman is unbelievably easy. You fly from Arizona, change planes in Seattle and fly into Walla Walla. The school picks you up at the airport and returns you after the two day event. They pay for round trip and feed you. All the kids go solo. There is nothing for you to do but change planes. The ride to Walla is fun because all the scholarship kids are on the same plane. Tell your parents that it’s very safe and easy to do, and you can’t beat free!</p>
<p>@collegefreedom – I would ask Smith about paying for an accompanying person. They will certainly pay for your travel both to Smith and back home from Smith and then you will stay on campus and take your meals either in the dining hall or at dinners/lunches put on by the admissions office (depending on where your schedule takes you). I have no idea about accompanying persons, but you’re not the first person to ask that question so I’m sure the office will have an answer.</p>
<p>Collegefreedom, I think your name says it all. Are you the oldest? If you are, you are forging the new trail in your family. College is a good intermediate step to becoming independent and choosing the direction of your life; that doesn’t mean you don’t love your family; it just means you’re learning to spread your wings. I understand your dad’s worry; as parents, we can’t help but worry and sometimes it’s hard to turn off! This process is also a learning experience for your parents–how to let go. </p>
<p>I agree with TD and MWFN; residential college is invaluable for all kinds of reasons. Whether you travel alone or with your brother to any of these colleges, if you have a cell phone, you can keep them informed regularly how things are going on the trip so they won’t completely feel left out. And once you go to college away from home, the same is true. One of my daughter’s friends is very close to her dad and brother because her mother died a few years ago, so the transition to college was challenging for her; it was good that she was in regular contact with them by phone or Skype; they all needed that. But she still went away to college and is learning to be on her own.</p>
<p>@Carolyn B I’m actually the youngest of my siblings. With my sister being 7 years older and my two brother 9 & 11 years older. But I am the only one leaving Arizona for undergrad. My sister’s in London right now for grad school. My parents never went to college and back in Nigeria just going to college at all is a huge feat in itself. In their eyes cheaper and local = better, no matter what. My parents are just incredibly over protective and have pretty much this way my whole life, even though I am a very independent person.</p>
<p>I talked organizer of the Discovery Weekend and they said they would not be able to pay for my brother, only me. But my brother said he can go as long as it’s relatively cheap. Do any of you the cheapest way from Greensboro, NC to Northampton? And lodging close by (and cheap) to Smith?</p>
<p>@bopambo No I’m not up for the full scholarship. The visit scholarship is part a multicultural recruit program. I think I’d be able to fly into Seattle alone since my other brother and his family live there, so my parents wouldn’t (shouldn’t?) really need to worry much.</p>
<p>I am a big fan of Whitman; I think you would find it to be a welcoming place, and I do believe their art is strong. It is not an isolated backwater, by any means.</p>
<p>Smith grads are articulate champions for how empowering their educational model is.</p>
<p>I think you have fine choices.</p>
<p>^^^ Agreed. </p>
<p>I doubt the educational model is different between Whitman and Smith (although BU is very different), although the campus environment and student body may be different in character. I’m glad the OP is going to visit both.</p>
<p>Now I understand. I’m not sure which is more challenging, being the oldest child forging new territory or being the last out of the nest. I was in the middle, thankfully! I do understand your parents wanting you nearby, but it sounds like if they can tolerate your sister in London, then they can tolerate your being farther away.</p>
<p>This is useful information for everyone: The best time to get any deals for airfares anywhere is from Tuesday afternoon at 3pm through Thursday. Do not buy any tickets Friday, Saturday or Sunday. Check out the website, FareCompare. They have done extensive research into airline pricing and this is what they have discovered: the airlines on Monday figure out what their own deals are going to be, check out the other airlines and then by Tuesday at 3pm, you can find the best deals available for the week. So you could look online right now to understand what the flight possibilities are, but do not buy anything till Tuesday afternoon!</p>
<p>The closest airport is Hartford, CT, which is about an hour’s drive away.</p>
<p>CrewDad, do you have any suggestions for cheap lodging nearby? You’re our local agent.</p>
<p>The best airport for getting to Smith is Hartford, but another option is to fly to Boston or New York and then take a bus/train to Springfield. You might ask the discovery weekend people if they cover transport from the airport in Hartford to campus, otherwise your brother will have to pay for a shuttle. There’s a quality inn in Northampton that’s within relative walking distance of campus (maybe a 20 min walk). If he rents a car, there’s a number of reasonable chain hotels on the road between Northampton and Amherst, such as Howard Johnson, Hampton inn, etc.</p>
<p>@carolynB Thank you for the FareCompare info! My brother told me the flight would cost $400 but I found one using FareCompare for $327 with tax! Are you sure about the Tuesday afternoon thing? There’s only a few tickets left for this flight. I don’t want to miss out on a potentially good deal. Also, I found out about the Peter Pan bus on yelp. They have a bus ride for $20 from NY to Northampton. Does this sound reasonable?</p>
<p>The Valley Transporter is $50.00 from Bradley to Northampton The time saved flying to Bradley instead of NYC is well worth the price difference. How much is a ticket to Bradley?</p>
<p>[Valley</a> Transporter](<a href=“http://www.valleytransporter.com/bradley.html]Valley”>http://www.valleytransporter.com/bradley.html)</p>
<p>Hi, collegefreedom, I missed some of the conversation because, heaven forbid, I had to work. I was trying to keep tabs on my smart phone but that didn’t work so well. I hope your parents are getting a little more comfortable with the discussion about you going away to college. It’s a hard time for us old folks, letting go of our kids is tough.</p>
<p>Kolijma’s information about the Allegiant flights is really good news, that would make repeated flights to Whitman MUCH cheaper. Whitman is making a concerted effort to create a more culturally and ethnically diverse campus, I’m please to hear that they’re willing to go that extra mile to attract great students like you. </p>
<p>I’m assuming that you are invited to visit during the admitted student’s day, April 16th. Hopefully they have already offered to have you do an overnight visit on campus, I don’t really see how it would work otherwise. </p>
<p>I wish I could personally tell your folks that you’d be safe and comfortable. I feel very much like my son is in a caring and nurturing environment. Keep us posted on how this goes.</p>
<p>@bopambo Yes I’m invited to the admitted students day. But I won’t be able to attend since it is the same days as Smith’s Discovery Weekend. Luckily, Whitman provided me with an alternative date so I’ll go on the 19th. I very much appreciate your genuine concern and wealth of information (all of you, really thanks so much). I think I’ll show this thread to my dad, maybe it’ll change his perspective.</p>
<p>@CrewDad I can’t really find info on flights from Greensboro to the bradley pick up thing. Where is bradley? Where would my brother go to in order to be picked up by the Valley transporter?</p>
<p>Bradley airport is just north of Hartford in Windsor Locks, CT -
Airport code, Bradley Intl (BDL)
Bradley is about 50-60 minutes from Smith.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>[Valley</a> Transporter](<a href=“http://www.valleytransporter.com/bradley.html]Valley”>http://www.valleytransporter.com/bradley.html)</p>
<p>If your brother is traveling with you, instead of taking Valley Transporter to/from the airport, take a cab - - about $50 for the two of you (as opposed to theTransporter’s $50 per person). CAb might also be more convenient than waiting for the Transporter (which makes hourly scheduled stops at the airport).</p>
<p>I think the $327 plus tax on FareCompare sounds reasonable to me for Greensboro-Hartford if it’s round-trip. If, when you try now, the price has gone up a lot, I would try to hold out till at least Monday to actually seriously consider buying the ticket. You can check over the weekend and see how the price goes up. The Tuesday time-for-deals is real. Once on a Thursday night I wanted to buy a couple of tickets, but I couldn’t confirm with another person then, so I waited till the next day, a Friday–the tickets had gone up $100 each! I panicked and bought them because I was afraid there wouldn’t be any more seats and then saw the price go down at the beginning of the next week to where it was originally. It’s real.</p>
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<p>Good point. I was assuming Smith was providing transportation for CF and her brother was responsible for his.</p>
<p>My brother isn’t actually travelling with me. I’ll be flying solo and then he will meet up with me at Smith on Friday since he can’t take too many days off of work. I’ll make sure he waits till Tuesday to buy the tickets, and I’m tracking it through email to see the prices. 
So after talking with my dad, it looks like I’m all set! I’m visiting both Whitman and Smith since they’re my top choices. I’ll be sure to check in with you all to talk about my financial aid, visit experiences, and my final decision! Oh, I’ll be having tea with the local Smith club next week; I’m excited!</p>
<p>Also, can you guys tell me what parts of the Discovery Weekend would be more suitable to be just me and not have my brother there?</p>
<p>It will be clear when you get the schedule. Honestly, most of the weekend will be for students only, so your brother should plan to bring a book or some work to keep busy. Discovery Weekend now overlaps with Open Campis though (I think) so during the Open Campus day(s) there will be more for you to do together.</p>
<p>Great news, collegefreedom, and good work. They are both wonderful schools. Enjoy your visits and have fun. As I understand the situation now, you haven’t received your financial aid packages yet. Hopefully that component will fall into place for you, but if you don’t get what you need, I think you should feel free to let the school of your choice know that you need more. You seem to be a very good communicator.</p>
<p>I drove my daughter and the other accepted student from her school to Open Campus. I did not see them except for one event (I think) for both parents and students. Instead, I spent my time exploring the area on my own. </p>
<p>Since you are traveling by yourself, I wonder if there is a point to your brother meeting up with you at Smith. Usually, the students’ schedule is packed with activities.</p>