<p>Current students or parents of students, my daughter is weighing her options between Grinnell and two schools much closer to home. I've heard there is shuttle bus that is available for students to get home for breaks. Is this service still available and can someone give us more information? Thanks!</p>
<p>I don’t know whether or not a shuttle goes to Minneapolis, but I took one to Chicago at the end of the semester and back from Chicago to Grinnell at the beginning of the next one. 30 bucks for a seat, 5 hours or so on a bus. Not very comfortable, but better than driving or flying.</p>
<p>There was a shuttle to and from Mpls when my son started in 2007. By 2010, when he wanted to use it, it had been discontinued (due to low usage). Shuttles are run by Hamilton Travel 800 348-7285 if you want to check whether it’s been reinstated. Last year’s Family Resource Guide suggests students use the ride board to get rides to Mpls/St Paul. This suggests that a lot of students from that area have cars.</p>
<p>I can vouch for the fact that there are quite a few students who are either from the Twin Cities or who go through there on their way to points north.</p>
<p>good to know, Dairy State - We are from the Seattle area and Minneapolis is an easy non-stop flight while it takes forever and a fat wallet to get to Grinnell through DesMoines or Cedar Rapids airport. It would probably be faster, even, to fly to Chicago and get a shuttle bus than fly into Iowa directly.</p>
<p>I don’t think Hamilton Travel is doing any shuttles. The college now runs the service to DSM airport and to Chicago (Lisle/Naperville and Union Station). The shuttles leave campus in the morning (6:00 am. to Chicago, and to DSM generally between 5-9 am.). For students who want to leave later, it’s either bumming a ride or taking / sharing a taxi. There is one return time from Chicago and several from DSM. At DSM, there are taxis at the airport in case a student lands too late or otherwise lands without a ride.</p>
<p>There is a very helpful parents email listserv you can join to help connect students with riders (because not all the drivers / riders seem to focus on the rideboard…).</p>
<p>I know that once he’s on campus, my S never seems to lack for a car to get around, whether riding with a friend or even sometimes borrowing one. There is also a rental service on campus now that students can use even though they’re under the usual rental age (this is not for getting to the airport; but for using just to have a car for something.)</p>
<p>I am from the suburbs of Minneapolis, and I have been able to get rides for every trip, sometimes with people I don’t know. There is a ride board in the student center, and rides are posted there for MN, Chicago, St. Louis, Ohio, etc. There are sometimes even rides posted to New York, Texas, and other states that are farther away. Grinnellians are really nice about giving rides and helping others out!</p>
<p>There are always tons of options for getting to major midwestern cities during breaks! All you have to do is check the tradeboards in the mail room, which is where students post ride offerings. It is honestly really easy, especially for those looking to go to Des Moines or Iowa City, Chicago, or Minneapolis, because there are so many students from those areas at Grinnell who are more than happy to give you a ride.</p>