Logistics of freshman drop-off with long drive

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you are going to stay at a hotel in the college city, then I would ship things to that hotel and take what fits in the Pilot. Just call the hotel first to check about storage. I disagree with shipping to the school, the mailrooms are usually overwh9with items and he will not have the packages up til a week after in most cases.

IMO, this is the better solution. Because mail rooms are defiantly overwhelmed and it might be 2+ weeks before you get packages.
Moving 3rd in this fall, and have shipped to hotels for both kids so far. We fly with 1 26", 1 large duffle and 1, 22" suitcase (designed for easy storage all stuffed into the 26" for dorm room storage). Then we ship everything to hotel and do a BB&B online order scheduled for pickup a day or two before move in.
Most hotels are happy to do it, but call ahead. When you are cross country, there really is not any other choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For what its worth, a minivan will have a lot more room for stuff than an SUV.

Yes, minivan has a lot of more space than SUV.

Really? If I fold the third row seats down in my Pilot, I have a ton of space!

[Anonymous]

Is there a reason you order ahead? I was just going to hit Target when we get to town and get all the things.

[Anonymous]

You don't hit Target when you get to town because it will be picked over with nothing left that you need. Or, you need sheets for your son and all that is left is pink unicorn and mermaid sheets in twin xl. What you do is order the stuff for pickup the day of move in at Bed, Bath and Beyond. You drive out with a backpack each for the rest of you. Kid packs their clothes and what not, and the new twin XL sheets, comforter, pillows, topper if you are getting that, plastic stacking drawers, etc., you do Bed Bath and Beyond. Mom, college student and sibling (sibling can choose, stay at dorm or go with dad), start unpacking clothes, dad goes and picks up the stuff from the local BBB.

Do not ship stuff to them at college - they won't get it for a couple weeks, as the mail room is overflowing beyond belief

[Anonymous]

We drove in a small SUV with four people. We packed light and fit a lot of stuff in the back of the car. And we shipped stuff ahead of schedule to an acquaintance nearby our daughter’s college and picked it up after we unloaded the car at the hotel. No way would I take two cars on a 10 hour drive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For what its worth, a minivan will have a lot more room for stuff than an SUV.

Yes, minivan has a lot of more space than SUV.

Really? If I fold the third row seats down in my Pilot, I have a ton of space!

There is no comparison. The minivan 3rd ow seat folds down, too, and has so, so much more space. In fact I just got curious about how big the magnitude is. The Pilot has 110 cubic feet of cargo space - compared to almost 160 for the Odyssey. HUGE difference.

[Anonymous]

Everything should fit in the Pilot, but if you're finding it doesn't, I vote for two family members staying home. We have a Pilot, no trouble whatsoever fitting everything, but we didn't all go to move in.

I've also flown a kid to school and shipped to hotel. That should be unnecessary when driving to school.

I suggest reevaluating what stuff is coming and how much luggage the sibling and extra parent are bringing. Backpack only.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Please help me figure out the best way to get my incoming freshman to his school. It's a 10hr drive (at least), so we plan to break up the drive with a stopover en route. That would also give us some time in the afternoon before move-in day to pick up supplies. I'd been assuming that our Honda Pilot would give us plenty of space, but suddenly realizing that's probably not the case. My kid is pretty minimalist, and we can ship stuff to the school or to a local store. Still, with 4 tall people in the car and a bit of luggage for the rest of us, it's looking pretty tight. So would you:

1) Take 2 cars?
2) Rent a monster SUV or minivan (does a minivan really offer much more space than a large SUV?)
3) Get a rooftop carrier installed (dealership is quoting $1100 for roof rails & cross bars, plus $500+ for a carrier)?
4) Other ideas?

Are you planning on completely unloading and reloading at your stopover? Because anything you leave in the car will be at risk of being stolen. Even if it's not valuables someone may break in just to go through it. I would focus on must haves and plan on buying once you get there, or having things shipped.

[Anonymous]

I think a roof rack and rails are a good investment if you are keeping this SUV and planning on future family trips. But, as PPs have said, you can get a soft cargo holder from Amazon for cheap. We use that w/ roof rack to be more secure, but may have used one w/o.

Minivans have way more space than SUVs.

Take everything that is new out of boxes to save bulk. Fill any storage containers for the room w/ clothes/stuff.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please help me figure out the best way to get my incoming freshman to his school. It's a 10hr drive (at least), so we plan to break up the drive with a stopover en route. That would also give us some time in the afternoon before move-in day to pick up supplies. I'd been assuming that our Honda Pilot would give us plenty of space, but suddenly realizing that's probably not the case. My kid is pretty minimalist, and we can ship stuff to the school or to a local store. Still, with 4 tall people in the car and a bit of luggage for the rest of us, it's looking pretty tight. So would you:

1) Take 2 cars?
2) Rent a monster SUV or minivan (does a minivan really offer much more space than a large SUV?)
3) Get a rooftop carrier installed (dealership is quoting $1100 for roof rails & cross bars, plus $500+ for a carrier)?
4) Other ideas?

Are you planning on completely unloading and reloading at your stopover? Because anything you leave in the car will be at risk of being stolen. Even if it's not valuables someone may break in just to go through it. I would focus on must haves and plan on buying once you get there, or having things shipped.

This is a really good point. Maybe you all need to take turns driving and don’t stop for a night.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please help me figure out the best way to get my incoming freshman to his school. It's a 10hr drive (at least), so we plan to break up the drive with a stopover en route. That would also give us some time in the afternoon before move-in day to pick up supplies. I'd been assuming that our Honda Pilot would give us plenty of space, but suddenly realizing that's probably not the case. My kid is pretty minimalist, and we can ship stuff to the school or to a local store. Still, with 4 tall people in the car and a bit of luggage for the rest of us, it's looking pretty tight. So would you:

1) Take 2 cars?
2) Rent a monster SUV or minivan (does a minivan really offer much more space than a large SUV?)
3) Get a rooftop carrier installed (dealership is quoting $1100 for roof rails & cross bars, plus $500+ for a carrier)?
4) Other ideas?

Are you planning on completely unloading and reloading at your stopover? Because anything you leave in the car will be at risk of being stolen. Even if it's not valuables someone may break in just to go through it. I would focus on must haves and plan on buying once you get there, or having things shipped.

This is a really good point. Maybe you all need to take turns driving and don’t stop for a night.

NP
It's only a 10 hour drive, I don't understand why they would stop over a night in the first place. Load up the car the night before, leave at 7 am. Including breaks for gas/restroom/lunch you'll arrive at your destination around 6 or 7 pm. Have a nice dinner at one of the better restaurants in town and move into the dorm the next day.

[FGDaddio]

We bought a carbag rooftop carrier for our minivan on amazon for less than $100 and it can fit A LOT. And you don't need crossbars- we just used the side rails already on top of our minivan's roof. Highly recommend. We have one called the RoofBag, easy to find on amazon and great reviews!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Only have one parent drive the kid. Why do 4 people have to go?

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Boy or girl going? If a boy that is easy. Clothes go in IKEA square bags and the rest can be picked up at destination. Girl you will need to do two cars. They bring a lot more than boys.

Rentals are pretty pricey right now so gas for two cars may be cheaper.

Depends on the girl. Don't be sexist pp

It’s not sexist, it is pretty much factual!

Not in this house. Both my son and daughter are minimalists.

[Anonymous]

Can you fly to this destination with a large backpack, then buy the rest at destination?

My oldest is considering college in the UK, and I assume this is what we'll have to do.