vacation/break planning

samsmom

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I need to plan flights for my son to return home for holidays and vacations.
Since the calendar says that they can leave after 4pm or last exam, I am wondering if it means 4 pm at the latest? Also, to the extent a flight is late in arriving, how hassled is the cadet if he arrives after the return hour required.

txs to all
 
I need to plan flights for my son to return home for holidays and vacations.
Since the calendar says that they can leave after 4pm or last exam, I am wondering if it means 4 pm at the latest? Also, to the extent a flight is late in arriving, how hassled is the cadet if he arrives after the return hour required.

txs to all

The best key here is flexibility. The reason they say 4pm is that is the latest an exam would be scheduled. There were many times when I was actually able to get off campus by 10am; however, I wouldn't know this until a day or two prior. Remember that they will also need time to get to the airport and check-in. The best way it worked for me was to get a ticket for later in the afternoon/early evening and if I could get there earlier fly stand-by. I almost always got on an earlier flight because I was in uniform.

As to being late. As long as you have planned appropriately (ie. not scheduled a plane to land 10 minutes before they are due back, etc) and something happens outside their control they will not get hassled or if they are it won't be very much. The key is to keep the Academy informed of any changes.
 
vacation/break planning

So, if I understand correctly, the last test can be scheduled as late as 4pm? Or is it that the final exam will be OVER by 4 pm ? So is a 6 pm flight a safe bet? And if I can't get him out of Dodge - so to speak- on that evening, can he stay over til the next am or aare the premises evacuated? Where he needs to fly has few flights and even fewer after 5 pm.

I get the jist about the return flight. If booked to arrive at 4 pm, and 6 pm is return curfew, then it is no sweat if flight is late.

Much appreciated ...
 
Yeah it's tough for people who have multiple flights or are trying to get to certain areas. I don't think I've ever heard of a test running later than 4pm, but that doesn't mean it hasn't or won't happen.

I would be careful buying tickets too early if you can help it because things change. If you can wait it would definitely be in your best interest to hold off for now. If not try to book the last flight of the day.

If he needs to stay it can be arranged without much difficulty. I stayed over for a couple of the shorter breaks during my time there and it's not bad. Things are relaxed, sometimes they'll let you use the wardroom, you get pretty much all the privileges you need. Or alot of people make friends with midshipmen from the local area and can spend some time with them.
 
I suggest waiting as long as you can before buying the tickets. It may cost more, but it is cheaper than having useless tickets and having to buy new ones. Plebe exams are carefully spaced out, so they will have one the last day. We usually book our daughter on a flight out of JFK that leaves at 7:25 p.m. It is an international flight, so she has to check in earlier. She discovered that on a Friday in late afternoon, public transportation to JFK is not only cheaper, it is faster than a taxi.

I'd book the return to arrive more than 2 hours early. They don't want to be cutting it close AT ALL. When they have to be back at 6 p.m., they usually have to be somewhere, like at a PKT, at 6 p.m. You want to allow at least 3 hours from flight arrival to get to KP. They will have phone numbers to contact if they are delayed.

In travel, as with all things SA-related, the motto is semper gumby. We didn't buy our daughter's ticket home for the summer until May. We weren't 100% sure she'd actually be using the ticket until June. There was a chance she'd be tapped for DI at the last moment. Instead she came home and got her wisdom teeth removed. She did get released a day early. She went to the airport in uniform and was able to get her ticket changed. It cost her $250, but was worth it to her to get home sooner. Apparently she has some charm because she paid less for her international flight than most mids did changing domestic flights. Go figure! She goes out to sea on A-split (November), so we don't expect her to be able to visit home at all next year. So I guess it was worth it to me as well. :wink:
 
breaks

Hi, would like some information please. My son has already said that he will not be coming home for every break (minus the biggies), we live in a rural area and the flights/drive is a doosie.

Am I understanding the post correct that they are not allowed in the dorms during the break weeks. I keep going back to An Officer and a Gentleman with Zak Mayo having no home to go back too.

Any info from an upperclass midshipman would be appreciated, yikes now I have something else to worry about. My son is in first company.

Thanks again for the photos, I don't know how to express how much they truly do mean to parents.
 
Proud Mom: Plebe year he will get Fall, Christmas and Spring breaks (Thanksgiving is 4 days). If he does not come home he will most likely go to a shipmates home (one who is close enough to drive) for the break. Most of the time the barracks are closed during breaks, but as 2001 said, special accommodations can be made for students staying on campus.

Word of warning, do not buy tickets far in advance. I know of one parent who spent over $1000 on all the tickets for all the breaks, and her son ended up getting setback and was not able to use the tickets.
 
For long breaks (longer than three day weekends) the dorms will usually be closed and other accomodations will be needed. I would have to ask a more recent midshipmen about the fall/spring breaks because there are usually a number of people who have to stay for athletics or other reasons.
 
To all of the parents who live far away. My son is also a 2013 candidate plebe and he is in 1st company, I think. My husband and I are planning on becoming sponsors. So we will help as many plebes as we can accommodate. We live about one hour away give or take traffic on all of our crazy bridges. Over the summer I was fortunate to meet sponsors from Long Island, and if it makes you feel any better they called last night to see how we were doing and their son was out to sea and they had a third classman with them over the weekend waiting to go out to sea. The people we have met are amazing!You will never find a better support group.
 
Ditto on that. We are also in NJ and I'm sure we'll have lots of kids from out of town coming home with our daughter (Also in 1st CO) over breaks and on weekends when the kids that live a long distance can't get home. Don't worry too much. He'll have somewhere to go with people that will make him feel right at home.
 
We live in CT about 1 hour away, so our house will be open also. I thought I lived to far to be an official sponsor. Our son is in 4th Company
 
Also, weekends are good study time. You don't want your child leaving campus too much because the weekends are a time to catch up on work and study for upcoming tests, etc.
 
My son is in 4th company. We live in Connecticut about an hour from the school. We are planning and hoping to host any friends who need a place to stay during breaks they cannot get home.
 
breaks

Thank you so much for the information. I will officially cross that worry off my list. Your hospitality is so appreciated. I wish now that we lived closer so that we may offer a weekend or a break.

My son had talked of the "broadening" ?? club where they do weekend tourist trips and checking into getting a sponsor family. He is leaving behind a best bud (Nathan) so we have always told him to find his new Nathan at the Academy - sound like he will be finding lots of new buds. :thumb:
 
1st co

My son is also in 1st Co. We live in PA and are 3 miles from the Lancaster train station. He is planning to take the train home and back for each of his breaks. The tix is under $100. Although we live too far to be sponsors, we have told him that he is welcome to bring home those from farther distances. We have plenty of beds and floor space if needed. His room will actually be clean and livable by then. :shake: There are 5 PC or upperclassmen that will be traveling home to our immediate area~the more the merrier!

Also, one of the Moms of a 1st CO started a facebook page for 1st Co parents. USMMA2013FirstCompany~ (I still need to sign up) hopefully as parents we can 'meet' so that we can 'meet' at PPW. There is also USMMA Moms & Dads too. If you are unable to come to PPW, let us know so we can make sure your kiddo is included.
 
What is PPW? Also, thanks for all of the hospitality I am reading. My son (first company) is from Richmond VA, not sure how often he will be stuck up there. (Especially for short breaks)
 
Parent's Weekend not PPW

Swimmama, PPW is a usna term. Plebe Parent's Weekend, At Kings Point it's parent's weekend because it's for the entire regiment. Acceptance day is the ceremony for the plebe class during parent's weekend.:thumb:
 
He is leaving behind a best bud (Nathan) so we have always told him to find his new Nathan at the Academy - sound like he will be finding lots of new buds. :thumb:[/QUOTE]
He now has 290 "Nathans" he just hasn't met them all yet. Of course some will be more "Nathan" than others but the experience of KP will bond them like nothing else.
 
He is leaving behind a best bud (Nathan) so we have always told him to find his new Nathan at the Academy - sound like he will be finding lots of new buds. :thumb:
He now has about 290 "Nathans" he just hasn't met them all yet. Of course some will be more "Nathan" than others but KP bonds these kids like nothing else.
 
The families who serve as sponsors whether official or unofficial ROCK!! My KPer has been on the receiving end of lots of hospitality. As a parent, I am so grateful for the network of parents I have met. snif, I think it's time for a group hug!
 
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