How many days for IDOC?

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ProudDad2022

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My DS is currently a foundation student and if all goes well, will be entering the Academy for the class of 2023 on June 27th. The wife and I are trying to figure out travel plans from the west coast. I'm thinking:
Travel on the 25h, goof off on the 26th, idoc on the 27th, and maybe stay an extra day on the 28th and leave on the 29th. Does that sound about "typical"?
 
A goof-off day before Induction Day, or I-Day, is good. You and your Plebe To Be will be among hundreds walking around DTA (downtown Annapolis), easily identified. Or go into DC for a museum run. No need to stick around the day after I-Day, unless you’re doing tourist stuff in DC. Your plebe will be totally immersed once those doors slam shut behind him, and you’ll be exhausted physically and emotionally after a long day on your feet on I-Day.

There are many threads involving suggestions for I-Day, from hotels, things to do, where to eat, typical schedule, the heat, what to wear, how to get around, in this forum. Include “Induction Day” or “I-Day” in your Search string.

 
Suggest you take a couple days off the back end and add them to the front end. There’ll be a lot of swirling emotions before I-Day — nervousness, anticipation, sadness, so on — that a few extra days as a family will help settle. Take it easy, with a loose schedule. Say a day on the Yard and DTA, a day in DC, a day doing something else. Don’t try to do too much, but just enjoy each other and the ambience. And make sure your plebe eats well, hydrates and gets plenty of sleep. Things get wild and wooly quickly for them once you say goodbye.
 
This one is Admissions-produced, a bit slicker. Still ends with the plebes disappearing into Bancroft and those big doors banging shut. Time for parents to go have a restorative beverage...

 
We did the beach! Thanks for the recommendations. It was so awesome. A really fun family day. And no jellyfish.
 
justdoit19 said:
We did the beach! Thanks for the recommendations. It was so awesome. A really fun family day. And no jellyfish.
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I figured you would pop up. I thought that was a brilliant thing to do.
 
We did the entire week before I-Day in the Wash. D.C. area, then moved hotels to Annapolis 2 days before.
It was a great last family vacation. He was relaxed and refreshed when he reported to Alumni Hall.
 
Capt MJ said:
One family last year went over to a beach park in DE, had a great family day.
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Hey, I'm from Delaware! Can confirm our beaches are amazing. Probably our only tourist attraction...

If you're into history, civil war era, I recommend giving Fort Delaware a stop.
 
I’d ask your DS what he wants. Last June, we drove from the Midwest without any of the brothers. Arrived in Annapolis late on Tuesday evening. Wednesday we went to the Yard, walked around and took some pictures. My DS was very reserved, especially on Wednesday night. Induction Day starts early so the only advice that I’ll give is to relax (if possible) and don’t add any unneeded stress.

Congrats to your DS and family!
 
@DoubledeuceDad brings up a good point about Wednesday night, a.k.a. I-Day Eve. Your plebe-to-be is unlikely to sleep well, especially if their report time is early. It’s just nervous energy. So make sure they get a very good night’s sleep on Tuesday night. It’s advice that’s often given to novice marathoners: sleep well two nights before, because you won’t sleep well the night before.
 
Your plans are exactly the same as what we did (DS is a plebe class of 2022). The timing was just perfect for us. Just enough to relax, but not too much time for him to get over anxious. The Midstore was perfect to visit on Tuesday when we arrived because there were hardly any other families there yet. We spent Iday eve in DC doing touristy things for a few hours in the morning. The mood of our DS certainly started to get a bit more somber as Wednesday afternoon started to turn into Wednesday evening. Looking back, I'm not positive that he was more anxious than mom and dad. We rented a really nice home about 100 yards from Gate #3. Iday turned out to be a bit more stressful for him than he had anticipated due to being held up in Alumni Hall for four extra hours because of unforeseen medical reasons. Needless to say, he made it through. He regretted not eating a better breakfast and happily wolfed down the sub we brought for him before the march into Bancroft. Definitely an emotional day for all of us. Immediately after the doors slammed shut, we walked back to our house, kicked off the shoes, opened some cold beers, and ordered pizza. As we drank our beers, I couldn't help to feel a bit guilty about enjoying the comfort of AC and comfortable furniture. We were ready to go home. We flew out of BWI midmorning on Friday. Good luck and don't forget to take photos on Iday!
 
My DD slept just a few hours the night before. We insisted on a high-protein breakfast before her 6:15 report time. We rented a house that, according to GoogleMaps, was a 24-minute walk away. We did it in less than 20 because DD was walking so fast. Again, nervous energy. Once Mother B’s doors slammed shut, we wanted nothing more than a good takeout meal, the comforts of AC and the mindless experience of TV. It was a very long day, and we weren’t even plebes!
 
I thought that driving to Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium was a pretty sweet deal.
Park for $5.00 and take the bus through Gate 8 right to Alumni Hall.

When we were ready to leave - we could have taken the bus back - but we just walked the mile to the stadium. We went back to the hotel for a few hours and hung out by the pool and had a cocktail or three. Then we drove back and parked at the stadium again, and took the bus. We talked to the gal at the guard shack before we drove out (the first time) and she gave us a secret code so when we got back, we didn't have to pay another five bucks. Pretty fun day for us, anyway. ;)
 
CANNOT stress how HOT it was...and humid. So hot and humid. To the point of needing to change clothes. Looking back, I don’t know how the plebes got through that day. Must be adrenaline.

My plebe got held up somewhere during the day and missed lunch. He also wasn’t into his room yet when we saw him after taking his oath. Remember to bring food/drinks for them!! And DONT plan on “grabbing something” at the mid store for them to eat before seeing them (around 6?). The line was 20 blocks long (slight exaggeration...but not much!). Our idea was to grab a cold drink at the mid store right before we saw him. Apparently that’s a very popular idea [emoji58]. But our big beefy football player was very calorically challenged by 6 pm. Poor guy. It’s all just a memory now and everyone survives.

Boy was it HOT/HUMID!!
 
justdoit19 said:
CANNOT stress how HOT it was...and humid. So hot and humid. To the point of needing to change clothes. Looking back, I don’t know how the plebes got through that day. Must be adrenaline.

My plebe got held up somewhere during the day and missed lunch. He also wasn’t into his room yet when we saw him after taking his oath. Remember to bring food/drinks for them!! And DONT plan on “grabbing something” at the mid store for them to eat before seeing them (around 6?). The line was 20 blocks long (slight exaggeration...but not much!). Our idea was to grab a cold drink at the mid store right before we saw him. Apparently that’s a very popular idea [emoji58]. But our big beefy football player was very calorically challenged by 6 pm. Poor guy. It’s all just a memory now and everyone survives.

Boy was it HOT/HUMID!!
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X2 on the heat and humidity! We anticipated that, it's part of the reason we wanted a place close to the yard. We changed a couple of times that day. My 70 year old father walked back to the house right before the group oath and changed into his full army uniform for the personal oath he performed with my DS. Boy, was he warm, but said he'd do it all again.
 
You can also get a sandwich at dry dock before they close. We did that for my son on Iday. And yes it is super hot!! We had to change to see the oath due to where our seats were and I was actually happy to peel those clothes off. Lots of open buildings to change in. Book a room early. Like February!
 
I know I saw this somewhere here, but I wanted to know when Plebes Parents Weekend will "likely" be next summer (class of 2023)
 
Count six weeks from I-Day. Starts the next day, Friday-Sunday.
 
Wait till you feel the heat at Graduation. Sitting there for a long time and waiting for your son/daughter to walk up the ramps in Whites or Marine Blues. Try to find some shade in the Stadium under the overhangs. For I-Day bring a small tablecloth for them to sit on Stribling grass with drink and something to eat will not eat the provided lunch since they have been stressed all day. Bring a small cooler with drink and sandwich and then you don't have to wait in line.
,
 
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