Travel for Championship Qualifying Teams

[Alan Anderson]

It's not completely insane to plan to go to Nationals even if you don't qualify to compete.

[Ricky Q.]

We qualified in the second-last week of regionals last year by winning Midwest. We were able to get package deals through THC still at a hotel not too far away and everyone was on the same floor.

It was impossible to find flights without splitting our team of about 40 into 5 or 6 groups, and then the prices were outrageous. We ended up chartering a bus.

We also managed to raise all the funds for this from sponsors in two weeks, our community is great.

All the pre-planning we had done for nationals last year was to raise as much as possible, and go crazy with arrangements at the end.

[KathieK]

Check out the Travel Tips in the White Papers for some ideas...

If flying from Rochester is expensive, look into alternate airports. If you use a bus to get to your hotel from the airport, it will cost around $600. The MARTA will save you money but may not be convenient if you have a lot of luggage.

Consider traveling with only a skeletal crew if you qualify at the last minute - but make that decision NOW. A lot of teams do that.