2023-24 Student Travel
It is important that we know how our students are traveling to and from campus. A travel form is required for every student including those who live relatively close to campus and will be traveling by car.
Please contact Student Travel Coordinator Erzi Willems at ewillems@cardigan.org or travel@cardigan.org with questions about student travel.
Important Dates and Travel Information
It is important that we know how our students are traveling to and from campus. A travel form is required for every student including those who live relatively close to campus and will be traveling by car.
October 2023
- Oct. 20: Fall Family Weekend Begins & Cardigan's Annual Auction
- Oct. 21: Fall Family Weekend Ends / Fall Long Weekend Begins
A full schedule for Fall Family Weekend will be released in the fall. Students may depart for Fall Long Weekend after their last athletic commitment on Saturday, October 21. The Cardigan Boston bus is NOT available for departure from campus for Fall Long Weekend but IS available for returning to campus on Wednesday, October 25.
- Oct. 25: Fall Long Weekend ends for Grades 6-8: All sixth, seventh, and eighth-grade students are expected back on campus between 5:00 and 9:00 p.m.
- Oct. 27: Students in Grade 9 due back on campus: This extended long weekend is intended to facilitate secondary school visits. All ninth graders are expected back on campus before their athletic commitments. The CMS Boston Bus is NOT available on October 27.
Fall Long Weekend Homestay Option for International Students
If your son is an international student and you are not able to attend this family weekend, and your family does not have friends or family in the area, you may arrange for a homestay with a local Cardigan family. To request a homestay for your son, please make arrangements as soon as possible by completing the Fall Travel Form or by emailing your request to ewillems@cardigan.org or travel@cardigan.org.
*To volunteer as a host for an international student, please send an email to Erzi, or complete the Fall Travel form where you can opt in.
November 2023
- Nov. 18: Students are free to depart campus for Thanksgiving Recess after their last commitment. Please check your son’s sports schedule to determine the time he is free to leave.
- Nov 19: All students depart campus by 8:00 a.m. The CMS Boston Bus is available for students on flights scheduled to depart out of Logan airport between 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Students may also be picked up at Logan airport by a family member or adult designated by the family and known to the student.
- Nov. 27: Students Return. All sixth, seventh, and eighth graders are expected to arrive on campus between 5:00 and 9:00 p.m. Ninth graders not visiting secondary schools are expected to return at this same time.
- Nov 30: Grade 9 Students Return. All ninth graders are expected to arrive on campus before 9:00 p.m. This optional extended long weekend for ninth graders is intended only to facilitate secondary school visits and must be approved by the Secondary School Counseling office.
International Student Trip Option for Thanksgiving Recess
If your son is an international student and is unable to travel home during the Thanksgiving recess, a Cardigan-organized trip may be a good alternative. To sign up, please complete the Thanksgiving Travel Form or email ewillems@cardigan.org or travel@cardigan.org.
*Reservations are due by October 20. This trip fills up quickly, so don’t delay!
**Homestays are NOT available during Thanksgiving Recess.
December 2023
Dec 20: Students may depart campus for Winter Vacation after their last commitment. Please check your son’s athletic commitments to determine what time he may depart.
Dec 21: Official start of Winter Vacation. All students must depart campus by 8:00 a.m. CMS Boston Bus is available. Homestays are NOT available during Winter Break.
January 2024
Jan 8, 2024: All students are expected to return to campus between 5:00 and 9:00 p.m. CMS Boston Bus is available.
Travel Forms
Convenient forms are used for parents to provide important information about student travel to and from Cardigan Mountain School. These forms will be available on the Parent Resources page in advance of each travel date. We ask that ALL families, including local families, complete these forms. Each form should be received by our Student Travel Coordinator well before the travel date.
Student Travel Coordination
If ground transportation to and from Cardigan is not arranged by our travel coordinator, please include a name and phone number for the person responsible for driving your son on the Travel Form if that person is not a parent or legal guardian.
Boston Bus
Cardigan faculty chaperoned transportation is available to and from Logan Airport on the morning of the first official day of a major break and in the afternoon of the official return date of all breaks. The cost is $90 per student, per trip. Dates and hours of availability are listed further below.
If you would like to reserve a seat for your son on the Boston Bus at the start or end of a major school break to or from Logan Airport, you must always complete a travel form for your son and send an email to Student Travel Coordinator Erzi Willems at ewillems@cardigan.org with details of your son's travel plan, including a copy of his e-ticket if he is flying in or out.
If at any point you have a question regarding your son's departure or return from campus, or regarding his passport, Visa, or I20 status while he is with us, please email Student Travel Coordinator Erzi Willems at ewillems@cardigan.org.
Boston Bus Schedule for 2023-24 Academic Year
Arriving at Cardigan: Students who ride the Cardigan-chaperoned Boston Bus from Logan Airport to campus should be on flights scheduled to land between the hours of 12:00-4:00 p.m. on the following dates only:
- Wednesday, September 6, 2023 (Registration for 9th graders)
- Friday, September 8, 2023 (Registration for students in grades 6-8)
- Wednesday, October 25, 2023 (no bus available for 9th graders returning on Friday, October 28, but private cars can be arranged)
- Monday, November 27, 2023
- Monday, January 8, 2024
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024
- Monday, March 25, 2024
Departing from Cardigan: Students who will ride the Cardigan chaperoned Boston Bus from campus to Logan Airport at the beginning of a major break, should depart on flights scheduled to leave between 11:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. on the following dates only:
- Sunday, November 19, 2023
- Thursday, December 21, 2023
- Sunday, March 3, 2024
- Friday, May 24, 2024
Please note the following:
- If your student does not ride the Cardigan bus to Logan Airport, he is free to depart campus by car the afternoon prior to the official start of the break.
- Reservations and flight details are required in order to reserve a seat for our student on the Cardigan bus. Please complete a corresponding travel form and/or email Student Travel Coordinator Erzi Willems.
- A one-way trip on the Cardigan bus to Logan Airport costs $90-100. This will be charged to your student’s account after the trip is done.
- Students NOT flying in to return to campus, should arrive at campus between 5:00-9:00 p.m. after a major break.
Any flights outside of these windows will require additional attention, most likely in the form of hiring a private car service. Please email the Student Travel Coordinator Erzi Willems at ewillems@cardigan.org with any questions.
If your son is not flying out of Logan Airport, but you would like him to ride the bus to Logan Airport (where you will meet him) please complete the Travel Form. This way you can reserve a seat on the bus for your son. Drop-off time and location at Logan Airport will be determined a few days before travel, and the name and phone number of a pick-up person will be required. A reservation is needed to hold a seat for your son, so please complete the Travel Form as soon as possible.
For return to campus, arrangements can be made to meet you and your son in Logan Airport, so he can ride the bus back with us. A reservation is needed to hold a seat for your son, so please complete a travel form with your request as soon as possible and to send an email to Student Travel Coordinator Erzi Willems at ewillems@cardigan.org, who will schedule the time and location within Logan Airport.
International Families
Our travel coordinator is also one of our DSOs (Designated School Official) for SEVIS. If you have questions or concerns regarding your son’s passport, Visa, or F1 status, please feel free to reach out. More helpful information can be found on the Study in the States website.
Unaccompanied Minor Service (UMS)
What is it? Who needs it? It depends on your child’s airline! This service needs to be requested by a parent or guardian upon booking the ticket. Call the airline to confirm their unaccompanied minor policy prior to making a reservation. The policies are often not clear or entirely up-to-date online and there may be exceptions or differences in the policy depending on the arrival and departure location. Additionally, some airlines require you to make reservations for unaccompanied minors over the phone.
You will need to pay for, complete, and sign a UMS booking form, naming the responsible adult who will deliver the child to the airline staff on departure and also naming the adult who will collect the child at their arrival destination. It is essential that this information is accurate and the adults have official ID to show the airline staff. The airline staff may refuse to allow the child on the flight or release the child into the care of the adult on arrival at their destination if they do not have an acceptable ID. Typically Cardigan chaperone information is available two days before flying. Always check with the airline that your son is flying with for their unaccompanied minor age rules. Airline rules vary.
Please don’t forget to inform the Travel Coordinator of your son’s UM status (yes or no choice on the travel form). If he is an Unaccompanied Minor, it is extremely important that information about the person receiving your son upon landing is exchanged.
Travel Money
If your son will be flying back and forth on his own during our breaks, please consider sending him with a prepaid VISA card. This will provide him with the ability to pay for any airline luggage charges, Unaccompanied Minor charges, and will provide him with the ability to pay for food or drinks in the airport. Please instruct your son to hand in this card with his travel documents and/or phone, so you can be sure it is safe and the balance on the card remains until it is time for him to travel.
Travel Dress
All students using ground transportation to and from school arranged by Cardigan must be in travel dress, which is Buffet Dress appropriate for the season and weather.