Sarah M. – Travel To and From Peoria

03/09/2020 1:03 AM

The travel days to and from school are always long! There are no direct flights between Peoria and Los Angeles so I either have to drive from O’hare to Peoria and back or take connecting flights through different states. The first few times I thought the travel aspect of going to college out of state was super fun. Unfortunately, as time has progressed I have become a little bit less excited about the long days and having to fit all of my stuff in a couple of suitcases for the year. However, the opportunity to fly back and forth multiple times a year through different states/ airports has made me an expert on navigating through airports, frantically- fast walking through terminals, and finding the best smoothies at airports across the country. While these days can be lonnnnng, I really appreciate the unique aspect and travel experience I’ve gotten over the four years. Flying back to Peoria for the spring semester may be my last time I ever have to make that trip since I am going to drive back after graduation to get my car back in California. The trip is over 30 hours long! It seems like it would be awful but I really enjoy road trips and last time my mom and I split it over a few days which made it super manageable.

For any prospective out of state students who will need to travel by plane to get to Bradley, my advice is: watch the weather, fly with friends, pack lightly, and try to fly out of O’hare when possible! I have spent many hours of my life stuck at airports because my flights were delayed/ canceled due to weather. I try to make sure my connecting flights during the winter are coming from states that are a little bit warmer! If you know friends from your same state/area try to coordinate flying at the same time. The few times I’ve been able to travel with friends, the days go so much quicker and are way more enjoyable. Since flying makes you very limited on space, if you’re an incoming freshman I would recommend buying anything you might need for the winter/dorm room etc. when you get to school! That makes your traveling a lot lighter plus Peoria has some amazing Target/Walmart stores so I am sure you’ll find anything you need. I was able to store a lot of my stuff in Peoria over the summers as well. Finally, if you have any friends who live in the Chicago area, finding a ride to O’hare makes traveling a whole lot cheaper. I try to look for flights out of O’hare whenever possible and since it’s a much bigger airport than Peoria I am able to fly directly into LAX. At Bradley, we have a Peoria Charter that makes multiple trips a day between Peoria and O’hare so it’s very possible to get to the airport.