I'm trying to go to my friends graduation from the Marines, help me out!
 

Hi everyone. I'm trying to see my friend graduate from Marine bootcamp. He graduates on October 1st, we are trying to leave Wednesday or Thursday, the 29th or 30th and come back on the first.

I would be going with his girlfriend there, and him and girlfriend back. I can get a military discount on the hotel and on my plane ticket, if that makes anything cheaper.

The best I seem to be able to find right now is a price of about 320 for me and his girl to go there and stay Thursday then come back Friday. We live in Detroit, his bootcamp is in Parris Island South Carolina. I think Charleston and Savannah are the nearest major airports.

Can anyone help me find a cheaper deal? Thanks for your help everyone!

Is that price for the plane? Or hotel rooms?

Both, actually. I've been trying to major tavel sites and that is the best I've found, but I'm thinking there has got to be something better, especially with my discount on a hotel.

Well as far as hotels and such, try staying a little outside of the city. Sometimes if you don't mind staying a half an hour or so outside of the city the hotel prices won't be as bad.

Will you be renting a car as well?

If you are, try different airports in the area you're going. You might find better deals that way.

www.orbitz.com
www.hotels.com
www.priceline.com
www.expedia.com

Those are pretty well known cheapish ticket areas. Look around and price what you're looking for.

Good luck :)

Orbitz has one for 297 per person on Northwest/United combo...
with a stopover in DC from Detroit to Charleston.

http://www.orbitz.com/App/ViewFlight...ts?z=gyxl&r=19


Was the 320 for both of you?

Savannah and Charleston are both pretty small airports, so you mght end up limited to the regional jets - if you can driver further out, you can end up with a bigger airport that Southwest, ATA, Air Tran, and the other discount carriers will fly into.

For hotel rates, the military rate isn't always the cheapest rate, sometimes the AAA rate is better, or the hotel site will have some web special going on.

I don't really have any useful travel information, but have fun at the graduation ceremony. It takes a hell of a lot to get through boot camp from what I hear, and I'm anxiously looking forward to the day when I can - God willing - also graduate from Parris Island.

I don't have any useful travel help either. But my son's Marine Corps boot camp graduation was the most awesome thing I have ever seen.

And someone was right about the military discount. We bought our son's plane tickets back home for his leave after boot cheaper than he could through SATO in San Diego. Also when we were shopping around for tickets to his graduation, we found tickets on Delta to be quite high one week and then the next they were only $15 dollars more than Southwest. Keep checking often for specials. Huh... I guess I did have a little to offer.

Shake that Devil's hand for me.

Good luck finding anyplace of reasonable rates to stay in Charleston. Look in some of the surrounding municipalities--North Charleston, Mount Pleasant, John's Island.