This summer my oldest daughter and I are hitting the road to visit college campuses throughout the south east. While we live in Charlotte, NC, we are considering schools both in and out of state. There were just a few schools we considered that were farther than a day trip from home, among them is Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama. To make the most of the time we’d need to invest in a visit, I planned a multi-day road trip to hit Clemson University in South Carolina on our way down to visit Auburn with a pit stop in Atlanta to visit the Atalanta Botanic Gardens. I’m sharing all my tips and tricks and a peek inside the tour to help you and your student navigate a college tour of your own. But don’t miss my general college tour tips here, too! If you’re starting from the south side of Charlotte, NC like we did, plan for about 6 – 7 hours in the car if you drive there directly with minimal stops. The shortest route is to go through Atlanta but if you want to avoid the traffic or construction in that area, it is possible to go south to Columbia, SC, through August, GA, and then over to Auburn. However, if you want to see campus in person, take part in an information session with an admissions officer, and get a guided tour with a student guide, you’ll want to register for a campus visit before you go. Be sure to sign up with one of their open dates, you can find all the information you’ll need to register here. We did a Clemson – Atlanta – Auburn tour but you could easily plan a University of Tennessee – University of Alabama – Auburn University tour, too. Most schools offer both a morning and afternoon tour slot. We decided to arrive in Auburn the evening before, picked a first-thing-in-the-morning session, and then planned to head home after lunch time. This still gave us over 24 hours in Auburn to experience the quaint college town and get a good feel for campus. We selected the Hotel at Auburn University which is located directly across the street from campus and allowed us to leave our car for the duration of the stay and spend our entire visit on foot. I have too much to tell you about this fantastic hotel to squeeze it into this post, so if you’re curious you can read more about it at my review of The Hotel at Auburn University here. During our visit, we kept our car parked at the hotel and never had to move it. If you’re just visiting for the day, you’ll be asked to park at the Stadium Parking Deck (350 Duncan Dr.) on the top level only. There are designated visitor spaces that are marked with brown signs. Leave 10 minutes to walk from the parking area to the Quad Center where you’ll check in for the tour. Our day went as follows: The 30 minute information session with an admissions officer goes extremely quickly. We found it helpful to take pictures of the slides so that we could remember everything said later. There will be some time for questions before the session is over, but it might actually be more helpful to reach out to your assigned admissions officer after the visit for any follow up questions you may have. During our visit, we faced a gloriously sunny summer day with all the Alabama heat that comes with it. I strongly recommend bringing sunscreen and possibly a shady hat for your tour. The walk was relatively easy for the most part but there were some stairs involved. There is a spot on the website to request an accessibility-friendly tour when you register if that is a concern for your family. The walking tour lasted for about an hour and a half. Thankfully, our guide took us inside several of the buildings on campus where we could cool off in the air conditioning and get a peek at things like the student center and some of the major buildings. A highlight of the tour was heading up to the roof for a birds’ eye view of the Jordan-Hare stadium: She paused the tour to read the Auburn creed to us and shared her story of the generations of her family that have attended the school. The tour ends at the bookstore on campus, slightly centrally located so you’ll have the opportunity to explore the campus a bit more on your way back to parking. I wanted to share a special meal with my daughter somewhere just off campus since it was our first college tour together but it could make for a really interesting experience to eat like the students do right on campus. I ordered my favorite shrimp and grits, my daughters enjoyed the blackened chicken fettuccine and the spinach salad with strawberries. It was a relaxing and elegant meal to start our visit. Hamilton’s is the perfect restaurant for visiting parents to spoil their college students with an excellent meal. This adorable little shop on the corner of Magnolia Ave and College Street has been an Auburn tradition since 1896. Their delicious lemonade comes in a wide variety of flavors. Our tour guide said she made it a goal to sample every single one before graduation. This is the perfect icy treat to help you cool down after walking in the bright sunshine for your tour! Be sure to ask them for more information if this is of interest to you! We actually purchased a t-shirt for her to enjoy wearing between now and her final decision at one of the several spirit wear shops across the street from campus. They have tons and tons of awesome options for every fan. Even though you likely won’t know which house is “the one” yet, it is so fun to browse around at the merch. According to our tour guide, legend says if you step on the seal you won’t graduate in four years, you won’t find your true love at Auburn, and you’ll have seven generations of Alabama fans in your family. The horror. Hop on your car and drive out to see the medical school, swoop around to see the stadium up close, and peek at parts of campus you’ve missed. I’m saving all the campus pics in an album on my phone for easy grabbing when the time comes. NOTE: This was my daughter’s idea, not my own. If you think your child would feel way too much pressure with this, skip it! They don’t need any more stress placed on their shoulders. For us, there was just a simple feeling of excitement and potential and hope surrounding that pic. We know she’s an awesome kid who will land some place that is the right fit. Maybe that will be Virginia Tech, maybe not. If you have stopped at Toomers Corner for a frozen lemonade, go back and try another flavor! In that heat?? You’re going to need it. During our visit, we were impressed by the open, welcoming kindness we encountered from each and every person on campus and at the hotel where we stayed. We loved the school spirit, gorgeous campus, and memorable traditions like Hey Day and rolling Toomers Corners that would make being an Auburn student so special.
