Wanderlust World Wanderlust World Traveling to Parris Island to watch a U.S. Marine graduate from boot camp is, for most families, a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Parris Island can be warm and humid in the summer and rather wet in winter, but with some careful planning you can guarantee you'll have an enjoyable trip.
Parris Island is located in Beaufort, South Carolina. It is located about an hour northeast of Savannah Airport in Georgia. You can fly into Hilton Head Island if you prefer, but fares are higher and flights are less frequent.
Rent a car at the airport so you can travel to your hotel and to the base for the graduation. Make sure to rent the car when you purchase your flight. Many people rent cars to attend graduation and if you forget to rent one in advance, you may find none are available.
There are several hotels in Beaufort (see resources), and they occasionally offer discounts to military families. Make sure you ask for those discounts when you make your reservations.
If the rooms in Beaufort are booked up, you can stay in Bluffton or in Hilton Head Island. This will put you 30 minutes to an hour from the base.
It is possible to stay on base instead of in an hotel, but these arrangements must be made far in advance because the number of families the base can accommodate is relatively small. The base allows families to start making these reservations about 15 days before graduation. Once the reservation lines are opened up, it usually takes less than a day before all on-base accommodations are filled. Even if you plan to stay on base, make sure you make hotel reservations in Beaufort as well, just in case. You can let the Beaufort rooms go if your family is lucky enough to stay on base.
A journey to Parris Island, and participating in graduation events, requires a great deal of walking around. You need very comfortable shoes in order to enjoy the day. Children may need strollers, and wheelchairs are an absolute requirement for those who cannot walk long distances.
Check the weather forecast a couple of days before you go to Parris Island. In the summer it is hot and humid, sometimes dangerously so. In the winter it can get terribly cold. In spring and fall the weather may vary quite a bit in the course of just a few days. Make sure that you wear casual, comfortable clothes that will protect you from the elements.
Rain or shine you may want to take an umbrella, and you will need bottled water. Both are handy no matter what the weather is like .