Spring 2019
This information will assist you in creating your travel itinerary to Binghamton University. Once you have finalized your plans, please be sure to submit a complete “Arrival Details” to our office by December 10, 2018
- Please plan to arrive in Binghamton no later than mid-morning on Wednesday,
January 16th, as we will go for an informal (pay-your-own-way) early dinner at the Park Diner, a local American-style diner overlooking the Susquehanna River. The University-wide International Student Orientation begins at 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, August 17th. Undergraduate exchange students will be required to take the English placement exam given by the English Language Institute. The Exchange Welcome Breakfast and Orientation will be held on Friday, August 18th at 9:00 a.m. in UUW 324. - Please note that Exchange Students must arrive earlier than most students because of the exchange orientation activities. If you choose to live on campus, our office, the Office of International Education and Global Initiatives (IEGI), will get special permission for you to move in to your on-campus housing on August 13. You may get information from other offices giving you a later date to move in. Please disregard this! We will send you more housing information at a later date after you are admitted.
Binghamton is served by the Greater Binghamton Airport and the Greyhound and Coach USA/Shortline bus companies. Train service to Binghamton is not available.
Travel by air:
Delta is the only airline that services the Greater Binghamton Airport. All flights originate in Detroit, Michigan. For arrival schedules, visit the website of the Greater Binghamton Airport: www.flybgm.com.
Taxi service is available from the Binghamton Regional Airport to the University and will cost approximately $30.00 for a 10-15-minute trip from the airport to Binghamton University. Taxi drivers are usually waiting for passengers outside the terminal. If not, just go to the desk marked "Ground Transportation" inside the terminal, near Baggage Claim, or use the free phones nearby to call a taxi (the phones connect automatically).
Travel by bus:
Two bus lines service Binghamton: Greyhound and Coach USA/Shortline. Bus schedules change, so please check the Coach USA/Shortline or Greyhound web sites for the most recent schedule before you return your “Arrival Details” form to us. Schedules can be found for Shortline or Greyhound.
Unfortunately, the bus to Binghamton does not leave directly from any New York City
airports. You will need to travel from the airport to the Manhattan Port Authority
Bus Terminal by shuttle bus or train and subway. At La Guardia airport, you would
take the New York Airport Service shuttle bus. If you arrive at Newark, you will take
the
Newark Liberty Airport Express shuttle bus. These services depart from the airports
approximately every thirty (30) minutes. Upon arrival at the airport, go to any Port
Authority Ground Transportation Desk and request a ticket to the Port Authority Bus
Terminal. You will be booked on the next departure; reservations are not required.
If necessary, you may purchase a ticket from the driver. The cost is around $15. The
bus trip from the airport to the Port Authority will take between one hour and 1 ¾
hours. To be safe, then, you should allow yourself a full two hours to get from the
airport to the Port Authority Bus Terminal.
The easiest and fastest way to get from JFK to Port Authority Bus Terminal is to take the Air Train red line from the JFK terminal of your arrival (Terminal 7) to Jamaica Station (12 minutes), then transfer to the NYC subway E line, which goes to Port Authority Bus Terminal in about 20 minutes. The cost is approximately $5 for the Air Train. Air Trains leave JFK every 15 minutes after 8 p.m.
The bus ride from NYC to Binghamton will take approximately 3 ½ hours. The entire
trip from flight arrival to arrival in Binghamton can take as long as 6 hours (or
even longer). The cost of the airport shuttle and bus to Binghamton combined should
be around $70.
Taxis are usually waiting for passengers at the Greater Binghamton Transportation
Center (also called B.C. Junction). Should there not be any taxis immediately available,
there are pay phones outside the bus terminal. The cost for the 5-minute trip is about
$10.
Binghamton Area Taxi Companies
- A-1 Courtesy Cab 723-2000
- Broome Co. Dispatching 724-7545
- City Cab 722-2422
- Owl Taxicab Service 722-3447
- Yellow Cab 722-2322
The county buses (B.C. Transit) also originate at the Greater Binghamton Transportation Center (B.C. Junction). The #5 bus and the #15 bus terminate at Binghamton University. The fare is $2.00. Schedules can be found at: http://www.ridebctransit.com/transit/routes.
Note: price information for all of the above forms of travel are subject to change without notice. Please be sure to carry sufficient cash to adjust to changes in prices.
However you choose to arrive, please notify the Office of International Education and Global Initiatives if you encounter any changes in travel plans such as delays, cancellations, etc. The office phone number is 1-607-777-6823. We will monitor the phone messages even after hours. Or you can email us at intlexch@binghamton.edu
Housing upon arrival:
International exchange students will be able to move in to on-campus housing earlier than other students are allowed to move in. However, the Office of International Education and Global Initiatives (IEGI) must notify the Office of Residential Life of your arrival day and time in order for you to move in this early. Please be sure to complete the Arrival Details form with your travel details so we can obtain this permission for you for early move-in.
If you will be living on campus and must arrive in Binghamton before the earliest date we can arrange for you to move in, you may need to make arrangements for temporary housing in a local hotel until the residence halls open. If this is the case, you will need to make a hotel reservation as early as possible before your planned arrival as hotels tend to fill up quickly.
If you will be living off campus, you should make arrangements with your landlord and plan to arrive before the beginning of Orientation. Please note that Graduate Students may now apply for on-campus housing on a space-available basis. However, the cost will be significantly higher than most off-campus housing. Cost of room and board off campus varies considerably according to the type of accommodations and personal eating habits.
Undergraduates may also choose to live off campus, if they prefer, although on-campus living is a big part of the undergraduate experience at Binghamton. For a list of currently available apartments and rooms in private homes, check the Off-Campus College page at http://occ.binghamton.edu/. Also included on the OCC web site are sample rental contracts and other informational forms and brochures. The Office of International Education and Global Initiatives can also provide significant guidance and assistance in helping you to locate safe, convenient housing.
Upon your arrival:
In case of problems on campus (if you are locked out of your residence hall, are lost, etc.) contact the University Police Department at 777-2393 (from off-campus); and extension 7-2393 (from an on-campus line).
In case of emergency off-campus call 911.
Blue Light Emergency Telephones
Scattered around the Binghamton University Campus are sixty highly visible outdoor phones for emergency use which are connected directly to the University Police Dispatcher.
Binghamton University Office Contacts for International Exchange Students
Office of International Education and Global Initiatives (IEGI)
Old Champlain Hall (OH) Rm 240; tel.: 1-607-777-6823 or fax: 1-607-777-3609
Rachael Sebastian, Exchange Program Assistant (Assistance in the coordination of the
incoming exchange student program); intlexch@binghamton.edu
Ms. Susan B. Lewis, Associate Director for International Partnership Development
(Exchange Program Coordinator, admissions and academic advising coordination; assistance
with course registration; arrival and orientation organization; exchange student advisor
for purposes of internships, independent research, course overloads, etc.; communication
with partner universities); sblewis@binghamton.edu
International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS)
Old Champlain Hall, Rm. 142; tel.: 1-607-777-2510; fax: 1-607-777-4649
Contact isss@binghamton.edu for:
-Questions about your DS-2019
-Advising on enrollment, immigration, visa, travel, and support services
-State and Federal tax questions
Contact intl.insure@binghamton.edu for health insurance questions.
Contact Ms. Christina MacDavitt, program coordinator, at cmacdavitt@binghamton.edu for questions related to International Student Orientation.
