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Getting to Charlottesville

Flying

Located just eight miles from the University, and an approximate 20-minute drive, Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport (CHO) offers numerous daily non-stop flights to and from Charlotte, Philadelphia, New York/LaGuardia, Washington/Dulles, Chicago/O’Hare and Atlanta. It is served by United, Delta, and American Airlines. Or, you might choose to fly into one of the following airports for possible cost savings, although keep in mind, traffic may add time to your drive time:

• Washington Dulles Airport (IAD): about a 2.25-hour drive
• Reagan National (DCA) Airport: about a 2.5-hour drive
• Richmond (RIC): about a 1.5-hour drive

Taking the train or bus

If you’re traveling by train, the Charlottesville Amtrak Station is located at 810 West Main Street, Charlottesville, VA 22903. If you’re traveling by bus, the Greyhound Bus Terminal is located at 310 West Main Street. Both are about 2.5 miles from Darden.

Driving

To Darden: Detailed driving instructions to the Darden Business School can be found on the Darden website. You may also enter 10 Duffy Boulevard, Charlottesville, VA 22903 into your GPS.

To Hotel: For detailed driving directions and lodging information, read the info related to your specific class dates.

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Transportation to Hotel and Parking

Getting Around Charlottesville

Depending upon your time of arrival, you may not always find available taxis waiting at the airport. You may want to consider making arrangements in advance. An estimated taxi fare is approximately $30 to the hotel.

• Yellow Cab of Charlottesville is a contracted provider of ground transportation for the Charlottesville Albemarle Airport Authority. Phone: 434-295-4131, Email: info@cvilletaxi.com.
• Curb App works on both iPhone or Android. Text your location and requested pick-up time, and receive a confirmation with standard data rates applying.
• Rental cars available in the area include Avis, Hertz, National, Budget, and Enterprise. Advance reservations are highly recommended.
• Uber or Lyft services are generally available should you choose to download the app and utilize at your own risk.

Parking

Parking is free at the hotel and no parking pass is required.

Parking is free at Darden; however, to avoid being ticketed or towed, you will need to utilize the parking pass provided at hotel check-in OR by Shirley. Please place this on your dash or hang it from your mirror with the dates facing out, when parking in the Business School parking garage.

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Hotel Details

Overview

We provide single-occupancy sleeping rooms, with all the amenities of a first class hotel room. Participants dine together in an executive dining room. Program tuition covers the costs of accommodations from the first night of the program to that last day  of the program (checking out that day).

Checking In

The official check-in time for your room is 3:00 pm; however, the staff at the hotel will try to accommodate early arrivals to the best of their ability. If your room is not ready before the session begins, you can leave your luggage at the hotel or in your car and check in when class is finished. You will be asked for a credit card upon check-in, for your incidentals only.

Checking Out

Check-out is 12 PM, so you will need to check out of the hotel before you leave for class on your last day and store your luggage. Details will be provided in class.

Early Arrivals and/or Late Departures

Some of you may prefer to arrive in Charlottesville early, or stay after the program, at your own expense. If so, please email Shirley Hamblet to make arrangements. (We will make all hotel reservations for you so that you are able to remain in the same room at the special group rate throughout your stay – and you can just pay upon arrival.)

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Schedule

Daily Schedule

Classes begin promptly at 8:15 am every morning and end between 5 and 5:30 pm. However, there are many required evening meals and events, which are noted on your agenda.

For your specific class schedule please refer to the materials we provided you.

Getting to Program Location

You may prefer to get yourself to and from Darden; however, a bus will be provided daily if you’d like to use it. A daily bus schedule will be provided in your class. The Darden School complex of buildings necessitates a fair amount of walking, so let Shirley know if you have special accessibility needs. We suggest that you wear comfortable shoes.

Should you miss any scheduled departures, you will be responsible for your own transportation and on-time arrival.

Meeting Arrival Time on Day One

We will meet in the Darden Business School, just inside Saunders Hall, at 1:45 pm on Day 1. (Saunders is the brick building with pillars and steps leading to the front door.) 

You can either get yourself there or you can catch the bus in the front of the hotel at 1:30 which will deliver you to the base of the steps leading to Saunders Hall. We will meet as group and proceed to the classroom together. Orientation will begin at 2:00 pm, followed by dinner and a final session. The day will end around 8:30 p.m.

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Additional Details

Guests

Social events are an integral and valuable component of the learning experience, and you are encouraged to network with your fellow attendees. You will also have homework and evening events, making it difficult for you to share time with accompanying personal guests. We would encourage you to have them join you when the class ends and extend your stay to enjoy the area.

Cell Phones

Your time here is important, and a unique learning environment is developed and nurtured. A key ingredient to making this experience meaningful is the ability to divorce yourself entirely from the “workplace” and immerse yourself, as much as possible, in this positive, learning culture. Ask colleagues at the office to cover your daily workload. It can be most disruptive to have cell phones interrupting class and team sessions. If you must make a call or respond to an email, please do so during breaks or in the hallway – not in class. We appreciate your efforts, since we know this can be very challenging.

Dress

The dress code is casual (jeans, shorts, t-shirts) during all classes. The classroom can be cold or hot, so you might want to layer.

Meals

Most meals are included with the program fee. However, you are responsible for weekend meals and a few other meals. Please check the schedule you received after being accepted. Many of your meals will be in Darden School's executive dining facility, called the Abbott Dining Room. Please let Shirley Hamblet know if you have any special dietary needs.

Bad Weather

You will need to walk outside from the parking lot or bus drop-off to the classroom, so having an umbrella and/or appropriate gear for the weather would be wise.