For the cost of dinner and a movie, the University Student Union’s (USU’s) Weekend Warrior trips give Stan State students the opportunity to simply hop on a bus and hit the slopes, take a walk along the beach or tour an eerie historical destination.
This semester’s destinations include Dodge Ridge, the Winchester Mystery House, Alcatraz and the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Tickets to Dodge Ridge will cost $55; however, all other trips cost $35.
The cost of attending a Weekend Warrior trip is approximately half that of planning the same trip alone, according to USU. In fact, tickets to this semester’s locations range from $40 to $74 if bought alone. With ticket prices including transportation, Weekend Warrior offers both convenience and cost effectiveness.
Past attendees agree that catching a bus was much more convenient than planning the logistics of transportation.
“It was a lot better than having to drive myself,” Jeune Shelton (senior, Liberal Studies), who attended an Imagine Dragons concert through Weekend Warrior last semester, said. “I got to just kind of hang out and relax instead of driving.”
Alberto Flores (senior, Biological Science) says that snacks and a movie were provided on his bus ride to Great America’s Halloween Haunt last October.
“It coincided with my wife’s birthday, so we decided to go together. I thought it was really neat,” he said.
Both students said that they would attend another Weekend Warrior trip if they were interested in the offerings.
Complaints from Shelton and Flores about last semester’s trips were scarce.
“You pretty much get the ride there, and you get the ticket at a discount. It’s not like the school is babysitting you the entire time, so I don’t think there’s really much to improve on,” Shelton said.
Flores agreed, indicating that “on ASI’s end of it, it was good.”
Shelton suggests that future trips should be planned on more convenient dates for students, since her own trip was on a Tuesday.
“A weekend, or a Friday, even, would be more convenient for everyone,” she said. “I think more students would sign up if it was on a weekend.”
This semester’s trip to Alcatraz is on a Thursday; all other trips are planned for Fridays and Saturdays.
As for future trips, students should stay tuned. Shelton suggests a trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium or a sporting event.
“I would enjoy going to a game, like a football game,” she said.
USU announces upcoming trips around the start of each semester. Signups for Dodge Ridge began Feb. 5 and are at the ASI/USU front desk in Housing, Suite 122.
