Bowl Game 101: How to plan a trip to see your team
— -- After that "Hail Mary" pass in the season finale, your alma mater secured one of the coveted 32 college football bowl game slots. You now need to get on the ball and tackle any travel/hotel accommodations to see your team – that is if tickets didn't already sell out.
How do you get started? Here, are some options …
School websites
While students are subjected to a lottery, most of the participating schools athletic departments or alumni associations have ticket/bowl packages available on their websites or through a main contact number. Virginia Tech's University travel website, offers different packages depending if you want to see the Hokies square off against the Kansas Jayhawks at the Orange Bowl on Jan. 3 in "Deluxe" or "Economy" style.
Ohio State's Office of Student Affairs is offering students, faculty, staff and parents the opportunity to purchase packages to watch their Buckeyes against LSU in the Allstate BCS National Championship. The OSU website promises "We'll take care of your travel, hotel, and game ticket details!" for the Jan. 7 event.
Sports-related travel websites
While the major travel websites such as Orbitz.com are of course offering travel/bowl packages, fans can also try more niche outlets catered to major sports events. Gotickets.com, Benchwarmersports.com, touchdownhotels.com and ballgametravel.com are vying to get any last-minute team loyalists.
Bowl websites
The official Tournament of Roses website, includes the general parade and Rose Bowl information as well as links to event travel packages advertising hotel accommodations and admission to the pre-game party / tailgate-type events on Jan. 1.
The Allstate Sugar Bowl official website, directs all Hawaii Rainbow and Georgia Bulldog fans to bigeasy.com, a collaborative effort to boost both the bowl and New Orleans tourism.
Call your own play
Then there's the old do-it-yourself method, organizing that road trip you and your friends have always talked about, or the triumph that comes from nabbing a super-low airfare.
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