Our PIR experiences and tips

[Heidi W.]

Hi Folks.  We were at our first PIR on January 8, 2016 and would like to share our experiences in hopes it will help out new Navy families.

We flew into O'hare on Thursday night.  The airport is big, but not too intimidating.  The person at the information desk pointed us in the right direction, and we found ourselves on a bus heading to the car rental area.  The folks at Alamo were very friendly and helpful, and we were on our way in no time at all.  Note: we didn't have any checked bags, so from landing to driving out of the parking lot took a total of about 30 to 45 minutes.  Our arrival was at 6:30pm on a Thursday, and the airport was not too busy.

Our drive was to Waukegan, and was an easy drive.  At about 7:00pm there was very little traffic, and the drive took around 45 minutes.  The toll was $1.90.  We stayed at the Courtyard Mariott in Waukegan, which was very nice and very clean.  Desk staff was friendly and full of tips and suggestions.  While checking in we put our name on the shuttle list for the ride to the PIR.  That was the best thing we did, more on that later.

For dinner that night we ate and Anastasia's, which is next door to the Courtyard.  Great food and great service.  Four of us ate, with a drink or two, for $55.

The next day we had a quick breakfast in the lobby, and were on the shuttle at about 6:30.  Tip..go on the early shuttles for the best seats at PIR.  When we saw the line of cars waiting to get in the gate, and then the shuttle van drove around all of those cars to bring us directly to the gate, we knew we made the right choice.  Total cost for the van ride is $3.00 per person each way...money well spent.  The van can hold six passengers, so there is room for your entire family, and if one van is full, there will be another one soon.

After getting through security (tip, have license ready), it's a little walk to the ceremony hall.  Plan accordingly if the weather is bad, and don't put your ID away, you'll need it again.  We were sitting down by 7:15.  When you walk in the hall, look for your recruits division sign so you'll be sitting in the right place, get your seats, and settle in.  Tip, go to the bathroom before you sit.  There were 12 divisions graduating that day, so people who arrived later had difficulties finding seats near their recruits division.

The PIR is great, and I won't give away any of their surprises, but relax...you will really enjoy this ceremony.  And following the PIR....LIBERTY!!!  After 8 weeks, you can finally hug your Navy Sailor.

Our son had to check into A school, so we left him there and went back to the Courtyard, via the same Black and Red van.  The driver was sitting near the gate when we came out.  Another friendly man, and not a scary driver either.

Lunch was at Sweet Tomatoes, all soup and salad.  Fresh salad fixings, and all you can eat.

We picked up our son at about 3:00 pm and got caught up on the last 8 weeks.  Afterwards we went to dinner at a Sushi place...not very good, and very over priced.  Oh well, the only downside to the weekend.

The sailors need to be back on base at night, so we dropped him off at about 7:00 pm with plans for breakfast the next day.  Also, they can now have cell phones on base, so you can bring your sailors phone if you want to.

Saturday...we drove to Wisconsin and had breakfast at Franks Place in Kenosha.  It is not very far from the base (about 30 minutes), and it is definitely worth the trip.  WOW....what a breakfast.  Try the garbage plates, and a bloody mary.  Incredible. Guy Fieri filmed a show for diners, drive ins, and dives there.

On the way back to the Courtyard we found a Jelly Belly plant.  Couldn't tell you exactly where, but I'm sure Google could help.

Later that day we had lunch at Portillo's for Chicago style hot dogs.  REAL cool place, and the food sure was good.

Dinner brought us back to Anastasia's.  They have an incredible deep dish pizza.  Our left over food went back to the base.  We had to have our son back on base by 10:00pm, and you can drive them directly to their ship.  Make sure you all have your ID's handy, and also the rental slip for the car.

Our return trip was incredibly easy.  It snowed Saturday night, so I figured I'd get an early start.  Traffic was light and the roads were clear.  We pulled up at Alamo, there were two employees who met us at the car, and by the time the four of us were out of the car they already had our bags on the shuttle bus for us.  The bus ride to the terminal was about 15 minutes, and TSA check in was about 30 minutes.  Total time from hotel to gate was about 1 hour and 20 minutes, but I'd suggest you plan to get there early in case your travelling at a more busy time.

NOTE: Thank you Navyformoms for all of your information.  After reading the posts by others, we were very prepared for the PIR, making our trip much more relaxing and stress free.

And...welcome to the Navy family!

[Janelle]

Thank you for this info my sons PIR is 1/29 and I'm a wreck. Can't wait to see him after 8 weeks.

[Heidi W.]

Oh I know the feeling! I had chest pains, from holding back the tears.(8weeks) lol. I will say this though, they are changed , boys to men for sure. Good luck on you PIR. And bless your soldier!

[lemonelephant]

Heidi, we have "Sailors" in the Navy.

[Heidi W.]

"Your" PIR

[Tracysmom]

Where is a good place to get on the shuttle to avoid sitting in traffic I am 6 and a half hours away and will be driving there and not stopping or staying at a motel thanks

[lemonelephant]

Check with Sarge on that.

Sarge has a taxi service and he is a wealth of information and has a Meet and Greet at the Sundance Saloon in Waukegan the night before PIR. His cell number is 847-212-0246. His M&G and services have been getting great reviews. Find Sarge on N4M as OldSarge.

Check your My Page.

[Tracysmom]

Thank you!

[Denyse P.]

We stayed at the Courtyard for our daughter's PIR on 12-31-15.  You're right, the hotel was clean and staff incredibly helpful.  I loved that it was walking distance to Walmart, Anastacia's and Denny's. 

Just to clarify:  only sailor' staying at Great Lakes for A-School fcan take their cellphones back to the base after Liberty.  Congrats to you and your new sailor!

[Martha]

My son also graduated 1-15-16. We stayed at the Hampton Inn in Gurnee. Nice room. About 15 mins to base once you get the route down. Lots of fast food nearby and the Gurnee mall was down the street. 5 mins away. It was an amazing weekend. Suggestions.. Bring cash if going to Sarge's meet and greet. It's a cash bar and for the raffles. The ATM was out of service when I went, so I didn't get to buy drinks or participate in raffles. They did provide water cup so I didn't go thirsty. I could have left to get money and come back, but I didnt want to miss anything. Print your Parking pass early. I thought I could print out at the hotel and had all kinds of problems from computer being down. Or issues with the browser. So I didn't have mine graduation day. You can still get in, but will have to get your car thoroughly inspected at the gate and that took lots of time. Get there early for a good seat. They do have a concession stand up prior to ceremony starting. My son was on duty during graduation as bleacher guard .. please do not jump over bleachers to go up or down.. use bleacher stairs. It's tight, but please follow rules. You'd be surprised some people just don't care. It made me angry to see people just disregard my son. They can get reprimanded for not keeping order. Dont want any of those new Sailors getting in trouble. Do not plan to drive to Chicago after graduation. Weather will be harsh and traffic is horrible in the city during rush hour. Your Sailor cant be late getting back. It is not recommended for Friday. Plan for Saturday or Sunday if they are staying for A school at Great Lakes. Movies and the mall and lots of restaurants in the area. There's a bowling alley we passed by too. Hope this helps. Prayers your SR stay focused and for strength. You all will have a wonderful time just being with them. They will be fine. God bless all the SR'S and families. :-)

[sluie]

Thank you for all of the good information. Sounds like you had a great visit with your Sailor. My son is scheduled for PIR March 4. Congratulations!

[F4YS]

My son is also scheduled for PIR 3/4.  Is he in Division 104, what about you?  I'd love to meet you!

[Kellis]

My sailor just graduated..1/22.  The experience was amazing! 

Arrive early at PIR and sit towards the top for better pictures.  It will get hot in there so layer.  It was very cold and snowing when we were there but I got very hot in the ceremonial hall even after taking off my coat.  You can buy bottled water there and have it with you in the stands. The ceremony started at 9am, end around 11 or so.  There were 13 divisions graduating. 

We stayed at Springhill Suites Marriott in Waukegan and were very pleased.  There are some hotels that the admins on FB groups suggest you not stay at and those are Great Lakes Motel, Ramada and either Red Roof Inn or Red Carpet, cannot remember which one now.  At our hotel, we have free breakfast every morning and it was good. 

We took a shuttle from our hotel to PIR even though we had our own car.  Take the shuttle if you can because the line and wait to get in the gate to PIR is crazy if you drive.  We did have to wait out in the snow for our shuttle back for about 30 minutes though.  We had our sailor with us then.  We had him up until about 7pm that night, took him back to the base.  We could not drop off at his ship, had to drop off at the gate.  My sailor had a very early flight out the next morning..6am.  They start busing  them out of Great Lakes around midnight to the airport so we met our son at 2 am to spend time with him before he left.  He left out of O'Hare.  Make sure you ask your sailor what time he will arrive at the airport, which one (either Midway or O'Hare) and ask what terminal to meet if you plan on spending time at the airport together.  For those staying at GL for A school, the schedule is a bit different.

My sailor was very tired but he did not want to sleep at the hotel or anything.   We took him out for a steak lunch and then went to Gurnee Mills mall.  Went back to the hotel for a bit then it was time to  take him back to base.

Make sure you have quarters for the tolls if you are driving.  We took a roll just to be safe.

It is going to be cold so do take gloves, scarves, etc.  I believe this coming weekend will actually be colder than what we had.

It is a GREAT experience and you will love it!  If you have not signed up for meet and greet, you should.  That was so much fun!  Sarge does an amazing job and you will get to connect with other families. The Sundance Saloon was right behind our hotel so that was nice.

Make sure everyone has a current picture ID.  You will be required to show it several times.

I will add more if I can think of anything.

Enjoy and congratulations!