All FLTAs will stay in the beautiful, smoke-free Marriott Hotel in East Lansing. The hotel is located on the edge of MSU’s campus, close to local restaurants and shops. Each FLTA will share a spacious double room (with another participant of the same gender). The hotel offers many amenities including free wifi, a fitness center, and pool.

If you plan to stay in East Lansing past Friday, August 9, before continuing to your host institution, you will be responsible for finding and paying for accommodations. Please be aware that hotels in East Lansing generally exceed $75 a night, and are often much more. Some options include continuing to stay at the Marriott Hotel, or staying at the Kellogg Center or the Hampton Inn.

Roommate Etiquette:

You will be sharing a room with another FLTA. Therefore, do NOT use the security bolt on your room door (see below) unless your roommate is already in the room. (If you do bolt it, and your roommate can’t wake you to get in the room, the hotel will cut the bolt and charge you $250.00.) Please discuss schedules with your roommate so you can comfortably share the bathroom and living space for the short time you are together. Please do not have friends in the room late without discussing it first with your roommate.

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Phone

You can call home from the Marriott, but it is at your own expense. You must activate the long distance phone at the front desk in the lobby. We strongly recommend purchasing phone cards, available from a number of locations close to the hotel. Follow the directions as international phone call bills can easily reach several hundred dollars if you are not careful.

Internet

The Marriott has free wireless Internet access in all guest rooms for those of you who already have a computer. The business center also has two computers that may be used for short amounts of time for checking/sending email.

Shopping

Shopping is NOT the goal of this orientation. The schedule is very tight, the small local downtown stores typically close around 8 or 9 pm, and there are no nearby shopping centers. Do NOT plan on buying cell phones, laptops, clothes, etc. during the orientation. There will be time for that once you arrive at your host institution. The local downtown stores will sell some essentials such as phone cards, shampoo, toothbrushes and other toiletries, phone cards, and simple over-the-counter medications. Keep in mind that you need to take anything you buy with you to your host institutions. Domestic flights within the United States have restrictions on the number and weight of suitcases you can bring with you and you may need to pay extra for any suitcase you check.