Welcome!

Greetings!

This guide is intended for international scholars newly arriving in Blacksburg, Virginia who will reside at 509 Fairview Avenue.

Before you arrive

Electronics

Please check if your electronics will work with this adapter. Two adapters are supplied in each room. If it will not work, please bring adapters that will fit your electronics.

Phone

  • Think about how old your phone is, how well and long it charges, and how easy it is to install a SIM card. Locally, replacement phones are few in number and phone problems are costly and time-consuming to solve.
  • Know your budget for phone service before you arrive. Looking for the cheapest deal, switching providers for cheaper deals, and attempting to coordinate family plans with non-resident family members and/or non-family members has caused most people the most problems.

Locations

Please learn the name of the building in which your office will reside on the Virginia Tech campus and its location relative to our location and to the Cranwell International Center, home of the international students services offices.

Weather

The weather in Blacksburg varies greatly, often day to day, even hour to hour. Very high and very low temperatures, high winds, ice, and rain – all in one day! – can make walking, bus or road travel uncomfortable or risky. I check the weather daily, sometimes more than once per day, using Weather.com.

Budget

Prices in Blacksburg may be higher than international scholars anticipate. In particular, the prices of these items have surprised some visiting scholars.

  • Groceries
  • Restaurant meals
  • Take out
  • Meals from local, independent providers or mail order meal providers
  • Mobile phone service
  • Ride share fees (Uber) when buses are not running
  • Travel costs (Uber, bus, train) to and from Blacksburg to a departure city with an airport or train station. (Examples: Roanoke, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Charlotte-Douglas International Airport (CLT) in North Carolina.)

If you would like to anticipate your budget prior to arrival, this worksheet – How Much Does It Cost to Be Me? – may be helpful.

Food prices

  • Kroger is the closest grocery store. Prices for the foods you like to eat can be checked here.
  • Oasis is our largest international foods store. Please contact them directly for prices.
  • DoorDash is the most frequently-used meal delivery service. Prices for local meals can be checked here.

Transportation prices in Blacksburg

Use of the bus system, Blacksburg Transit, “BT,” is free.

Bus service is reduced during holidays and summer and winter breaks. When buses are not running, most people use the rideshare app Uber.

Getting to Blacksburg, Virginia

From Dulles International Airport (IAD)

If you are arriving via Dulles International Airport (IAD) in Washington, D.C., you may be able to catch the once-per-day Virginia Breeze bus, operated by  Megabus, from Washington, D.C. to Blacksburg. The trip takes approximately 5 hours and arrives at Squires Student Center on the Virginia Tech campus at the Alumni Mall entrance.

From Roanoke to Blacksburg

If you are arriving in Roanoke, Virginia, the timing may work for you to take the Smart Way bus from Roanoke to Blacksburg. The trip takes approximately 50 minutes and arrives at Squires Student Center on the Virginia Tech campus at the Alumni Mall entrance.

From Squires Student Center to 509 Fairview Avenue

Although our house is 1.6 miles from Squires Student Center, it is too far to walk after a long, tiring trip, especially with luggage. Plan to take an Uber from Squires to our house. However, I will do my best to provide transportation for you from Squires to our house.

After you arrive in Blacksburg

Getting around Blacksburg

Use of the bus system, Blacksburg Transit, “BT,” is free.

Our nearest stop is #1655 on the MSA route. Downloading the BT app allows users to track bus arrivals and departures in real time.

Bus service is reduced during holidays and summer and winter breaks. Buses break down, albeit infrequently. When buses are not running, many people use the rideshare app Uber.

Rideshare in our area

Logistics

Phone service

Since reliability (and the time and connectivity costs of unreliability) and in-person access to service are my top criteria for choosing a mobile service provider for my Android phone, I use Verizon. Although it is more expensive than other options, most renters have had at least some problem with other providers.

Social Security Number (SSN)

You will need a U.S. social security number to open a bank account and to receive funds from the university. Here’s an example of the form and information needed. The nearest Social Security office is in Roanoke, Virginia, 612 S. Jefferson Street, #100. The office is open weekdays from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM. Calling ahead of time for an appointment is recommended: 800-772-1213. Transportation to Roanoke would be by bus or Uber.

Bank

Locally, Wells Fargo offers the most options and services for international banking. Wells Fargo is located at 920 University City Boulevard. Appointments to open accounts are needed, are made by phone, and may take several days to book. Multiple IDs and documents are required, including money to transfer or deposit. Opening an account may take 30 minutes. Here are the ATM locations in Blacksburg.

Driver’s license

A driver’s license is issued by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

Shipping items internationally

Water quality

We drink water from the tap in Blacksburg.

Safety

  • Wherever they are in the world, people need to consciously engage in safety practices and to have safety plans.
  • Although faraway family and friends, plus local colleagues, friends, acquaintances, and strangers may be of some help, a person needs a plan for how to solve problems and handle situations on their own.
  • No place is perfectly safe. When calculating probabilities, the likelihood of being the victim of a crime in Blacksburg is lower than in many other places. Being the victim of a crime here has a low probability, but it is possible.
  • Possible sources of safety guidance when outside the home are here (general) and here, and here (for women).

Finding alternate housing

Finding short-term housing

Many factors make housing in Blacksburg scarce and expensive. Here’s a 2021 story from NPR on the U.S. housing shortage which opens with a bit about Blacksburg.

Some providers of short-term rentals make rooms available at high rates, a weekend at a time, for Virginia Tech football games and graduations.

Wishing you an enriching, meaningful experience in Blacksburg.

Last updated 2024/09/21