Hershey to Philly
 

Hello everyone,

i am new to the forums and i apologize in advance if i ask questions that are common or i am posting in the wrong area.

I have a interview in Hershey that ends at 3pm, and i am trying to fly out of philly at 6:15pm, this will be on a Monday. I also have a interview in Tuscon Arizona the next day, and this 6:15pm flight gets me there before midnight. I will have a rental car with me but no check in baggage, and i have TSA pre. Im not sure how far away the rental car drop off is at the Philly intl airport. Will i be able to make it to my flight? Google maps estimated anywhere from 2 to 2.5 hours. I have no idea about how realistic that is, i am a west coaster and not familiar with the traffic patterns in PA.

I have another flight i can do that leaves at 7:40pm out of philly to pheonix, that arrives 12:47 am, and then i would get a rental there and drive two more hours and get there(Tuscon) around 3:30am...so as you can see its not my ideal choice.

what do you all think?

The 6:15 is really cutting it close at that time of day. I-76 can easily become a parking lot. Have you considered flying out of, and possibly into Harrisburg (MDT)?

This. I wouldn't take that chance. You should be able to fly in/out of MDT. You may want to see about a flight to PHL, arriving in time for you to make your next flight.

I've done this drive before. You should be able to make it to PHL in less than 2 hours.

I agree 100%—the traffic in the late afternoon around Philly can turn murderous (it’s always bad) and with the need to return a rental car, you’re cutting it way too fine. I just looked at Google Flights and there is a convoluted way to go from Harrisburg to Tucson via CLT and DFW, leaving 4:58 PM and arriving 11:52 PM. Two connections at that time of day is also a risk, but once you’re headed west at least you will have more re-routing options.

It would be extremely rare to leave Hershey at 3 and not make a 4:58 PM flight out of MDT. :) I can think of just one instance where traffic might have been an issue (when Trump visited the Giant Center). Mr. Kipper has made flights and checked bags less than 30 minutes before the flight departed.

I am in Hershey once a month for business and fly out of MDT. It is one of the most convenient airports around and is worth any upcharge for using a smaller airport with limited LCCs. From Hershey you can get to the airport in 15 min and it take mo more than 3 - 5 min to clear security...unless there is an Allegiant flight going out. If you have pre-check, it's no problem. Driving to Philly at 3pm is not advised. You'll make it to King of Prussia quickly and then spend at least another 90 min getting from there to PHL. Another, convoluted option I have done is my planes, trains and automobiles scenario...

Uber from Hershey to the Amtrak station in Middletown. Amtrak to 30th Street Station (1hr and 15 min). Taxi from 30th Street Station to PHL (no more than 20 min). Sounds complicated but it is fast and more relaxing than driving from Hershey to PHL.

Better yet, drop the car at BWI (about two hour drive). Southwest has a 7pm flight on Mondays connecting in DEN arriving TUcSon at 12:30am.

I didn't even think about that, but it is another decent option.

If it were me I'd opt to drive (much) less and get into the air more quickly. That way the likeliest screw-ups are the airline's to solve, rather than yours to solve.

Hershey to BWI is a two-hour drive...WITHOUT traffic. Add beltway traffic to get around Baltimore and the trip can take an extra 30 - 60 minutes. Add to that the fact that the rental car center is not at the terminal and you have to bus it and that can add an extra 15 - 20 minutes. I guess it's a question of how much one's time is worth and how confident you are you will not get stuck in traffic. Me, I'd rather get to the airport faster and settle in with a cocktail. :D