Checkout Information

Here are the top tips to make the checkout process go smoothly for you and your student.

End-of-Session Checkout Process

• After all artistic obligations are complete, students first check out of their cabin with their cabin counselor. At this time, we check to make sure all items are packed; borrowed uniforms, music, and instruments are turned in; and goodbyes are said.
• Students, along with their family, then head to their division headquarters to collect their commemorative patch and formally check out of Camp. Families provide identification to staff, sign the check out log, and head out to pack the car.
• Checking out at headquarters is a vital step that cannot be skipped, as this formally removes students from our headcount process.

If students are leaving by commercial bus or airplane, our Camp Life staff oversee student departures and ensure campers are ready to load the Interlochen bus to the airport or bus station.

Checkout Times

• Junior students may depart Interlochen after their final ensemble performance. Junior students must be checked out by Saturday at noon.   
   
• 6-Week Session: June 22-Aug. 3
  • Classes end the evening of Saturday, Aug. 2. Students may begin leaving at that time, if desired.
  • Students in the following majors/ensembles will participate in our final concert on the evening of Sunday, Aug. 3 and are required to remain through that performance:  
    • World Youth Symphony Orchestra (High School)
    • Interlochen Philharmonic (High School)
    • World Youth Wind Symphony (High School)
    • Dance majors attending the second session (both High School and Intermediate students, not Juniors)
  • All students must depart no later than noon on Monday, Aug. 4.  
     
• First 3-Week Session: June 22-July 12 
  • All students must depart no later than noon on Saturday, July 12. 
  • Organ majors will perform in “Chapel Organ” on Sunday, July 13 at 5 p.m. and may leave any time after that performance has ended.  
     
• Second 3-Week Session: July 13-August 3
  • Classes end the evening of Saturday, Aug. 2; students may begin leaving at that time, if desired.
  • Students in the following majors/ensembles will participate in our final concert on the evening of Sunday, Aug. 3 and are required to remain through that performance:
    • World Youth Symphony Orchestra (High School)
    • Interlochen Philharmonic (High School)
    • World Youth Wind Symphony (High School)
    • Dance majors attending the second session (both High School and Intermediate students, not Juniors)
  • All students must depart no later than noon on Monday, Aug. 4.  
     
• Intensive students
  • Students may depart Thursday evening after their final artistic commitment and no later than noon on Friday, June 20.
  • Program activities will end by 9 p.m. on Thursday, June 19.  Students staying to attend additional programs will be housed and supervised until their registration begins the evening of June 21. Due to the logistics of preparing for the next session, students will likely be consolidated into cabins for Thursday and Friday nights.
  • Parents may request to depart one day late for a $500 fee. All requests for late departure must be submitted in writing to campquestions@interlochen.org. Families will be notified if their request is approved.  Requests for late departure are challenging to accommodate and require extreme circumstances.

Departure from Campus

Departing Campus via Interlochen Bus to Airport or Bus Station  
Students will be transported by uniformed Interlochen personnel to the Traverse City airport or bus station. Students departing from Traverse City airport will be chaperoned through the ticketing and security process to their departure gate.  

Departing Campus by Car

• Families will meet Camp staff at their respective headquarters to begin the checkout process.
• Students will complete a checkout card to ensure they have returned any library books, artistic supplies, or rented uniform pieces and have collected all of their belongings from the cabin, divisional headquarters, and health services.
• Following completion of the checkout card, students can depart campus with their families or other pre-approved adults.

Shipping - Homeward Bound

Boxes and packing/shipping materials can be purchased from the Scholarshop, Interlochen’s on-campus store. Scholarshop staff will also arrange for shipping packages home at the end of each session via United States Postal Service (USPS) or United Parcel Service (UPS) depending on the size and/or destination of the shipment. The required peel-and-stick Shipping Address labels are available at the Scholarshop and division headquarters. Students may use their own boxes but must still have the required Shipping Address label. All homeward bound shipping will be charged to the student account unless another payment type has been arranged with the Scholarshop. All international shipping must be arranged through The Packaging Store in Traverse City, Michigan. Families are requested to initiate the service, and camp life staff will assist.

The fees for shipping are:

• $10 plus actual UPS shipping cost (per package)
• Prepaid UPS packages will incur an additional $5 handling fee per package
• $5-30 Special Handling Fees (per package) (example: box builds for large instruments or artworks)
• Boxes: $3.50 each
• Packing Bubbles: $1.00 (6’ length)

Pick Up Dates  
Packages will be collected during departure weekends. Packages must be in their designated pickup area no later than 2:00 p.m. on the following pickup dates: 

• Saturday, July 5, 2025 
• Saturday, July 12, 2025
• Saturday, July 19, 2025 
• Saturday, August 2, 2025 
• Sunday, August 3, 2025 
• Monday, August 4, 2025

Pines pickup locations:

• Intermediate Pines: IP Rec Pavilion
• High School Pines: HSP Rec Pavilion

Lakeside/Meadows pickup locations:

• Junior Lakeside: Headquarters
• Intermediate Lakeside: Braeside
• Intermediate Meadows: IM Rec Pavilion
• High School Lakeside: HSL Sundecker Pavilion   

All shipping dropped off at the pickup locations should be kept separate from luggage/packages waiting to be picked up to be taken to the airport. All packages for shipping must have a shipping label or they will not be picked up.

Additional Packing and Shipping Information
When packing your box, please make sure that each item is wrapped separately. Fragile articles need separation from each other, and from the corners, sides, top, and bottom of the box. Each item should be surrounded by two inches of cushioning and two inches from the walls of the box. Make sure to use enough cushioning material to ensure that the contents do not move when shaking the container. Use bubble wrap or similar materials for cushioning purposes; improper materials include clothing, blankets, towels, newspaper, and pillows.  Interlochen Center for the Arts and the Scholarshop are not responsible for items damaged during transport or shipment.  

• Please fill out the address label completely with address, phone number, and email. Address labels can be picked up at the Scholarshop or division headquarters. The Scholarshop will not be liable for mislabeled packages.
• Do not pack the following items; liquids, plants, food, medications, currency (including stamps), combustibles, or pressurized containers.
• Totes, trunks, and other containers may be shipped via UPS. Interlochen Center for the Arts and the Scholarshop are not liable for any damages incurred during transport or shipment, to either the container or contents. Oversized bags, duffels, boxes, and containers will incur additional charges determined by the carrier.
• If you need to ship an instrument, please contact the Scholarshop shipping department directly at 231.276.7386 to make individual arrangements.
• The Scholarshop reserves the right to open and repack boxes as required.
• Students traveling by airplane must be mindful of the high cost of excess and overweight baggage. Students who leave Interlochen early due to unforeseen circumstances will have all packages shipped using funds from their personal account. Parents and students should be aware the on-campus post office will not ship COD (charge on delivery).

Special note for those students taking visual arts classes: It is important to remember that students taking visual arts classes will be producing works that need to be transported or shipped home. In some cases, work can be rolled up or carried flat, but in other cases (i.e. ceramics or sculpture) packed work may be bulky and possibly fragile. While faculty will assist students in packing, it is the responsibility of the student to take their work with them or make arrangements for shipping. Interlochen Center for the Arts, including the Scholarshop, will not be responsible for shipping or transportation of student work and cannot be responsible for work left behind.

Thank You

Thank you for sharing your student with us. We hope to see you on campus again soon!