Stanford residences and Front Desks remain open during Thanksgiving Break and Spring Break, and at least one person, often an RA, is available in each undergraduate building.

During Winter Break - the last two weeks in December and the first week in January - most University departments and undergraduate residences close or reduce services. Student Housing also shuts down heating systems in closed buildings and reduces lighting in common areas.

If you plan to be away during an academic recess, make your travel reservations early! Many area schools and universities have the same break schedules, and flights and trains often are booked far in advance. Before you leave for break:

• Pack everything you’ll need during the Winter Break, including clothing, medicine, your computer, passport, and other personal items. You cannot get back into your undergraduate residence during the break.
• Lock doors and windows in your room or apartment.
• Unplug unnecessary items.
• Defrost, empty, and unplug your refrigerator (Winter Break) to help conserve energy.
• Prop open the refrigerator door to prevent smells and mold problems.
• Clean your room or apartment.
• Empty trash and recycling bins to deter pests.
• Make sure safety rails are in place if you have a lofted bed.
• If you leave your car on campus, remove all valuables.

All undergraduate residences except Hammarskjöld close during Winter Break. The privately-owned Chi Theta Chi and Sigma Chi houses sometimes remain open, and graduate housing remains open.

• Stay with a friend who lives in one of the residences that remains open. (Your host must be in residence, and his or her roommate/s must agree to your arrangement.)
• Stay with a friend who lives off campus.
• Go home with a friend and spend the break with his or her family.
• Arrange a temporary rental. Begin your search on the Community Housing web site.
• Stay at a local hotel or motel. See a list of local accommodations.
• Look for short-term rentals in the Stanford Report, Stanford Daily, or the Palo Alto Weekly.
• Apply for temporary housing in Hammarskjöld or Stanford Guest House.
• For more ideas, talk to your RA, friends, and student organizations.

Back to Top

Hammarskjöld
Hammarskjöld charges interim guests $10 to $20 per day (plus a $200 refundable deposit). You pay only for the days you stay in the house.

Guests of Hammarskjöld residents stay in the resident’s room; otherwise, students sleep on mattresses in common areas. Since Hammarskjöld is a co-op, everyone shares the house kitchen, and each guest is expected to perform one job assigned by the house manager.

For more information, contact the Hammarskjöld house manager.

Stanford Guest House
Student Housing offers interim housing at the Stanford Guest House at a reduced rate to international students who are unable to go home and who have no housing alternatives.

Students have access to a refrigerator and microwave, Internet, phone, TV, laundry room, and vending machines.

If you stay at the Guest House over Winter Break, you are expected to pay for the room for the entire break period, regardless of when you move in or out.

Freshman students have priority and, to qualify, students must have a contract in an on-campus residence for Autumn and Winter Quarters. You are expected to abide by housing policies, and to move in and out on certain dates. To apply, complete an online application form, available in November.

What to take

• Anything you think you’ll need during Winter Break. You cannot get back into your undergraduate residence for three weeks.
• Bedding, pillows, and towels
• Clothing, medicine, your computer, passport, and other personal items
• If you have a car, a valid permit for the Winter Break period

Instead of spending Spring Break enjoying home-cooked meals or tanning by the pool, some students opt for one of Stanford’s Alternative Spring Break (ASB) projects offered through the Haas Center for Public Service.

Stanford’s nationally-recognized ASB program gives students an opportunity to combine classroom discussions and directed reading (Winter Quarter) on issues ranging from the environment and energy to veterans’ affairs with an educational trip during Spring Break.

Learn more about ASB projects and application procedures.

Back to Top

Summer housing is available in some residences to both undergraduate and graduate students. Summer housing is included in the term of occupancy of students in graduate housing with full-year contracts.

Students in graduate housing with academic year contracts, and all students living in undergraduate housing, must apply separately for summer housing in the spring.

Each year in April, look for summer housing information and an application in Apply for Summer Housing.

Summer housing is available in some residences to both undergraduate and graduate students. Summer housing is included in the term of occupancy of students in graduate housing with full-year contracts.

Students in graduate housing with academic year contracts, and all students living in undergraduate housing, must apply separately for summer housing in the spring.

Each year in April, look for summer housing information and an application in Apply for Summer Housing.

Back to Top