Fort Jackson guides
The full set of Fort Jackson graduation-week reading. Start with the plan-ahead guides, work down to the day-of details. Each one is focused on a single decision so you can skim if you’re short on time.
- Training scheduleThe full BCT timeline — the phases, what your Soldier is doing each one, the culminating field exercise, and what families can expect to hear back. Fort Leonard Wood uses a different phase naming system (Yellow/Hammer/Anvil/Forge); the page surfaces that where it applies.Read →
- What the trip costsRealistic 2026 cost ranges for the Family Day and Graduation trip — flights, hotel, rental, meals, the Wednesday afternoon dinner.Read →
- Hotels near baseVetted hotels within practical drive time of the gate, sorted by what actually matters on graduation week.Read →
- AccessibilityMobility, hearing, visual, and sensory accommodations for graduation week — how to plan and where to ask.Read →
- What to bringDocuments, bleacher gear, on-post day-pass items, and what stays in the hotel.Read →
- What to wearFamily Day and Graduation dress code, season-by-season layering guidance, and what not to bring to the bleachers.Read →
- Getting to the gateFrom the airport to a parking spot at the parade field: which gate, what to expect at security, when the lot fills.Read →
- Family DayWednesday before graduation: the ceremony, the day-pass with your Soldier, and what to expect.Read →
- Graduation morningTactical Thursday morning: the night-before checklist, gate-line timing, bleacher logistics, and finding your Soldier after the parade.Read →
- Family Day passThe pass that releases your Soldier to spend Wednesday with family: where you can go, when to be back, and what they can wear and do.Read →
- Things to do nearbyHow to spend the Wednesday afternoon off-post pass and the Thursday extra day — food clusters, light activities, what to skip. Verified for Columbia, SC near Fort Jackson; other gateway cities are coming as we confirm.Read →