I second the notion on not leaving during training. If you get stuck out of town, you will likely be dropped back to start the program again, or just terminated. They make it pretty clear that you are not allowed to miss classes, especially for travel.

Some guys had their family come and visit them for the weekend - using family flight benefits.

You will not get flight benefits until about half way through systems, if not later (depends on when you get your badge). It usually takes about 16 days.

I drove and was happy that I did, but it was not necessary. Enjoy class, learn a lot, and have fun.