We've just had a fairly large discussion about this. Unfortunately, the best way to get to Balmung is the transfer. I did that recently, myself. The creation window is extremely small, especially with a new expansion recently released and it being summer vacation for those players currently enrolled in school (at least in North America). I found it much less frustrating to pay for the transfer than to continue waking up in the middle of the night just to be disappointed that I'd missed the window.
For the recent discussion, see: http://ffxiv-roleplayers.com/showthread.php?tid=12737
For the recent discussion, see: http://ffxiv-roleplayers.com/showthread.php?tid=12737
