30 hour drive with young kids

[jsantini]

We are going to be in FL for 5 weeks this winter and I'm debating flying versus driving. Our kids will be 4 and 1.5. It's about 30 hours of driving from our home and we would likely split that over 4 days each way, so around 7-8 hours of driving daily. I'd like to hear from anyone who has done the road trip with small children and if you have any advice, would do it again, wouldn't, etc.

The main drawbacks to driving, for us, are that we could hit bad winter weather in the midwest and that our younger child does not currently enjoy the car. If he doesn't become more tolerable of riding in the car before our trip, we will definitely fly.

On the other hand, driving would save us a lot of money because longterm car rentals are so expensive. We have the flexibility in our work schedules to take the time driving.

 

[kandb]

We have driven from NJ to WDW when our twins were young and it wasn't bad because they didn't mind the car and we had a double screen video for them to watch shows/movies. Our drive was 16 hours and honestly, that would probably be our maximum. Thirty hours is really a lot of time for young children. Even though your son might get better with driving, that doesn't mean he will be better for a 30 hour drive. If he starts getting fussy or wants to get out of the car seat, your drive will be miserable and honestly I don't blame the little ones being strapped in a car seat that long. I would fly and look for low cost rental cars. Are you staying onsite? You wouldn't need a car for that time. Good luck, sounds like a great trip.

 

[maxiesmom]

I have to agree with kandb, that is an awful lot of time in the car for such little ones. If they were older I would say go for it. But a 1 1/2 year old can only entertain themselves for so long. 4 days each way is asking way too much, imho.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

We are going to be in FL for 5 weeks this winter and I'm debating flying versus driving. Our kids will be 4 and 1.5. It's about 30 hours of driving from our home and we would likely split that over 4 days each way, so around 7-8 hours of driving daily. I'd like to hear from anyone who has done the road trip with small children and if you have any advice, would do it again, wouldn't, etc.

The main drawbacks to driving, for us, are that we could hit bad winter weather in the midwest and that our younger child does not currently enjoy the car. If he doesn't become more tolerable of riding in the car before our trip, we will definitely fly.

On the other hand, driving would save us a lot of money because longterm car rentals are so expensive. We have the flexibility in our work schedules to take the time driving.

has the younger child flown before? I ask because I know from one of our daughters at that age flying was rougher than driving and she hated driving. as unlike driving you can not stop and get out. stuck in a seat with seatbelt sign on was a rough 2.5 hours. something to think about before you make your decision

 

[Nuclear Monkey]

I drove from Maryland during spring break with a seven and one year old. Due to traffic and construction, it took 19 hours. I think 4 may be too young, but I got a 30 day audible trial with 2 free downloads and downloaded the first two Harry Potter books (12.5 hours each!). It was a little grating to me by the end, but there were no complaints from the 7 year old or mom.

 

[Nuclear Monkey]

Also that trip took two days and on the next day the one year old was in tears as I put him in the car seat for the 15 min drive to the park. 30 hours might be too much for the little one.

 

[martikus]

We did 20 hours over 3 days when DS was 4 and that was my limit. It's a lot of car time.

Another option is one flies down with the kids and the other drives.

If I could swing the rental cost and could pack all I need in a couple bags I would do that to not dread the start and end of my trip.

 

[BUFtoMCO]

We did a 24 hour drive in 2 days this past April. We had a 3 1/2 yr old and 1 yrand our 12 yr old golden retriever. especially the first day we got up early and left around 3 am. That helped with being to get 5 hours out of the way before they were up. We bought a 2 screen DVD player before we left and that helped. As someone that likes to get back on the road I had to remember to be patient including making stops so the kids could stretch their legs (McDonald's play places and such.). Wasn't so bad. We have a couple trips planned with one of them being the drive this year coming up.

 

[patclairesmom]

We always drive from NJ and started when my twins were about 5 years old. At that time we had a tiny TV we put between the front seats that played VHS's. I've never "seen" Brother Bear but know all the words. If you have a dvd player in your car, what we have done is rent movies from Red Box and return them once we get there.

 

[Skippyboo]

So it's 6 days of hotels for the trip down and back. Could you just rent a car when you need one instead of 5 weeks? If you are at Disney, Universal or at the beach, you might not need a car then.

Couple hours in a plane seem like a better shot then 30 hours in a car.

 

[jsantini]

Yeah, this was a moment of temporary insanity on my part. We will definitely be flying.