Am I Crazy to Drive From Boston?

[Lex33]

I am trying to decide if I should drive from Boston in the end of August (for 2 weeks.) I will be with 2 girls, 11 and 14. I really hate flying and we aren't in a rush other than wanting to get there. Once I get there, I won't want to drive home.

Anyone with experience driving from N.E? How bad is it? What about the train?

 

[Asellus]

We drove down to Disney in 2008 and it wasn't bad. My girls were 3 and 4 at the time and they were fine on the trip down. I believe we stayed overnight in North Carolina. There are a number of tolls on the way down (keep change and have an easy pass....I do believe one toll was as much as $5) I don't know how much it'll cost for gas now though....we went down in a period of lower gas costs. Its alot of fun going in January when there is snow on the ground and seeing the temp go up, but I don't think that'd be fun in August

We'll be taking the train next year....I don't like to fly either. I estimate that it'll cost us around $700 roundtrip (for 4 of us) to take the train down to Orlando from Penn Station.....with alot less hassel then driving.

 

[AnnieEMT]

We drove down from Boston last May & will be doing it again in September. It really wasn't bad at all, but there were 2 of us sharing the driving (3 on the up-coming trip). Driving down was fantastic because we were so excited -started out at about 3pm & reached Kissimee about noon the following day. Driving home, not quite so much fun & we'll definitely be stopping for a night on the way home this trip.

 

[disneydad1000]

me ,my wife and now 4yrold daughter drive every aug to disney from albany ny...the wife hates flying.We stop twice on the way down..once in virginia and then in santee sc..such a nice place..we are in no rush either.We stay at hotels with outdoor pools so we can lounge around after 8-10 hrs of driving,we make this PART of our vacation not just to get there at night and sleep..We spend 2 weeks at Riverside resort every year...coming home we only stop once but we still drive for about 12 hrs then stop in the afternoon somewhere in virginia..from there we have 9 hrs left...We love taking road trips ..we both work full time ..so a 3week vacation in aug is awesome...my wife is a teacher so we have to plan around her..have a great trip

 

[bicker]

Another idea is to take the train, or the Auto-Train. We just did the latter, driving from Boston to Virginia, and then overnighting on the train, waking the next morning in Central Florida. We came back the same way.

It isn't cheap, especially if you get a bedroom (and you should, afaic), but it is another way to get there that avoids all the things that we all hate about airline travel.

 

[happily single]

I just returned (4-16 thru 4-22) from our 2nd roadtrip, leaving RI and driving to Orlando. It was just me (Mom) and 3 kids! dd14; ds12 and ds6. This second trip wasn't so much fun.

First I rented a car-great rate through National at TF Green airport. But I choose a slightly larger car (Jeep Liberty) which sucked on gas. On the way down I left super early (2 a.m. on Saturday) to avoid the nasty weather that was predicted on the entire east coast. I did well until we hit the D.C. area, then just a bit of rain but lots of traffic. Made awesome timeonce we got through then we hit North Carolina by about 2:00pm Then the trouble began.

Remember hearing about all the nasty tornadoes that struck North Carolina? yup. We were literally stuck on Route 95 during those storms, wind, blinding rain, hail. Rest stops with attached food stations lost power, tractor trailer jack-knifed and closed the highway down. Couldn't move for literally 7 hours! Finally, like 1,000's of other people, slept in the car!

I would do it again (shh); the kids would not!

The ride home was much better however.

The only problem I have is once you hit the more southern states Route 95 turns into 2 lanes and its a real pain to get tied up in traffic, trying to pass the cars.

I suggest picking up a book called "Drive I-95" It was very helpful, listing exit by exit fast food, gas, hotels, etc.

Finally, I would suggest Fayetteville, NC as a half-way point. I wanted to push to Santee, NC (or SC) so the next day wouldn't be so bad. Once we got back on the road Sunday I realized that Santee would have been a bit far to drive the 1st day.

On the way home we managed to get to Rocky Mount, NC. Most exits have numerous well-known hotels/motels and I always felt safe (even sleeping in the car)

 

[ssawka]

Another idea is to take the train, or the Auto-Train. We just did the latter, driving from Boston to Virginia, and then overnighting on the train, waking the next morning in Central Florida. We came back the same way.

It isn't cheap, especially if you get a bedroom (and you should, afaic), but it is another way to get there that avoids all the things that we all hate about airline travel.

This is what I was going to suggest. Also, Amtrak is running a special where kids can ride the Auto Train for $19 with a paid adult fare. Unfortunately since you are the only adult, only one of their fares would be $19.

http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?ff=No&c=AM_Content_C&pagename=am%2FLayout&p=1237405732514&cid=1248543429019&WT.mc_t=AtKids19_HD_A_WSP&WT.mc_n=ATKidsPromopage&WT.mc_r=365&tiid=23495&audienceId=0&rtTracking=1

 

[pepe of ohio]

We're too far from Lorton to use the Auti Train and we never use a car in Disney anyway, and paying to haul my car to Florida is wasteful when you can rent one there cheaper than hauling it.

That said, our trip via Amtrak is from northeast Ohio, train switch in DC and then on to Kissimmee Florida.....we go coach all the way....sleepers are too expensive and sleeping one night in coach is very doable....I prefer it, the roomettes are very small, close to claustrophic for me.....round trip for the wife and I, 476.00.....about the same for driving maybe alittle more to drive considering the price of gas and we've done the drive....too hectic, stressful and wear and tear on the car...not for us anymore.

We like the train, sit back, let them do all the worrying, buying fuel.....we enjoy the relaxing ride and arrive in WDW refreshed and rarin to go. I will not fly....period and as I stated, driving is too long and stressful anymore, we've done it long ago but it's the train now a days....we need no car in WDW, 44 trips and totally rely on Disney's transportation system that has served us quite well over the years. The worst of our sriving experiences is coming home...goin has alot of anticipation wanting to get there and start the fun....coming home is so depressing.....but sitting back on the train, listening to some music, reading, walking to the club car takes the sting out of going home......

 

[bicker]

We found that there would be only a very small difference in price between a rental car and how much they charged us (specifically) to carry our car to Florida on the Auto Train. And the ability to carry an extra suitcase, no charge, was super.

 

[CTmommyx3]

We drive every year from CT on the MA line
we have driven maybe 6 times with kids and many before kids.
we just went in March and my kids were 9, 7, and 4 and we had done it the previous 4 years.
honestly my kids seem to be better on this long 24 hour ride than when we go to the cape! seriously it goes better than I ever expect and plan.
it is long no question there! but we tend to go right through no overnight hotel stay just get us there. we stop for breaks and food and to just get out and maybe walk around somewhere.

 

[USAND3KIDS]

DO NOT DRIVE..... we are right up here in Manchester NH. You have to trust me on this one. Take the train right out of South Station like we do every year now. You can get cheap tickets right now and a coach seat is all you need with kids that age. It reclines so you can sllep which is something you would not be able to do while driving. You can go to the bathroom....another thing driving will not allow. And the best part, you can eat...or drink if thats your thing. Whatever you do DON'T DRIVE. When your vacation is over and it's time to come home you will seriously consider flying home and leaving your car in the WDW parking lot forever. Lol Seriously.

BTW we are also going the last two weeks of August.

 

[ssawka]

DO NOT DRIVE..... we are right up here in Manchester NH. You have to trust me on this one. Take the train right out of South Station like we do every year now. You can get cheap tickets right now and a coach seat is all you need with kids that age. It reclines so you can sllep which is something you would not be able to do while driving. You can go to the bathroom....another thing driving will not allow. And the best part, you can eat...or drink if thats your thing. Whatever you do DON'T DRIVE. When your vacation is over and it's time to come home you will seriously consider flying home and leaving your car in the WDW parking lot forever. Lol Seriously.

BTW we are also going the last two weeks of August.

ITA! I cannot even fathom driving and we are only 16 hours away. But then again, there are only three of us and we get pretty good airfare out of the DC area. Really, the thought of 16 hours in a car versus 2 hours in a plane convinces me to fly every time.

 

[C&G'sMama]

Hop on the 2,000mile + round trip thread. This is a thread for a lot of drivers and I've seen posts from New Englanders. There are tips on routes, traffic, hotels if you don't drive straight thru (we don't), things do with children in the car etc. We're in WNY and will be making our 13th drive to WDW in 2 1/2 weeks. 1,250 miles each way. We've been doing it since before we had kids. Each kid has been riding since the age of 18mos, they'll be 8 and 11 yo on this trip. Go for it!

We love driving. We love having our car when we get there. We love the flexibility of getting where we want when we want. We once extended our trip a day. Last time we decided to hang out at the parks for a few hours on our last day and then we left.

We approach it as part of the vacation.

Good luck and have fun.

 

[PattnFmly]

We drove our last two trips. Kids were 8 & 10 the last time. We like to leave home at 7pm or so and drive through the night then stop in the afternoon the next day - usually in SC or GA. That leaves us with a short day on the arrival day. Older DS spent the entire ride playing his Nintendo. All night long. He thought it was a great treat to be up all night playing games! Younger DS dozed and watched movies off and on in the car. The trip home is definitely less climactic but it works for us!

 

[kidd_freeper]

We drove from the Hartford area to Jacksonville, straight thru, last July 4 weekend. We will be doing it again this July 4 weekend.

- My DW was very much against driving before the trip last year. This year she insisted on it. If someone would hand us a pile of money, we'd probably fly, but I'm not expecting that to happen.
- There were six of us in the car last year. I took a poll: was diving down to Florida (a) fun, (b) tolerable, or (c) terrible. Two votes for "fun", four votes for "tolerable", no votes for "terrible".
- I strongly recommend taking the I-78 / I-81 / I-77 / I-26 / I-95 route rather than going straight down I-95 from NY to FL. The extra hour of driving on the western route will more than make up for the time lost in the snarls from the summer beach traffic on I-95 in VA and NC.
- A GPS (with live traffic updates) and a pre-trip car check-up should be considered essential. And an EZPass will save you a lot of time if go the I-95 route the whole way.

 

[DISNEYNY]

I have driven 2x from Buffalo area to Tampa area - once by myself with 2 kids because DH couldn't get off work. I said never again unless I have to. Fares have been so cheap in recent years, so decision was easy. May have to rethink in the future if prices don't go down. The train idea sounds good to me!

 

[Jacquaman]

Here's my math, 'cause math is cool. From the Boston area, and yes the gas price is a touch high. Adjust the figures as you like. That's why math is cool.

Distance 2600
MPG 21
Gallons of fuel used 123.8
price/gal $4.50
sub total gas cost $557.14

food BLDx2 for 4 $120.00
hotel $150.00

Driving total $827.14
estimated airfare $1,200.00 (July '11)

Estimated True Cost to Fly $372.86

Is the cost to fly worth to you the 2 or 4 days in the car or avoiding the airport? We usually go for a week, so the travel time is key.

If I had a 6 or 7 passenger vehicle, another party to travel with, and two weeks time, it might become more attractive.

 

[ssawka]

Here's my math, 'cause math is cool. From the Boston area, and yes the gas price is a touch high. Adjust the figures as you like. That's why math is cool.

Distance 2600
MPG 21
Gallons of fuel used 123.8
price/gal $4.50
sub total gas cost $557.14

food BLDx2 for 4 $120.00
hotel $150.00

Driving total $827.14
estimated airfare $1,200.00 (July '11)

Estimated True Cost to Fly $372.86

Is the cost to fly worth to you the 2 or 4 days in the car or avoiding the airport? We usually go for a week, so the travel time is key.

If I had a 6 or 7 passenger vehicle, another party to travel with, and two weeks time, it might become more attractive.

ITA! You have to think about how much your time is worth. I would rather spend more, get there as quickly as possible, and start having fun. Unless being stuck in a car on I-95 is your idea of fun.

 

[jojo0612]

___Never mind...answered my own question....