Am I crazy to think about driving in Feb ??

[10drum]

You're going South, it can't do anything but get better. The trip back, might be a problem, but who cares vacation is over.

 

[chach]

Anymore recent experiences ?

 

[Mackey Mouse]

Chach.. I think you have gotten some great answers here.. and one from my hometown of Wakefield, MA... Hi Buzz... there are three of us that I know of from Wakefield on these boards..

I have never driven, I have thought about it before but my husband absolutely refuses.. I hate spending the money for the airline tickets, never mind I hate flying.. but I do it to get there..

I would think that it is like anything in life, there are unknowns...one of them being the weather, if it cooperates, you could have a smooth ride and if it does not, it could be tricky.. Good luck with your decision and your trip.

 

[addicted_to_WDW]

Go for it!

We took a spur of the moment trip leaving this past Friday and returning yesterday (yes, we are nuts). We spent 15 hours driving down and 14 hours driving home and had no problems. Our trouble spot is usually Richmond, but it was smooth sailing this time.

Look at it this way...what if you plan to fly and get snowed in and can't leave? At least if you drive you know you'll eventually get there.

 

[skoba-nelson]

I don't live in NE, but I can see Lake Erie from my backyard. We left at 1 am Jan 18 and drove straight through. From our location we have 2 routes to choose from. As we went to bed, the eastern (I-77) route was still getting snow. Reluctantly we decided on the western (I-71/I-75) route. This way was an extra 80 miles, but for the peace of mind it was worth it.

Just be flexible on your leaving time. Watch the weather, perhaps you might have to leave earlier to beat a storm.

We took 2 days to drive home and were committed to I-77 because of ressies halfway. Snow was predicted the 2nd day, so we left NC quite early and were all the way to familiar territory before the snow started.

 

[PixieTink]

We are in Mass, about 20 mi. north of Boston. We left Thanksgiving night at 10:00 PM, and arrived in Orlando @ 10:30 PM the next night. Not bad time, we thought, considering we travelled w/ a 4 yr old & 2 yr old!

There was a rather large snow storm, if you remember the day before Thanksgiving, which made us nervous about road conditions, same as you. We had 2 weapons that eased the fear: the CB and the cell phone. The CB is great especially at night. The truckers never shut up-keeping you awake on the road, and they can tell you the road conditions usually through the whole state. We would get on the radio at each state line asking how the roads and speed traps looked. Usually, you get a few drivers checking in, and they know what they're talking about! They not only could tell you every pot hole, frost heave, and lane shift, but every "Statey" as far as the state line!

The cell phone, obviously, is the just in case we needed AAA to pull us out of a ditch, safety item.

BTW we leave between 8-10 PM every time we drive (6 trips now) as it basically puts you south of DC if you really try for it. We made it into VA by 7 AM this year. Once you're south of DC, NO TRAFFIC at all! It's a beautiful thing! I have more details on timing, roads travelled etc, if you want.

Coming home, an ice storm hit the Carolinas and Virginia the night before we went through. The roads were untreated, but not iced over. The problem was the trees that had fallen into the road-they were not moved. We played dodge 'ems up to almost Richmond!

We did run into some iced over bridges, however, both coming and going. Just take note when you are coming to a bridge, adjust the cruise control down to about 50, and you'll be fine. The signs warning you that "bridges ice before roads" may be kind of a joke here, but down there they mean it. The road can be totally bare, and then all the sudden a nice frosty bridge sends you fishtailing across 2 lanes.

My opinion, go for it. The cost of gas & tolls round trip is about the cost of 1 airfare Manchester to Orlando. And we really encountered no trouble that couldn't be handled with a little New England winter driving know-how!

 

[Kaitysmom]

Go for it! This year we are leaving for our 3rd straight year during late Feb/early March- we're near Concord, NH. We anxiously wait for the weather reports and if something comes up (hasn't yet) we'll figure it out then. Nothing will stop us from going, we just might get there a little later than we hoped or try to leave a little earlier. Last year we ran into some snow and slow going through Worcester, MA at rush hour. Yikes!! We tow a camper and you'd be surprised by the number of people cutting us off, etc. After that part of the trip, no troubles. This year we plan to leave at night and go as far as we can. We have also left at 4:00 am and found that that works out great too.

You can always hope that the weather will turn bad around the time of your return trip so you'll have to stay longer at WDW!

 

[PennConn]

If you do decide to drive, I would recommend taking the "Interior New England Route" of I-495 and I-90 Mass Pike in Massachusetts and I-84 in Connecticut and I-684 in New York State versus taking I-95 down the New England Coast ....

 

[chach]

I just want to take a moment to thank everyone for all
the advice. We arrived home late last night from our
vacation. It took about 30 hours (each way) for our drives.
We didn't run into any weather problems.
A trip report will be posted later this week.
Chach

 

[goofyernmost]

Thank goodness!! When I was seeing what was going on with the weather during that time I was starting to regret being so sure of myself that it would be fine. I never really had a big problem with the trip but the weather this year has been anything but normal. I am so glad that everything was OK.

 

[Kaitysmom]

We ran into freezing rain for the last two hours of our trip. Got stuck on a hill about a 1/4 mile from home. Do it again? You bet!!! Builds character - besides, we got out of the -20 weather and had 80 degree weather our whole trip. A little trouble at the end, but worth it!

 

[chach]

Kaitysmom ,
You must have run into one of those 2 rainstorms I
heard about, what day did you drive home ?

 

[Kaitysmom]

We came back on Sunday, the 2nd. Hit rain in Florida and Georgia on the 1st and then from Delaware all the way home on Sunday. Worst weather we've ever hit on our return trips. Outran a Nor'easter last year.