Anyone Driven from BC to DL

[clyde]

My family(me, DW, DS, DS, DD)and I are balancing airmiles versus cash in trying to determine the best way to manage a Disneyland and area holiday.

What we were trying to determine was.... if we save the airmiles from what would have been used for the flight and put those towards more hotel time, what will the drive be like. I have tried to find info on driving from Abbotsford or Vancouver to Anaheim or LA, but cannot find anything useful.

The money spent on gas should be similar to the money spent paying for the taxes on the "free" flights through airmiles, so there is no real gain nor loss there. The only loss will be the time spent driving.

Should we just tag-team drive straight through, or are there some incredible sights to see not far off of the main route? If anyone has a trip report they can share or point me too (I did not see any) I would be thankful. Any help in this area would be greatly appreciated.

Jason.

 

[tinkerbell6]

We've made the drive down from Vancouver to Anaheim twice--in 2002 and 2003. It's about 20 hours driving time total. We didn't drive straight through, since DD was only 4 at the time. You could do it straight through, but it's also very do-able with just a 1-night hotel stop.

What to say about the drive? Well, it's long, but very straightforward. The I-5 is multi-laned most of the way. We didn't do anything "touristy" along the way, but there are lots of nice CLEAN rest stops along the I-5. Parts of Washington/Oregon are pretty hilly, as you're going up over the Mountain passes. We had a bit of snow (!) one time going through.

We stayed in Oregon (Medford or Eugene) the first night--only 5-6 hours from here? Then Sacramento (relatives there) the next night--8-9 hours more. Then on to Anaheim the next day--another 6 hours roughly. The slowest part of the whole trip both times was getting through traffic in Seattle and Portland. LA can also be busy obviously, but at that point you're sooooo close to DL that it doesn't seem so bad!

I guess how far you want to drive at one time will depend on your kids' tolerance levels, and ages too.

 

[clyde]

Thank you very much for your reply Tinkerbell6, it is sincerely appreciated.

Have a most excellent trip.

 

[Broderick79]

Well, my girlfriend and I are about to embark on that very journey in 18 days, so I'll give you all the info you need....

You can do the drive in either 2 or 3 days (1 if you're crazy), depending on how many are driving. We do the 3 day think (I'm in North Vancouver, by the way). We have our "places" to stop along the way, to walk, to sightsee, etc. Here's an example of our trip:

DAY 1:
Leave N.V. and head down early (8am/9am), beating border traffic. Eat something small, because you know there's always places to stop in the U.S. I'd say at about 2 orpm, stop just south of Portland (Salem/Eugene) for a late lunch and keep going. We usually make it to Medford, Oregon the first night (recommend the Days Inn at the Alba Drive), I could go further ALWAYS but I do all the driving and my woman gets bored!!! You can hit the Siskiyou Pass and get to Redding by about 9 or 10pm, but trust me, you'll regret it. That mountain pass at night sucks, and you won't be able to see beautiful Mt. Shasta in the morning.
COOL THINGS ALONG THE WAY: Mt. St. Helen's (unless she's spewing ash!!), Sea Lion Caves (towards the Oregon coast), Wildlife Safari in Winston, OR.


DAY 2:
Up early again, and now we're aiming for somewhere just north of Bakersfield, possibly Tulare, Chowchilla, or Madera. This day is pure driving, not much to see (that is unless you take the coast, which is WAAAY longer). My advice if you don't wanna be bored out of your wits is when you get to Stockton, head east through the town and get on Highway 99. I-5 from ther down to Bakersfield almost killed me!!! Nothing but farms. At least you drive through the bigger cities this way. We recommoend the Best Western in Tulare. Very affordable and one of the best continental breakfast you'll ever have!!
COOL THINGS ALONG THE WAY: The "windy" rest stop just outside after the Siskiyou pass (kinda cheezy, but we think it's fun, and a great shot of Mt. Shasta) after that, there's not much, if you have kids there's a waterslide park just north of Fresno (forget the name) if you have time.

DAY 3:
Head south to L.A. We usually time it perfectly so we don't get stuck in the rush hour traffic, but there will always be some sort of traffic. We usually get to our hotel across teh street from DL Resort at about 2 or 3pm, sometimes even earlier and we'll have to wiat to check in!!!

I hope this helps you on your way, and just wondering when abouts you're going down???