Best way from Orlando to Memphis!!

[momtofour]

Need some wonderful guidance from you road warriors out there!! We are going to be at WDW from March 19, 2005 until March 26, 2005. My nephew has decided to get married in Memphis on March 27th. I will have to forego our flights home to Chicago and rent a van and drive it all the way home. This is going to be one long trip!! A couple of questions for everyone:
1) I believe the mileage from Orlando to Memphis will be about 800 miles. I am not familiar at all with the highways/expressways etc. My kids are great road trippers. Can this trip be done in one day! I hate to leave Orlando on Thursday and give up any time at WDW.
2) What would be the recommended route to reach Memphis? Originally, I thought we would go up through Pensacola and into Alabama. However, due to the recent hurricanes, much of the area will be under construction.

Thanks for any and all suggestions!!!

 

[CarolA]

Its a long day. Plan on about 16 hours.

Due to the mess in the panhandle you might consider I-75 to Chattanooga, TN; I-24 to Nashville and I-40 to Memphis, but you have a long time and a LOT could be accomplished in the panhandle between now and then.

 

[perdidobay]

I have done I-75 from Orlando to Atlanta, then I-10 to Birmingham. At Birmingham take Highway 78 thru Tueplo to Memphis. This way is alot quicker.
You can also choose to go I-75 to I-10 west, take highway 231 thru Dothan Al, to Montgomery, where you take I-65 to Birmingham. Then get on highway 78 again.

 

[pumpkinboy]

How about NorthWest Airlines? They have a hub in Memphis, so there are likely lots of direct flights, and I would imagine you could do it all for about $650 per person, flying from Milwaukee all direct flights (MKE-MCO, MCO-MEM, MEM-MKE). If you are a lot of people, it could be prohibitively expensive, but with perhaps 4, the economics might be better than renting a van one-way.

Sadly, Memphis is not a SouthWest city, so unless you fly then drive from Nashville, it's not too feasible.

But since you sound excited about road tripping it, why not? I expect my March, the roads in the Fla panhandle should be back up and running, so I wouldn't worry too much. Reserving the van one-way I guess would be the main consideration, along with what to do with that return ticket.

Good luck!