Drive From Houston?

[Cin]

Thinking of driving to WDW and I need to know from some who have done it, how is the trip from Houston to Orlando? Can it be done in 1 day or do we need to stop for a night? I don't want to arrive at bedtime for a WDW resort as I can stay off property and save my money and my disney perks for a full day. For us the cost is about break even to fly and rent a car or to drive and have our own car. DH wants to try the drive since we flew last time.

 

[lovetoscrap]

I am moving this to the Transportation forum.

 

[hsembrick]

We have driven from College Station and for us it took about 17 hrs. It can be done in one day but you will get there at bedtime. We left around 5 am and stopped for breakfast around 8 then again for lunch and to let the kids stretch their legs. Then back in the car, we stopped around 4 to get gas and to have another break and finally stopped for the night in Lake City or Live Oak, FL I don't remember which one. The next morning we only had about a 3 hrs and we where at WDW. Had we driven through the night the drive might have been better but I doubt we will drive again. We just arent a car trip family and I am not a good "rider". The drive is not a bad one just not right for our family.

If you fly, why would you need to rent a car? Do you not like using ME?

 

[GoofyTraci]

Thinking of driving to WDW and I need to know from some who have done it, how is the trip from Houston to Orlando? Can it be done in 1 day or do we need to stop for a night? I don't want to arrive at bedtime for a WDW resort as I can stay off property and save my money and my disney perks for a full day. For us the cost is about break even to fly and rent a car or to drive and have our own car. DH wants to try the drive since we flew last time.

We are leaving from Katy right outside of houston and we plan to drive through the night without stopping. we are leaving at 1pm and plan to get to wdw the next morning. It will be a first for us as we always fly but cant justify the cost for the 3 of us this trip. I can tell u more when we get back or maybe someone else can help you. I think every family will be different but my hubby is used to being up at night so I think we will be ok. But who knows we might get too tired and have to stop anyway. Anyway I am going on and on sorry. Good luck.

 

[MichaelColey]

We're a bit further away, in the DFW area. It would be a pretty long, miserable 1 day drive for just about any family. It's not that enjoyable of a 2 day drive, either.

We split it up into 2 days and did the majority of the driving (both directions) on the first day. It's much easier to get up and going the second day when you realize it's going to be a whole lot easier than the previous day.

 

[Cin]

Thanks, I am trying to hold out for the flight as I get "sit-itis" as it is in just the 2.5 hour flight from Houston to MCO, much less a day and a half drive. I don't know why DH insists on driving other than lines and waiting are not his thing and he was rather annoyed that we had to wait for ME to pick us up at the resort and they were about 6 minutes late, yet we had to check out and depart 3 hours ahead of take off, and the wait in the airport and lines and security, etc, and he is always in control of the situation as much as possible. He had a hard time adjusting to letting Disney chauffeur him around and on their schedule not his... lol. And he agreed he want to go back with me, saying that Walt Disney was a genius. It would be nice though to have out own ride as getting from ASMu to AKL for our meal and back was a several hour adventure just for a meal. Had we driven ourselves, it was about 5 minutes one way. And DH is eyeing (gulp, need I say it?) going off property to get groceries, beverages, and even dine...

 

[Cin]

I'd love to hear how it went when you return. We actually live much farther than Houston, but we'll be doing a short 5 hour drive to family's house then stopping overnight for a quick visit and so our long long day will actually start from the TX/LA border. I was hoping it was doable in a day from there. But I don't want a long tiring day that will wear us out before we even get there, I'd rather get tired out from having too much Disney fun!

 

[brookmey]

We've driven from Katy to WDW twice and we only stopped for 1 night. Both times we arrived late afternoon/early evening, but that was because we got caught in bad congestion near Baton Rouge (once an accident, the other construction). We also had 2 young kids, so we made frequent stops. Tallahassee is about the halfway point, so if you can make it past you'll have a shorter 2nd day drive. You'll also lose an hour around Pensacola or Tallahassee (I can't remember which) because of the time zone change.

On the way home, we once took the scenic route along the Gulf. We went through Gulfport and Biloxi. It was nice because it was different. Mobile is also nice to drive through, you can see where the cruise ships dock and you can see the USS Alabama. There's a lot of water around Mobile, so that gives you some new scenery.

We leave about 7 am and drive until 7 or 8 pm, depending on how the kids are doing. It's really not a bad drive, it seems to go by quickly.

If you really push it and can make it to Lake City, FL (where 10 and 75 meet), you can sleep in if you'd like because you'll have a nice, short drive on the 2nd day.

And, FYI, there aren't a lot of hotel choices between Pensacola and Tallahassee. We tried a few, but they weren't in the best areas and they made me nervous, so we continued on. We stopped once in Defuniak Springs, but that's about it. So, you'll need to make a decision when you get close, stop in Pensacola or push it to Tallahassee.

Some people like to make their hotel reservations in advance, but we never do because we like to get as far as we can. We don't like having to stop while the kids are doing well just because we have a reservation. Instead, we stop at a FL welcome center and pick up a discount book on FL hotels. They have coupons you can use for your hotel stay. Then, I get on my smartphone and look up hotel reviews on TripAdvisor to see which ones in the coupon book will be good to stay at.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[jacdolfin]

We are from the San Antonio area but drove through Houston to Orlando straight thru only to stop for potty breaks and snacks etc. We left at 1pm got to the Orlando area 9am the next day. Is it doable yes did I like it no lol. Is it worth it to safe money Yes if its all about dollars and cents. If it is between driving and going to Disney or not going there is no question lol. We stoped on the way back half way was Mobile Alabama but halfway would be different for yall since you will be stopping in Houston not SA.

We are going this year and found good deals or we would be driving. Try www.airfarewatchdog.com and signing up for airline emails for discounts. This sight gives you air fare deals via email. Even if you do fly I prefer to have a car so I can leave property if I want. Try www.carrentalsavers.com for rental car deals . Hope you have a great trip.

 

[Cin]

I just checked airfare and it's over $900 for just 2 of us to fly round trip, it looks like we'll be doing the long drive after all if flights don't come down. I'm dreading the 18 hr trip. that's the travelmath.com figure, so I suppose thats the time without stops. I'm thinking we can drive from Corpus Christi (home base) to Marianna, Fl and then stop for the night leaving about 5 hours on day 2. I just don't want to arrive exhausted before we even start our Disney fun. IDK, is Marianna too far for the first day? We might be staying with family the first night near LA/TX state line so that might be our day 2 starting point. Trying to budget and plan now. And toll roads in FL? Are we going to need a couple of rolls of quarters or will 1 be enough? I know lots of questions, thanks for the answers and info!

 

[123Disney]

We live in Montgomery County and it takes us about 17 hours when we drive straight through. My DH loves to drive so he usually starts out. We go in the summer so we like to drive through the night (avoid the heat). I know that's not for everyone but it works for us. We leave around 6 pm. We are heading toward Downtown so by the time we get to the east side the traffic has pretty much calmed down. Hubby drives and I sleep. We stop for restroom breaks and breakfast switching drivers along the way.We usually arrive around 1:00. We get a late lunch and typically our room is ready. We go to bed early so we can get an early start the next day.

We will be doing this again in June!

 

[Cin]

Thanks everyone for the great tips and information! It will be very helpful when we make our drive. We haven't worked out details such as starting point yet, as it depends on where the in laws are when we travel. They have a house near TX/LA state line and if they are home, we'll stop by and visit them and "start" our trip from there. I think that we can get to WDW in a 12-13 hour trip from their house according to travelmath.com. But as they travel a lot we aren't counting on them being home, so I have to have a plan A and a plan B. As it is it's a little over 1100 miles one way from our house to Mickey's house.

 

[cooldadtexas]

I would have a room reservation just in case. We stop in Mobile, AL when we drive from Houston. You never know about accidents or construction. We made the trip one time and could not find a room when the drivers and kids were exhausted. Don't add to the misery by not having a room. You can always cancel if you don't need it.

 

[MagicalMawMaw]

We drove to WDW from Waco our first two trips. These trips were about 10 years when we were a family of 6 & flying was way out of the budget.
Again about 8 years ago when we were a family of 5 for the same reason. We also stayed off property on those trips.

We stayed one night traveling each direction so to break up a long long trip. We enjoyed the drive..but we stopped & toured New Orleans during one trip & saw some neat things in Louisiana on another trip & we took an airbost tour.
Adding in the cost of 2 extra nights as well as the time it takes to drive I hope to fly from now on.

We are going in Dec. this year....just the 2 of us this time. I watched the flights daily on Travelocity & other sites.
We booked our tickets, straight flight from DFW on Travelocity for $162. each. The airline was United. Keep looking maybe you'll land some cheap tickets...we were thrilled w/ our rates!

 

[Cin]

We booked our tickets, straight flight from DFW on Travelocity for $162. each. The airline was United. Keep looking maybe you'll land some cheap tickets...we were thrilled w/ our rates![/B][/QUOTE]


Wow. What a deal! Maybe I could make the 4 hour drive to Houston and fly direct from there for the same price? That would be wonderful. Too bad I have to go through a "hub" to transfer flights as a direct flight would be so much cheaper. Still watching for the airfare to come down... except our middle son and his wife just moved to Ormond Beach, FL yesterday and so now I think we'll have to drive so we can see their new home and visit.

 

[Cin]

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You never know about accidents or construction.

Oh yeah, there is always construction when we travel in LA, I wasn't even thinking about that. Good point. I didn't even think that there would be a possibility of no vacancy. Thanks for the tip.