Driving from Atlanta?

[GADisneyDad14]

Our experience with drive time from the city to WDW is 7-8 hours depending on traffic, bathroom stops, etc.

Coming back tends to be on the longer end of the range unless you time it so you miss traffic roughly between Macon and ATL - that part really slows down our return trips, generally speaking.

 

[Brett Wyman]

ATL is south of Atlanta proper, so why you'd include time to go through Atlanta is beyond me. Obviously it depends on how fast you're willing to drive and what else is happening on the roads. Google shows it at 441 miles, which for 6 hours would be averaging 73mph. For 7 hours, it would be average 63. So let's say it takes 6 1/2. Compare that to the 5 hours (if you're lucky) flying and it's not that much of a time savings to fly (from ATL w/a three hour layover), which is all I was trying to say.

Google map check is good for an estimate. But I live here and drive it frequently. Its not always a 7 hour drive even leaving from south of downtown, which we do. So comparing 7 hours driving to 5 hours flying is hoping for all the planets to align. We are spending $500 for the 4 of us to fly next month because flying is a decent time saver and just more convenient, too.

Driving: leave house 8am. Let's say 8 hour drive with stops(again that's a best case really). At WDW at 4pm.

Flying: Leave house at 8am for 10am flight. Flight takes of at 10:30, lands 12. MDE by 12:30, hotel by 1:30.

2:30 hours savings and no driving in traffic. Not a huge time savings for the cost sure, but there's the advantage of not have to drive. We will usually do it if we find tickets for around 100. If not we drive. But if you want that money in your pocket, sure it's not a big time difference after all of the "airport time".

 

[sam_gordon]

Google map check is good for an estimate. But I live here and drive it frequently. Its not always a 7 hour drive even leaving from south of downtown, which we do. So comparing 7 hours driving to 5 hours flying is hoping for all the planets to align. We are spending $500 for the 4 of us to fly next month because flying is a decent time saver and just more convenient, too.

Driving: leave house 8am. Let's say 8 hour drive with stops(again that's a best case really). At WDW at 4pm.

Flying: Leave house at 8am for 10am flight. Flight takes of at 10:30, lands 12. MDE by 12:30, hotel by 1:30.

2:30 hours savings and no driving in traffic. Not a huge time savings for the cost sure, but there's the advantage of not have to drive. We will usually do it if we find tickets for around 100. If not we drive. But if you want that money in your pocket, sure it's not a big time difference after all of the "airport time".

1) If you go back and look at what led to this, it was someone flying into ATL and then getting a car. Someone suggested getting a flight on another airline, which included a suggestion for 3 hours in between the flights. So if you're leaving the house at 8am for a 10am flight, that's 90 minutes at the airport. So add another 90 minutes to your 1:30 arrival, and now you're arriving at 3.
2) The part of your post I bolded is the only point I was making. Not that it's better to drive. Not that it's cheaper to drive. Just that flying is NOT "much faster" than driving which is what PP said.

 

[Brett Wyman]

1) If you go back and look at what led to this, it was someone flying into ATL and then getting a car. Someone suggested getting a flight on another airline, which included a suggestion for 3 hours in between the flights. So if you're leaving the house at 8am for a 10am flight, that's 90 minutes at the airport. So add another 90 minutes to your 1:30 arrival, and now you're arriving at 3.
2) The part of your post I bolded is the only point I was making. Not that it's better to drive. Not that it's cheaper to drive. Just that flying is NOT "much faster" than driving which is what PP said.

Thats true, its not much faster. But it COULD be if traffic was bad on the way down. Its an unknown variable based a lot of time of year you're visiting. Of course your plane could get delayed too.

 

[AngiTN]

1) If you go back and look at what led to this, it was someone flying into ATL and then getting a car. Someone suggested getting a flight on another airline, which included a suggestion for 3 hours in between the flights. So if you're leaving the house at 8am for a 10am flight, that's 90 minutes at the airport. So add another 90 minutes to your 1:30 arrival, and now you're arriving at 3.
2) The part of your post I bolded is the only point I was making. Not that it's better to drive. Not that it's cheaper to drive. Just that flying is NOT "much faster" than driving which is what PP said.

Geeze louise. Stuck on that "much" much?
I was only offering an idea. One measly word in the suggestion didn't need to be analyzed to death.
I fly from ATL. We used to drive from ATL. I'm VERY familiar with timing. For both.
I stand by my statement that flying from ATL save a lot of time, aggravation and pain from prolonged sitting, over driving. I always, ALWAYS opt to fly. We won't go if we have to drive now. Not after we learned how much easier and pleasant flying was over driving.

Not to mention there NO need for 3 hours layover, unless one just wants it. 30 min to grab bags, 10 min to check in, 20 min to security and 10 min to gate. Less than an hour. Add in even 30 min for cushion if you'd like. But, even with 3 hours, it's prefered to fly than drive. IF you get the $39/$49 fares that are so frequent.

 

[spiders]

Geeze louise. Stuck on that "much" much?
I was only offering an idea. One measly word in the suggestion didn't need to be analyzed to death.
I fly from ATL. We used to drive from ATL. I'm VERY familiar with timing. For both.
I stand by my statement that flying from ATL save a lot of time, aggravation and pain from prolonged sitting, over driving. I always, ALWAYS opt to fly. We won't go if we have to drive now. Not after we learned how much easier and pleasant flying was over driving.

Not to mention there NO need for 3 hours layover, unless one just wants it. 30 min to grab bags, 10 min to check in, 20 min to security and 10 min to gate. Less than an hour. Add in even 30 min for cushion if you'd like. But, even with 3 hours, it's prefered to fly than drive. IF you get the $39/$49 fares that are so frequent.

Yeah there is absolutely no reason for a 3 hour layover unless you choose to do that. I don’t think people realize how many flights are run out of ATL. I’m an air traffic controller here and yeah, there’s a flight to places like Birmingham and Huntsville every hour...they’re definitely going to Orlando a lot.

 

[sam_gordon]

Geeze louise. Stuck on that "much" much?
I was only offering an idea. One measly word in the suggestion didn't need to be analyzed to death.
I fly from ATL. We used to drive from ATL. I'm VERY familiar with timing. For both.
I stand by my statement that flying from ATL save a lot of time, aggravation and pain from prolonged sitting, over driving. I always, ALWAYS opt to fly. We won't go if we have to drive now. Not after we learned how much easier and pleasant flying was over driving.

Not to mention there NO need for 3 hours layover, unless one just wants it. 30 min to grab bags, 10 min to check in, 20 min to security and 10 min to gate. Less than an hour. Add in even 30 min for cushion if you'd like. But, even with 3 hours, it's prefered to fly than drive. IF you get the $39/$49 fares that are so frequent.

And I simply expressed my opinion on your idea. Then other posters came in and said how wrong I was. So I was explaining my logic to them.

And if you feel safe with your one hour time frame to get off one plane (what happens if it's late?), get to the main terminal to get your bags (what if there's a delay there), recheck them, go through security (more possible delays), and get back to your departing gate, more power to you. Two hours would probably be my minimum to do all of that. But to each their own.

 

[Wild4Walt]

Atlanta sounds like a good idea on the surface but I've driven Chicago to Orlando twice in the last 12 months and am on the never again list now. After having driven through Atlanta 4 times ( back and forth ) in what we would consider off-peak hours we were in stop and go traffic all 4 times. Think driving on the Kennedy at rush hour but with another lane and having to cross said lanes at different times to keep following I75. We used the bypass lanes twice only for them to be just as packed both times.

When are you traveling? I find airfares will be lower about 10 weeks out. Also check the airlines different days of the week ( meaning shopping on Tuesdays you'll find lower fares than if your shopping on Sunday ). If you can't find anything lower to Orlando I'd check the following: Miami ( about 5.5 hours to Orlando ), Tampa ( roughly an hour ), or Memphis. ( As a side note, you can also take a train to Memphis vs. flying and if you get a non-cabin type seat it may be even lower than airfare ). The drive from Memphis can be long ( about 11 hours ). Oh, and Charlotte NC may be a lower airfare too. That drive is about 7.5 hours.