Driving from DC (Northern VA)

[cmcvean]

We are going to be driving with our 4 young daughters (1,2,4,5) and I'm trying to figure out our plan. I think we want to drive about 9 hours then stay somewhere. We need a good suites type hotel because of the number of us. Does anyone have any advice on where to stay or any other ideas about driving from Northern VA. I don't think we want to drive the whole way, but I'm not totally opposed to it, what are your thoughts?

Thanks!! I LOVE this board, everyone here is so helpful & knowledgable!

Christine

 

[onecoolmama]

We are in Gaithersburg. We are all flying, but MIL and FIL are leaving at 3am to drive straight through..although, they have no little kids. If you go that route..15 hours that puts you there roughly 6pm.

The other way would be to leave around 3pm the night before, get as far as you can then..11pm should put you in SC and then drive the rest of the way the next day.


I think it also depends on your kids and how they are feeling and how well they do on car trips. I dunno what hotels are along the way, but I am sure someone else on the boards has all of that info. Good Luck!!

 

[mommyflower]

Hi! We are driving from South Jersey to WDW for the first time with our DS 2 1/2. First we are stoping at MIL's for thanksgiving in Virginia Beach and then diving for either 6 or 9 hours and then stoping for the night. We haven't decided yet. We have only driven to my MIL's house once when my ds was about 9 months and he cried the whole 5 1/2 hour trip there and back. It was horrible. He hated the car when he was little, but now he seems to do better. Still we are planning stops all along the way. I have been looking for malls along I95 and we have found a few that we could walk around in to stetch our legs and get a bite to eat. We also have a laptop to play movies on. I would suggest stopping at a hotel along the way for a couple of reasons. 1. it may take longer than you think with potty breaks and other stops. 2. Your kids are little and I would guess they might very stir crazy after so many hours. 3. Even if you are lucky and they sleep most of the time you and your DH will be tired and the kids will be raring to go.
Another suggestion I have is to have plenty of snacks for you and them. We drove to WDW a few times before my DS was born and I know there are parts of I95 that have nothing but fields for miles. I'm not really sure what route you will be taking but you also might want to check to see where all the rest stops are along the way. As far as hotels, some of the major chains have route planners on their websites that will show you which of their hotels are located along your route. Well good luck! Let us know what you decide and how it goes!

 

[KAH]

We are also planning to drive from the DC area - have 3 kids (2,4,5) so almost the same situation as you. Think we are doing it in one day - leaving very early in the morning and getting to Orlando after dinner. Our neighbors (who have family in Orlando) said the trip takes about 14 hours. A friend of mine just went this past April and it took her 14 hours as well. If we change our minds and stop somewhere it would probably be after the Savannah, GA area.

 

[crazymomof4]

We live in Central NJ. For our very first trip to WDW we went w/ FIL & MIL. It's their tradition to leave at 1am and drive straight through. Well, I am a light sleeper and ended up not being able to sleep at all that night. We got to Orlando alright, but I was "hungover" for the first 2 days of the stay bc. my sleep/wake cycle had been messed up. It was kind of like jet lag. Now we always leave after work (DH usually arranges to get out at about 2pm). We pack sandwiches for dinner in the car so we save time that way. We drive until we are tired (usually 11pm to midnight). That's 9-10 hours of driving. It gets us pretty far south and maintains our usual sleep pattern. We get a hotel w/ comp breakfast so we can get a quick and easy start the next morning. The next day we easily make it to the Orlando area by mid afternoon. Enough of the day is left to unpack, grocery shop (we rent a villa) and recover from the drive. We are raring to go on the following morning......no "jet lag"!

Everyone does it differently...this way works for us.

 

[cmcvean]

Thanks everyone. I was thinking maybe the Savannah area too. This way if we get up early, get breakfast, we can be at the Polynesian by noon.

I'm trying to figure out which hotels are closest to the highway in Savannah, so we don't have to go too far off course.

I guess I will try a couple of different major hotel chains trip planners, thank you for the suggestion!

We have a VCR in the car so the girls are pretty good on trips. I noticed last year when we went, we stopped in GA somewhere, the girls were better on the first long leg of the trip than they were the following day. This makes me think we should just go as far as we can the first day.

Thanks again, I will let you know what I find out.

Christine

 

[PNO4TE]

and last Christmas stopped at a Fairfield Inn on I-95 outside of Savannah. In fact, I think it was listed as the Fairfield Inn I-95! It was reasonably priced, had a great complimentary breakfast in the a.m. and had the added bonus of an indoor pool. WE liked it so well that we stayed at WDW later on the return trip and made reservations to spend the night there then too! It was very nice.

Hope that helps.

Elin

 

[crazymomof4]

Originally posted by cmcvean


I guess I will try a couple of different major hotel chains trip planners, thank you for the suggestion!

Try this site: www.freetrip.com

You enter your starting point and destination and it gives you a route (a no-brainer to WDW!) and lists the hotels along the way.

 

[Disney1-30-98]

My husband and I drive with our 2 kids to disney. They are 1 and 3. We live in S. Jersey and we leave at 5 oclock at night and drive straight through. Traffic at night is very light and our kids sleep from about 7 or 8 until 6 the next morning. We usually get to DW around 9 in the morning with a stop for breakfast in the morning. We do not take the ferry for those of you who know about the Cape May Lewes Ferry. We switch of and are actually not that tired in the morning. I couldn't imagine driving during daylight hours with the kids, they are much to antsy in the car. Maybe try leaving at night and driving straight through.

 

[Pryncess'mom]

WE drive from South Jersey and do it in two days. We usually leave around 9 PM, go all night and all day, and stop around Jacksonville. Sleep good that night and are at Disney by late morning ready to go! Kids are good car sleepers, and we have a full size van with TV\ vcr combo. Works for us.

i was also going to recommend the Fairfield Inn chain. WE have always had good result with them. We have stayed at the one off 95 in Savannah. It's right near the airport. We liked it alot, but be sure to eat before you get there. There isn't much around for dinner that's close. The front desk told us about an italian place that delivered. We did it and ate in the dining area. It was really good. They do have an indoor pool, and nice quick breakfast the next morning.

have fun!!! Wish I was going with you, I would do the driving!!

Deb

 

[cmcvean]

Thanks everyone. I think we may do the Fairfield in Savannah. I agree with the night driving. The last couple years we have actually gone from Orlando to Naples to visit my father, and on the way home we have left around 10am and just driven straight through, got home around 6am.

I'm just worried that it would wipe my husband out if we drove straight through getting there. He is running in the Disney Marathon, so I'm sure he wants to be fresh!!

Thanks again everyone!! Hey Deb, maybe you could be our chauffer??!!!

Christine

 

[Selket]

We just drove down in August (we live in the DC burbs too) and we stopped over in Savannah at a Country Inns and Suites. The suite rooms have a separate bedroom but I'm not sure if you can get double beds in it. There is a sleeper sofa in the living room. The price is about $80-90 or so. That includes breakfast. I think there are 2 of them around Savannah. The one we were in (Gateway I think) was clean and comfortable. We stayed in one in Florence coming back.

Don't drive all the way through! I think you'd feel terrible for days trying to get your sleep cycle back!!! We got to the AKL around 3 p.m. - right at check-in time (and got a free upgrade to savannah view!).

Have a great trip!

 

[Pryncess'mom]

Hey cmcvean!! When do we leave??!!!!!


Deb