Driving from Massachusetts to Orlando, route suggestions?

[Jupiter&Wolfe]

We're thinking about doing a 5 day WDW trip in October. It will be me, DBF and possibly one other friend. We want to drive down to try and save a little bit on plane tickets, and also thought it would be a fun new experience.

We'll be leaving from about 20 miles outside of Boston, near Worcester. The plan was to drive down to Roanoke, VA where I have family, stay with them for the night, then drive from Roanoke to Orlando the next day, find a cheap motel to crash at, then get up early the next day and hit our first park and check into our onsite hotel later that afternoon.

This is all new to me so any suggestions/criticism of my current plan would be appreciated. Some questions I have are...

~ Is this a reasonable and realistic plan?

~ Did you find that doing this really saved you all that much from plane tickets or am I going to break even/spend more (especially considering the motel cost in Orlando)?

~We're hoping to splurge a bit on the hotel and stay at a moderate(we're in our early 20's, that's splurging for us! ). Would it be cheaper/make more sense just to pay for that extra night and stay at the moderate the night we get to Orlando? I know it would be more convenient but I'm trying to cut costs anywhere I can, but if it's really inconvenient/would be tough to get to a park early the next day that way, I'd rather just take the hit and cut corners somewhere else.

~I've driven to Virginia a zillion times so I know the routes I want to take to get that far, but I've never driven past North Carolina. What routes would you recommend, and what routes would you advise against when driving from Roanoke, VA to Orlando? (Would be open minded to scenic routes with less traffic unless it would set me back several hours). Any days of the week I want to avoid due to traffic? (Haven't nailed down an exact date yet so I can be flexible)

~And finally, did you find that those two days of driving took a lot of energy out of you as opposed to flying? Was it tough to drive into Orlando that night, then hop up the next morning and go straight to a park? We're not planning on going commando the whole 5 days, but we wanted to hit HS and get our thrill ride on before the lines get long to kick off the vaca!

Thanks for any help!

 

[stevea20]

We're thinking about doing a 5 day WDW trip in October. It will be me, DBF and possibly one other friend. We want to drive down to try and save a little bit on plane tickets, and also thought it would be a fun new experience.

We'll be leaving from about 20 miles outside of Boston, near Worcester. The plan was to drive down to Roanoke, VA where I have family, stay with them for the night, then drive from Roanoke to Orlando the next day, find a cheap motel to crash at, then get up early the next day and hit our first park and check into our onsite hotel later that afternoon.

This is all new to me so any suggestions/criticism of my current plan would be appreciated. Some questions I have are...

~ Is this a reasonable and realistic plan?

~ Did you find that doing this really saved you all that much from plane tickets or am I going to break even/spend more (especially considering the motel cost in Orlando)?

~We're hoping to splurge a bit on the hotel and stay at a moderate(we're in our early 20's, that's splurging for us! ). Would it be cheaper/make more sense just to pay for that extra night and stay at the moderate the night we get to Orlando? I know it would be more convenient but I'm trying to cut costs anywhere I can, but if it's really inconvenient/would be tough to get to a park early the next day that way, I'd rather just take the hit and cut corners somewhere else.

~I've driven to Virginia a zillion times so I know the routes I want to take to get that far, but I've never driven past North Carolina. What routes would you recommend, and what routes would you advise against when driving from Roanoke, VA to Orlando? (Would be open minded to scenic routes with less traffic unless it would set me back several hours). Any days of the week I want to avoid due to traffic? (Haven't nailed down an exact date yet so I can be flexible)

~And finally, did you find that those two days of driving took a lot of energy out of you as opposed to flying? Was it tough to drive into Orlando that night, then hop up the next morning and go straight to a park? We're not planning on going commando the whole 5 days, but we wanted to hit HS and get our thrill ride on before the lines get long to kick off the vaca!

Thanks for any help!

DW and I did this many years ago and would never do it again, at least not in 2 days.
We left at 3AM to make sure we got though NYC traffic before it piled up, took a short side trip into DC and ended south of Richmond. We started again at 9 the next morning and reached Orlando that evening. We were wiped out and we were there for other reasons than going to Disney so we didn't have to go straight to a park, but I don't think we would have held up too well.

As for potential price savings you just need to calculate the price of air tickets against filling your gas tank the whatever number of times needed plus meals along the way and potential toll roads.

I-95 all the way to Florida is the easiest way, using the connector loops to go around major cities (think 495 around Boston) then I-4 into Orlando.

If you're AAA members you can get them to make up a Trip-Tik map with a precise route.

Don't let my experience scare you from trying. Just be aware it's a tough trip. Good Luck and Have Fun.

 

[rwdavis2]

Got to google maps and have it calculate your route to get total miles. Then calculate the cost of gas. Then add cost of food. You're just going to have the run the numbers.

[UPDATE: If you are definitely going to Roanoke then skip the next paragraph since the fastest way to Roanoke will avoid Baltimore/DC.]
The drive will require you getting around several major traffic problems. NYC and Baltimore/DC. If you hit rush hour at either add at least an hour driving time. Also, as you know Roanoke is out of the way. It's west of the fastest route, I-95. Let google maps be your guide.

I can't imagine that drive would in any way be fun. It's too long and boring. I've done Pittsburgh to Orlando a long time ago. There's virtually nothing to see from the interstates.

It all depends on how much you value your time.

 

[Our2Girls&Disney]

Let me start by saying that I have never driven. My brother and his family, drives every year. They drive 24 hours straight through alternating drivers. They say, they save money on airfare and car rental. Their cost is around $500 for gas and tolls and they live in MA. In my opinion, if there are two of you, you should be able to find airfare for $500 for 2 people in October. For only 5 days, I'd take that $500 budget for gas and tolls and buy airfare.

 

[goofy4tink]

I've never done it myself.....but I have some 30-something friends that do it all the time. They usually have 4 or 5 going, so just drive straight thru. They switch drivers while others sleep. So, you should be able to do it in two days. 12 hrs each day. If the three of you share the driving, it's just 4 hrs each....very doable. Just be sure to get out and stretch for a bit when you change drivers. If you leave the area around 4am, you should be fine. My son did that a few years ago. We're in central mass, at 495 and 9. I believe my friends also leave about then...maybe earlier since they drive straight thur. My son didn't. He broke it up into 3 days since he was alone.
If you leave around 4am, and drive until 4-5pm, get up and leave again by 8am, you should be in the WDW area by 8-9pm. I would stop at an inexpensive hotel for the night, and get up by 7 the next day and head to WDW to get checked in.

 

[librarymom2007]

We drive from Baltimore. 95 the whole way until past Jacksonville then we take a road west but I forget which one. We leave at 5AM. Stop outside Savannah around 4 and spend the night there. Then we only have 4 hours to drive to Disney the next day. It works for us. There are 3 of us so it saves us on plane tickets.

 

[Jimsig]

When checking for flights you are in a pretty decent location to check out at least a few airports. Check out Logan, Worcester, even Prov and Manchester NH. Right now tickets from Wor are about $148 going down and $172coming back depending on dates. Boston is even better, as low as $119 each way right now in Oct. Both on Jet Blue. If you can snag those $119 flights it's less then $500 to fly for 2 people. Probably about the same as flying as others have said. If you stay on property for all nights you will not need a rental car as you can take the DME from the airport to your resort and use Disney transportation to get around.

Even if a 3rd goes, It's probably still worth flying as you will be there roughly 6hours after you leave home, taking into account driving to the airport, security, flight, and getting to Disney. 6 hours from home you will only be in Maybe Harrisburg or Phily PA depending on your route. You have to decide what your time is worth.

It's not as much the trip down after you get there, as you are running on excitement, but the trip home that's usually the killer as it can take a day or so to recover.

Either way, you will have a blast

 

[Jimsig]

If you are trying to cut corners on the cost you could also look at scalling back and staying at one of the Pop Resorts etc instead of a Mod. But you could also look at renting some ones Disney Vacation Club. Not sure if I can use the name here, thought I think I have seen it listed before here on these boards, but do a web search for Davids Vacation Rentals. You may be able to get a Mod or higher cheaper that way.

 

[biondagirl]

Your plan seems realistic to me. I don't know how many hours you are from Roanoke, but from there it should be fairly simple. 95 South all the way. We try to take 417 around Sanford into Orlando, but we usually miss our turn and take I-4.

We are outside of Philadelphia and it takes us between 17 and 18 hours to get there. We have two kids so we stop a lot. But we do LOVE to drive. It's very exciting. We have stopped in SC and we have made it to Jacksonville in 15 hours. We do try to get a good night's sleep before we get to WDW. We need to save that energy! But, we're 20 years older than you, too. LOL

I find it saves us money as a family of 4 to drive. You would only have to pay for you and DBF, so you should try to weigh your options with how much you'll spend in gas. Once you are there, you wouldn't necessarily have to rent a car. What moderate are you staying at? We have stayed twice at AS Sports and love it. You can stay at a value, too, to save. Although, the moderates do have a little more room to breath.

Happy planning.

 

[Jimsig]

From Roanoke you will get back on I-81 south to I-77 south, to I-26 east, to get back to I-95 south as you are inland in VA and not near I-95.

 

[Mousemom234]

We've driven down a fw times from southern NH. We stop twice, in Fredericksburg and again in Georgia, around exit 3 - Kingsland.

From there, you can go senic, but possibly slow: get back on 95, and get off onto A1A west. Then take 301 south - go down through Ocala, pick up 44 east just beyond Wildwood (before the FL Turnpike) and change to 27 in Leesburg; that will take you to 192 east, which is the main road through Kissimmee.

Or you can go quicker, not quite as scenic: Go a bit further on 95, skirt west around Jacksonville on 295. Then either rejoin 95, go all the way to 4 at Daytona, and into Orlando;
or exit from 295 at 10 west, then south on 75, to 27 to 192.

 

[Jimsig]

....from there, you can go senic, but possibly slow: get back on 95, and get off onto A1A west. Then take 301 south - go down through Ocala, pick up 44 east just beyond Wildwood (before the FL Turnpike) and change to 27 in Leesburg; that will take you to 192 east, which is the main road through Kissimmee....

If you do go 301 make sure to go the speed limit, Waldo and the surrounding towns are notorious for speed traps.

 

[Robert P]

Your plan seems realistic to me. I don't know how many hours you are from Roanoke, but from there it should be fairly simple. 95 South all the way.

No. Too far inland and right beside I-81.

From Roanoke you will get back on I-81 south to I-77 south, to I-26 east, to get back to I-95 south as you are inland in VA and not near I-95.

Correct. The only normal traffic concern would be Charlotte. Just try to avoid the morning rush hours, with 7:30 - 9:00 a.m. being the worst of it on a weekday.

 

[Robert P]

We're thinking about doing a 5 day WDW trip in October. It will be me, DBF and possibly one other friend. We want to drive down to try and save a little bit on plane tickets, and also thought it would be a fun new experience.

We'll be leaving from about 20 miles outside of Boston, near Worcester. The plan was to drive down to Roanoke, VA where I have family, stay with them for the night, then drive from Roanoke to Orlando the next day, find a cheap motel to crash at, then get up early the next day and hit our first park and check into our onsite hotel later that afternoon.

This is all new to me so any suggestions/criticism of my current plan would be appreciated. Some questions I have are...

~ Is this a reasonable and realistic plan?

~ Did you find that doing this really saved you all that much from plane tickets or am I going to break even/spend more (especially considering the motel cost in Orlando)?

~We're hoping to splurge a bit on the hotel and stay at a moderate(we're in our early 20's, that's splurging for us! ). Would it be cheaper/make more sense just to pay for that extra night and stay at the moderate the night we get to Orlando? I know it would be more convenient but I'm trying to cut costs anywhere I can, but if it's really inconvenient/would be tough to get to a park early the next day that way, I'd rather just take the hit and cut corners somewhere else.

~I've driven to Virginia a zillion times so I know the routes I want to take to get that far, but I've never driven past North Carolina. What routes would you recommend, and what routes would you advise against when driving from Roanoke, VA to Orlando? (Would be open minded to scenic routes with less traffic unless it would set me back several hours). Any days of the week I want to avoid due to traffic? (Haven't nailed down an exact date yet so I can be flexible)


Thanks for any help!

Here is my 2 cents:
I live in mid NC, and since you plan to stop in Roanoke, VA, your route will almost mimic our travel route to MA and FL from NC each year. You're looking at roughly 22-23 hours driving, best case, staying within 10-12 mph of the speed limit, and hitting no major traffic jams. Also, that's minimal stops for gas and restrooms, and fast food only. Despite 2 (maybe 3 drivers), that's a long ride. This, coming from someone who drives anything 800 miles away and under, without question.

Just FYI - The Roanoke to Orlando portion of your drive will take you roughly 10.5 -11 hours on day 2.

Based on your location, I agree with many of the previous posters, and suggest you check airfare pricing. You've got a good selection of airports to choose from, and once you run the math, any $$ savings on driving have to be compared to the value of your time for a 40+ hour round trip drive. It would be a great road trip, but a really long one, and you'd lose a lot of your WDW time on the road. But still, do the math, see what makes sense. That's ultimately your call to make.

If you need more detailed info on the driving portion, feel free to PM me.

 

[Jupiter&Wolfe]

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I guess I'll have to see who's definitely going before I run the numbers!

 

[paults]

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I guess I'll have to see who's definitely going before I run the numbers!

http://www.gasbuddy.com/Trip_Calculator.aspx

try this for some cost

 

[ParrotBill]

Even if you weren't going to stop in Roanoke I would have recommended you consider using I-81/I-77/I-26 to avoid metro NY, Baltimore, and DC. Even if you manage to avoid rush hours, I have always run into major delays on I-95 and lower average speeds. Only Charlotte has a real rush hour and slow down on I-77 sometimes.

On I-81 I find the drive is a bit faster, less risk of delays, and overall a more enjoyable ride.

As for 2 days vs 1 day, as a young adult I could drive it straight through, but I tried once when I was 48 and hated it by Florida. We had to trade off every 30 minutes at that point. So we always do it in 2 days now, trying to drive more the first day than the second so we get a half day in Florida.

 

[happily single]

Hi OP. I am sitting in Shrewsbury, Mass right now, trying to plan our April drive.
I think that you should drive ambit further than VA. I typically drive to the NC/SC border.

As far as a cheap hotel the day before in Orlando, just watch resort fees and parking fees! They almost make Disney seem reasonable

 

[The Mayor]

I've done it twice. First day left at 4:00AM and drove until 10:00PM and got to Brunswick, GA. Had a hotel reserved for late arrival. Got a good nights sleep and up an out at 8:30 the next morning. Arrived at WDW 12:30.Two people sharing the driving.

Went Mass Pike to 84 to 287 over the Tapanzee Bridge to Jersey Turnpike to 95, thru Fort McHenry Tunnel and beltway around DC and then 95 straight to Rt 4 in FL. Total driving time was around 22 hours. I live about 20 miles north of Boston.

 

[pershing]

We drove from Cape Cod to Orlando then to Miami for 3 day Magic Cruise and then home-dropping off my son at school in Boston before heading home this past December.

I will preface this by saying the way down was done on Christmas Day so little traffic but in general I avoided the bad NY city times, DC etc. There's a thread about that somewhere around here.

We've always flown before. I really liked driving!

Face it! You spend 2,3 or 4 hours before your flight getting to the airport, security, waiting for your plane. It's 5 hours for us to New Jersey. So that chunk is done mostly before you board the plane.

3 hours flying and if you were driving you'd be in Maryland? Delaware? Someone help me out here.

Back to the plane-your taxi-ing walking and getting luggage, renting a car, or waiting for Magical Express. 1 hour more. 45 minutes to WDW

You see what I'm saying? You spend alot of stop and wait time that's not being mentioned here.

PLUS you need to add price of rental car to flight cost if you are not using ME.

We front loaded driving the first day. Made it to Savannah, GA first stop. Probably will never be able to do that again but it was all new so we were fascinated. Savannah is beautiful wish we had explored. Stayed at Country Inn and Suites for $35 with free breakfast, wifi, parking and indoor pool (tiny),

Flying would have been $250 round trip for 4 of us plus 200-300 rental car. Driving with all expenses was $600 total but now I can lower that with experience. Tolls alone as part of the $600 driving straight down 95 were ~$100 r/t but we went to Miami after Orlando. Also will use Mass Pike going down next time, much nicer roads! CT 95 roads are a mess!

Some guy posted a way to drive with reduced tolls. I'm gonna look that up next time.

Best advice I got from a trucker:

Fill up in late Jersey stop off turnpike like almost to Delaware. Then add a little in NC to get you to SC then fill up again cheap cheap use the Pilot and Love's gas stations in the South. It was $3.17 in NJ and $2.98 in SC.
Fill up in GA before FL if you need it. Gas is more in FL.

Fill your tank before you leave with your Stop and Shop points, however I saw REWARDS button listed at a Shell gas station in FL. Didn't press the button, Wonder if I could have used my S&S rewards there.

Ask for gas cards and fast food cards for Birthday and Christmas. Fill your trunk with food but put a cooler filled with drinks, snacks, and sandwiches in the back seat.

Use the beautiful rest areas in the South for bathroom stops. They are convenient and lovely!

If your staying at Country Inn or Quality Inns like us cooler microwave and toaster friendly food in your trunk. They usually have microwaves and toasters upon request. Make it more dinner food as breakfast is free.

Before you leave your mechanic look over your car-tell him your driving to FL. Invest/borrow a jump battery and highway emergency car stuff. Plan for the worst, hope for the best! I borrowed mostly everything except the jump battery cause Amazon had a flash deal for $60.

Use the WAZE app for directions instead of your iphone Maps app. It adjusts on its own. Has traffic notifications in general it's wonderful! Especially helps if you're driving around Orlando. Use it first at home to get the hang of it.

Thus ends my lessons learned from this past Christmas. We had a ball!