Driving from Massachusetts

[TIGGERSMOM]

We are heading to WDW via the highway route. This is the first time in 10 years I will be driving. We have it all mapped and will be going straight through - 4 drivers in a big SUV.

Here's a couple questions, hopefully you guys can help with.

Anybody know approx drive time? we figure a couple stops breakfast, bathroom breaks etc..

We have lots of gas credit cards but I really don't want to bring them all - anyone know if any 1 company has the most stations? Mobil, Shell etc...

Any other advice would be great too.

 

[Mark P.]

Hi TIGGERSMOM,

You may already have these excellent links, but here they are just in case.

This gives you an idea of distance and drive times:
Mapquest

If you're taking I-95, this site has a lot of info.:
I-95 Exits

Have a great trip

 

[Harryo]

Hello neighbor! We drive to WDW every year. It takes us approx 20hrs from Plymouth. we usually leave around 9pm that way we avoid traffic in NY and DC.

 

[CamColt]

Wow, Harryo, you do good!
We have driven it from Woburn twice now(and again this August). Usually each trip takes just under 24 hours. We only stop for coffee, gas, and bathroom breaks, and 1 meal(like Mcdonalds). Of course we have gotten lost, gotten stuck in some big rain/thunder storms, etc... so that may have slowed us down some.
We like to leave at 10:00am. This way it only feels like we have 1 day to drive. The kids will usually fall asleep around 9:00pm, DH drives until early morning when I take over and he sleeps. Then once the sun comes up, theres only a couple more hours until we are there. The first time we did it, we went 3:00pm-3:00pm and it seemed a lot longer, almost like 2 whole days of driving.
The hints that help us are lots of little snacks and toys for the kids, bring a pillow if you plan to sleep in the car(so much more comfortable), and the big one...a tv/vcr with the kids favorite tapes!
Good luck!

 

[TIGGERSMOM]

Harryo, you must drive like me - LOL!! Must be a South Shore thing.


We are gonna figure around 22 hrs then. Fortunately my DS is 18 and will be doing some of the driving.

The I-95 site is great - thanks.

Because I work nights we are planning to leave about 7pm. That way I will drive 2nd leg the overnight part.

 

[feenie]

We drove from Manchester NH a couple of years ago... it took us right around 24 hours. Make sure you pack toilet seat covers though!!! We saw some pretty SCARY restrooms along the way.
The ride home is worse, since you don't have the pre-vacation energy to fuel you along.

 

[Uncleromulus]

Just avoid DC anytime near rush hour.
And we always take the I-295 "Bypass" around Richmond and around Jacksonville.

 

[disneyberry]

doesn't anyone ever split the drive up into 2 or 3 days anymore?
my family used to drive down from MA and it took us 3 days w/ leisurely overnight stops.

 

[phorsenuf]

Originally posted by disneyberry
doesn't anyone ever split the drive up into 2 or 3 days anymore?
my family used to drive down from MA and it took us 3 days w/ leisurely overnight stops.

When you only have about a week to enjoy Disney, the last thing you want to do is take a leisurely drive down there, at least for us that is.
We are in Concord, Nh and we can make the trip in just under 24 hours. My hubby drives the day shift and I drive the night shift. Works out great for us and the kids don't mind one bit. We are leaving this thursday night around 7:30. I'll make a concious effort to time it start to finish and how long our stops were.

On a side note for those who drive down, have you ever noticed that the majority of night drivers are women? I noticed that on our last trip.

 

[threeboysmom]

We are driving from Manchester, NH, & it takes us 24 hours almost to the hour! That includes stops every 3-4 hours and also a little bit of sightseeing along the way. We'll leave around 8:00 a.m. this Saturday & arrive hopefully around that time on Sunday.

We're the opposite - my DH drives the nightshift - I can't make it past midnight before I start getting really sleepy, so he takes over from there since he's already caught a couple of hours sleep by then. I take over again around 5:00 a.m. & he sleeps again. By the time the kids are awake, we are in Florida and practically at our destination!!

 

[wdwnutze]

I will be driving down in November with 2 kids and my mother. She will be doing a little bit of the driving but I will have to do the majority of it. If we planned to leave by 4am would I be ok with the traffic in NY and DC? I know we will have to stop overnight but I woud like to drive the 1st day til about 6pm. Anyone know where that would put me?

 

[MinniMama]

We leave Plaistow NH at 3:00 and arrive POR at 1:00 to 1:30 we try to aberage 60 miles an hour usually end up around 55 miles an hour and arrive at about 22 hours. Threeboysmom looks like we might be on the road at the same time! We have done this trip 6 times and it is great because the kids are only awake about half the trip we stop often too!

 

[buzz5985]

If we planned to leave by 4am would I be ok with the traffic in NY and DC? I know we will have to stop overnight but I woud like to drive the 1st day til about 6pm. Anyone know where that would put me?

I can answer that. I drove down my driveway Feb 2002 at 4 am. It was a Saturday. I didn't hit any traffic. Actually I was the only car heading west on the Mass Pike. Went through NY at 8 am. A little stop and go through Washington, but it was the weekend, and I am used to Boston rush hour, so I don't think anything would phase me. We stopped about every 2 hours for about 10-15 minutes. Drove till about 5 pm, had reservations in Rocky Mount, NC. There is a mall, every chain hotel is represented, plenty of restaurants. Left there about 5:30 am, arrived in Disney at 2:30 pm. We stopped a lot because we had our dog with us. LOL Plus my DS 5.

 

[Uncleromulus]

I imagine that put you around DC at 11:00-AM -noon??

Actually, from 10:00 AM until about 2:00 PM on weekdays isn't too bad either (that is, compared to rush hour).

We leave S.Central Pa. at 4:00 AM, and are just around DC by 6:00 Am (on Friday). The line of cars heading into DC from Southern Va. (even at 6:00) has to be seen to be believed--miles of cars moving at a crawl--just waiting for that first accident so things can be tied up for hours!!

 

[Dana49]

What does it cost, on an average, to drive from Massachusetts to Orlando? Is the savings worth not flying? Just curious.

 

[TIGGERSMOM]

Dana - we are about to find out. I am very curious myself.

This was not an economics decision for us - everyone (but me) wanted to do the drive. So off we go.

I am figuring about 10/11 tanks, 28.00 in tolls and another 100.00 in incedentals. So total budget probably about 410.00 for the 4 of us.

 

[wdwnutze]

Tiggersmom- Are you leaving soon? I would appreciate any information you can give when you get back as far as time you left, route you took, where you stopped, roughly how much you spent on gas, tolls etc, where you stayed if you spent the night soemwhere. I know I will have to stop and stay somewhere because I will be doing most of the driving. Have a great time. Look forward to getting an update when you get back.

 

[onthego103]

We are also considering driving from MA this summer. We are a family of five and I expect it will save us considerable money versus five plane tickets and a car rental. We won't be going for long enough to stay overnight in a hotel on our trip down or back. I'm not really looking forward to the drive, but if it is the difference between going and not going, I think it will be well worth it. Of those of you who have made the trip in 2 hours, have you done this with only two drivers?

 

[threeboysmom]

onthego103 - it takes us 24 hours to get to Orlando. We drive straight through with just 2 drivers. Well, really just one - my DH - I'm just sort of the back-up driver We leave in the morning - he does most of the driving - I'd prefer us switching every time we stop for a fill-up, but he actually likes to drive. I usually will drive 3-4 hours in the afternoon and he sort of cat naps. I'll also take the 8:00-midnight shift while he gets in some sleep for the big night ahead He then will drive til around 5:00 a.m. or 6:00 a.m. with help from Vivarine (caffeine pills) & listening to a good book on tape. I'll take over again at that point for the last few hours until we're in Orlando. It's really not that bad of a drive as long as at least one of you LIKES to drive. If you both hate driving, then it definately would not work for your family.

 

[MinniMama]

We have a minivan - drive straight through and for five of us it costs roughly 100.00- 150.00 each way - way cheaper we only eat out 2 meals at fast food so that is everything last year it was only 200. round trip.