Driving from Ottawa

[Greenfield1984]

I'm looking at driving to Disney for our next trip in late August. I know we can get cheap flights out of Syracuse/Rochester but it'll still save us $400-500 to drive and I'd like the experience of it. I think it'll be fun. Just wondering who has done it, has anyone done the drive straight through (with multiple drivers obviously) and what time did you leave Ottawa at? Obviously we'd be taking the I95 pretty much the whole way there and was wondering what your experiences were with hitting traffic or any other obstacles to avoid.

Thanks!

 

[dvc deernut]

IM NOT SURE IF THIS IS THE SAME. I HAVE DRIVEN FROM NIAGARA ON THE LAKE, PROBABLY ALMOST SAME DISTANCE. I DROVE STRAIGHT THRU ONCE. LEFT AT 10am AND ARRIVED AROUND !!AM NEXT MORNING. I STOPPED A COUPLE TIMES TO REST AWILE. I DROVE MY DW AND DD DS AND THERE FRIENDS FLEW DOWN. THAT WAS THE LAST TIME I DID THAT. I WAS WASTED MOST OF THAT DAY. FUNNY THING THOU WE ARRIVED AT OKW AT SAME TIME. WE GO DOWN I79 THEN ACROSS THRU BECKLEY THEN DOWN TO CHARLOTTE AND DOWN TO COLUMBIA OR COLUMBUS I GET THEM MIXED UP BUT ITS THE NEXT MAJOR CITY BELOW CHARLOTTE. THEN OVER TO THE 95 AND DOWN. IM ASSUMING YOU WILL BE GOING STRAIGHT DOWN THE 81 THRU SYRACUSE DOWN THRU HARRISBURG THEN DOWN TO SOMEWHERE THE HIGHWAY CROSSES NEAR BLUEFIELD AND THEN DOWN TO CHARLOTTE. OR YOU CAN CROSS OVER FROM HARRISBURG AND GO THRU WASHINGTON AND THEN DOWN THRU RICHMOND. BUT WASHINGTON CAN BE A NIGHTMARE IF YOU GET THERE DURING THE WEEK. IF YOU HIT JACKSONVILLE NEAR MIDAFTERNOON YOU MAY WANT TO CUT OFF 95 MILES BEFOR JACKSONVILLE AND HEAD TO THE COAST ON I THINK ITS HIGHWAY 9. ITS FAIRLY NEW AND 4 LANES AND REHOOKS UP WITH THE 95 ON THE OTHER SIDE OF JACKSONVILLE. YOU CROSS A HIGH BRIDGE CLOSER TO THE COAST AND YOU CAN SEE JACKSONVILLE FAR TO YOUR WEST.

 

[tjbaggott]

We too are from Ottawa and did our 1st Drive to the World last fall. We left on a Monday at 8:30/9:00 am. We stopped for the night in Virgina. Left There at 8:30 Tuesday and drove the rest of the way, arriving at our Hotel in Kissimmee at 10pm Tuesday night.

I was Shocked at the amount of dead dear on the road. It was as many as you see dead groundhogs on our major highways here (maybe more actually).
We had a situation that Monday night just after dusk with a dear jumping from the left of the highway right out into our path. Dh was driving, and had to swerve to miss it and did but by mere inches. 20 minutes later, two big dogs, one chasing the other, bounded right out in front of us. DH slammed on the brakes. Both incidents induced panic and after the 2nd one, I demanded we pull over at the next exit with a Hotel nearby, and thats what we did. Other than that, the drive was GREAT!

Coming home, we left WDW at 6pm and headed home right away. We drove as far as Jacksonville FL and found a cheap motel for the night (I wouldn't stay there again, it was just a scary looking area). That was a Thursday. Friday Morning, we left at 9 a.m. and started driving. Dh soon decided he wanted us to drive straight through without stopping for the night. We stopped at a Walmart to pick up some snacks and pillows and headed home. I drove for a while, then DH took over for the nightime driving. He promised that if he got too tired, he'd pull over into a rest area, which he did at around 1a.m. We stayed there for a few hours, I couldn't sleep but he did. Then we were on the road again and pulled into our driveway at exactly 8:30 in the morning on the Saturday.
I did love the drive during daylight hours but did not enjoy the night time, mainly because those roads were unfamiliar, along with the dear and dog incidents, I was on high alert always after dark, and was unable to sleep and thus help with the driving.

DH's hours at worked have changed now. He now works from 1:30 am to 10:30 am so is now used to be awake those overnight hours. So for our trip this fall, we will leave Ottawa at 11pm. We are dropping a family member off at a relatives in NJ, so plan on arriving there around 7:30 in the morning, then continue heading South, catching the I-95 right from there.
I have this thing about wanting to be driving into FL during daylight hours, morning specifically and stopping in at the Welcome Centre for a Free cup of OJ. The kids would love that. Coudn't do that last trip as we drove into Florida after dark.

We used GPS and Mapquest Maps AND a Trip Tik from CAA. All were helpful.
We also got roomsaver coupon books from the welcome centres in Virginia and Georgia and used coupons from those to get great deals on rooms for the night when we stopped. I liked those coupon booklets, as we never knew for sure where we'd stop for the night, so couldn't make ahead any reservations.

I found all in all the drive there and somewhat the drive back, a vacation within a vacation, and was well worth it.

I still have the books that CAA gave us for free, thick paperback books on each of the states we travelled through on the trip. We never used them as we didn't have time to add any sightseeing beyond the highway during our drive. If however YOU are interested in these books, I'd be happy to pass them on to you since you we live in the same city, it'd be easy to get it to you.

Other tip: We stopped at a Crackerbarrel for lunch on our way down last trip. It was Fabulous and all, but I wouldn't do it again, as it's NOT fast service. It's a sit down restaurant and we had to wait a bit for a table in the first place. That stop ate up a huge amount of our precious driving time. We plan from now on, sticking to pre bought/made snacks and sandwhices and Fast Food Drive throughs. Our goal afterall is to just get to Florida and we'll kick back and relax once there.

Trip Tik is great as you can ask the CAA people to make it up to your specifications such as avoid a certain area, and it will also give you a current list of road construction on your route. We asked them to give us a route that avoided the DC area. Another DISER mentioned to me about using the Pensilvainia Turn Pike as a way to cut 1/2 hour from your trip. It was a toll road but worth it. It is located just after Clarks Summit in PA. We did not take any detours around Jacksonville but we also drove through there in the evening. There was tons of road construtions as we headed into and through FL, it was raining, it was dark and the roads seemed narrow because of those cement barriers along the sides of the road, right at the lane edges. I drove us through there, and that was very much anxiety inducing!

We had taken the 416 out of Ottawa and Crossed at the Bridge to the USA from there. Headed up to Catch the I-81 and basically headed from there to the I-95. Stop at South of the Border at the Georgia/Florida Border, JUST so you can say you've been there. (It's quite cheesey actually, but fun reading the zillion of signs for the place all along they way there).

For the kids if you are travelling with kids, I highly recommend things like:

DVD player and movies
hand held electronic game like Nintendo DS, if they have them
Paper and pencil crayons (TIP: Avoid Crayons as if left in the vehicle, they WILL MELT!!)
Small toys/travel games
Activity books
Story books
Snacks (healthy things like fruit, granola bars and juice boxes or bottled water)

 

[ccudmore]

We drove from Ottawa a few years ago. We left at 6am and drove 13 hours the first day and ended up in Roanoke Rapids North Carolina. Lots of little motels reasonably priced along the highway there. Next day we drove 10 hours and got there late afternoon. It was a great trip.

We took a route that made sure we avoided the DC area. That's an area you want to avoid. The only major city we drove through was Jacksonville.

On the way back we stayed overnight in Richmond, VA. Again, lots of cheap motels along the highway.

Another option I discovered recently are the REALLY CHEAP flights on Allegiant Air out of Plattsburgh NY, just south of Montreal. Their flights are generally $39 or $69 each way and there's free parking at the airport. It's about a 3 1/2 hour drive from Ottawa. Only issue is that they fly into Sanford, not MCO so you can't use DME. I've never used them but if you're looking to fly and save a few $$ it may be worth a shot.

 

[tjbaggott]

We drove from Ottawa a few years ago. We left at 6am and drove 13 hours the first day and ended up in Roanoke Rapids North Carolina. Lots of little motels reasonably priced along the highway there. Next day we drove 10 hours and got there late afternoon. It was a great trip.

We took a route that made sure we avoided the DC area. That's an area you want to avoid. The only major city we drove through was Jacksonville.

On the way back we stayed overnight in Richmond, VA. Again, lots of cheap motels along the highway.

Another option I discovered recently are the REALLY CHEAP flights on Allegiant Air out of Plattsburgh NY, just south of Montreal. Their flights are generally $39 or $69 each way and there's free parking at the airport. It's about a 3 1/2 hour drive from Ottawa. Only issue is that they fly into Sanford, not MCO so you can't use DME. I've never used them but if you're looking to fly and save a few $$ it may be worth a shot.

Do you have a website fo find flights from that airport? My Searches don't turn up anything. We are looking to fly in Sept 2011 and your tip there sounds fantastic! I'd like to follow up on it.

 

[ccudmore]

http://www.allegiantair.com/ - Select Montreal/Plattsburgh as the departure city. You won't get fares for that far out yet - they usually only release fares 3-4 months out.

 

[tjbaggott]

http://www.allegiantair.com/ - Select Montreal/Plattsburgh as the departure city. You won't get fares for that far out yet - they usually only release fares 3-4 months out.

Thanks, I figured they wouldn't have fares that far out, but I did check the same dates for this Sept. just to get an idea. Seems they only fly that route on Fridays and Mondays, rather than Saturdays and Sundays. No problem though, with the amount we'd save, we can book a hotel to cover us for the extra nights.

What is Allegiant like? I've never heard of it before. Do they charge for baggage, is it easy to rent a car from the airport in Sandford. How far time wise is Sanford from Orlando Intl. Airport, just to give me an idea of how far we'd have to drive to Port Canaveral.
Wow, 3 1/2 hours from Ottawa, thats about the same distance from here to Syracuse, but SYR doesn't have flights THAT cheap! How Can Allegiant afford to do that? I checked out direct flights, it would cost us based on this Sept. Dates, $69.99 per person TO FL and $39.99 per person HOME again. So $110.00 per person Total!!!!!!! I think this method of getting there is now at the top of my list!

 

[ccudmore]

I've never flown on them before. I just discovered them reading some discussions on the Transportation forum. People seem to like them. They're pretty bare-bones travel though - older planes, have to pay for checked luggage (according to their site its $15 each way per bag for each person's first checked bag and $25 for additional bags). Apparently all of the major car rental places are at Sanford - a lot of European airlines land there. It also looks like its 15-30 minutes further to Sanford vs. MCO. It's pretty much due north of downtown Orlando.

Don't forget that their flight prices don't include taxes, but the taxes are still a lot lower than any Canadian departure. Plus you get the savings of free parking at the Plattsburgh airport.

Here's the Google maps of the two airports:
Plattsburgh: ***************/bSVyRm
Sanford: ***************/9CG5cu

 

[Nagle]

Cross at 1000 Islands.

I81 to I77 to I26 to I95 to I4. We avoid I95 as long as possible.

 

[PhotobearSam]

Cross at 1000 Islands.

I81 to I77 to I26 to I95 to I4. We avoid I95 as long as possible.

The 81 os soooo much nicer than the 95. Even now that we live in New Brunswick, we drive the 84 over to the 81 and go down from there. So much easier on the nerves (No crazy Traffic)

Also, the 81 is so close to the Blue Ridge Mountains. It's so beautiful. We also liked stopping in Hershey and also seeing the Luray Caverns in Virginia.


When we drove from Ottawa, we left at 5am and stopped in Frederickburg (spelling) VIRGINIA and drove the rest of the way on day 2. On the way back we stopped to DH's aunt in Columbia South Caroline and then at the Luray Caverns on day 2. It was a nice drive and I would just watch out for the deer just like any other wooded area and you should be fine.

We loved it. Now it takes us 3 days down and 3 days back. Wish we lived closer.

 

[sympatico]

The 81 os soooo much nicer than the 95. Even now that we live in New Brunswick, we drive the 84 over to the 81 and go down from there. So much easier on the nerves (No crazy Traffic)

Also, the 81 is so close to the Blue Ridge Mountains. It's so beautiful. We also liked stopping in Hershey and also seeing the Luray Caverns in Virginia.


When we drove from Ottawa, we left at 5am and stopped in Frederickburg (spelling) VIRGINIA and drove the rest of the way on day 2. On the way back we stopped to DH's aunt in Columbia South Caroline and then at the Luray Caverns on day 2. It was a nice drive and I would just watch out for the deer just like any other wooded area and you should be fine.

We loved it. Now it takes us 3 days down and 3 days back. Wish we lived closer.

Gee, I don't remember seeing you with us when we drove down.
That's exactly what we did when we drove except the next night (after Fredericksburg we stayed in Savannah and got to Orlando the next day.
Same thing you did coming back: Columbia and Lurray Caverns and an extra night in PA.
My son and another family are driving down this fall. The worst part for us is just getting to the US border. We're from the southern tip of NS so we've got almost a days worth of driving through NS and NB. The Digby-St John ferry doesn't get there any quicker than driving around for us.

 

[fimac]

We usually drive straight through.

Leave Ottawa at 5.00 p.m. on a friday evening and arriving in Orlando around 6.00 p.m. the following evening.

If you choose the route around Washington you will be driving around the city in the small hours of the morning, thus fewer traffic delays.

 

[RunDanceSkate]

We use to drive but now find it easier to fly. However what we would do is pick up the kids from school at around 2:30pm, drive to Syracuse to get a bite to eat. I would then sleep until 1am while DH drove, when he got tired we switched places and I drove until 7/8am, breakfast stop. Then Dh drives the rest of the way, arriving around 2/3pm.

Now our trip start out the same, but when we get to Syracuse we get on a plane, and we arrive in Flordia around 9pm, it usually cost $90 including taxes round trip per person and $3 or $4 per day for parking.

Driving there was never a problem , but driving home sucked.

Cindy