Driving from WI, Help...

[mickistreeter]

Hello Everyone

So we are on our sixth trip to disney. Except for the first year, we have flown every year. (after the first year, I said I never would again. First time we ended up in Georgia with my husband having pnemonia)

Well with the economy, it was either drive this year, or not go at all. So...we leave for two weeks on Feb.20th. My hubby works to hard all year, to deny him his vacation that he looks forward to!

Anyways...onto the drive! I am just dreading this! We do not have any small children, our son is 15 and our live in god-daughter is 18. We have a two year old torrent SUV. We are going to drive straight through (More disney time that way) and are planning on leaving at about 10am in the morning so we miss Milwaukee and Chicago rush hour.

Any suggestions on how to make the drive not so awful? We do have a dvd player we are taking...any other suggestions to pass the time? I can not emphasize enough how much I am dreading this drive!! I am very plus sized, and after sitting for even an hour in the car my butt is aching...lol and time always just seems to go soooooo slow...

Any suggestions from those of you that have done this drive will be much appreciated!!

 

[luv2go2disney]

Do you get carsick? We drove from Northern Indiana a few years ago and we did have small children at the time and they watched dvds, played car bingo, and other car games. I like to play my Nintendo DS, read magazines, listen to my IPOD, obsessively plan our trip even more by reading thru my guidebook for the 100th time...I also scrapbook so I will bring a notebook and sketch out layouts that I plan for pages once we get back from our trip. Just keep in mind that the LONGGGG drive is worth it in the end. I would definitely drive again if it meant a trip to the world. Good luck!

 

[summermac]

Oh my. I don't think I could drive straight through from WI. We're doing it from Ohio but man it's 10 or so hours just to OH for you. (You've probably got a different route though.)

After I had my kids, I was in a lot of pain when sitting for extended periods of time - it made my back and my butt hurt. I know this is weird but I used the boppy pillow to sit on...ahh....it made everything feel so much better. Have you ever seen one? It's kind of looks like a, uh, uh hemmrhoid pillow b/c it's got that big hole in the middle. LOL!

Might that help?
www.boppy.com
You can find them in Toys R Us stores.

 

[Brer Shay]

Looking for input on this as well. We decided we either drive or don't go, so driving it is. We do have younger kids, so the DVD player is a definite, but I'm not sure what I will do for that long in a car either.

 

[Poohbug]

We are in the same situation. We have flown in past years but just cannot afford it this year.

It sounds like you have a little longer drive than us(Janesville) but we have small children. I think we are going to try driving in the evening and see how that goes.

Bring a towel and pillow-rolling up a towel and putting it behind your back somehow make sitting more comfortable. Maybe its just the change of position but it helps. Also move the pillow around, sometimes I sit on it. Neck pillows are nice too. Pick out some great music to listen to(maybe some earphones if others are watching movies). If you can read, bring magazines and books. The movies will help alot. If you prepare for the worst it actually has to be better, right?

 

[djgeffers1]

Poohbug, I see that you are in Janesville, I live in Beloit just a hop, skip and jump away.

 

[Familycircus]

So far, got you all beat. Driving from Minnesota with kids 10,8,5. Feb 25 straight thru.
Much like the rest of you, only way to afford to go.

.

 

[ObsessedwiththeMouse]

.

 

[Tammysue5]

We live VERY close to the Wisc/Il boarder and drove the last 2 years.... We made stops when we needed them..meaning sometimes just to get out and walk around for a couple minutes. You also want to assure that you do keep moving throughout the trip or you could end up w/DVTs..... aka: Blood clots and that would definately put a hamper on the trip.

Have your teens put a "play list' on their Ipods or MP3 players... (our DS put all of my CDs on his) and I was able to listen to everything from Aerosmith to the Old country songs (that my mother made me listen to when I was younger) Take tylenol..and if you start to get a headache take something right away! Those headaches can be torture in a moving vehicle.

Truthfully the ride home is the one I dread...but it is doable.

 

[Jumba17]

We live in IL, and did the drive down in Nov '07. We are doing it again in May '09. My kids turned 4 on the '07 trip, so trying to keep them occupied was a challenge, but obviously we survived as we are doing it again!

It is a LONG drive, but bring some stuff with to keep yourself occupied. If you get uncomfortable sitting for a long time, just make sure you stop every 4hours or so to stretch your legs. And someone's suggestion for a boppy is a good idea - or try just a regular pillow. Have you tried books on tape? We borrowed some from the library last time, and that sure helped the adults!

Good luck!!

 

[MarthaJr.]

Hello fellow Wisconsinite! We have driven to Florida 4 times with the kids and flown 4 times. Driving really isn't that bad. Last year we drove and it was DH, myself and DS13. He was busy with his gameboy and DVD player or drawing most of the time. I did take along a couple books on CD and that made the time fly by.

I would highly recommend stopping every 3 hrs or so at a rest stop to stretch your legs. Do it ....even if you think you can be in the car longer without a break. It just helps to keep you alert and limber. My husband always starts the drive (We leave at 5pm) and I take over about 10pm or so...I'm a night owl and I love to sing along with the radio which helps to pass the time. (LOL-family loves that!) The rest of the family puts their earphones and IPODS on and gets some sleep while I drive until about 3AM.

We have never been successful driving straight through with 2 drivers. I know many that do it from these parts....at least that's what they tell us. Usually we pull off the road about 3AM but last year we tried to go straight through and ended up checking into a motel at 6am having breakfast and going to sleep until 11am and then a quick shower and back on the road.

Also-Take a small throw blanket and pillow to snuggle up with while you are the passenger. Just seems to help feel comfortable to take a nap. (I can never get any real sleep in the car.)

Good luck and drive safely!

 

[golf]

My parents drive to Florida 4 times a year just because they prefer driving... They always take books on cd and they either get movies from the library or use our Netflix movies to watch on the way down. Last time we drove with them, we brought a dvd trivia game that reads the questions (I can't remember the name of it) so that the driver could play along. That was a lot of fun.
They bring a notebook and go through each room of the house and just list the things they would like to update in that room or organizing that needs to be done, etc. (My mom really likes her lists!) It's usually a good starting point for my mom when she starts her spring cleaning.
I've also seen my mom bring her address book and rewrite it into a new one; she brings recipes that she has tried and organizes them into files; she brings the stack of magazines that she saved for one article and goes through them and tears out that one article and throws away the magazine at a rest stop and then organizes those articles. Basically, she does all of the organizing that she could have done at the table or on the couch at home. She keeps a "car briefcase" and just drops things into it that she doesn't have time for at that moment and does it in the car. She gets an absurd amount of stuff done on her trip and she doesn't mind doing it 'cause there's nothing better to do!

 

[mahend0]

Good luck on your drive. We've done it twice with the kids in tow and hope to again this year but are coming from Ohio. We like to go straight through and plan our trip to hit the bigger cities in the middle of the night, like Atlanta. It really shortens the trip.

Also, there are books out there on travelling down I-75 that you can find at a bookstore or possibly even your local library. While our kids were too young to care about the landmarks, or stops, the book kept us entertained enough to stay awake. The book we had mentioned restaurants, historical places to see, traffic, and even a couple of speedtraps.

 

[mombare]

Hello All! Last year we drove from MN down, but we didn't drive straight through because we were staying with relatives in Georgia before and after Disney. That worked out perfect because we spent a total of 6 days in the car, and at least they were broken up. Oh..did I mention we had a 5 year old and 3 year old?? The kids and being in the car were great. The not so great: driving through the entire state of Illinios in a blizzard! We ended up stopping earlier than we thought the first day on the road because of this, which only made our second day much longer. And watch our for those Illinois state troopers...I was pulling off the interstate after driving for hours in the blizzard when I was pulled over. You want to know why? Cuz that's what I was wondering! Well...he pulled me over to tell me that my license plate was covered in snow! Really? I just about got out of the minivan - did he not pay any attention to the cars in the ditch flipped over??? Okay, off my rant, but I will never look at the state of Illinios the same anymore!
Good luck - you will be fine. I get motion sickness, so I am unable to read or do anything but it was fine. The kids watched the DVD's and we had plenty of snacks to eat along the way. I honestly wish we could drive again, but since I started a new job there is no way I could get enough time off to be able to do it.

 

[Nie0214]

Definitely stop to stretch every now and then. Even sitting at a desk at work we're cautioned to get up and stretch every few hours. It wakes you up.

 

[darkcrystal]

Oh my. I don't think I could drive straight through from WI. We're doing it from Ohio but man it's 10 or so hours just to OH for you. (You've probably got a different route though.)

You most certainly can... on the way down. On the way home, a 24 hour car ride doesn't sound like NEARLY as much fun. And the "fun" wears off somewhere in Georgia. But it IS possible, with two drivers anyway.

 

[srwarden1928]

We drive from Tennessee. We would not choose to spend the $$$ on plane tickets, not to mention the restrictions on luggage and the inconvenience of not having our car or the added expense of a rental when we get there. You are about 9 hours from us (Milwaukee is) and Disney is about 14. Driving straight through is something I did when, as my BIL says, I was young and stupid. I think if we tried it now, we would get there so wiped out it would be a couple of days before we could enjoy ourselves, and forget rope drop. So we stop on the way at an inexpensive motel. OTOH, for us, the drive is part of the vacation. We really enjoy spending that time together, talking, etc. We split the driving and switch about every two hours. That also helps keep us from getting too tired. Then when we get to Disney, we are ready for rope drop the next morning.

Whatever you decide, have a magical trip.

 

[dis75ney]

We are a stone's throw from the WI/IL border, and we drove to Miami in 2002 for my grandmother's 80th birthday cruise with a not-quite-two-year-old DS. This was before the advent of the portable DVD player, so we borrowed a TV/VCR combo from a friend that was modified with a car adapter. DS took little notice...he was more enthralled with the changing scenery...

We had planned on driving down last October with the now eight-year-old DS, but came across an amazing deal on airfare two weeks before we were to leave and had to jump on it. I was rather sad...I had looked forward to the drive...

For our trip in June, because it's sandwiched in between two weddings that I am standing up in, we have to fly, otherwise we won't be going at all. I will once again be missing the drive...

 

[koolaidmoms]

We drive at least once (if not 2 or 3 times) a year from Rochester, NY to WDW - 21 hours. We do it over two days. We also have small children. IPODS, 2 DVD players if you children do not like the same movies, our book of every kid DVD movie we own, books, writing material, pillows and blankets, Disney information to dream about what you are going to do when you get there, a well stocked cooler with interesting treats and a sense of humor get us through.

Each kid helps us make a bag of their stuff plus I have my Magic Mommy Bag that I pull out special new treats from. My kids are young so we do a Disney movie, magnets, viewmasters,etc... that I get on clearance sale and save for the trip. But with older kids maybe a special journal to write about their trip with cool pens, a new movie or two they have been wanting to see? We usually pull these out either on the second day or on the way home when no one really wants to go home and are a little cranky.

We stop every 3-4 hours to stretch and move things around in the car. Even if the kids do not want to get out we make them walk around.

We also have a family tradition of getting ice cream at Dairy Queen somewhere in Georgia or north FL. We don't have these at home and the kids think this is such a treat to get ice cream from there. This makes the end of the trip down a little more tolerable for us. We know that once we get the ice cream everyone relaxes, naps and then we are almost there when they wake up. My family loves ice cream. Is there something that your family really likes that could be a treat like that?

We treat our car rides as part of our vacation and the adventure of WDW. I know this time spent together will be times that my kids remember forever. We have dozens of stories of things that have happened that my kids still love to talk about. Mommy feeding the birds with all the Fruit Loops she dumped out of DS's car seat at a rest stop, the cicada (sp?) bugs in West Virginia landing on Mama or DD then 6 not realizing we were at WDW until we stopped at the parking lot of the hotel (she totally missed the big welcome to WDW sign!) and will never live that one down!

Have fun! It will be memories you have forever!

 

[Skyw]

I want to drive this year....Eventhough we can get a direct flight for cheap....I like the idea of packing everything I want and going on my schedule.