Driving Overnight from Chicago - Safe Stops for Gas?

[dis75ney]

Hello!

I'll be driving to Disney from Chicago with my family in October. I am hoping to drive overnight so DS will sleep throughout most of the ride to Cocoa Beach (we're staying there our first night so we can visit Kennedy Space Center the next day). However, I just realized that I should probably check for nighttime safe spots to fill up before making a final decision to drive overnight (our other option is to leave around 2am, which would make our first fill-up around 7-8am).

Are there any safe, well-lit rest stops/oasis stops close to our route? I expect to get out of the Chicago area on one tank, so our route would be I65/I24/I75/I285 bypass through Atlanta - I expect to hit the Atlanta area at or right before dawn.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[GranddadTom]

We done this several times - leaving Maryland around 8:00 pm and arriving at WDW around 9:00 am. Admittedly we take I95, not the roads that you will be on, but we have never had problems getting gas. Strangely we've had several occasions where the pumps were lit and took credit cards even though no one was at the station. Another concern early in the morning is finding bathrooms. These gas stations that are "sort of open" don't have bathroom facilities open. The welcome centers, as you enter the various states, will have bathrooms that are open all night. It's very peaceful driving through the night (read that to mean no trucks!) but make sure you can get a little sleep before you leave.

 

[gatorgirl2]

Sounds like you are driving right through Nashville, then heading to Murfreesboro, and onto Chattanooga...Atlanta... There are a couple 24-hour stations once you hit Murfeesboro (Old Fort Pkw/Hwy 96 Exit) and this is a very safe and clean area. This will get you all the way to Atlanta. I'd then fill up again in Kennesaw or Marietta, just north of Atlanta. That will get you to Gainesville, FL. Take the Archer Rd exit and there are some decent stations that open all night. Try not to stop in Valdosta, GA.

We drove last year from Nashville to Orlando--never again. We got Southwest flights at $79 each way! Cheaper than driving.
You could fly into Orlando and rent a car to Kennedy Space Center and come out alot cheaper to me IMHO, especially flying from Chaicago.

 

[JonS99]

You could fly into Orlando and rent a car to Kennedy Space Center and come out alot cheaper to me IMHO, especially flying from Chaicago.

Because some people like to drive, like to set their own schedule, like to have their own car and bring what they want down there and back.. JMO, it makes NO sense to drive from Nashville, saving just a few hours each way and giving up a LOT in return..

OP- The last few times we have made that drive we have noticed fewer gas stations having their restrooms opened so we ended up stopping at 24 hour Wal-Marts..

 

[dis75ney]

Sounds like you are driving right through Nashville, then heading to Murfreesboro, and onto Chattanooga...Atlanta... There are a couple 24-hour stations once you hit Murfeesboro (Old Fort Pkw/Hwy 96 Exit) and this is a very safe and clean area. This will get you all the way to Atlanta. I'd then fill up again in Kennesaw or Marietta, just north of Atlanta. That will get you to Gainesville, FL. Take the Archer Rd exit and there are some decent stations that open all night. Try not to stop in Valdosta, GA.

We drove last year from Nashville to Orlando--never again. We got Southwest flights at $79 each way! Cheaper than driving.
You could fly into Orlando and rent a car to Kennedy Space Center and come out alot cheaper to me IMHO, especially flying from Chaicago.

Thanks for the help!!!

My intense fear of heights pretty much knocks flying out of the running. I will fly only if:
1. driving is not an acceptable possibility (distance wise - I'll go about 1500 miles one way before I start looking at flights)
2. I am forced to by my office (had to fly to Baltimore last year...I think my seatmate still has bruises from my death grip during the flight)
3. I am by myself. I'll be flying to Florida next year on a solo trip because I don't trust myself to drive that far without another driver (I feel for my teddy bear on THAT trip - remind me to bring a sewing kit)...

And I haven't seen any $79 fares out of Chicago...doesn't help that our return will be over Columbus Day weekend...

Plus, my family actually enjoys driving...we all agree that there's no better way to see this beautiful country. DS is really good about travelling - we have tons of ideas to keep him busy while he's awake. And, this will help him build his map reading/plotting skills (since we're pulling him out of school, we want to make this trip as educational as possible)...

 

[dis75ney]

Because some people like to drive, like to set their own schedule, like to have their own car and bring what they want down there and back.. JMO, it makes NO sense to drive from Nashville, saving just a few hours each way and giving up a LOT in return..

OP- The last few times we have made that drive we have noticed fewer gas stations having their restrooms opened so we ended up stopping at 24 hour Wal-Marts..

Didn't think about the 24 hour WalMarts...they're so few and far between here...thanks for the tip!!!

 

[kydisneyfans]

Try to map out Pilot or Flying J truck stops along the way. Both are well lit and usually have cheaper fuel. Beware that the GA Welcome Center does not have the restrooms unlocked through the night.

There is a large Raceway station just across the GA border that we usually visit durind the trip south. We always hit Flying J at the last GA exit before Florida.

 

[Vijoge]

We've driven from Chicago to Florida many times. While I can't specifically tell you where we stopped I do know that we never felt unsafe at any of our stops on the interstates.

 

[MrMarv]

If you're planning to arrive in Atlanta at dawn (6:00 AM or thereabouts), you might not need more than one stop during the night for fuel once you leave Chicago, depending on what type of vehicle you're driving.

Bowling Green, Ky. is 65 miles north of Nashville, 410 miles from Chicago (Midway Airport), and appoximately 300 miles from northwest Atlanta, so if you can reach Bowling Green on a single tank, that would be a very safe place to refill your tank.

 

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

Definitely fill up in south Georgia before you cross into Florida; gas prices are always cheaper in Georgia. I believe the last exit is Lake Park, just south of Valdosta. Definitely don't fill up in Gainesville, Florida or anywhere in Alachua County. Prices are among the highest in Florida. A half-hour south is Ocala where prices are similar to Orlando if not a little cheaper.

And do consider taking I-57 south through Illinois to I-24, taking that route into Kentucky and Tennessee. Much less traffic than Indianapolis and Louisville via I-65. (Especially fewer trucks!) It does seem like you're in Illinois forever but once you finally cross the Ohio River at Metropolis/Paducah you're less than 2 hours to Nashville. Good gas prices at Paducah and Clarksville.

BobK/Orlando

 

[rico567]

"kingbobofthenorth" gives good advice re: going down I-57 and getting I-24. The trip to Nashville is much easier that way. But because of everything I've heard about driving once you get on the main arteries in GA into FL....we're letting AirTran do the driving.....at 38,000 feet.

 

[CarolA]

Plus, my family actually enjoys driving...we all agree that there's no better way to see this beautiful country. DS is really good about travelling - we have tons of ideas to keep him busy while he's awake. And, this will help him build his map reading/plotting skills (since we're pulling him out of school, we want to make this trip as educational as possible)...

Exactly HOW much of this "beautiful country" do you see between darkness and dawn? And does DS stay up all night practicing those skills??

Drowsy driving is as dangerous as drunk driving....

 

[MOmousefan]

I can understand your concern because in 2005 myself and two 20-something daughters drove straight-through from Central Missouri to WDW. We left at 3:00PM and arrived in Orlando around 10:00 AM the next morning. We stopped 3 times for gas going down, in Mt. Vernon, Il at 6:00PM, Cartersville,Ga on I75 at 2:00AM, and Lake City Fl at 7:50AM. The stop at 2:00AM was a safety concern, but it was well lit and very clean, a must for the girls. They would wait with me while I fueled the car and we would all go in together. They always stuck together and we had no problems on the drive. We left Pop Century early in the morning on the way home and made the three stops in daylight.
When the fuel gauge indicated 1/4 of a tank left I would start looking for a suitable stop.
BTW, there wasn't much to see at night, but the traffic was very light, even through Atlanta. We left for home on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend and the traffic was brutal.
Our route took us on I44 to St. Louis, Nashville, Chatanooga, Atlanta, and the Florida Turnpike to I4. We are driving again this December I am planning on taking to new 429 shortcut and avoiding Orlando.
Good Luck

 

[JonS99]

Drowsy driving is as dangerous as drunk driving....

Where did he say he would drive drowsy????

 

[dis75ney]

Exactly HOW much of this "beautiful country" do you see between darkness and dawn? And does DS stay up all night practicing those skills??

Drowsy driving is as dangerous as drunk driving....

Where did he say he would drive drowsy????

I wouldn't be driving drowsy...I usually get by on about five hours of sleep, so if I can't get the day before we leave off so I can get some sleep, we would be leaving at 2am and I would be hitting the sack almost as soon as I got home from work around 6pm...

DS would help plot the route before we drive down and before we leave WDW. We have a GPS, but I want DS to learn how to read road maps...and in case the GPS decides not to work, we'll have a backup ready to go...

Ds obviously wouldn't be seeing much of the scenery during the drive down, but we will be taking it easy on the way back...leaving late morning and stopping in Chattanooga for the night. He'll see plenty of countryside that way...

 

[MrMarv]

Leaving Chattanooga around 8 AM should allow you to miss rush hour traffic in Nashville; you should have smooth sailing until you encounter rush-hour traffic in Chicago around 5:30 or 6 PM.

If you left Chattanooga on a Saturday or Sunday morning, the entire 600-mile trip to Chicago should be pretty easy, and lots of fun.

 

[JonS99]

dis75- It sounds like you are doing the same thing we are doing.. We live in Kankakee County, leaving at 2:00A and getting a good start while the kids sleep the first 4 hours, that first 4 or 5 hours I expect to make really good time.. By time we stop for breakfast, we should be in Clarkesville, TN, into the Atlanta area for lunch and then able to reach Valdosta, Gainesville or Ocala very easily for a late dinner and find a hotel..