driving, stopping at rest stops

[momof3+twins]

We were thinking about stopping at rest stops to eat lunch and let the kids play ball. Does anyone stop at them in TN and Ga? Are they safe?

 

[wewantmore]

We've stopped at them and eaten at the picnic tables. One time it was PACKED and there were kids running around all over.

I didn't feel NOT safe. but then again there were 7 of us in our group and I feel safer in "numbers".

I say go for it.

Michelle

 

[Chelley00]

During the day I have no problem with rest stops. At night, some of them can be a little iffy. Clean may be a different story.

We always take along soccer balls or Nerf footballs for the kids to play with. Just be prepared that some people let their dogs run in the same area and don't always clean up after them

You could always stop at McDonald's or Burger Kings with play areas. A lot of them will advertise their play areas on billboards.

 

[Indiana Rose Lee]

We have done this for years. I would never hesitate to stop at these rest areas during the day. Picnicing and ball got us through many a roadtrip! Have fun!

 

[ccudmore]

2 years ago a woman from our city was stopped by the police in Georgia the off-ramp in Georgia for going a few mph over the limit. She was strip searched and held in prison for more than 24 hours without being allowed to talk to a lawyer. So no, we don't feel safe stopping anywhere in Georgia. We make sure we have a full tank of gas before we hit the border and don't stop until we're out of the state.

 

[LisaNJ25]

2 years ago a woman from our city was stopped by the police in Georgia the off-ramp in Georgia for going a few mph over the limit. She was strip searched and held in prison for more than 24 hours without being allowed to talk to a lawyer. So no, we don't feel safe stopping anywhere in Georgia. We make sure we have a full tank of gas before we hit the border and don't stop until we're out of the state.

1 bad Georgia cop makes the whole state bad?

 

[allie1078]

we stop during the day with out a problem. I pack breakfast and lunch for the first day. THis year we packed the indivual boxes of cereal, quart of milk, bowl and spoons and stopped at the ohio welcome center, the lunch was in Kentucky and I packed a package of turkey, cheese, a loaf of bread(large family so a small packageof meat and cheese and a loaf of bread is a meal). Juice boxes and water bottles frozen and that was the "ice" to keep stuff cold in the cooler. By the time we get to florida the cooler is empty and then I use it to pack souveigners in on the way home. I use a small to meduim cooler so it doesn't use lots of space but is big enough for what we need.

 

[allyphoe]

2 years ago a woman from our city was stopped by the police in Georgia the off-ramp in Georgia for going a few mph over the limit. She was strip searched and held in prison for more than 24 hours without being allowed to talk to a lawyer.

Are you talking about this case?

Carleton University student Cheryl Kuehn is outraged about the way she was treated by police in the state of Georgia. She says she was strip-searched and locked up for 12 hours, all for running a stop sign and speeding.

Kuehn, 23, who has just completed her master's in social work, was traveling to Florida with her husband, brother-in-law and a friend.

They had just pulled out of a restaurant parking lot along the I-95 in New Brunswick, Georgia, when Kuehn was pulled over for speeding and failing to stop at a stop sign.

When the officers learned Kuehn was a Canadian, they decided to take her into custody until she could post bail and until they could confirm with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency that she was legally allowed to be in the country.

OP: As others have said, I've found the Georgia rest areas to be safe and generally clean. The welcome centers (as you enter the state) are one of our favorite places to stop. The only bit of TN we go through is Memphis and whatever highway (78?) runs between Memphis and Alabama), and we never stop in Memphis if we can help it.

 

[Indiana Rose Lee]

LOL, Georgia is where it starts feeling like the south and Florida! I love the sandy soil, the trees, the whole kit and kaboodle!

 

[jboysen]

we stopped this past spring and had no problems. in fact we were quite surprise how nice and clean they were. it saved us time and money doing this.

 

[maxiesmom]

I think Tennessee has some of the nicest rest areas. At night some of them can be really dark though, but during the day you shouldn't have any problems.

 

[momof3+twins]

Thanks. Now, my biggest concern is the messes that dogs leave!
I figured they were probably pretty good. We just have never stopped at them before.

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

That's what we do on our first day of our trip. We pack a lunch and stop at a rest area to eat and let the kids stretch their legs. It's always worked well.

The rest areas in GA and TN have always felt safe to us and we've never had a problem, even when it was just me and the 2 kids.

One thing I do though once I pull into one, is no one is allowed out of the car until I take a minute to look around so I know what's around us and where we are going once we get out of the car.

The only time I've ever had an issue at any rest area was actually in FL.
Some guy was emptying out his van and wanted to chat with DD and I. He kept saying "How's it going? Wanna talk?" He was all grungy and the stuff he was pulling out of that van made me thing he was living in it. We took a wide detour around him and his stuff and I made sure I had my mace in my hand on the way back to our car. Very wierd.

 

[Cadiewampus]

Thanks. Now, my biggest concern is the messes that dogs leave!
I figured they were probably pretty good. We just have never stopped at them before.

Well most all of our rest stops here in Georgia have designated areas where people are supposed to walk their dogs but you know some people think the rules don't apply to them.

 

[Leajess99]

I have stopped at the rest areas in Tn and Ga numerous times and have never had an issue. The TN ones are generally well kept and I have always felt safe. We stopped at one near Chattanooga one time and there was a busload of people with many having CHHS on their shirts. One mom's shirt actually had the full name on it so I asked if they were the same ones from here and it was the band heading to Florida for some band thing. You just never know who you will see where.

 

[Sleepingbooty]

I would not hesitate for a moment to stop at a rest stop and have a picnic. ANY rest stop, in ANY state. We stop at them all the time

 

[dogodisney]

2 years ago a woman from our city was stopped by the police in Georgia the off-ramp in Georgia for going a few mph over the limit. She was strip searched and held in prison for more than 24 hours without being allowed to talk to a lawyer. So no, we don't feel safe stopping anywhere in Georgia. We make sure we have a full tank of gas before we hit the border and don't stop until we're out of the state.

Where exactly was this?

1 bad Georgia cop makes the whole state bad?

Thank you! That was my thought!

 

[bear74]

2 years ago a woman from our city was stopped by the police in Georgia the off-ramp in Georgia for going a few mph over the limit. She was strip searched and held in prison for more than 24 hours without being allowed to talk to a lawyer. So no, we don't feel safe stopping anywhere in Georgia. We make sure we have a full tank of gas before we hit the border and don't stop until we're out of the state.

OMG that is scary, insane

 

[ChristusG]

I feel safe stopping at the during the daytime. We do not hesitate. Usually there are lots of people there anyways. And I think most of them have some sort of security. At night I would probably just pull off the interstate at a McDonald's or something like that.

 

[C&G'sMama]

We drive almost every year to WDW so don't go through TN but we do go through GA( both on 95 going to FL and on 85 going to Atlanta) . We always stop at rest areas and have never had a problem. As other posters have said we stick to day time. We're 2 women traveling with 2 children. (And we don't like to drive at night ever since we struck a deer near home several years ago). New York does not have the nice areas that other states do and we too try to stop at Welcome Centers and have used their hotel booking help a couple of times. We have the kids run and play and we'll picnic.