Driving the WDW from SW Ontario...Help please

[Parmcat]

So we are 18 days out from our trip to Disney. I booked this a while ago, hoping flight prices would come down, but they have not. We are now giving serious consideration to driving.

The best flights I can get for my 4some is 800.00 (give or take a few dollars) and depending on the airline there are more fees to add on.

I am wondering about the drive. I do not mind driving. I live in London, and make a regular trip to Timmins and drive straight though, so 12 hrs of driving is nothing really.

For those that do/have drove this, I have a few questions:

1: Where do you target as your first stop for sleep ( I have been told to try to get past Atlanta)

2: Any tips to make the trip more enjoyable? I like to drive at night, to avoid traffic, the kids and wife sleep, and I get to control the satellite radio

3: Approx cost for gas? I have a Ford Escape


Thanking you all in advance!!!!

Sean

 

[rjan67]

Just returned Sunday. We drive 1x per year. If you can drive at night, that is best for traffic, but otherwise try to avoid large cities at rush hours esp Atlanta. We made it from Sarnia to Mcdonough Atlanta the first night (left at 5:30 am arrived a little after 8pm). I would have gone a little farther but there was a terrible rainstorm. We stopped 3x for approx 1 hour each. Bring some books on cd. If you have more than one driver, you could pull an allnighter (as we have done) but it is tough. I had my elderly mom and 3 kids in the car. I bring them snacks and juice boxes. We have a dvd player and video games (picked them up 2 new ones for a surprise). The best ride is the one down because you are excited....not so exciting coming back. We take I75.

 

[fitmom3]

Hi

Have you considered flying out of the States? I am not sure what type of deals you could find out of Detroit. I also heard that Rochester and Toledo have great deals.

My husband estimated around $200 in gas for a one way trip to Florida. We drive a Pontiac Montana.

I drove to Florida when in highschool. I think we left around 4:30a.m. It was great to get an early start. If you can handle the night driving then I would go for it.

Have fun on your trip!

 

[Parmcat]

Hi

Have you considered flying out of the States? I am not sure what type of deals you could find out of Detroit. I also heard that Rochester and Toledo have great deals.

My husband estimated around $200 in gas for a one way trip to Florida. We drive a Pontiac Montana.

I drove to Florida when in highschool. I think we left around 4:30a.m. It was great to get an early start. If you can handle the night driving then I would go for it.

Have fun on your trip!

Thanks for the quick response.

I almost exclusively fly out of Detroit, but am looking at Buff also. Still almost 800.00US

I would love to leave around 1am and get as far as I can till about 6pm the next day, then cruise into Orlando the second day

 

[rjan67]

I was also going to add - we stay at Holiday Inn Express because they have a pool and a nice breakfast. Rooms are always large and roomy.

I here you about the prices. We were pricing for 6 people and couldn't get anything less than about 300 - that was out of Detroit. I hear there are some good rates out of Buffalo.

I spent about $200 on gas each way - plus hotel and meals - probably about $800 or so vs min $1800. Plus there would be transportation costs/or car rental once we got there.

 

[Parmcat]

Just returned Sunday. We drive 1x per year. If you can drive at night, that is best for traffic, but otherwise try to avoid large cities at rush hours esp Atlanta. We made it from Sarnia to Mcdonough Atlanta the first night (left at 5:30 am arrived a little after 8pm). I would have gone a little farther but there was a terrible rainstorm. We stopped 3x for approx 1 hour each. Bring some books on cd. If you have more than one driver, you could pull an allnighter (as we have done) but it is tough. I had my elderly mom and 3 kids in the car. I bring them snacks and juice boxes. We have a dvd player and video games (picked them up 2 new ones for a surprise). The best ride is the one down because you are excited....not so exciting coming back. We take I75.

I also like to stop a few times for streching and snacks.

My boys (8 and 6) travel very very well. They have DSi's and movie players, and books and Ipods. I have the satellite radio, and my wife dozes.

I JUST heard about this book called "Along I-75" or something like that Sounds fun, and I am going to check Amazon for a copy.

Thanks for the response!

 

[dvc deernut]

WE USED TO DRIVE, 2o hours from notl to orlando thru buf. THERE WERE 4 OF US, I D DO ALL THE DRIVING. WE DONT ANYMORE. RATHER GET THERE SAME DAY AND NOT WASTE TIME DRIVING WASTING TIME COMING HOME. I FIGURE $200 FOR GAS 1 WAY $200 BACK AT LEAST $100 FOR HOTEL GIVE OR TAKE SOME DOLLARS DEPENDING WHERE YOU STAY, SO THAT ANOTHER $200, YOU WILL BE EATING SOMEWHERE bOTH WAYS IT COULD COST YOU 800 To DRIVE DOWN. IT TOOK ME a DAY TO RECOVER FROM TIRING DRIVE AND HEARING ARE WE THERE YET IF YOUR STAYING ON PROPERTY YOU REALLY DONT NEED CAR. TAKE THE ME. IF YOU WANT TO GO TO MALL TO SHOP YOU CAN PICK UP THE BUS FROM WDW TAKES YOU TO FLORIDA MALL. WE ARE DVC MEMBERS SO WE USUALLY STAY AT ONE OF OUR RESORTS THAT HAS KITCHEN. WE USUALLY GO ONLINE AND FILL OUT OUR GROCERY LIST FROM GARDEN GROCER. ITS WAITING FOR US AT THE RESORT.
WE LOOK ONLINE FOR FLIGHTS ON EITHER JET BLUE OR SOUTHWEST. USUALLY WE GET FLIGHTS FROM 89 TO 119 One WAY. JUST BEFORE MAR BREAK WE FLEW DOWN SOUTHWEST $89 AND BACK JET BLUE FOLLOWING WED $79 PLUS TAXES. ID SAY AROUND $200 EACH BOTH WAYS. LEAVE YOUR CAR AT AIRPORT $57 DOLLARS A WEEK.
BUFFALO IS SUCH AN EASY AIRPORT TO GET IN AND OUT OF. THEY HAVE DIRECT FLIGHTS TO MCI BUT YOU CAN ALSO DO THE STOP OVER FLIGHTS. WE WOULD RATHER GET THERE SAME DAY WITHIN HOURS AND YOU DONT SPEND THAT MUCH MORE. I DONT THINK ICOULD STAND JUST OVER 20 HOURS EACH WAY TRAPPED IN OUR ESCAPE LISTENING TO THE BACK SEAT DRIVING

 

[LuvDisney3]

We are headed to Disney this spring and it will be our 3rd time driving down. We usually try to drive as far as we can and stop when we get tired. This time our van is fully loaded with 7 passengers, we are are taking two days to drive down to make sure we keep our sanity. We will be staying in Wytheville, VA the first night and Jacksonville, FL the second night. This is the best option for us for this trip.

 

[dvc deernut]

We are headed to Disney this spring and it will be our 3rd time driving down. We usually try to drive as far as we can and stop when we get tired. This time our van is fully loaded with 7 passengers, we are are taking two days to drive down to make sure we keep our sanity. We will be staying in Wytheville, VA the first night and Jacksonville, FL the second night. This is the best option for us for this trip.

WE FIND THAT WHEN YOU GO WITH THAT MANY IT DOES BENIFIT TO DRIVE AS LONG AS EVERYONE GETS ALONG YOU MUST BE TAKING SAME ROUTE WHEN WE USED TO DRIVE, DOWN 79 TO 219 THRU BEcKLEY AND SUMMERSVILLE WITH SPEED TRaP. WE USUALLY MADE IT JUST PAST THERE DOWN THE BIG HILL JusT NORTH OF CHARLOTTE. THEN RIGHT INTO DISNEY THE NEXT DAY. BUT WE DONT DO IT ANYMORE IM GETTING TO OLD WE JUST BOOK OUR FLIGHTS AND FLY DOWN.

 

[candielips]

For those that do/have drove this, I have a few questions:

1: Where do you target as your first stop for sleep ( I have been told to try to get past Atlanta) Last May we made it to South Carolina/Georgia border. I like to make the 1st day really long so we can get into WDW the next aft. and enjoy the resort and DTD.

2: Any tips to make the trip more enjoyable? I like to drive at night, to avoid traffic, the kids and wife sleep, and I get to control the satellite radio
I think just having everyone sleep will help you keep your sanity. For our upcoming trip I am going to get some DIS podcasts to help keep me super pumped. If you have trouble staying awake crack a window and grab a bag of sunflower seeds.

3: Approx cost for gas? I have a Ford Escape
On our last trip we spend $150 US each way in a Chrysler Town & Country Minivan.

Have a great time! We like to think of the drive down as part of the adventure.

 

[DaniB]

For the same reasons DVC Deernut posted - we opted for flying out of Buffalo. Ended up with $69 tickets, 4 people for $637 US.

We're an hour east of Toronto and truthfully I do not think my husband & I would stay sane on a 20 odd hour drive with the kids...

I'm looking forward to road trips when they are older though! If it's going to cost the same driving as flying (or close enough) - I would like to take a few more days each way and explore on the drive up.

 

[wtpfan]

We just got back from the world this past Monday...
We drove for the first time. We always flew but March break flights were ridiculous, even out of Buffalo. DH wanted to drive straight through which was a bit rough but we recuperated quickly....21 hours each way including 2 quick meal stops and gas (we're close to Peace Bridge).
We have a Mazda Tribute (same as Escape) and spent $122 US each way on gas. We expected it to be $200 each way so we were pleasantly surprised!

If we were going to drive straight through again though, we would leave at 5:30 am and get there around 2:30 am. Otherwise, we would stop in Georgia around Savannah.

The drive itself is fine...just have to watch out for the transports, they can be a bit crazy. I also watched for deer while DH drove because I was paranoid of hitting one.

Have a safe trip!

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

1) When taking Interstate 75 on our 1st day of driving we stay at the Hampton Inn off exit 27 in Cleveland, Tennnessee.

2) If your car has a built in DVD player I would suggest brining some movies or some games.

3) I am not sure about the price for gas, since every car will be different and how much it will usually need.

 

[Parmcat]

We just got back from the world this past Monday...
We drove for the first time. We always flew but March break flights were ridiculous, even out of Buffalo. DH wanted to drive straight through which was a bit rough but we recuperated quickly....21 hours each way including 2 quick meal stops and gas (we're close to Peace Bridge).
We have a Mazda Tribute (same as Escape) and spent $122 US each way on gas. We expected it to be $200 each way so we were pleasantly surprised!

If we were going to drive straight through again though, we would leave at 5:30 am and get there around 2:30 am. Otherwise, we would stop in Georgia around Savannah.

The drive itself is fine...just have to watch out for the transports, they can be a bit crazy. I also watched for deer while DH drove because I was paranoid of hitting one.

Have a safe trip!

I am all for driving, but this is a tad much even for me....lol

 

[MainStreetMouse]

This March break was the first time we drove to Orlando and back. I did all of the driving and didn't mind it.

Driving down from Windsor first night we stopped south of Atlanta at a Hampton Inn in Stockbridge I think it was. 12+ hour drive. Made the second day a breeze into Orlando.

On the way home we left around noon and made it near the Georgia /Tenn border. Wish I could made it to Knoxville that day but i was a bit tired. 2nd day home was a bit long.

We saw a lot of dead dear on the side of I 75 both going down and coming back. I was a bit worried too that we might hit one. They usually only come out at dusk or dawn so traffic a bit more carefully at this time.

Driving is an adventure, kind of fun. Flying is still the best way to go, if the prices are good. We couldn't find any deals this past March break, so by car was the way to go this time.

 

[snickerboo]

I was curious about this, too, as we are pondering a last minute April trip. We're near London and I'm seeing the same flight prices.

 

[Parmcat]

I was curious about this, too, as we are pondering a last minute April trip. We're near London and I'm seeing the same flight prices.

Actually in the last week the prices have gone UP about 100.00

Driving is seeming more and more of a reality

 

[rjan67]

It really isn't as bad as you think. I75 is the fastest drive (in my opinion) from southwestern Ontario, however..if I was travelling the end of April or May, I would go 77/79...much prettier drive!

 

[Parmcat]

It really isn't as bad as you think. I75 is the fastest drive (in my opinion) from southwestern Ontario, however..if I was travelling the end of April or May, I would go 77/79...much prettier drive!

How much farther is this drive?

 

[princessap]

where are you getting 800 for a foursome from?? we are leaving on the 16th of April and the cheapest I can get from Toronto for 3 is 1800!