Driving to WDW: Am I Crazy to Consider this?

[sillyguys]

We're contemplating a July trip to WDW. We usually go every year and always fly from Philadelphia. This year, to save money, we are considering driving We have 3 kids, ages 7, 4 and 1. Am I crazy to even consider this? I always swore I would never drive but a part of me thinks that a road trip would be fun. For any of you who have taken the trip from Philadelphia, what time do you leave? Do you go straight through or spend the night? Where is a good place to spend the night? Any input would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[KristiMc]

We have done the drive twice from the Cleveland area (just got back on Saturday) and our kids (8 & 5) do great. Just pack activities for them and if you have a dvd player in the car that helps.

 

[scrappingizlife]

We're doing it in May with DS10. DS3, and DD1 from Chicago. I'll let you know how it goes. lol

 

[sillyguys]

Good luck!

 

[mlynn]

We're contemplating a July trip to WDW. We usually go every year and always fly from Philadelphia. This year, to save money, we are considering driving We have 3 kids, ages 7, 4 and 1. Am I crazy to even consider this? I always swore I would never drive but a part of me thinks that a road trip would be fun. For any of you who have taken the trip from Philadelphia, what time do you leave? Do you go straight through or spend the night? Where is a good place to spend the night? Any input would be appreciated. Thanks.

We did it last year with a 4 and 6 year old from South Jersey.We left after school on a Thursday.Stopped in SC around 11pm and we were in Disney by 4pm. Stop and eat at places with a play yard.let the kids play while you eat adn then have them eat in the car.So they can run out some energy.
Bring lots of things for them to do.DVD player. Also buy a book called
I drive 95 the best book I could have ever bought.It shows every exit on 95 so you know when the next bathroom stop can be.

 

[WDWAtLast]

I think it depends on if your kids do well on long car rides. Our family reunion is 9 hours away. My kiddos(6 and 8) are OK IF we have lots of snacks and a DVD player with NEW movies to watch. But they will not sleep in the car - which means they are always tried when we get to our destiiation. WDW is roughly 16-17 hours from us. We would not attempt a trip that long with them now - although we have friends (with kids the same age) who do it every other year with no problems (their kids sleep much of the trip!)

 

[ireland_nicole]

We drive every year from TX; 19 hours each way. It's certainly doable, but I highly recommend a DVD player.

 

[chellewashere]

We did it last year from Philly. We left here at 10PM when our 3YO (at the time) was asleep, put on one of her Disney DVD's, stopped for breakfast around 7am and got to Kingland GA at 11AM rented a hotel room for 50 bucks hung out in the hotel pool, ate dinner and went to bed early. Checked out at 6AM and we were in Disney at 9AM all refreshed and ready to start our day. We got our keys to the kingdom and went to MK right away..our room was done by 3 that afternoon. It was a really nice ride down thru the night not much traffic and Lorelei slept most of the night away. Drive home was rough hubby didnt stop and we spent the day at the parks before we left so needless to say he was exhausted.
Its not a bad drive at all just bring things for amusment in the drive and it goes pretty quick.

 

[Jenny-momof3]

We've done the drive quite a few times from Ohio. About 15 hours for us. We drive it straight through.

Last trip I was 34 weeks pregnant. My kids are 14,10 and 4. They don't really sleep much in the car but are content coloring, reading, listening to music, dvd's,etc.

This next trip we're also adding my newborn to the mix. So if you're crazy...then I must be completely nuts!

 

[angelmav]

We have driven the last couple of times from colorado (27hrs one way), which wasnt as bad as it sounds. Still havent found airfare I am happy with for june so we may drive again! DVD players, car chargers, books and packing a cooler make it bearable.

 

[Crazy Disney Fan]

We have done that drive from Maryland for 3 years with now dh, ds 9, dd 7, and new this year ds 1. We always buy some new dvds, coloring books, hangman magnet game, and we play lots of games like ABC game (we use different categories like animals, occupations, names boy/girl, movies and so on. The ABC game works very well, sometimes too well, they want to keep playing after I'm tried of it. The first year we flew and we figured the time flying took (1.5 hours to airport, 1 before, the 2 hour delay, and the 3 hour flight, then the 1 hour drive to WDW, thats 8.5 hours) and the extra cost it wasn't worth it. Plus it is soooo nice having your own pillow.

 

[**eeyore**]

I would really crunch the numbers to make sure that you are really coming out ahead by driving. We've discussed it before, but realized that in the end we may only be saving $100 - $200 once all is said and done. And for my sanity, that is not enough money to convince me to drive.

Things to consider:

Fuel cost + wear & tear on vehicle
Tolls
Possible extra hotel nights if you stop on the way down and/or back
Cost of extra meals while on the road (assuming you stop for meals and don't "pack a lunch")
Cost of taking extra days off of work to accomodate the driving days (basically what do you get paid for a day of work - this is your "cost" of taking the day off, even if you get paid vacation).
This is assuming you are staying onsite, in which case you don't need to rent a car.

Also, consider how well you fare on little sleep and how well your family does on extended road trips. We often do a 10-hour drive to visit my IL's. That is as far as we can drive in one day, and even that is pushing it, but it's a little too short to justify a night's stop. We are usually exhausted by the time we get there - the first day isn't too productive, and then driving home is usually a "bear"! It amazes me how much driving can take out of you.

Anyway, it's doable, I would just make sure that there is truly an advantage to driving and think through whether or not it's something your family is up for.

Good luck!

 

[naomi78155]

We are driving from TX and have a 17 hour drive ahead of us. This doesn't include potty/food breaks. We are planning on leaving early one morning, staying that night and getting to Disney around noon the following day.

Planning on bringing the DVD player/IPOD/Leapster/coloring books, snacks, etc...

 

[frostymom]

We have done that drive from Maryland for 3 years with now dh, ds 9, dd 7, and new this year ds 1. We always buy some new dvds, coloring books, hangman magnet game, and we play lots of games like ABC game (we use different categories like animals, occupations, names boy/girl, movies and so on. The ABC game works very well, sometimes too well, they want to keep playing after I'm tried of it. The first year we flew and we figured the time flying took (1.5 hours to airport, 1 before, the 2 hour delay, and the 3 hour flight, then the 1 hour drive to WDW, thats 8.5 hours) and the extra cost it wasn't worth it. Plus it is soooo nice having your own pillow.

We also drove from MD, half way between Baltimore and Washington. Our boys were 2 and 4 last August. Both DH and I worked, then loaded he van, pulled through McDonalds and were on the road by 8pm. We drove all night. There is not a better way to do 95 than during the night. At 7am we stopped for breakfast in Jacksonville. DH and I did the driving in shifts. We were at WDW by 11am the next morning.

We are trying to fly this year but would drive down again, doing it the same way. We also hit the redbox for new titles for $1 each, since you can return them anywhere.

However, the return trip we did during the day and it took a lot longer to get home with boys who were not sleeping the whole way. We will leave the parks and drive home or part way next time.

 

[mrs.sammich]

We made the drive from DE/MD line last October: Boys were 5 and 18 months. I was surprised at how well they did. We left at 4 am on a Saturday, drove until Jacksonville FL around 7:30 pm. We didn't have reservations anywhere, got a place with a pool so the kids could release some energy, and hit the road again around 7 am making check in well before noon. At our pit stops, we made sure to chase the kids around and wear them out. We don't pull out tricks (dvd's and toys) until they are 'needed.'
The drive home was ROUGH.. we hit the DC area around 4 pm..DUH- bad times!

 

[Kaler131]

We have driven quite a few times from Ohio with four children. Usually we stop about 8 hours from WDW (we drive 12 hours the first day-to about Savannah or Hilton Head Island) then we continue on the next day.
We did, however, drive straight through last year since our kids are a little older now.

 

[lindap1]

We're going to Disney World next year and we're planning on driving. We'll drive to Tennessee and stay the night with my brother then drive out the next morning for Orlando. The cost is the reason we're driving and it will be nice to have our own car while in Florida. We'll just take a lot of activities and a DVD player for our daughter who will be all most 5 when we go and my son will be 20 so he can keep himself occupied.

 

[sillyguys]

Thanks for the tips everybody! We drove to Hilton Head a few years ago and drove through the night. The kids slept through the night and the trip wasn't that bad. If we drive this summer, we'll stock up on DVD's, toys, games, etc. Still debating whether to go straight through or make a pit stop in Savannah. I have to admit though, the thought of a road trip with three kids is fun.

 

[mupt02]

We will be making our first drive to WDW this August (27 hours one way). But we have driven many other places and we prefer it to flying. My kids will be 4, 2, and 9 months for our trip in August. It will be the first big trip for the little guy, but my girls are used to it.

Whether or not it is a good idea for you depends on your kids and your travel likes/dislikes. We know our kids (at least the older ones) don't really sleep well in the car. They will doze off for 30-45 minutes, but that's about it. So, we don't travel overnight and we don't push for long hours in the car. We will take 3-4 days to get to WDW. We pick out hotels along the way with a pool or play area or something like that for the kids to enjoy at night after being in the car most of the day. Our kids are easily entertained with watching the DVD player, using their Tag reader and other very portable toys. That makes it easy. When we stop, we make them longer stops. The kids get to run around for a while. We only stop for meals and potty breaks (except overnight). If you like to make as few stops as possible and make those stops as quick as possible, you have to weigh if your kids can handle this into the equation.

Good luck with whatever option you choose.

 

[tinkerbelletreasure]

We are driving from Oklahoma in March. (18hrs without stops) Our kids are 12, 8, & 2. We plan on leaving around noon, so they will hopefull sleep the longest part fo the trip and only be awake in the car half a day each day. We are taking Ipods, dvds, DS, books, and games.