Driving vs. Flying from Ontario?????

[riu girl]

Was planning on driving to WDW for a two week total trip (WDW and Panama City Beach). Have allowed ourselves just over two weeks for whole vacation.

Read on DIS about inexpensive SWA fares and am now considering flying.

Need some advice:
We want our transportation cost to be as minimal as possible :

1. DRIVING
* we live near Peterborough, On and we will take I-75 down in a mini van. We plan on leaving on Dec. 17 and getting back around the 1st of Jan. Expect to pay about $400/gas Cdn
* we will take as much as food as possible for the trip down but will buy some also maybe $150 each way Cdn
* we will need to stay over twice on the way down and twice on the way back maybe about $80/nt * 4 nights = $320 Cdn

VS.

2. FLYING - 2 adults and 2 kids (ages 4 and 7)
* would love a $49 fare each way from Buffalo but can't find them on the SWA web site (is there a special promotional code I have to enter or are these fares not available for our dates or departure city ?)
* would then have to rent a car for two weeks in Orlando with unlimited miles since we will be driving over to Panama City Beach for a week or a so also (have no idea what this would cost)
* we would also have to stay in a Buffalo airport hotel for one night on way down (no idea on price for this either)
* our flying dates are a little flexible (we could leave on Dec 17/18 or 19. We could leave orlando to come home on Dec 30/31/or 1st of Jan)

Any tips on how to make this trip almost as cheap using the flying option would be wonderful (So far on the SWA web site
the cheapest I could get for the four of us was almost $1000 US/return and I thought that this was high compared to what I have read other people have paid)

Thank-you,
Riu Girl
Omemee, Ontario

 

[tmli]

Just some help with costs....

2 wk full size car rental with National in Sept I got $255 USD inclusive.

Also when researching Buffalo airport hotels I found $89 USD to be the average.

On the driving side we usually drive straight through or max stay over 1 nt. I would think your fuel estimate is a little high, we are usually around $180 USD return in a minivan.

$1000 does seem high for the flights but I have not researched that time of year so I can't say for sure.

 

[hockey mom]

One other thing is are you sure you need 2 hotels on the way down and back. We don't even use one.

With at least 4 in your family I think flying
will always be more expensive than driving, the difference is how much extra do you feel is worth the convience of flying.

If you are able to catch a sale of the $49-$69 fares you are looking at $650- $800 CDN, one night in buffalo around $89 Us or $121 CDN, rental car for 2 weeks(if you can get a good deal like tmli) $350 CDN, you will also need a dinner in Buffalo the night before and something in the morning-$75 CDN.

Grand total=$1346 CDN

Driving-Your estimate is a fair one, but like I said I would not drag out the drive with an additional hotel room.

Don't you just hate all these decisions.

Another thing to consider also are Christmas presents. Driving a van gives you lots of room to bring them but flying might not, or do you plan on celebrating prior to leaving home.

 

[Debbie]

When you use the Southwest site, use the "reservations" tab to click in your choices. I did and found that nothing is available for Jan. 1, 2, 3 for you. Dec. 31 still has a bit of room on their N/S (non-stop) flights. Dec. 17 wasn't any good for you, nor was Dec. 18. Dec. 16th (a mighty fine day, I'd say! ) there is lots of room. So.....going Dec. 16 -=Dec 31 would cost you 848 US today, right now.....but don't forget that all that changes as fast as you blink! Good luck!

 

[dsneygirl]

Make sure you sign up for Southwest's email alerts. Every week they email you the specials and you might be able to catch the $49. I don't think we've ever paid more than about $79 each way.

 

[CindyAnn]

One of the other big costs to think about when driving is the extra vacation time. Although we've driven down for our last two WDW trips, it actually costs us more to drive because of lost income for DH, who is self-employed. On the other hand, since the last 2 trips were for 2 weeks (including a cruise) it was also really useful for all the junk I lugged along.

I agree with others who suggest that 1 overnight hotel stop is probably enough (assuming that both adults will be drivers). We leave Toronto at about 6:30 a.m. and drive until about 10:30 or 11:00 p.m. the first day. By then we've hit northern Georgia and we spend the night (preferably in a Jameson Inn which is very reasonable and offers a free breakfast). The next day is leisurely in comparison, and we're off to another early start and even with traffic congestion in southern Georgia and Florida, usually make it to our resort by 4:00 or 5:00 p.m. That lets you unpack, have dinner, and get the kids to bed in good time for the fun on the next day. (our kids were 6 & 9 and 7 & 10 during our driving trips).

Have fun!

 

[riu girl]

DH will be the only adult driver ( I have a vision problem, I do drive but can't do any sort of distance/unfamiliar driving). We also can't leave until 10am since DH doesn't get home from work until about 2 am and wants to sleep before we leave.
He also hates long distance driving so it will be a real treat for all of us I'm sure lol!!!
We are hoping to drive from Peterborough area (leaving at 10 am) the first day and end up somewhere in Ohio that evening. The second morning we will drive from Ohio and end up in Georgia sometime that evening.
Then the third morning drive to Lake Buena Vista.

Does this make any sense?????

Any advice/suggestions would be greatly appreciated...

Thanks for the hotel recommendation (Jameson Inns). I will buy Dave Hunter's I-75 guide book but have no idea where we will spend the overnights on the I-75. The included breakfast sounds like a real bonus.

Riu Girl

 

[krishouse]

If you decide to fly and stay in Buffalo, make sure your depature time corresponds with the hotels shuttle times. Some don't start until 7-8am which is no good if you have a 6 or 7 depart. But many will let you leave your car at the hotel during your stay in FL at no charge- which saves you about $50 US for parking.

Be cautious about the food you bring across the border. US customs will say no to things like: fruits, Vegs, Meats etc. Also be aware thar the Peace Bridge can get pretty busy especially on weekends when traffic heading over can congest onto the QEW.

We have driven twice before from Fort Erie and it's a great adventure, but you need to plan and think it through. Here are some tips that may help.

1) Try and book hotels along the way in advance so you don't pay inflated rates.
2) We left at about 9pm the first time which was bad as we hit Pen. and Virginia at night and made for an intense drive through the mountains there.
3) Deers are bad in PA and VA/WVA- fog is crazy in WVA/VA and the roads wind through the mountains.
4) It's a straight forward drive so that's a plus.
5) Troopers can be out in full force and love out-of- state plates. We got pulled over in WVA and the trooper still ticketed us even after seeing my husband's badge. We got nailed for 15 over and they called it "reckless driving" going down a hill- scam- I won't even tell you the cost but it was more than our fuel for the trip. Invest in a radar detector
6) GA is a good stop, only about 6 hours to WDW from there.
7) Make sure your cell phone has coverage in the US. We had a Rogers/AT&T that we bought for the trip and it still had many dead areas. Maybe purchase a pay as you go phone from Walmart or Target in US beforehand.
8) It's pretty cool going from snowy Canada an N.US and then several hours later seeing palms in SC/GA.
9) Naturally stick to bigger fueling stations and try not to go off the path to get gas- there are some sketchy places along the way.
10) Red Bull and Starbucks double shot are sold in the US and are great for keeping alert during a long drive
11) DVD/VCR is a good idea for the kids and adults
12) Pack some fuel additive from CTC as some gas is pretty bad in the US.

Hope these help
K

 

[LisaSt]

We always drive we just love it. Our kids are great car travellers also. We drive from London to WDW we drive I-75 and it is a nice straight drive easy to follow and even more fun if you have the Along the I-75 book. We stop for 1 night on our way down in Valdosta it is right at the bottom of Georgia and the Fairfield inn is very nice and clean and has a very good breafast included. We have stayed there a few times at 49.00 a night. We leave home at 7:00 PM and the kids sleep until we hit the Georgia welcome centre at around 8AM then we get them dressed and feed them breakfast. We take an electric cooler with us for milk and juice boxes and pop etc makes things alot easier. We then stop in Macon at the bypass there is a really nice rest area that the kids just love to go to so we hit that for lunch at around noon and let the kids run and play there for an hour or so. We then pack up and get to the hotel in Valdosta for about 3 or 4 in the afternoon makes for a really nice relaxing evening for the kids and us and then they get to sleep in a bed rather than the car. We stop in the AM at the Florida welcome centre for free OJ and some WDW guide maps etc and some pics of the ids in frot of the welcome to Florida sign. We get to the hotel at about 12 or 1 usually and check in and have a nice swim and go to DTD for the night.