Driving with COVID & kids- need advice!!!

[Ladyandthepuppies]

We are driving from the Philly suburbs to WDW in a few weeks (15 hours) and really torn about the best plan of action. I have 3 kids ages 1, 4, and 7. I’m also pregnant and very paranoid about getting COVID. (For the record... we aren’t actually going to WDW because I am too scared. We rented a house in Windsor Hills for a month and plan to self-isolate in the Florida sunshine but no parks this year.) We can’t decide if it’s better to drive down overnight and minimize the rest stops / hope that the kids sleep for 6 or 7 hours in a row, or do the drive over 2 days and stop at multiple rest stops, stay in a hotel, etc. I like that if we go overnight we can really minimize the stops and it might be easier for the kids to tolerate if they’re sleeping. But my DH is very prone to highway hypnosis and we are nervous about either one of us driving in the middle of the night. Since I’m pregnant I can’t load up on coffee although DH would definitely be doing some type of caffeine/energy drink. So idk what the best plan is! If we go during the day I mapped out different battlefields / arboretums / parks where we can eat and stretch outside and hopefully avoid crowds. But it’s definitely increased exposure, not to mention that our small kids would be awake in the car and probably a little miserable. Any advice and all suggestions are welcome!!!

 

[Kickstart]

Hey fellow Philly suburb peeps!

Besides not going (cancelling the trip), the next safest option might be to book an airbnb/VRBO whole house that has a lock box so you can let yourselves in. Get a chance to rest up (keep your immune systems up) in a relatively low risk lodging option... instead of pushing yourselves so hard. Likely be better for the kids as well. Break the trip up into two days (or more days if you have the time)

I don't like the idea of you guys driving through the night if you know you have challenges with late night driving. That drive is a white-knuckle experience almost any time of day/night. 95 is a nightmare. The drive itself may be a higher risk activity than the covid exposure risk.

You'll still have to stop at rest stops at some point - unless you get creative I suspect rest stops will be your highest covid exposure risk.

Some risk categorizations from the CDC (see the lodging section where is shows a "vacation rental" as a lower risk than a hotel stay):
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/travel-risk.html
Good luck

 

[JenBush]

I’m a day driver. I don’t do well driving at night because I get tired easily. My drive to Orlando is about as long as yours I like starting really early like 4/5am and driving straight through. By starting that early I avoid a lot of the crowds on the road for the first handful of hours and only drive in the dark for 3-4 hours rather than ALL night. Also during the first several hours my passengers are usually asleep, which is nice.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

I’m a day driver. I don’t do well driving at night because I get tired easily. My drive to Orlando is about as long as yours I like starting really early like 4/5am and driving straight through. By starting that early I avoid a lot of the crowds on the road for the first handful of hours and only drive in the dark for 3-4 hours rather than ALL night. Also during the first several hours my passengers are usually asleep, which is nice.

my kids used to do great with this plan but now the grandkids are another story. none of them go back to sleep. in fact the next to youngest with a leaving at midnight didnt sleep at all when he was 3 konked out walking in from parking lot. at least he didnt wake up his brothers

 

[Kickstart]

+1 with what JenBush said..... coming from someone who's done the drive twice and failed to heed that advice both times.

Driving late into the night exhausted us, so much so that I felt sick the next day. I was wiped out.
If you can get packed, get a good night's sleep, and start super early the next morning... it's less of a shock to your system (IMHO)
Combine that with an overnight at a whole-hose vacation rental off the beaten path, it might be a winning combination.

 

[easyas123]

Another person here who doesn't do great with night driving! I'm okay driving at night, I can see just find, it's the staying up late/overnight that makes me feel miserable.
We live about a hour south of Philly, if we drive we either leave mid afternoon with the goal of making it below Richmond at least, hopefully to the NC line then we overnight in a hotel. Or we will leave around 3 AM -give or take a hour- and make a long day of it.
Good luck with your drive - enjoy your time in FL.

 

[Ladyandthepuppies]

Thanks, all! I guess the two day trip is the safer plan overall. We are bringing our dog so I will look into a no-contact vacation home rental or we could try for a reputable hotel with strict cleaning procedures that allow pets. Another concern I had was that with the overnight drive I can pack lots of snacks but if we’re doing 2 days on the road we’ll obviously need to plan on getting take out meals. Where we live in PA, masks are required and enforced, but I know throughout I-95S that isn’t always the case.

Ugh I feel like I would prefer to do the overnight drive but as PPs pointed out, it’s dangerous in its own right. It just feels like with the 2 day trip the COVID risks are guaranteed while the overnight drive risks are “what-ifs” (what if I get tired / what if DH falls asleep behind the wheel). Thank goodness we’re going down for a month, it will make the drive and the stress worth it!

 

[GinnyBear's_mom]

Another concern I had was that with the overnight drive I can pack lots of snacks but if we’re doing 2 days on the road we’ll obviously need to plan on getting take out meals. Where we live in PA, masks are required and enforced, but I know throughout I-95S that isn’t always the case.

We drive from NJ to FL once or twice a year and have done so for the past 12 years with 3 kids. DH got food poisoning from a random Wendy's in Virginia off of 95 once so we only get coffee, soda or ice on the road (we have 1 BBQ restaurant in Georgia that we trust). We order dry hoagies the day before we leave, ask them to put parchment between the bread and meat/cheese so the roll doesn't get soggy and put condiments on the side. I've also packed mac and cheese in a large thermos for everyone, my sister packs sushi for her family in her cooler for long roadtrips. I pack small paper plates and bowls and prep the food when we stop. I'm not able to drive so I handle all food prep. If the weather is nice we'll stop and have a picnic at a rest stop off 95 (you can google the list of 95 rest stops to see which ones have picnic tables or space for a picnic blanket). Sometimes we eat in the car if the weather isn't cooperating. I pick our snacks carefully- only the occassional sugary snack, lots of protein and very little salt (unsalted nuts or pb cups with sliced apples, dehydrated fruit, baby carrots, lara bars, fiber one bars, cheese sticks). Salty snacks make the kids drink more, then you have to stop more! I only allow drinks about 30-45 minutes before a planned restroom stop and they are the small kids drinks not full sized water bottles.

We will break up the drive with a stop in a hotel near souther south carolina. Hotels usually offer free breakfast but I would avoid that now. Breakfast in the room can be poptarts, individually packaged cereal and asceptic containers of milk (popped in the fridge the night before) with a piece of fresh fruit.

For us, if the timing doesn't work out to stop at the bbq restaurant in Georgia we put the leftovers of hoagies in the fridge at the hotel overnight, grab some ice at the hotel to put in a ziplockbag in the cooler and eat them the next day when we are on the road and we're at Disney by dinner.

We haven't had luck booking a 1 night vacation rental- usually most places don't allow 1 night bookings or if they do the cleaning fee costs more than the one night rental cost making the total price outrageous but ymmv.

Good luck!

 

[easyas123]

Southwest has some pretty decent fares out of PHL to MCO currently. Is it an option got one of you to fly down with the kids one way and have you or your husband drive down? Driver can time their drive and overnight stay to pick rest of family up at airport? Just a thought, perhaps not very convenient - just thinking of ways to avoid overnights in hotel rooms/stops for food for you & kids, as I gather that is what you'd like to avoid?

 

[Cheburashka]

We are driving from the Philly suburbs to WDW in a few weeks (15 hours) and really torn about the best plan of action. I have 3 kids ages 1, 4, and 7. I’m also pregnant and very paranoid about getting COVID. (For the record... we aren’t actually going to WDW because I am too scared. We rented a house in Windsor Hills for a month and plan to self-isolate in the Florida sunshine ☀ but no parks this year.) We can’t decide if it’s better to drive down overnight and minimize the rest stops / hope that the kids sleep for 6 or 7 hours in a row, or do the drive over 2 days and stop at multiple rest stops, stay in a hotel, etc. I like that if we go overnight we can really minimize the stops and it might be easier for the kids to tolerate if they’re sleeping. But my DH is very prone to highway hypnosis and we are nervous about either one of us driving in the middle of the night. Since I’m pregnant I can’t load up on coffee although DH would definitely be doing some type of caffeine/energy drink. So idk what the best plan is! If we go during the day I mapped out different battlefields / arboretums / parks where we can eat and stretch outside and hopefully avoid crowds. But it’s definitely increased exposure, not to mention that our small kids would be awake in the car and probably a little miserable. Any advice and all suggestions are welcome!!!

With you pregnant and your husband prone to highway hypnosis, your family is definitely safer spreading the trip over two days than risking driving through the night.

 

[LBHouse]

Can you share any info on the month long rental at windsor hills? did you just book 4 weeks or find someone with a long term option?

 

[LadyBeBop]

Couple of thoughts.

1) How far along are you? I’d be cautious if you’re more than about six months along. You may be prone to more bathroom breaks. Try to find rest areas along the interstate. Gas station rest rooms...well I’ve travelled down south during the summer. I rarely see a mask anywhere inside a gas station.

2) I’d spend the night at a major chain hotel or motel. Preferably with multiple buildings, so you won’t have to go through the lobby, every time you have to go to your room. And try to get a room on the bottom floor. That way, you don’t have to worry about sharing space in an elevator.

The iExit app on your smartphone is your friend. Not only with finding rest stops, but in finding lodging.

 

[Ladyandthepuppies]

Can you share any info on the month long rental at windsor hills? did you just book 4 weeks or find someone with a long term option?

I went on www.windsorhillsprivaterentals.com and reached out to a few owners asking about 4 week rentals and whether they would offer a multi-week stay discount. We actually did a 31 day lease as insurance against COVID cancellations; if FL shut down “vacation rentals“ then a 31 day lease would still be valid. I agreed to no cancellations and booked it 5 months in advance, I think the owner might have offered a bigger discount than usual because she was looking to guarantee income after losing business this spring.

Couple of thoughts.

1) How far along are you? I’d be cautious if you’re more than about six months along. You may be prone to more bathroom breaks. Try to find rest areas along the interstate. Gas station rest rooms...well I’ve travelled down south during the summer. I rarely see a mask anywhere inside a gas station.


The iExit app on your smartphone is your friend. Not only with finding rest stops, but in finding lodging.

I will only be 4 months along when we leave, so hopefully not too uncomfortable but it’s an excellent reminder to space out my water intake! I’m also not above creative solutions in an emergency situation we are planning to bring the little potty for our 4 year old, just in case...

Thanks for the iExit recommendation! I think I’ll get Waze too, I usually use Google maps but I know Waze is good for road trips.

I haven’t booked anything yet, but leaning towards an airbnb even though (as a PP pointed out) with the cleaning fee it’s much more expensive than the most expensive hotel. But I saw one online that offers a contact-free stay and we would have the whole house to ourselves. The listing also said the house has children’s books and toys to use, which has piqued my interest for sure!

 

[Disneyfan754321]

We drove from Texas, we stayed in a holiday inn without a lobby. Staying in a chain hotel is a great idea... we had no issues DH went and checked in we went straight to the room.
If you are still worried bring the lysol and the Clorox wipes. Personally I trust chain hotels more than airbnb you dont know who and how they cleaned that room/ house.