First time driving from Baltimore to WDW. I use a wheelchair and am looking for tips

[BillSears]

I'll be leaving on Friday 12/8 to head on down to WDW. I'm driving solo and I'm a paraplegic who uses a wheelchair to get around. I love to drive and am pretty independent.

Currently I plan on being out the door in Baltimore about 5:00 AM. I'll hit 95 and hopefully be on the other side of DC by 6:00AM. I plan on stopping for breakfast about 1/2-1 hour south of DC. I'll probably hit a late lunch (not sure of timing) at the famous/infamous South of the Border. I think I'll be able to keep on going until Jacksonville where I plan on spending the night. Then Saturday I'll have an easy quick trip to WDW.

I'll be returning on Saturday 12/16 with alot fewer plans. I'll probably leave around 10:00-12:00. Then drive north maybe stopping in Savannah for the night or I might go abit further.

Right now I'm worried about hotel accommodations on the way down and back. Currently I have no reservations and I'd really like to be able to just "wing it" but I'm thinking that probably isn't a good idea. I'm also wondering if there are any special problems that the wheelchair might cause on the long trip on 95. Is the drive from Baltimore to Jacksonville too long a trip for a solo traveler?

This drive is a test run for a cross country drive I want to take in 2009. Currently I'd like to take 6 weeks and travel across the country seeing all of the sights I can see and not make alot of reservations because I want to be flexible with my plans abit. That's why I'm sort of holding off on making the hotel reservations.

 

[Lewisc]

Do you need a handicap accessible hotel room? Are those rooms frequently sold out?

If yes you might have something like a AAA guidebook or one of those roomsaver newspapers that lists discount hotels near highways. Use your cell phone to call and make a reservation, or at least inquiry about availability, a few hours before you want to stop.

 

[BillSears]

Do you need a handicap accessible hotel room? Are those rooms frequently sold out?

If yes you might have something like a AAA guidebook or one of those roomsaver newspapers that lists discount hotels near highways. Use your cell phone to call and make a reservation, or at least inquiry about availability, a few hours before you want to stop.

Thanks. Yep I'll need a handicapped accesible room. I'd prefer something nice along the lines of a roll in shower room at WDW but I can make do with grab bars on a tub. The big thing for me is making sure the room is on a level I can get to and the bathroom door is wide enough and the bathroom is large enough for me to roll my wheelchair to the tub and toilet.

I do have my AAA books and trip tic. The idea of calling an hour or two before I want to stop does sound good.

 

[Lewisc]

Thanks. Yep I'll need a handicapped accesible room. I'd prefer something nice along the lines of a roll in shower room at WDW but I can make do with grab bars on a tub. The big thing for me is making sure the room is on a level I can get to and the bathroom door is wide enough and the bathroom is large enough for me to roll my wheelchair to the tub and toilet.

I do have my AAA books and trip tic. The idea of calling an hour or two before I want to stop does sound good.

You'll want to call the actual hotel not the #800 number since you're looking to reserve a very specific room type. Don't wait to call until you only have an hour of driving before you pass out (or at least are tired enough that you shouldn't be driving). Given your room requirement you might have to drive longer than anticipated in order to book a suitable room.

 

[clkelley]

Most motels don't have elevators, so you HAVE to have a 1st floor room. Also, most motels allow you to book specific rooms ahead of time (1st floor, 2nd floor, smoking, nonsmoking, accessible, etc.)

Once I booked a room for hubby and me for a weekend trip, (not DisneyWorld)then called the hotel asking about an accessible room, and they actually got nasty with me and said that if I needed an accessible room, I should have booked it. There was no indication of that when I booked online, so I guess those rooms were already booked.

Not sure what price ranges you are looking at, but if you were planning on Days Inns, Comfort Inn, Super 8 level, you might be hard pressed finding the room you need. You may have to book Marriotts, Hiltons, etc. to get the type room you need.

 

[CPT Tripss]

You might want to check in on http://www.usastar.com/i95/homepage.htm.

We find Brunswick Ga a good stopping point on the trip down . . . a selection of motels and eateries.

One of my main techniques is to use those "motel coupon" books available at the rest stops for bargains. Don't know how this would work in terms of getting an accessible room at the discount. If you decide to stay in GA, stop in at the first visitor welcome center (just over the SC border. They are very helpful.

 

[CPT Tripss]

I just reread your travel dates. Your return may be a bit longer and bumpier than the drive down. The Sat before Christmas lots of folks on the road either shopping, getting home from college or visiting family.

It might be a good idea to get lodging reservations.

Also, I highly recommend the "Greenway" (417) from Sanford area, around "O"town to WDW. There will be tolls, so have ones and quarters, but lots less traffic.

 

[WillCAD]

I've made the drive from Baltimore to WDW many times, although never solo and never with anyone with special needs.

First things first: I recommend you push your schedule up an hour or two. My friends and I prefer to leave Baltimore at about 3-4am so that we're compleely through the DC bottlenecks before the morning rush hour starts. Even on a Friday morning, the heavy traffic on the Capital Beltway starts before 6am, and there is still a lot of construction at the Woodrow Wilson Bridge area; you never know when there might be a night-time lane closure or an unplanned problem.

Making the trip solo, it is possible to make it in one day, but it's a long drive, and whether you do it in one day or split it up is a matter of personal preference. From the Ft. McHenry Tunnel (we usually start from my friend's house in Highlandtown) to the WDW gates is 930 miles and normally takes me and my friends about 14 hours. However, we don't make long stops for meals; we usually drive commando style and only make 30-minute or less rest stops for gas and leg stretches about every 3 hours. We also switch off drivers at each stop, which makes the whole trip go a lot faster and a lot easier on everybody; when driving solo, longer rests are needed to prevent fatigue.

The longest drive I have ever made solo was about 6 hours. However, the return leg of that trip was in a snowstorm and took 12-1/2 hours. I pulled into my driveway that night and said to myself, "I could have been almost to Disney World by now!"

Considering how sparse the stops are through the Carolinas and Georgia, if you decide to split your drive, I recommend researching, finding a hotel, and making a specific reservation. My park touring is seat-of-the-pants, but when ti comes to transportation and accomodations, I never leave anything to chance, ever.

Other small tips: don't take just one kind fo snack or drink. Take water and a couple of other types of drink (soda, iced tea, juice, etc.), and take a variety of snacks (chips, pretzels, fruit, veggies, sandwiches, whatever). It gets awful boring to be stuck in the car for 14 hours with nothing but a bag of pretzels and a bottle of Coke.

Also take lots of music with you. There is always a radio station in range along I-95, but there is not always a radio station in range that plays your preferred type of music.

Pack everything in teh front of the car within easy reach. It's frustrating to want a bottle of water only to realize that the cooler is in teh back seat, or that the pretzels have fallen between the passenger seat and the door where you can't reach them!

Print detailed maps of your route and staple the whole package together in the order you will use them, and keep that on the dash or center console where you can reach it easily. Add to the end of the package your hotel ressies, both along the way and at WDW.

Don't forget the car charger and headset for your cell phone. And program the number of your hotels into your phone before you leave - with voice dialing if you have it - so that you won't have to search for them en route.

If you're driving in December, it will probably be cold when you leave. But warm up the car ahead of time and take off your coat or jacket before you depart; it's difficult and uncomfortable to try taking your jacket off while driving.

Enjoy the scenery!

 

[carissanboys]

First things first: I recommend you push your schedule up an hour or two. My friends and I prefer to leave Baltimore at about 3-4am so that we're compleely through the DC bottlenecks before the morning rush hour starts. Even on a Friday morning, the heavy traffic on the Capital Beltway starts before 6am, and there is still a lot of construction at the Woodrow Wilson Bridge area; you never know when there might be a night-time lane closure or an unplanned problem.

That's what I was going to suggest as well. My husband drives from Ft. Meade into Suitland each day and he says traffic usually starts around 5 a.m. Our plan is to leave at 4 a.m. when we go (and we'll be leaving on a Friday).

Also, we've made reservations at two different places for our drive down...about 100 miles apart. The first is in Santee, SC and the second is Savannah, GA. Our plan is to get to Santee and decide if we want to continue on or not. We can always call and cancel the reservation we don't need.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[BillSears]

Thanks alot!

4:00 AM????? Darn I might as well stay up all night. I'm not a morning person so hitting the road at 5:00 was going to be really rough for me.

Maybe I'll head out Thursday night and stay overnight at my sisters house in nirthern Virginia. She'd be happy to see me but I'm not sure how accessible her batroom/tub will be. I've been in the bathroom but didn't pay attention to the little details.

Maybe instead of going around Washington I could instead head down 301 and bypass Washington.

You all are starting to make me worry abou tthe room situation. I really was hoping to have some experience for flying by the seat of your poants road travel but I think I may have to play it safe instead. I'll look through my AAA book and call around for reservations.

I don't really have a set budget for the hotel room. Of course I'd like a clean functional room and a low cost but I'm willing to pay abit more for something that works better for me. For example I'm willing to stay at the Values, I like the moderates and every now and then splurge at a deluxe.

What range of prices should I consider for rooms? I really don't know much about hotel/motel prices except for on Disney property.

 

[CPT Tripss]

When we fly seat of the pants, we manage to get rooms in the $40 range (using the coupon books) - about $10-15 more when we reserve. That gets an econolodge or similar. These are definately just sleep and shower/wash-up stops. We just look for clean, safe and quiet. "Quiet" reminds me, if possible figure out where the motel is in relation to train tracks, particularly if you are a light sleeper! Those horns carry

We have done OK leaving Phila area at about 5 (which equates to leaving Balmer 6:30-7) and using the Parkway and then 295 through DC rather than 95 and the beltway around. It's a little slow in spots, but . . . I prefer that to 301. Once back on the beltway and across the bridge traffic moves OK.

 

[Selket]

I live in Rockville and we often drive down - no wheelchair users.

However, I did want to second that I REALLY like Brunswick (or Savannah) and highly recommend staying there. You can use Priceline or Hotwire for both of them but I don't know if those services provide wheelchair friendly rooms guaranteed, etc. But I much prefer staying in Georgia than SC. Of course driving back we usually end up in SC or NC - the hotels are not nearly as nice for the price.

And the Greenway around Orlando is a great way to get to WDW if you want to avoid the traffic. Will cost you a few bucks but smooth sailing

One time driving down to FL we got stuck in the most wicked traffic EVER - due to road construction - and it literally added 4 hours to our trip. I had made a hotel ressie and we kept it because all of the hotels were booked - absolutely solid. I think folks had gotten messed up badly with travel plans and many stopped earlier than usual - so everything between the construction and where I had the ressie was booked. There were folks still driving around the parking lot of our hotel when we arrived at 1 a.m. looking for rooms. If I hadn't had that room booked we would have been unable to stop - at all. And the same thing happened to us going around Indianapolis once - I didn't realize it was some big car race (Brickyard???) and we couldn't get a room anywhere! The best we could do was still 60 miles outside of town and cost well over $100.... ugh!

Anyway...I make the ressies and then cancel them by 6pm if I think I can't make it. Usually by late afternoon I have a good idea how far I can get.