Fly or drive?

[StormyCA]

From where I live in No Cal, for one person flying vs driving is a toss up as far as cost goes. Airfare + shuttle/taxi vs fuel + onsite parking is pretty much a wash. But for two or more, driving is much cheaper. Timewise it's also a wash, we timed it and driving is only about 30 mins longer door to hotel door than flying.

 

[RemainSeatedPlease]

This reminds me, the Mythbusters tested a comparison of flying/driving time from San Francisco to L.A. The flyers got there first, but only by about 10 minutes I believe.

 

[SoCalTrojanSkip]

I drive to AZ which is about a 5-6 hour drive quite frequently. It's a nice drive, and if your kids can handle being in the car for that long (with breaks of course) then I say pack a cooler with drinks and your allergy free snacks and drive if the savings are that drastic. Depending on where you're coming from though, you might want to prepare yourself for gas price sticker shock when you make it down to So Cal...

 

[Canuck16]

We have driven from British Columbia 3x so 5-6 hours would be no problem for us. So for that short a distance I would drive and save the money.

 

[bumbershoot]

I know the kids would love to fly. I kinda prefer to not be sitting for 5 hours, but oh well. Yup, the cost savings is pretty big.

I voted for driving, but it sounds like you and your kids want to fly. So fly. This is your life.

 

[ClaraOswald]

Did you say flying is more fun?!?! It's like getting on a bus with wings - and full of the common cold virus. Our drive is 6.5 hours and we've never considered flying. Of course, the nearest airport is over an hour away, so the plane doesn't help on time that much. Plus it's waaaayyyyyy cheaper: $100 max round trip for gas. Plus we take EVERYTHING in our van. It's so nice to have nearly no limit to what we can bring.

My thoughts exactly.

If we lived as close as 5-6 hours...we would 100% drive! I hate flying so much. It's what is keeping us from returning to Disneyland sooner rather than later. Stuck on a metal tube in the sky with a toddler was not fun.

 

[azdisneylover]

Our drive would be about 5-6 hrs depending on stops with the kids. A flight would be about 5 hours door to door. I'm torn on whether or not flying would be worth it. It would cost about 1800 to fly us all, plus a shuttle. Or $100 at most in gas. Flying is more fun, maybe less tiring? I was wanting to stop at a grocery store for some snacks when we get in though. Since I'm picking up allergy friendly snacks, I'm nervous about leaving it to a Von's delivery. It seems like a lot, but then again not a lot when we are already paying 6500 for our week there and being at DLH.[/QUOT

Driving is what we do. (we are the same time distance from DL as you). The plus of driving is you can bring all the snacks, extra clothes, case or two of water, ice chest etc. The drive can be a learning experience about your state and other states (if CA isn't your home state).

Just think, you can put that $1700 difference between flying and gas towards your trip, or towards another trip!

 

[taniahappy]

I love driving and hate flying so there.

 

[NiceOneSimba]

Another vote for driving.

For me, it boils down to being able to bring more things in the car and not having to worry about all the security regulations. And having a car opens up your meal options should you want to dine offsite.

 

[egritz]

We HATE to drive and have always flown....until we had a mishap with car seats and a car service in 2014. So this year we decided to drive (from Sacramento area) and we are sold on driving when with the kids. With driving we were able to bring items to make our stay more comfy (our tempurpedic pillows) and we were able to buy snacks ahead of time on sale (so we weren't stuck paying $5 for a box of ritz crackers at the grocery store). For us it would have been roughly $500 for the 3 plane tickets (baby would have been free), plus parking at the airport, plus the cost of transportation to/from the airport in Orange County, easily over $600 total to fly. Compared to $170 in gas (we averaged 19/mpg) and $75 in hotel parking fees (we stayed 7 nights), plus the convenience of not having to pack light, we are hands-down driving for future trips with the children (we'll fly for adult trips, we have an AP this year). Our stroller is a pain to fly with too (it breaks down completely into a bag and always takes DH about 10 minutes to bag it & then 5 minutes to re-build it). Anyway, as long as weather isn't an issue (we don't want to drive over the Grapevine when snowing) we'll be driving for all late-spring-to-fall trips with the kids and using that saved money to fund additional trips to our favorite vacation destination!

 

[hanna-nana]

Thanks for the replies. I think we will just drive. There are a lot of positives to it.

 

[Meriweather]

We're SE of Phoenix and always drive.
Just got back on Friday. Took a 2 year old this time and it was fine.
I would save the money and do something else with it.

 

[ronandannette]

From where I live in No Cal, for one person flying vs driving is a toss up as far as cost goes. Airfare + shuttle/taxi vs fuel + onsite parking is pretty much a wash. But for two or more, driving is much cheaper. Timewise it's also a wash, we timed it and driving is only about 30 mins longer door to hotel door than flying.

This reminds me, the Mythbusters tested a comparison of flying/driving time from San Francisco to L.A. The flyers got there first, but only by about 10 minutes I believe.

Really curious about this...a 5 hour drive is about 400 or so miles, no? Why on earth would it take such a long time to fly there? I'm thinking a 50 minute direct flight...

 

[disneycat321]

OP: definitely drive.

I live in NorCal and I usually fly. It's about an 8 hour trip by car. When I fly, I leave early in the morning, like about 5 AM, because it's a 1 1/2 hour drive to the airport, but I'm in DLR by 10 AM. Driving down 5 is one of my most dreaded routes. I hate it. I like going to the airport, having a coffee, getting on the plane etc. I like being shuttled to the hotel and not having to park a car. I don't like driving and having to stop for fast food or packing something to eat in the car. The trip seems so much longer and my kids get kind of snarky. I haven't really managed to shut that down completely; movies only work for a few hours. My dh gets tired and cranky, too. So for us, we like to fly when possible. That's why I have a SW card and save up points for it. We don't go as a family more than once a year so it's worth it to me, especially when the flights are free. We never leave the resort so having a car isn't a bonus but an extra cost (something like $15-20/day at most places).

In your case, though, that drive doesn't seem bad. Flying in your case is a lot of money to pay for not a whole lot of benefit IMO.

I have family in Nor Cal and So Cal and have lived in both places, so I've done that drive 2-5 times a year over the past decade or so. I've never once taken the 5. Well - maybe once, but I wasn't the one driving. 99 is a MUCH better experience. However, I don't have kids. But when we do, we'll still drive to save money. I've been completely desensitized to that drive and it doesn't bother me at all.

To each their own, but if you're ever stuck driving again, take 99, NOT 5. It adds maybe 10 minutes and is a much more pleasant drive.

 

[sheetz]

Really curious about this...a 5 hour drive is about 400 or so miles, no? Why on earth would it take such a long time to fly there? I'm thinking a 50 minute direct flight...

I dug up the Mythbusters video. The segment begins 26 minutes in.

It appears the drivers could have easily won if they had not stuck to the speed limit, which nobody else does.

 

[ronandannette]

I dug up the Mythbusters video. The segment begins 26 minutes in.

It appears the drivers could have easily won if they had not stuck to the speed limit, which nobody else does.

Thanks, but I was hoping somebody would tell me what's going on with why the flight takes so long.

 

[sheetz]

Thanks, but I was hoping somebody would tell me what's going on with why the flight takes so long.

Air traffic congestion. Flights between LA and SF used to take an hour or less, but now they routinely take an hour and a half.

 

[hanna-nana]

Door to door, probably. Not actual fight time. That's what I based my numbers on. I have an hour drive to the airport, get there 2 hrs early with 5 kids, hour and 20 minute flight, gather luggage, head to rental car/shuttle, drive to DLR.

 

[DizMe]

OP: definitely drive.



I have family in Nor Cal and So Cal and have lived in both places, so I've done that drive 2-5 times a year over the past decade or so. I've never once taken the 5. Well - maybe once, but I wasn't the one driving. 99 is a MUCH better experience. However, I don't have kids. But when we do, we'll still drive to save money. I've been completely desensitized to that drive and it doesn't bother me at all.

To each their own, but if you're ever stuck driving again, take 99, NOT 5. It adds maybe 10 minutes and is a much more pleasant drive.

Thanks! I totally agree. I lived in SoCal until Jr High and then moved to Norcal, so I've made that trip many times as well. I *personally* am fine with it; I just knit if I don't have to intercede in fights etc. Unfortunately, my dh will not drive anything but the most direct route. Consequently, I only go with dh and the kids (3 girls) once/year. The rest of the time I meet friends/sister and fly by myself If I have enough SW points saved up, I get tickets for my family to fly. My kids are not road trip people. I grew up doing road trips and I'm more than happy to give them up. I would much rather sit on a 'flying bus' for an hour and 20 min than be stuck in the minivan with 3 whining teenagers for 8 hours. Mine are extremely active kids who did NOT enjoy long car rides, but they love to fly. We're good with trips to the Bay Area or my mom's in Eureka, which are both about 3-4 hours from our house, but anything beyond that is torture.

I have 2 older kids as well who are grown and out of the house. They were perfectly lovely to drive with and we never even considered flying. My younger ones? Um...no.

 

[StormyCA]

Thanks, but I was hoping somebody would tell me what's going on with why the flight takes so long.

It's door to door. So they're taking into consideration drive time to the airport, parking, walking to the terminal, arriving an hour or more early for the flight, check in, security, boarding, flight time, exiting the plane, baggage retrieval, transport from airport (IIRC rental car pickup), drive to hotel VS getting in your car and driving the most direct route with (again IIRC) one stop.

Obvs one could cut time off the overall flight time; have a friend drop you off at airport, arrive 30 mins before your flight like in the 'old days', no checked baggage, have a limo or friend waiting for you curbside.