For 2,000+ Mile Round-Trip Drivers Only! (II)

[GoofyTraci]

everyone is really nice here. I feel like part of the family. Stay with the thread for some advice. I am coming from a different part of the US so I am not really any help to that but just bring things to keep the kids busy and pack patience. Good luck

 

[DSLRuser]

everyone is really nice here. I feel like part of the family. \

Like most brother in laws....I am sure I will piss you off before too long.

 

[C&G'sMama]

only about 54 days till our (my) marathon drive from Syr. NY to WDW. First time driving we will be hitting the road about 4am Sat morning (thats the plan which means 4:30 - 5am with my crew )

We are planning a stop for the night in south of Savannah Ga. then only a 3:45 min or so drive (according to my trip tik) to the world on Sun

My in-laws live in Watertown and it seems like Irish Dance Feis's have been taking us to Syracuse a few times during the year. I miss Plainville Farms. We used to love going there. We'd either go on the way to or from Watertown or our in-laws would drive down. I'm insanely jealous of you folks in Syracuse 'cause 81 is right there.

 

[BC1836]

Hello! Long-time lurker here. We will be leaving in 38 days from South Jersey. This trip includes myself, DH and our 4 children. The plan is to leave on June 25th at 4am, we stop for breakfast once we have passed Baltimore, D.C. area and then after that only for gas and restroom breaks until we hit Brunswick, GA. We will be stopping for the night there and continuing the trip the following morning arriving at Windsor Hills around 4pm. Any and all suggestions are welcome; from reading your posts, you all are the professionals so I think I've come to the right place

As folks who have driven 22 times from southern Ocean County to WDW, we would recommend, if possible, an earlier departure...especially if it's a good weather day. Virginia traffic will be heavier than normal since it's a beach day along the Atlantic Coast.

All the best.

 

[GoofyTraci]

Like most brother in laws....I am sure I will piss you off before too long.

Sounds like family to me!

 

[troane522]

As folks who have driven 22 times from southern Ocean County to WDW, we would recommend, if possible, an earlier departure...especially if it's a good weather day. Virginia traffic will be heavier than normal since it's a beach day along the Atlantic Coast.

All the best.

Thx for that advice; unfortunately DH will not leave any earlier than that; he's blind in one eye so doesn't like driving too much at night. We have taken the shore traffic into consideration though and as long as we can hit Brunswick by 8 or so we'll be happy. Thx again!

 

[BC1836]

Thx for that advice; unfortunately DH will not leave any earlier than that; he's blind in one eye so doesn't like driving too much at night. We have taken the shore traffic into consideration though and as long as we can hit Brunswick by 8 or so we'll be happy. Thx again!

You are quite welcome. Let your countdown continue!

All the best.

 

[sharadoc]

As folks who have driven 22 times from southern Ocean County to WDW, we would recommend, if possible, an earlier departure...especially if it's a good weather day. Virginia traffic will be heavier than normal since it's a beach day along the Atlantic Coast.

All the best.

Hey BC, how long does it take from South Jersey to DC? We plan to hit DC between 6:30 and 7 am and our experience has been as long as you clear DC by 9, you're generally okay. When I saw their schedule I thought it was a good one. When do you consider it unsafe to hit DC?

Thanks.

 

[pamjb]

hi lovemy3kids!!!! im from nazareth and spend alot of time for work in tannersville and the bergs. poconos is a big area,if you want to pm me you can but this is what i would do. leaving at 3pm, you have a few choices which either one is good. you can take i80 west to i81 south or you can take rt33 south to i78 west to i81south. dont mess around getting going,you want to be on the other end of harrisburg before rush hour. you should hit the maryland line in about 21/2-3 hours. the easiest, driving straight through at night is to take 81south ti i77 south to i26 to i95 to i4. it will take you about 161/2 to 17 1/2 hours max as long as you dont stop alot. i81 and i77 are wide open interstates, you dont have to look for what lanes or fight city traffic. the interchanges are well marked to hit i26 and i95. looking at a map it looks like you are making a big swing but trust me, the last thing you want to do is hit the dc beltway, at night, maybe in the rain,not knowing were your going and taking a wrong exit. you will hit nothing but traffic through philly,dc and balt. i also go another way to avoid philly,dc,balt but not knowing the area and the turns, its a little ruff to do at night and its not much shorter. if you need more info., just let me know.

These directions are perfect for me. We are considering leaving around 3 pm on 6/20. We are shooting for driving straight thru, but are willing to stop if need be. I had already decided to go the "back way" rather than thru Philly. So this route will help us avoid the beltway??

 

[BC1836]

Hey BC, how long does it take from South Jersey to DC? We plan to hit DC between 6:30 and 7 am and our experience has been as long as you clear DC by 9, you're generally okay. When I saw their schedule I thought it was a good one. When do you consider it unsafe to hit DC?

Thanks.

Howdy, sharadoc!

We live near Barnegat Bay in Southern Ocean County. Here are some recent departure times for us and the respective times that we reached the MD-VA border (crossing the Wilson Bridge over the Potomac):

4/11...2:55 a.m.....6:30 a.m.
12/10..2:37 a.m....6:21 a.m.
10/10..2:50 a.m....6:26 a.m.
5/10...12:25 a.m...3:58 a.m.
3/10...2:05 a.m.....5:33 a.m.

We feel relatively comfortable reaching the MD-VA border no later than 6:30 a.m. on a weekend and 5:30 a.m. on a weekday.

Our tentative plan next month is to leave between midnight and 1 a.m.

All the best.

 

[dvczerfs]

These directions are perfect for me. We are considering leaving around 3 pm on 6/20. We are shooting for driving straight thru, but are willing to stop if need be. I had already decided to go the "back way" rather than thru Philly. So this route will help us avoid the beltway??

no dc,balt beltways and no tolls.

 

[amcnj]

Hi. I'm am near Atlantic City and about an hour and 10 minutes from the Delaware Memorial Bridge. It has consistently taken 3 hours from my house to the bridge between MD and VA (over Potomac) by DC (I think a portion of the bridge might acuatlly be in DC). Anyway, that makes it about an hour and 50 minutes from the Del MEM Br to the DC bridge. By the way BC, lived where you are now, exit 67, for 13 years.

 

[BC1836]

Hi. I'm am near Atlantic City and about an hour and 10 minutes from the Delaware Memorial Bridge. It has consistently taken 3 hours from my house to the bridge between MD and VA (over Potomac) by DC (I think a portion of the bridge might acuatlly be in DC). Anyway, that makes it about an hour and 50 minutes from the Del MEM Br to the DC bridge. By the way BC, lived where you are now, exit 67, for 13 years.

Indeed, our times from the DMB to the MD-VA border are quite similar to yours.

Yes, Exit #67 it is. And, of course, if you drive on I-4 to WDW you take Exit #67! How's that for an easy-to-remember exit association?

All the best.

 

[amcnj]

And both exit 67 signs were always welcomed sights!

 

[aarmando20]

I am still pondering on what time to leave. I am heading down on June 10th from Philly. I usually leave about 8:00 PM and drive through the night. This year the Kids are getting out of school at 11:30 on that final day and I can be on the road by noon. That should put me past the DC area by 3:30. I want to avoid the DC traffic but also dont want to wait until that night to leave and miss a day at the parks. Any advice.

 

[amcnj]

You should be past DC by 3 pm, and June 10 is early in the month. But I wonder if any DC experts out there can tell you how Friday afternoon traffic patterns are then. Is June 10 part of the "summer weekends", and does the traffic thus start earlier?

 

[troane522]

Hi. I'm am near Atlantic City and about an hour and 10 minutes from the Delaware Memorial Bridge. It has consistently taken 3 hours from my house to the bridge between MD and VA (over Potomac) by DC (I think a portion of the bridge might acuatlly be in DC). Anyway, that makes it about an hour and 50 minutes from the Del MEM Br to the DC bridge. By the way BC, lived where you are now, exit 67, for 13 years.

Hello, I'll keep this info in mind. We are about 30 minutes to the Delaware Memorial Bridge so we should clock in under 3 hours with smooth travels! That's good to know

 

[Flyerfan]

Well, we're doing it again. Said I wouldn't...don't know how I'll take it...but we are driving in November. Thought I would only fly again but for personal reasons, driving and taking all that we want is the best way to go for now. DH asked me if I could possibly sleep the whole way. I'm not that much of a complainer but he doesn't care for me to drive so I'm in the passenger seat the whole time and nodding off. We go 81-77-26-95 and the drive through Virginia kills me every time....It's like it never ends. All in all, looking forward to our next trip.

 

[kidd_freeper]

44 days until we start our drive from CT to FL

Just got my car checked:
belts and hoses.............ok
oil change....................done, will need it once again before the trip
tires............................ok for at least 3000 miles, may need new tires in the Fall
brakes.........................better than 80% life left
spare tire pressure.........ok
spare tire can be removed from mount...ok
air conditioning..............37 degrees F (very good)
lights...........................all ok
wipers..........................need new front blades, rear wiper arm needed lubrication
fuel line........................ok
rear axle.......................no cracks, all ok
shocks/struts/supports....all ok
battery.........................ok

still need to make sure that the new insurance card is put into the car when it comes out in June, and
need to update the maps on the GPS

 

[amcnj]

Troane522, here is summary of the latest drive times. I typically leave early AM (2:30 or so) and here the time reaching various spots:

Leave 2:30 am
DE 3:40 am
MD 3:55 am
VA 5:25 am
NC 8:15 am
SC 11:15 am
GA 3:35 PM
FL 5:05 pm
Orlando area 7:45 pm

This included about 2.5 hours in stops too, an hour and a half of which were in SC so that is why I didn't get to GA till 3:35 pm. I have made the Orlando area in anywhere from 6:30 pm to 8:45 pm, depending on stops, traffic/accidents and weather.