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

[patclairesmom]

We'll be driving down in May and probably be taking a car with about 123K miles on it. It drives nicely now, just got new tires on it, but would like some tips and also to ask if this is a good idea.

 

[disneyfan55]

We'll be driving down in May and probably be taking a car with about 123K miles on it. It drives nicely now, just got new tires on it, but would like some tips and also to ask if this is a good idea.

If it drives fine and no problems you should be fine. Make sure belts and hoses are new and you should be ok. We have driven a 1995 minivan with many more miles than that and no problem (all trips since 2007!) I guess any car can break down, newer maybe no problem but you just never know. That's just our experience with an older car with many, many miles.

 

[floreksa]

Hi everyone! We're taking the plunge and driving from MA in May! I'm so excited. We are surprising DD (6) w/ her first visit and it will also be DH's first time. I've been 3. 2x flying, once driving on a bus when I was in HS.

We're coming from MA (western, just north of CT) and leaving on a Thurs. Because of this, I'm almost 100% positive that we will do the 84-81-77-26 route to avoid either hitting NYC at rush or DC (depending on what time we leave at 12am or 3am).

Any thoughts on a good stopping point? I was thinking the Charlotte area? I don't think we're going to book anything, just drive until DH has had enough.

 

[angelat]

We just decided this past weekend that our trip in August will be a road trip!! We're going with my DH's brother and SIL and their 2 little boys - 2 vehicles.
We plan on leaving on a Friday night (Aug 5) and arriving mid day on Saturday. Then returning home the following Friday (Aug 12 - not sure what time) and arriving home Saturday. We live in the Poconos in PA and BIL lives in Staten Island, NY. With everyone's experience, do you think that with leaving at night, say around 8 pm or so, would it matter if we went to their house or they came to our house to leave? I guess what I mean is drive through Philly or right from NY?
Thanks for any advice!

 

[sharadoc]

We just decided this past weekend that our trip in August will be a road trip!! We're going with my DH's brother and SIL and their 2 little boys - 2 vehicles.
We plan on leaving on a Friday night (Aug 5) and arriving mid day on Saturday. Then returning home the following Friday (Aug 12 - not sure what time) and arriving home Saturday. We live in the Poconos in PA and BIL lives in Staten Island, NY. With everyone's experience, do you think that with leaving at night, say around 8 pm or so, would it matter if we went to their house or they came to our house to leave? I guess what I mean is drive through Philly or right from NY?
Thanks for any advice!

I would recommend their driving to your house, then leave from there. There are a few members here who drive from the Lehigh Valley who can give you more specific advice, but driving to or from Long Island is never good, no matter what day or time!!!!!

Welcome to our cult! Hope you have a great and stress-free drive.

 

[angelat]

I would recommend their driving to your house, then leave from there. There are a few members here who drive from the Lehigh Valley who can give you more specific advice, but driving to or from Long Island is never good, no matter what day or time!!!!!

Welcome to our cult! Hope you have a great and stress-free drive.

Thanks!!!

BIL actually lives in Staten Island, not Long Island. That is a bit of a difference. It's right off the NJ Turnpike as opposed to LI which is way out there! Don't know if it makes a difference in the advice though.

Thanks again!!!!

 

[dvczerfs]

Hi everyone! We're taking the plunge and driving from MA in May! I'm so excited. We are surprising DD (6) w/ her first visit and it will also be DH's first time. I've been 3. 2x flying, once driving on a bus when I was in HS.

We're coming from MA (western, just north of CT) and leaving on a Thurs. Because of this, I'm almost 100% positive that we will do the 84-81-77-26 route to avoid either hitting NYC at rush or DC (depending on what time we leave at 12am or 3am).

Any thoughts on a good stopping point? I was thinking the Charlotte area? I don't think we're going to book anything, just drive until DH has had enough.

i would say that would be a good plan. if you stop around charlotte, i would try to get south of it, if not, i would get up before the rush hour and get through that area. it get busy. have a good trip.

 

[dvczerfs]

We just decided this past weekend that our trip in August will be a road trip!! We're going with my DH's brother and SIL and their 2 little boys - 2 vehicles.
We plan on leaving on a Friday night (Aug 5) and arriving mid day on Saturday. Then returning home the following Friday (Aug 12 - not sure what time) and arriving home Saturday. We live in the Poconos in PA and BIL lives in Staten Island, NY. With everyone's experience, do you think that with leaving at night, say around 8 pm or so, would it matter if we went to their house or they came to our house to leave? I guess what I mean is drive through Philly or right from NY?
Thanks for any advice!

hi nieghbor!!! im on the other side of the mtn. (nazareth). not sure which way you guys were planning on going, but, pending on which is closer, i would have them leave and come across i78, you can come down rt33 and meet up were they interchange. or, if there closer, have them come across i80 and just meet up with them in the bergs and go from there. i hate the belt ways and my normal way down is 78-81-66-17-95-4. 17 is a four lane road, 55mph but it does have a few towns to go through. 95 is well marked and its very easy to get through. or, 78-81-77-26-95-4. which you miss all the belt ways and basicly your following the mtn we live by down to n. carolina. 81-77 is about 100 miles longer, but you can make better time. it take me 16 1/2 hours either way. 95 in the summer is like 209 on a friday night in the summer. 95 on friday night and sat. morning can get jammed up with shore traffic. if you want, you can pm me and i can give you more info. im in east stroudsburg every friday morning, i have a client that is near e.stroud high school, up from the exxon station.

 

[PrincessMom4]

I would recommend their driving to your house, then leave from there. There are a few members here who drive from the Lehigh Valley who can give you more specific advice, but driving to or from Long Island is never good, no matter what day or time!!!!!

Welcome to our cult! Hope you have a great and stress-free drive.

Would you recommend US-15?? It seemed fine to us when we went last time. what's a decent website to go to to check out any "problems" (weather, traffic, construction, etc) in PA??

 

[dvczerfs]

Would you recommend US-15?? It seemed fine to us when we went last time. what's a decent website to go to to check out any "problems" (weather, traffic, construction, etc) in PA??

sorry princessmom, i didnt mean to jump in but i dont think sharon ever came down 15. she lives real close to 95 near philly and comes down more east. i took 15 in 1996 and also i took 17,which at one point are the same road. both between 81 and 95. i like 81-66-17. i66 is nice, theres a huge sign that says i95 via 17 exit. cant miss it. 17 is well marked. we stop in warrenton to get gas. you go through opal. theres just about eveything you can think of on 17 from a sheetz to a walmart. as far as a pa web site, theres not a computer invented that could keep up with the construction that pops up all year long around here. we were down in december and 78-81 had a few but were not to bad. im not sure which way you come down from canada but 81 north of harrisburg i hear has some construction yet going on. some of the projects are holding because of the winter weather but will start back up in the spring. usualy you hit anything around here at rush hour, you will end up slowing down. the lehigh valley is the warehouse capital of the world. we are 1 hour from nyc, philly and sit between interstate 78 and interstate 80.

 

[PrincessMom4]

See we`ve done that route too. 81-66-17-95. We found it was shorter using US-15. We are driving through the night so we are trying to decide which route is best to drive. Scenery will be gone once dark hits.

 

[dvczerfs]

See we`ve done that route too. 81-66-17-95. We found it was shorter using US-15. We are driving through the night so we are trying to decide which route is best to drive. Scenery will be gone once dark hits.

if you had better luck taking 15, id take 15. maybe i just hit it at a bad time. it took me forever to come down 15 the last time i tried it. being in the middle of the night, your taking the traffic factor out of it.

 

[pamkev]

See we`ve done that route too. 81-66-17-95. We found it was shorter using US-15. We are driving through the night so we are trying to decide which route is best to drive. Scenery will be gone once dark hits.

We have done the 15 to 17 to 95 many times to get to Myrtle Beach we find it much better than the 95 though DC. We have also done the 81-66-17-95 route I like the 15 way better but that's just me. We live near Hershey and will be taking that route to get to Disney.

 

[dvczerfs]

See we`ve done that route too. 81-66-17-95. We found it was shorter using US-15. We are driving through the night so we are trying to decide which route is best to drive. Scenery will be gone once dark hits.

another thing to consider, if your hitting the philly, balt., dc area in the middle of the night,i95 would be the quickest way. there would be very little traffic if any in the niddle of the night. if you hit philly around 11pm- midnight or so, you will be out of the "mess areas" well before rush hours start.

 

[jakenjess]

Well, we're leaving today for the very long (24-25 hours) drive to Disney! Probably leave when the kids get out of school and hopefully go through to night to get through the northeast corridor without too much traffic. I'll try to post some updates along the way.

Thanks for all the great tips I've learned on these threads!

 

[dvczerfs]

Well, we're leaving today for the very long (24-25 hours) drive to Disney! Probably leave when the kids get out of school and hopefully go through to night to get through the northeast corridor without too much traffic. I'll try to post some updates along the way.

Thanks for all the great tips I've learned on these threads!

have a safe trip!!!

 

[loveysbydesign]

hi nieghbor!!! im on the other side of the mtn. (nazareth). not sure which way you guys were planning on going, but, pending on which is closer, i would have them leave and come across i78, you can come down rt33 and meet up were they interchange. or, if there closer, have them come across i80 and just meet up with them in the bergs and go from there. i hate the belt ways and my normal way down is 78-81-66-17-95-4. 17 is a four lane road, 55mph but it does have a few towns to go through. 95 is well marked and its very easy to get through. or, 78-81-77-26-95-4. which you miss all the belt ways and basicly your following the mtn we live by down to n. carolina. 81-77 is about 100 miles longer, but you can make better time. it take me 16 1/2 hours either way. 95 in the summer is like 209 on a friday night in the summer. 95 on friday night and sat. morning can get jammed up with shore traffic. if you want, you can pm me and i can give you more info. im in east stroudsburg every friday morning, i have a client that is near e.stroud high school, up from the exxon station.

We took the 78-81-77-26-95-4 route when we drove for the 1st time this past June. Is the 78-81-66-17-95-4 route better? Also whereabouts do you pick up 66 off of 81? I'm trying to find it on googlemaps.
We will be driving again this October!

Nevermind I found it...I was looking too far south. I think we're gonna stick with the route we took last time and we're hoping to see some beautiful foliage along the mountains and are also planning to stop at Skyline Caverns this trip. I promised my kids last time that we would stop there.

 

[dvczerfs]

We took the 78-81-77-26-95-4 route when we drove for the 1st time this past June. Is the 78-81-66-17-95-4 route better? Also whereabouts do you pick up 66 off of 81? I'm trying to find it on googlemaps.
We will be driving again this October!

Nevermind I found it...I was looking too far south. I think we're gonna stick with the route we took last time and we're hoping to see some beautiful foliage along the mountains and are also planning to stop at Skyline Caverns this trip. I promised my kids last time that we would stop there.

i wouldnt say better, but pending on the time of year, its a little faster and alot more to see. a bit less boring than 81-77-26. when in october??? dw and i are going down sept 27th and coming home the 8th. that trip, ill be going 81-66-17-95. this june im taking 81-77-26. we are leaving on a friday afternoon and if i can avoid as much shore traffic i will. our dd18 will be starting school in august so its just us. we have a town and country, its well disney marked. dw and i were just talking last night, the sep.-oct trip will probley be its last. its a 2006 and its been to disney 8 times and it only has 21k miles on it. it sits in the garage most of the time. dw has another car and i drive a company car. now that dd wont be with us on our trips, we no longer will need a minivan. dw wants to get a lexus lx350. something a little smaller but confort is the name now. when we were first married, we use to drive down in a pont. sunbird, sleep in the car and stay at the days inn on 192. we paid our dues. its sad our little girl is grown, but june will be her "last" trip as a "kid". june trip is her grad. present. she wanted to stay at the contemp. in the tower facing the mk. shes 18 and this trip will be number 22 for her. (all drives) hopefully dw and i made a life time of mems. for her. dw and i were down for our 25th last may, we had a blast. we would go over to dtd at 7am, walk around, nobody in sight. stop at earl of sand and get a breakfast sand. we would go to the parks for a few hours in the morning and a few hours in the late afterrnoon,early evevning. were looking forward to it just being us for awhile till maybe some day, grandkids that we take. dd asked, grandkids? what about me???? anyway, sorry for the rambling, have a great trip!!

 

[angelat]

hi nieghbor!!! im on the other side of the mtn. (nazareth). not sure which way you guys were planning on going, but, pending on which is closer, i would have them leave and come across i78, you can come down rt33 and meet up were they interchange. or, if there closer, have them come across i80 and just meet up with them in the bergs and go from there. i hate the belt ways and my normal way down is 78-81-66-17-95-4. 17 is a four lane road, 55mph but it does have a few towns to go through. 95 is well marked and its very easy to get through. or, 78-81-77-26-95-4. which you miss all the belt ways and basicly your following the mtn we live by down to n. carolina. 81-77 is about 100 miles longer, but you can make better time. it take me 16 1/2 hours either way. 95 in the summer is like 209 on a friday night in the summer. 95 on friday night and sat. morning can get jammed up with shore traffic. if you want, you can pm me and i can give you more info. im in east stroudsburg every friday morning, i have a client that is near e.stroud high school, up from the exxon station.

Thanks for the info!!! I'll let you know if I need more info later on.
We'll have to look into these routes. I guess we have some time before we have to decide. I love this thread. i read through it a few years back when we were conteplating driving then.

 

[shalom]

The original thread began with a question: "We were wondering how many of you good folks drive at least 2,000 round trip miles to WDW?"

Well?

Looks to be a fair few.

Went to WDW for the first time last April (middle daughter and I did one day at the Magic Kingdom), and at least some of us will be there this May (one day at Epcot). Last year we were in Orlando 5 days; this year we'll be in Orlando for eleven days, but most of the family is not into WDW. Guess I'm lucky they like Orlando and doing non-park Disney stuff, at least.

We're in South Bend, IN, and take 65 from Indy to Nashville, then 24 to Chattanooga and 75 from there. Last year we took two days down and three days back, which is what we plan on doing again this year. We've got five kids, ages 10-18, and a mini van, and if my two youngest get any bigger, we're not going to be able to cram three into the back seat anymore.

We can't go again in 2012, because all our vacation time is committed elsewhere. Hubby's unenthused about Orlando every year anyhow. But in 2013, planning on doing the parks for ten days.