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

[sharadoc]

Over the years I've learned quite a bit and wanted to pass on some of my wisdom.

Great! Thanks so much for taking the time to put this together. We appreciate it the insight.

I'll add to your GPS comment - don't trust it! We use ours for speed limits, times, etc. but anytime we've let the GPS tell us where to go, it takes us into residential areas, bad neighborhoods, or construction. Use the state websites, like you suggested.

 

[briles5]

we will leave at 2am when I get out of work..ahhh

Are you guys driving straight through?

 

[dvczerfs]

I live 25 minutes west of Gettysburg. There is plenty to do in the area. If you get to Gettysburg and are looking for a cool restaurant, check out "The Fairfield Inn" in nearby Fairfield, PA.

hummm, i think ive heard of that one. my nephew is getting married in october in the harrisburg area. we are staying over night for the wedding, maybe we can check it out.

 

[happily single]

Hi Everyone, This will be our first family trip to Disney, and our first ever road trip! We are leaving sometime a week from this Friday from CT!! Starting to get a little nervous about this, and praying we will make it!! For drivers it will be my husband and I, and we have 3 kids - 12, 8, and 3. We have every electronic device and individual goodie bags for the kids so I think they should be pretty good!
One of my questions is, should we make a stop over reservation ahead of time? Or do other's of you just drive until you feel you want to stop? We are not planning on doing this trip in one shot. We were thinking of stopping somewhere in NC or SC. I'm thinking we should probably try to get at least half way?? I am not sure what time we are leaving yet, a little confused on that too. But, we will try to avoid rush hours. Our checkin at POR isn't until Sunday at 3, so we don't have to rush too much. If we get to Orlando Saturday we will have to find another room for that night.
Thanks for any tips!

Depending on where in CT it should take about 17-20 hours to get to Disney from you. I live in RI; I leave about 3-4 a.m. Drive to North Carolina (Lumberton), stay the night, wake up and get on the road by 8:30a.m. and make it to Disney by early afternoon. This is just one driver (me) and travelling with 3 kids (6,12 and 13)

So unless you are planning on stopping an extra lot and sightseeing a lot you will end up arriving a day early in Orlando

 

[nono]

Starting to get a little nervous about this, and praying we will make it!! For drivers it will be my husband and I, and we have 3 kids - 12, 8, and 3. We have every electronic device and individual goodie bags for the kids so I think they should be pretty good!

Hi! I have two children, ages 8 & 5! Don't be nervous! For your smallest child, make sure to put a small piece of luggage in front of his/her seat as a footrest. It'll help avoid back strain. For all three (and the adults too!) don't be afraid to take an extra 10 min. at the rest stops to play tag or have some races. Just 10 min. of blood moving really seems to help keep the next few hours riding a lot more peaceful.

Oh, and one game we play which is very low tech is, "What's this guy's story?" During a mellow part of the ride, we'll see someone at a rest area, or drive by in a car and I'll ask that question. I've been surprised at how much fun we can have spinning a tale about someone we don't know!

Oh, and if your kids aren't into audiobooks, this might be a great time to try one out. Something not too long (maybe 1 - 2 hours, which I would suggest you break into 45 min. parts). If you want audiobook suggestions, just ask! Have fun!

 

[Daisy Dog]

Hi! I have two children, ages 8 & 5! Don't be nervous! For your smallest child, make sure to put a small piece of luggage in front of his/her seat as a footrest. It'll help avoid back strain. For all three (and the adults too!) don't be afraid to take an extra 10 min. at the rest stops to play tag or have some races. Just 10 min. of blood moving really seems to help keep the next few hours riding a lot more peaceful.

Oh, and one game we play which is very low tech is, "What's this guy's story?" During a mellow part of the ride, we'll see someone at a rest area, or drive by in a car and I'll ask that question. I've been surprised at how much fun we can have spinning a tale about someone we don't know!

Oh, and if your kids aren't into audiobooks, this might be a great time to try one out. Something not too long (maybe 1 - 2 hours, which I would suggest you break into 45 min. parts). If you want audiobook suggestions, just ask! Have fun!

Thanks! I would love a suggestion on a good audiobook! We haven't used them before, but sounds like a great idea!

 

[Daisy Dog]

Depending on where in CT it should take about 17-20 hours to get to Disney from you. I live in RI; I leave about 3-4 a.m. Drive to North Carolina (Lumberton), stay the night, wake up and get on the road by 8:30a.m. and make it to Disney by early afternoon. This is just one driver (me) and travelling with 3 kids (6,12 and 13)

So unless you are planning on stopping an extra lot and sightseeing a lot you will end up arriving a day early in Orlando

Thanks for the tips! Looks like I will have to find another hotel for a night in Orlando, but we figured we'd rather leave a little earlier and not have to rush!

 

[BC1836]

Why have we driven to WDW 25 times in the last 10 years? Perhaps our recent flight from San Antonio (we were there for a book signing) explains it best:

[careful packing of the suitcases according to TSA rules with approved locks]
11:00 a.m. departed hotel in cab
11:30 a.m. arrived at airport (baggage check hassles, multiple times through security, the wait for the flight, overhead bin battle, the wait on the tarmac)
2:00 p.m.- 6:30 p.m. (one hour time zone adjustment) the flight itself
6:30 p.m.- 7:15 p.m. tarmac ride to gate; retrieving baggage
7:15 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. the wait for the limo
7:30 p.m. - 8:45 p.m. the limo ride home

Total time investment for the 3 1/2 hour flight: 8 hours and 45 minutes.

["Oh, why drive to WDW when you can fly there in just three hours?" NOT!]

In several weeks, we'll be driving to WDW!

All the best.

 

[BC1836]

Why have we driven to WDW 25 times in the last 10 years? Perhaps our recent flight from San Antonio (we were there for a book signing) explains it best:

[careful packing of the suitcases according to TSA rules with approved locks]
11:00 a.m. departed hotel in cab
11:30 a.m. arrived at airport (baggage check hassles, multiple times through security, the wait for the flight, overhead bin battle, the wait on the tarmac)
2:00 p.m.- 6:30 p.m. (one hour time zone adjustment) the flight itself: fresh air, roomy seats, quiet passengers, large bathroom facilities, abundant food and drink, etc.
6:30 p.m.- 7:15 p.m. tarmac ride to gate; retrieving baggage
7:15 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. the wait for the limo
7:30 p.m. - 8:45 p.m. the limo ride home

Total time investment for the 3 1/2 hour flight: 8 hours and 45 minutes.

["Oh, why drive to WDW when you can fly there in just three hours?" NOT!]

In several weeks, we'll be driving to WDW!

All the best.

 

[darrengs]

Why have we driven to WDW 25 times in the last 10 years? Perhaps our recent flight from San Antonio (we were there for a book signing) explains it best:

[careful packing of the suitcases according to TSA rules with approved locks]
11:00 a.m. departed hotel in cab
11:30 a.m. arrived at airport (baggage check hassles, multiple times through security, the wait for the flight, overhead bin battle, the wait on the tarmac)
2:00 p.m.- 6:30 p.m. (one hour time zone adjustment) the flight itself: fresh air, roomy seats, quiet passengers, large bathroom facilities, abundant food and drink, etc.
6:30 p.m.- 7:15 p.m. tarmac ride to gate; retrieving baggage
7:15 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. the wait for the limo
7:30 p.m. - 8:45 p.m. the limo ride home

Total time investment for the 3 1/2 hour flight: 8 hours and 45 minutes.

["Oh, why drive to WDW when you can fly there in just three hours?" NOT!]

In several weeks, we'll be driving to WDW!

All the best.

Same thing here:

-Leave the house 12:00PM

-(12:30PM)Arrive at Parents house, pickup Dad for drive to the Airport.

-(1:30PM)Arrive at the airport, curbside check in, overcharged for luggage as the skycap did not understand the rules.

-Go through security, no hassles or problems

-(2:15PM) Arrive at gate and eat fast food for lunch as they will be boarding our plane soon.

-(3:00PM)Our plane should be boarding by now for our 3:29PM departure, what is going on.

-A delay is announced, there seems to be bad weather to our west so our plane isn't even on the way yet.

-Well after many delays we finally arrive in Orlando around 10:15PM instead of 6:29PM.

-Go to the baggage claim because magical express does not pick up luggage after 10:00PM. 1 bag comes out and 2 are missing.

-Find a skycap who goes through the door behind the baggage claim area, even though we arrived after 10:00PM some of our bags were held and would not have been delivered until the next day.

-Arrive at POFQ at 11:50PM, my wife makes a beeline to the food court to order pizza before they close at midnight, while I check in.

Total time for our 3hour flight, almost 12 hours.

 

[Hoosier37]

Oh, and one game we play which is very low tech is, "What's this guy's story?" During a mellow part of the ride, we'll see someone at a rest area, or drive by in a car and I'll ask that question. I've been surprised at how much fun we can have spinning a tale about someone we don't know!

I am so totally going to use that - we are planning (hoping) to go in June 2013 and will be driving to save on money...I guess I don't technically belong here because our trip will be 1930 miles, but I'm sure we'll detour once or twice on the way home to break that 2000+ so I hope you don't mind me posting here

My kids are 12 and 9 - will be 13 and 11 if we go when we plan. We'll be driving from Indiana so probably will be on I-75 for the majority of the trip. We'll probably take two days driving down, and two or three driving back home.

 

[katieam1]

Just found this thread!!

We have driven the last 5 trips from Upstate NY. Near Syracuse little town called Verona. 2,552.96 miles round trip. From our house to Bay Lake Tower
Driving trips:
1st:January 2009. (DH, DD {2}, DD {11 months} and I)
2nd: August 2009 (DH, DD {3}, DD {1 1/2}, and I)
3rd: September 2010 (DH, DD{4}, DD {2 1/2}, and I)
4th: November 2010 (DH, DD{4}, DD {2 1/2}, and I)
5th: August 2011 (DH, DD {5}, DD {3 1/2}, and I along with my parents and sister in a second car)
6th: September 2012!

We leave our house at Midnight Friday night into Saturday morning we drive through until about 9pm at night Saturday when we usually are IN WDW. Then when we leave WDW we have a great breakfast at usually Chef Mickey's since we stay at BLT and then head out stop that night in North Carolina and finish the drive the next day to where we are home around 7-9pm. We bring movies and activities for the kids and just try to make it a fun time. The only time we did have a trouble on the way home was the November/December trip in 2010 because we had just done it in September and we all were just road tired. We love driving though because it is so much cheaper and while we are in WDW we drive to 2 out of the 4 parks and to DTD just easier to have a car while down there!

 

[nono]

Thanks! I would love a suggestion on a good audiobook! We haven't used them before, but sounds like a great idea!

Sure thing! These are all probably available via Amazon or Audible, but I'd also check your local library (Ours is part of a South Jersey consortium where we can download directly to our MP3 player if we want). I've chosen these because while they were targeted at my children, both my dh and I enjoyed them very much as well:

• The Hoboken Chicken Emergency
• Misty of Chincoteague
• Paddle to the Sea
• The Story of Dr. Doolittle

Misty is a bit longer than what I would suggest for a first time, but my kids really enjoyed it, so I threw it in there. It did take them a couple chapters to get into it, but I have a rule that we put 100% attention to whatever entertainment we're doing in the car, so they knew they were stuck for awhile without any other games or such. They ended up asking to listen to it again on the trip home...FWIW.

 

[sharadoc]

Why have we driven to WDW 25 times in the last 10 years? Perhaps our recent flight from San Antonio (we were there for a book signing) explains it best:

[careful packing of the suitcases according to TSA rules with approved locks]
11:00 a.m. departed hotel in cab
11:30 a.m. arrived at airport (baggage check hassles, multiple times through security, the wait for the flight, overhead bin battle, the wait on the tarmac)
2:00 p.m.- 6:30 p.m. (one hour time zone adjustment) the flight itself: fresh air, roomy seats, quiet passengers, large bathroom facilities, abundant food and drink, etc.
6:30 p.m.- 7:15 p.m. tarmac ride to gate; retrieving baggage
7:15 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. the wait for the limo
7:30 p.m. - 8:45 p.m. the limo ride home

Total time investment for the 3 1/2 hour flight: 8 hours and 45 minutes.

["Oh, why drive to WDW when you can fly there in just three hours?" NOT!]

In several weeks, we'll be driving to WDW!

All the best.

Same thing here:

-Leave the house 12:00PM

-(12:30PM)Arrive at Parents house, pickup Dad for drive to the Airport.

-(1:30PM)Arrive at the airport, curbside check in, overcharged for luggage as the skycap did not understand the rules.

-Go through security, no hassles or problems

-(2:15PM) Arrive at gate and eat fast food for lunch as they will be boarding our plane soon.

-(3:00PM)Our plane should be boarding by now for our 3:29PM departure, what is going on.

-A delay is announced, there seems to be bad weather to our west so our plane isn't even on the way yet.

-Well after many delays we finally arrive in Orlando around 10:15PM instead of 6:29PM.

-Go to the baggage claim because magical express does not pick up luggage after 10:00PM. 1 bag comes out and 2 are missing.

-Find a skycap who goes through the door behind the baggage claim area, even though we arrived after 10:00PM some of our bags were held and would not have been delivered until the next day.

-Arrive at POFQ at 11:50PM, my wife makes a beeline to the food court to order pizza before they close at midnight, while I check in.

Total time for our 3hour flight, almost 12 hours.

For those of us who are faithful drivers - THANK YOU for more illustrations to prove why we drive.

Darrengs, add another 6 hours and you're at Disney World anyway, for at least half the cost.

These should be part of the "for those folks driving" sticky LOL.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

For those of us who are faithful drivers - THANK YOU for more illustrations to prove why we drive.

I've had WAY too many flights that ended up taking longer than driving. My favorites were when half of our group would connect in Houston and the other half on another airline would connect in Dallas. And when we'd arrive in Harlingen, there'd be a message for us at the hotel letting us know that the Dallas group was grounded for weather & would be spending the night there - including the guy who had the rental car reserved. That happened 3 out of 5 trips in a 6-month stretch (made sure we had a car in someone else's name after the first time) Just not worth the hassle if it can be avoided.

 

[dvczerfs]

Hi! I have two children, ages 8 & 5! Don't be nervous! For your smallest child, make sure to put a small piece of luggage in front of his/her seat as a footrest. It'll help avoid back strain. For all three (and the adults too!) don't be afraid to take an extra 10 min. at the rest stops to play tag or have some races. Just 10 min. of blood moving really seems to help keep the next few hours riding a lot more peaceful.

Oh, and one game we play which is very low tech is, "What's this guy's story?" During a mellow part of the ride, we'll see someone at a rest area, or drive by in a car and I'll ask that question. I've been surprised at how much fun we can have spinning a tale about someone we don't know!

Oh, and if your kids aren't into audiobooks, this might be a great time to try one out. Something not too long (maybe 1 - 2 hours, which I would suggest you break into 45 min. parts). If you want audiobook suggestions, just ask! Have fun!

i have been playing this game for years!!!! just look over into the driver side of my van and if you can read lips?? i cant go into details how the game works, its a family thread.
i drive about 40k per year for work and i have stopped looking into peoples cars and seeing what they are doing when they are driving.

 

[dvczerfs]

HI SHARRON!

 

[BC1836]

I've had WAY too many flights that ended up taking longer than driving. My favorites were when half of our group would connect in Houston and the other half on another airline would connect in Dallas. And when we'd arrive in Harlingen, there'd be a message for us at the hotel letting us know that the Dallas group was grounded for weather & would be spending the night there - including the guy who had the rental car reserved. That happened 3 out of 5 trips in a 6-month stretch (made sure we had a car in someone else's name after the first time) Just not worth the hassle if it can be avoided.

Once, one of our neighbors flew from WDW to NJ. Due to various circumstances involved in their flight, it took them longer to reach our street than we did driving!

[And in my earlier post, I forgot to mention the baggage fees and the extra cost we paid for extra leg room seating. Ugh!]

All the best.

 

[dvczerfs]

Once, one of our neighbors flew from WDW to NJ. Due to various circumstances involved in their flight, it took them longer to reach our street than we did driving!

[And in my earlier post, I forgot to mention the baggage fees and the extra cost we paid for extra leg room seating. Ugh!]

All the best.

hi bc! besides your flight, how was your trip???

 

[BC1836]

hi bc! besides your flight, how was your trip???

Howdy!

Ah, sunny and warm San Antonio! Wonderful! It was the 176th anniversary of the Battle of the Alamo. The book signing went well, thank you.

Now then...let our 26th drive to WDW countdown begin.

All the best.