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

[moemt]

Will be traveling from central MO Aug 1. Via 70-64-57-24-75. Anyone else traveling this way know of any major ongoing projects. My last trip in Jan 10 ran into major construction on 75 around Tifton GA.

This is my 4th trip from the same area. 3rd one that I can drive. This time I will be the only driver and am looking to make sure it is smooth as can be. Planning to get South of Atlanta the 1st day, 740 miles that day with 2 kids 9 & 13.

 

[cruisingkat]

Will be traveling from central MO Aug 1. Via 70-64-57-24-75. Anyone else traveling this way know of any major ongoing projects. My last trip in Jan 10 ran into major construction on 75 around Tifton GA.

This is my 4th trip from the same area. 3rd one that I can drive. This time I will be the only driver and am looking to make sure it is smooth as can be. Planning to get South of Atlanta the 1st day, 740 miles that day with 2 kids 9 & 13.

You can check on the internet the Dept of Transporation for each state that you are going to be driving through. I would do that closer to your driving date as road construction can change from month to month.

 

[sharadoc]

We are planning a drive to WDW this summer. We have gone back and forth on flying or driving. I think we have finally decided to drive to WDW and take the auto train home.

We have done the drive in the past when kids were younger and we preferred to do the through the night drive. Now all of our kids are 7 and up and two are drivers, so a day time drive seems more doable. I am wondering if the time line I am thinking is realistic.

We are about an hour outside of Philly, we have no problem driving DC beltway, and we are departing on Sunday, August 12. Our plan is to leave by 5am, drive for 5 hours (should be in VA), stop for brunch, drive 6 hours, stop for dinner, and then drive the final 5 hours to the hotel.

I know this will be tiring, but I am hoping adrenalin and having 4 drivers will get us through the long day. We have no plans the following day, so we can recuperate.

Any tips or cautions?

My tip is to stop for the night after dinner. Unless you are paying for the night you leave home, you won't be able to get into your room and you'll be exhausted. If you have no plans for the following day, then start your trip out feeling relaxed and refreshed. You can stop at the bottom of SC or in Georgia and be 4-6 hours away from WDW. Get up, have breakfast and arrive at Disney World 1-3 pm, check in and start your vacation!

We've driven straight through but only if we don't stop for meals. Our next trip we're leaving around 9 am, stopping at 10 pm, then arriving at WDW by noon or 1 pm. That will give us one or two stops for meals on the way and avoiding any issues from DC to Richmond.

 

[disneymarie]

guess where i will be in three weeks from today?

Give a hug to my bff Daisy Duck on Main St. Oh, and don't remind me how great Main Street Bakery smells. That was my first time last trip in March. Ohh so good and Mr. Food says.

We are driving down in June if we go. I have the reservations for Sept/Oct. Still debating the weather in June.
I can't do 90*
di

 

[Buckeye Bob]

We will be making our second 2,000+ mile trip to WDW in late July. Last time we drove through the night and arrived at about 10am. This year, if we have the time (my DD and DS play travel ball and their seasons don't end until the day before we're scheduled to leave) I was thinking of stopping for the night and arriving at WDW refreshed and ready to go! We're traveling from NE Ohio and will be taking the 77-26-95-4 route and wanted any suggestions on where's a good place to stop for the night that would only leave us about a 3-4 hour drive the next morning.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions!

 

[marius97]

What is up with the non-planners around (i.e. my wife)? I'm so excited because my college classes are done in eight days and then I can go overtime in planning our fourth 2,000 mile drive down. I worked on the driving schedule, who drives when/where, over the weekend and she kept giving me a hard time. My response was "sure, I'm planning down to the minute where we will be and which exits we'll stop for breaks at, but I'm not that crazy. I don't plan if we stop at McDonalds vs. Burger King vs. Wendy's. That would just be crazy" Seriously though, I can't wait to get on the road in about 50 days. It'd be sooner if I didn't have to wait for those darn kids to get out of school.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Will be traveling from central MO Aug 1. Via 70-64-57-24-75. Anyone else traveling this way know of any major ongoing projects. My last trip in Jan 10 ran into major construction on 75 around Tifton GA.

This is my 4th trip from the same area. 3rd one that I can drive. This time I will be the only driver and am looking to make sure it is smooth as can be. Planning to get South of Atlanta the 1st day, 740 miles that day with 2 kids 9 & 13.

Seems like there's always some stupid little hangup on that little stretch of 57, but as previously mentioned I'd check MO-DOT, I-DOT etc when you get closer to leaving.

 

[dvczerfs]

Give a hug to my bff Daisy Duck on Main St. Oh, and don't remind me how great Main Street Bakery smells. That was my first time last trip in March. Ohh so good and Mr. Food says.

We are driving down in June if we go. I have the reservations for Sept/Oct. Still debating the weather in June.
I can't do 90*
di

june/ september, you have a real good chance at 90s. ohhh those sticky bums!!!!! i cant wait!!!

 

[faindrops27]

Has anyone driven from Long Island NY? We are thinking of doing this for the first time in August looking for experiences, best route to go.. TIA

 

[BC1836]

Has anyone driven from Long Island NY? We are thinking of doing this for the first time in August looking for experiences, best route to go.. TIA

Some L. I. posts from the past agreed on one thing: avoid NYC/northern NJ rush hour at all costs.

All the best.

 

[McBane]

We are planning a drive to WDW this summer. We have gone back and forth on flying or driving. I think we have finally decided to drive to WDW and take the auto train home.

We have done the drive in the past when kids were younger and we preferred to do the through the night drive. Now all of our kids are 7 and up and two are drivers, so a day time drive seems more doable. I am wondering if the time line I am thinking is realistic.

We are about an hour outside of Philly, we have no problem driving DC beltway, and we are departing on Sunday, August 12. Our plan is to leave by 5am, drive for 5 hours (should be in VA), stop for brunch, drive 6 hours, stop for dinner, and then drive the final 5 hours to the hotel.

I know this will be tiring, but I am hoping adrenalin and having 4 drivers will get us through the long day. We have no plans the following day, so we can recuperate.

Any tips or cautions?

Shockingly, we are driving from an hour north of Philly to WDW on the same day!! I'm fairly new to the area, having come from Chicago, but have been repeatedly warned to avoid 95 til past DC. Someone suggested going I-81 to I-77 and finally hooking into I-95 in S. Carolina.

I have 4 kids, but none are of driving age. We are thinking of leaving early morning, but will stay somewhere (2-4) hours from WDW for an overnight stop. It looks like 18 hrs of drive time, which would translate to about 20 with brief stops. You may be getting in much later than your original timeline.

 

[dvczerfs]

Shockingly, we are driving from an hour north of Philly to WDW on the same day!! I'm fairly new to the area, having come from Chicago, but have been repeatedly warned to avoid 95 til past DC. Someone suggested going I-81 to I-77 and finally hooking into I-95 in S. Carolina.

I have 4 kids, but none are of driving age. We are thinking of leaving early morning, but will stay somewhere (2-4) hours from WDW for an overnight stop. It looks like 18 hrs of drive time, which would translate to about 20 with brief stops. You may be getting in much later than your original timeline.

im in nazareth, if i go 78/81/77/26/95/4, i do it in 16 1/2 hours. we stop every 2-3 hours for gas, rest stop. we dont mess around real long and get back on the road. even doing the speed limit, you get there faster than 20 hours.

 

[dthogue]

im in nazareth, if i go 78/81/77/26/95/4, i do it in 16 1/2 hours. we stop every 2-3 hours for gas, rest stop. we dont mess around real long and get back on the road. even doing the speed limit, you get there faster than 20 hours.

Just curious, where do you get on 78 at? We will be taking this route in June and we will start on 81 near Hershey and my directions say it will take us about 16 1/2 hours.

This will be our first time trying this route - we usually take 95. Any tips on taking this route???

 

[PA Princess]

Shockingly, we are driving from an hour north of Philly to WDW on the same day!! I'm fairly new to the area, having come from Chicago, but have been repeatedly warned to avoid 95 til past DC. Someone suggested going I-81 to I-77 and finally hooking into I-95 in S. Carolina.

I have 4 kids, but none are of driving age. We are thinking of leaving early morning, but will stay somewhere (2-4) hours from WDW for an overnight stop. It looks like 18 hrs of drive time, which would translate to about 20 with brief stops. You may be getting in much later than your original timeline.

Funny how many things we have in common! How old are your kids McBane? Mine are 7, 11, 16, and 17 (though older two will both be a week away from their next birthdays when we travel). I hope you have a smooth and safe drive.

We are more west of Philly than north (Reading area), and all the calculators and our past experience has been that this is a like 16 1/2 hour drive for us. We have driven 95 (especially the route from here to DC/Northern VA) many times and we are comfortable with that drive. I will investigate and talk to dh about the 81 route.

We could stop and stay over night somewhere if we had to. First leg of our trip is very low key and we can take a day to relax or hang out at the water park to re-coup from the drive. We are not doing Disney parks this trip mainly to make certain we are rested for the 7 day cruise on the Fantasy at the back end of the trip.

 

[wsushocker]

I am seeking some feedback on rooftop carriers. We will be driving from Kansas and will be utilizing a rooftop carrier. I am tired of reading reviews, so I decided to come to the boards for some assistance. What model of rooftop carrier has worked best for you? What model has been disastrous? Any feedback is appreciated.

 

[java]

Just curious, where do you get on 78 at? We will be taking this route in June and we will start on 81 near Hershey and my directions say it will take us about 16 1/2 hours.

This will be our first time trying this route - we usually take 95. Any tips on taking this route???

I am going to be watching this thread for updates on i81. Please report back after you drive it.


N the for folks driving thread someone mentioned some ongoing construction on I81 in VA. Trying to find out about that before committing to that route again. We did it 2years ago and really enjoyed it. So much less stress than i95. But if there is some major construction project going on that would be a problem.

We are about 45 minutes east of Nazareth and it takes us about that same amount of time. We stop less, every 4 hours if we can. Use gasbuddy.com to determine stopping points. Although I have not figured out how to alter my route

 

[loveysbydesign]

Just curious, where do you get on 78 at? We will be taking this route in June and we will start on 81 near Hershey and my directions say it will take us about 16 1/2 hours.

This will be our first time trying this route - we usually take 95. Any tips on taking this route???

That's great! We start on 78 in Fogelsville and it takes us longer than it will take you, as it takes us 1 hr. 20 minutes to get to Hershey....we were just out there 2 weeks ago to see Dsisney on Ice. So you may be able to make it in 15 1/2 hours since you're right off 81!

 

[WIDisneyFan]

I am seeking some feedback on rooftop carriers. We will be driving from Kansas and will be utilizing a rooftop carrier. I am tired of reading reviews, so I decided to come to the boards for some assistance. What model of rooftop carrier has worked best for you? What model has been disastrous? Any feedback is appreciated.

I am not sure if you are thinking a hard or soft carrier, but if you are thinking soft I would highly recommend roofbag.com, in particular the Cross Country model. We have the larger model and have used it for multiple trips to Florida from Wisconsin and it has worked great. It is relatively compact and easy to store, waterproof (short of driving into a lake I don't think you can get water into it), and easy to load / unload.

If you have any specific questions please let me know - I would be happy to answer them.

 

[dvczerfs]

Just curious, where do you get on 78 at? We will be taking this route in June and we will start on 81 near Hershey and my directions say it will take us about 16 1/2 hours.

This will be our first time trying this route - we usually take 95. Any tips on taking this route???

from hershey exits, i would say 15 1/2.(i could do it in 15 if i had to) it depends alot on how fast you drive, how often and for how long you stop and traffic. i tend to drive a bit (5 mph) over the posted speed limit or if i find a running buddy, it could get higher than that. i tend to get in the left lane and stay with the flow of left hand lane traffic. if your a right lane, white knuckler, it could take you longer. when we stop, we go into, do what we have to and hit the road. if we stop to eat, we hit fast food and eat in the van. we pack for in the cooler so we dont stop to eat to often. im going this way in 2 weeks from today.

 

[wsushocker]

I am not sure if you are thinking a hard or soft carrier, but if you are thinking soft I would highly recommend roofbag.com, in particular the Cross Country model. We have the larger model and have used it for multiple trips to Florida from Wisconsin and it has worked great. It is relatively compact and easy to store, waterproof (short of driving into a lake I don't think you can get water into it), and easy to load / unload.

If you have any specific questions please let me know - I would be happy to answer them.

I was looking at hard side carriers, but I'll check out that site. Thanks!