For 2,000+ mile round-trip drivers only!

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Thanks! How long does it take you to get there? It doesn't look like that hotel will work unless I get two rooms (I have 4 kids) but I'll keep it in mind.

From Orlando, Florida to Dalton, Georgia takes about 7 - 8 hours of driving. However I found the drive goes very fast because a lot of the exits in Georgia are very close together, so in my opinion it doesn't seem as long when your driving in other states and a lot of the exits are very far apart.

 

[garada3]

Will someone please recommend a website that has good information on road conditions and construction delays for I 95? Especially for the Georgia section and beyond.

We will be getting on 95 in Fredericksburg, Virginia, overnighting at my mother-in-laws in Hilton Head, then proceeding to Disney the next day. We have done 95 to HHI many times but have never driven any further south.

We leave in less than 36 hours for our first drive to Disney.

Thanks so much!

 

[Gowahoowa]

Hi All,

We have driven down to WDW the past 2 Augusts and have another trip in 21 days! We have always stopped in Florence, SC on the way down, but want to make it all the way to Savannah, GA instead. Any ideas for hotels with a pool right off the highway? We are leaving from South Jersey. Thanks!!

 

[cruisingkat]

I am planning a trip to WDW next year and also live near I-355. I am trying to figure out where to stop the first night, and where to stop on the return trip. Willing to drive 11-12 hours the first day. Thinking somewhere a little past Atlanta on the way down, not sure where on the way back. Any good places to stay close to the highway with decent places to eat? I also have AAA.


TIA MudEJeep

We usually stop just outside Atlanta in Smyrna, GA. on the way down. It is just a little off I-75 on the bypass. Coming home, we usually stop in Chattannoga, TN. These two points put most of our driving on the first day each way.
We usually stay at a Holiday Inn Express - love the buffet breakfast in the morning - saves us a meal stop.

 

[cruisingkat]

Thanks for the info. I keep hearing good things about going right down thru Illinois. I just keep thinking about the extra 30 or so miles (according to Google maps) and the amount of miles before hitting a major city.

My cousins gave us that route to Florida years ago when my parents lived in Venice, FL. We used to take 65 down and they told us how much faster it was to take 57 down. So we have been going that way for past 25 years - at least until we decided to follow our brand new Nuvi that one time.
As I said, it might be a few extra miles - but we found that the time on the road was actually less taking 57 instead of 65. There are plenty of gas stations as well as fast food places along 57, so it isn't bad.
The only bad thing is that Illinois is very flat and boring - at least until you get on 24 and go though the Shawnee National Forest.

 

[gk90]

Hi All,

We have driven down to WDW the past 2 Augusts and have another trip in 21 days! We have always stopped in Florence, SC on the way down, but want to make it all the way to Savannah, GA instead. Any ideas for hotels with a pool right off the highway? We are leaving from South Jersey. Thanks!!

I recommend Days Inn Port Wentworth GA, right off I-95 a few miles north of Savannah--the pool isn't very big but the hotel is a cut above your regular Days Inn. There's a very good complimentary breakfast with a waffle maker.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...th_North_Savannah-Port_Wentworth_Georgia.html

What hotels in Florence or other SC towns do you recommend?

 

[Gowahoowa]

I recommend Days Inn Port Wentworth GA, right off I-95 a few miles north of Savannah--the pool isn't very big but the hotel is a cut above your regular Days Inn. There's a very good complimentary breakfast with a waffle maker.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...th_North_Savannah-Port_Wentworth_Georgia.html

What hotels in Florence or other SC towns do you recommend?

Thanks for the link- I'll check it out!!

We've stayed at the Courtyard Florence http://www.expedia.com/pub/agent.dll/qscr=dspv/htid=84519 and the Hilton Garden Inn http://hiltongardeninn.hilton.com/en/gi/hotels/index.jhtml?ctyhocn=FLOFGGI. Both are right off I95 next to the Florence Civic Center. Both were very good, clean, and had a pool. You can't go wrong with stopping in Florence. A Chili's, Olive Garden, Waffle House are all within walking distance. The Florence Mall has a ChickFilA, a food court, and is right across the street. The only negative is that neither hotel offered a complimentary breakfast. But that didn't bother us.

We've also stayed in Walterboro, SC at a a Holiday Inn Express http://www.hiexpress.com/h/d/ex/1/en/hotel/rbwwb. This was a bare minimum hotel. Very nice and clean when we stayed in 07. It did have a good complimentary breakfast that we enjoyed.

Good Luck!!

 

[rotlex]

Hi All,

We have driven down to WDW the past 2 Augusts and have another trip in 21 days! We have always stopped in Florence, SC on the way down, but want to make it all the way to Savannah, GA instead. Any ideas for hotels with a pool right off the highway? We are leaving from South Jersey. Thanks!!

We stopped in Savannah as well on our last trip. The "Gateway to Savannah" area. LOTS of hotels there, plus places to eat, gas etc., and 10 seconds off of 95. (Exit 94).

Last trip we stayed here http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/savab-fairfield-inn-and-suites-savannah-i-95-south/ down and back. Very nice, clean hotel with an indoor pool. Average rate is $100 per night, but again, very nice, good free breakfast.

On that note, we are driving down again the end of August. I want to save a bit of money on the trip this time, but still liked the exit 94 in Georgia area. Has anyone ever stayed at a La Quinta Inn? There is one right at that same exit, for roughly $50 per night. Looks nice, good ratings for the chain overall, but as cheap as I am, sub $100 per night always makes me nervous, LOL. So far, for this trip, I have the place booked that I linked above as I know it nice, but a bit more than I wanted to spend this trip.

Thanks!

 

[mrstomrice]

We stopped in Savannah as well on our last trip. The "Gateway to Savannah" area. LOTS of hotels there, plus places to eat, gas etc., and 10 seconds off of 95. (Exit 94).

Last trip we stayed here http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/savab-fairfield-inn-and-suites-savannah-i-95-south/ down and back. Very nice, clean hotel with an indoor pool. Average rate is $100 per night, but again, very nice, good free breakfast.

On that note, we are driving down again the end of August. I want to save a bit of money on the trip this time, but still liked the exit 94 in Georgia area. Has anyone ever stayed at a La Quinta Inn? There is one right at that same exit, for roughly $50 per night. Looks nice, good ratings for the chain overall, but as cheap as I am, sub $100 per night always makes me nervous, LOL. So far, for this trip, I have the place booked that I linked above as I know it nice, but a bit more than I wanted to spend this trip.

Thanks!

WHere is exit 94? We are trying to make it to Kingsland...the last exit in GA...and we book a Microtel Inn for 59.00 a night. It has great reviews and it newer...includes bfast too! Even better, there is only 4 more hours to Disney!

 

[rotlex]

WHere is exit 94? We are trying to make it to Kingsland...the last exit in GA...and we book a Microtel Inn for 59.00 a night. It has great reviews and it newer...includes bfast too! Even better, there is only 4 more hours to Disney!

Exit 94 is near Savannah; It's called Gateway to Savannah when you get off there. The hotels are literally minutes off of I95.

We stopped here on our last drive down in June, from the Lehigh Valley area, and thought it was a great place to stop time wise. Took us maybe 12-13 hours with two younger kids, including stops.

We also thought about the same place you are thinking of in Kingsland for our next trip, but it's roughly 90 miles further, and I don't think, for us at least, we would make it. We were VERY ready to stop after hitting Exit 94\Savannah area.

From that exit, just for reference, we left the hotel at 7am the next morning, and arrived at check in for CSR\Disney, by 11:30, including a breakfast break on the way.

 

[BC1836]

rotlex:

Excellent photos via your "Our Disney Pages" photo link!
Thanks for sharing.
All the best.

 

[Donald is #1]

How is Fayetteville, NC for stopping for the night? My sister and I will be driving from her house in CT down to Cape Canaveral for a DCL cruise. We were thinking about having a long driving day (12 hours not including stops- hopefully) for the first day and then an easy second day. We plan on staying in St Augustine on our second day. Anyways, playing around with the AAA on-line triptik calculator puts us about Fayetteville. So any hotel recommendations near I-95? Is there someplace that you recommend better to stop?

 

[rotlex]

rotlex:

Excellent photos via your "Our Disney Pages" photo link!
Thanks for sharing.
All the best.

Thanks! I need to update the site with stuff from our June trip, but I'm still sorting through the 1200+ photos, lol.

 

[MrMarv]

La Quinta Inns and Suites, as well as Baymont Hotels, get my votes as the two best moderately-priced hotel chains in existence.

La Quinta Inns not only offer discounted rates on weekends as well as a nice complimentary continental breakfast buffet, but an additional 10% discount for all Auto Club members.

I'll take either one of them over Hampton Inns or Fairfield Inn by Marriott anytime, especially as it relates to price.

 

[marcyinPA]

Thanks! I need to update the site with stuff from our June trip, but I'm still sorting through the 1200+ photos, lol.

Steve,
How was the trip, and the drive? Maybe next time, I won't wimp out and we'll do the drive too! I'm taking notes on the hotel you stayed at in Savannah....Thanks!

 

[rotlex]

Steve,
How was the trip, and the drive? Maybe next time, I won't wimp out and we'll do the drive too! I'm taking notes on the hotel you stayed at in Savannah....Thanks!

The drive was great! (Disney itself was wonderful as usual).

To be honest, we were very nervous the morning we were leaving, and I said to my wife maybe we really should have just flown, LOL. A few hours in however, and things going really smoothly, all fears and worries were gone. Just for reference, we left the Lehigh Valley in the early AM, maybe between 3 and 4, and arrived at the I95\Exit 94 Savannah hotel a little before 5pm. Not bad at all really, considering rest stops, food, kids etc. and we thought a really good place to stop. Disney was a 4-5 hour drive from that point the next morning, again, including a stop to eat along the way.

The drive made the trip a whole new adventure, and I must say we actually enjoyed it. I admit, the trip back was not quite as much fun without the anticipation of arriving at Disney, but still, it was uneventful, and nice time spent to just talk about our trip, rest, and be together before having to head back to work.

In an nutshell, I would do it again in a heartbeat, and actually are, the last week of August! We just couldn't resists a 2nd trip this year during free dining, and with the money saved by not flying, renting a car etc., we figured what the heck. Were staying at POP, so the cost, with the free dining, is very reasonable. Our excuse for actually doing this again is that it is our 20th wedding anniversary this year, and well, we would both rather have a 2nd Disney trip, than jewelry or something else.

Anyway, I say go for it on your next trip. The drive made it a whole new experience, and, at least for us, a really fun one!

 

[rotlex]

La Quinta Inns and Suites, as well as Baymont Hotels, get my votes as the two best moderately-priced hotel chains in existence.

La Quinta Inns not only offer discounted rates on weekends as well as a nice complimentary continental breakfast buffet, but an additional 10% discount for all Auto Club members.

I'll take either one of them over Hampton Inns or Fairfield Inn by Marriott anytime, especially as it relates to price.

This makes me feel a bit better about choosing to stay there for our next trip. (As far as overnight during the travel goes). Also, since I posted a question about La Quinta, I found quite a few good reviews on the chain in general, and a few for the specific one we are going to stay at on the way down. All were very good, which again, makes me feel a bit better about it.

I guess I'm just a little nervous, as strange as this sounds, about paying so little for an overnight stay. I have this mental block that says if it's not around $100 per night, there has to be something wrong with it. With that said, it's going to be nice to spend the same for the trip down and back, what I paid the last time for just the one way!

 

[patclairesmom]

Does anyone know when the traffic picks up in DC in both the a.m. and p.m.?

 

[mrstomrice]

We will be taking the 95/26/77/81 route back home and I am trying to plan a few scenerios. Looks like CHarlotte is about 8-8.5 hours away. Any suggestions for a clean, reasonable hotel somewhere along 77 near Charlotte? We're not sure what time we'll leave DW on Sunday...I want to squeeze in more fun and DH thinks we should get up and go...

 

[gk90]

Does anyone know when the traffic picks up in DC in both the a.m. and p.m.?

Here's a couple of threads with discussions of DC rush hours--not sure of the a.m. answer but it's somewhere in there. The p.m. rush can start by 3!
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2234108
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2227770