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

[Disneynutbsv]

So two things I was looking into for our trips and was wondering if anybody had any experience with them. The first is Sirius Backseat TV. My co-worker said he traveled with a friend up North (Michigan talk for going to the Northern part of the state) and it was great. Anybody here have any experience with it? Seems like a great product since my girls have either Nick or the Disney channel on ALL THE TIME!!!

Second was looking at getting a 12V - Car Cooler for drinks and stuff like sandwhiches. I think it would be great not having to deal with melting ice and all but wondering if anybody think they are worthless??

Thanks again for your ideas!

We are also looking into getting the Sirius backseat tv, I think it would be great and keep the kids occupied Never had the car cooler, we always brought a regular cooler with us...

 

[blondietink]

We love our Sirius/WM radio on a long trip. I can't imagine having a TV .... how much does that cost?

 

[My_3_Mi_Princesses]

I do believe the initial cost of the unit (without the TV) is like $200 something plus installation (not sure if you can do it yourself), and the monthly service if added to Sirius is like $7 extra, for a total of $20/month. It only streams 3 channels (Nick, Disney, and Cartoon Network) but for my kids thats perfect!

The $200 is rather steep to me if the unit does not work good, thus hopefully other people can shed some light on their experience with it.

 

[BC1836]

Hello all! I was the one who submitted the post that bc1836 mentioned above. After reading most of the posts (especially bc's post) we are leaning towards driving down Disney next June...

We hope that your forthcoming drive based upon our suggestions (and words of wisdom from other good folks) is enjoyable. Unlike flying, the drive is a genuine journey. To be sure, there are advantages and disadvantages regarding all forms of transportaion. And in all fairness, the drive from WDW isn 't particularly fun-filled. Nevertheless, despite the added travel hours, driving provides elements of personal freedom that are impossible to experience on a plane.

All the best.

 

[Gowahoowa]

Hello all! I was the one who submitted the post that bc1836 mentioned above. After reading most of the posts (especially bc's post) we are leaning towards driving down Disney next June, and to dvczerfs I promise to stay out of the left lane unless I am gonna pass!

We are also doing a cross country trip in December (Michigan to Arizona) so I that will be a good test of how it will go on a shorter trip to Disney.

So two things I was looking into for our trips and was wondering if anybody had any experience with them. The first is Sirius Backseat TV. My co-worker said he traveled with a friend up North (Michigan talk for going to the Northern part of the state) and it was great. Anybody here have any experience with it? Seems like a great product since my girls have either Nick or the Disney channel on ALL THE TIME!!!

Second was looking at getting a 12V - Car Cooler for drinks and stuff like sandwhiches. I think it would be great not having to deal with melting ice and all but wondering if anybody think they are worthless??

Thanks again for your ideas!

We use a large cooler that fits in between the two captains chairs in our Ford Expedition. I freeze two blocks of ice in gallon ziplock bags and also use 1 or 2 bags of cubes to keep the cooler cold. It works great for us. and helps cut back on melting ice. We don't have Sirius in the car and our girls just watch some DVD's or listen to the Ipod with us. We love driving to WDW and do it every year. It is a lot of fun!

 

[BC1836]

Gasoline dropped to $2.09 per gallon in southern Ocean County, NJ today...Toms River, to be specific.

 

[sticker231]

Gasoline dropped to $2.09 per gallon in southern Ocean County, NJ today...Toms River, to be specific.

we've got $2.12 in Stafford Township, looking for further price drops by Wednesday

 

[blondietink]

Lucky you! Gas is "on Sale" today here for $2.69 per gallon. UGH!

 

[dismom2-3]

Re: the 12v cooler- we own one. We have never used it, as it is very small (maybe newer ones are bigger?) and made a lot of noise. If you are serious about it, plug it in and try it before you leave on a long trip and are aggrivated by the noise. Maybe it will be ok for you. We were also short on 12v plug space. We passed and went for a backpack cooler with blue ice packs. We stayed at a suite hotel with a mini fridge, we "recharged" the ice pack then. We also were in a villa, so had the ice packs in the freezer there. We also do the ice in the baggie thing too, and have had no problems.

I was intrigued by the Sirius tv thing, as our drive is 18 hrs, but I don't know if I would worry so much about the kids missing it. I was shocked at how little of the "distractions" I brought in the car were used. My VERY tv addicted kids read, played video games and watched movies. They actually talked to us, played the alphabet game and generally took in the sights. They were facinated by the maps and figuring out where we were. I had brought my laptop with all of our music on it, and we found that our kids have a true love for mom and dad's music!!! We had a blast playing "road trip tunes" and singing along. Corny I know, but I have to be honest, we had a blast. You may be totally surprised by the kids reaction to the trip, and to the limited activities available. Maybe if you have them help plan thier activities for the car, they will be more content. My kids are 9,6 and 3 BTW.

I know that everyone has been saying that the trip home stinks, and it sort of does, but we took a different approach. I know that it is not always possible to do this, but we planned a side trip to DC on the way home. My kids had something to look forward to, and it was fun to discuss what we were going to do/see there. If time is not on your side for a pit stop on the way home, maybe planning a special activity to be home for, might make the mental shift from vacation to reality a little more tolerable.

THANKS!!!
This was our first time driving this past Aug. and we took tons of tips from this thread. We used them to our advantage and had a very successful trip. Next time ( and there def. will be a next time driving) we may tweak things a bit, but that is to our families preferences. I will stop back and post a few other tips of my own other than this post. I truly benefited from the advice of others and maybe my tips can help someone. THANKS so much to all who post here...I have subscribed and this will always be a place that I stop in when on the Dis!

 

[Flyerfan]

I know that everyone has been saying that the trip home stinks, and it sort of does, but we took a different approach. I know that it is not always possible to do this, but we planned a side trip to DC on the way home. My kids had something to look forward to, and it was fun to discuss what we were going to do/see there. If time is not on your side for a pit stop on the way home, maybe planning a special activity to be home for, might make the mental shift from vacation to reality a little more tolerable.

I would like to do this for our trip (which has yet to be planned) in Nov 2010. However, we usually plan our trip for the week before T-Giving so we come home the weekend before and have the holidays to look forward to. Makes it a little easier.

I truly benefited from the advice of others and maybe my tips can help someone. THANKS so much to all who post here...I have subscribed and this will always be a place that I stop in when on the Dis!

This thread IS both fun & helpful!

Glad you had a safe trip.

 

[BC1836]

I know that everyone has been saying that the trip home stinks, and it sort of does, but we took a different approach. I know that it is not always possible to do this, but we planned a side trip to DC on the way home. My kids had something to look forward to, and it was fun to discuss what we were going to do/see there.

We agree that your return-drive-home approach makes a lot of sense. It's a great way to extend the vacation...and break up the 1,000+ mile return trip.

We've done the opposite: make a deliberate, short vacation stayover (usually Colonial Williamsburg) before driving on to WDW. However, our method still doesn't curb the experience of the long drive back home. We like your way best!

 

[My_3_Mi_Princesses]

I know that everyone has been saying that the trip home stinks, and it sort of does, but we took a different approach. I know that it is not always possible to do this, but we planned a side trip to DC on the way home. My kids had something to look forward to, and it was fun to discuss what we were going to do/see there. If time is not on your side for a pit stop on the way home, maybe planning a special activity to be home for, might make the mental shift from vacation to reality a little more tolerable.

This is a most excellent idea! I checked out mapquest and going to DC only adds 4 hours to our trip, minus traffic of course. If I can add an extra day to my vacation request I hope we will be able to do this! (Yes I already put in my vacation request last month for June! )

 

[Flyerfan]

I know that everyone has been saying that the trip home stinks, and it sort of does, but we took a different approach. I know that it is not always possible to do this, but we planned a side trip to DC on the way home.

If I may ask, where in DC did you stay? Was the traffic a nightmare? Just gathering info for future stayovers.

 

[dismom2-3]

If I may ask, where in DC did you stay? Was the traffic a nightmare? Just gathering info for future stayovers.

Lucky for us, we have a relative that has a condo (that is not used quite a bit of the time- job w/travel) and we stayed there. Traffic was a little heavy, heading into the suburbs of VA, but I don't think that it was too terrible. (Sat pm.) I did notice that in the towns surrounding DC there is every hotel imaginable! The entire area is expensive, but your shopping, dining and hotel options are plentiful. I will ask where his clients/out of town co-workers stay, and will report back.

 

[dvczerfs]

hi everyone, we leave tuesday morning!!! that 5 months went fast. we will be heading down on 81-66-17-95-4. if i can get the lap top away from dd and dw ill log on!!if not , ill talk to you in 2 weeks!! (flyerfan!!!what a start! im gona miss opening night. ill be watching the news and hopefully we take care of the pens while im gone!! yell "score" for me!!!!)

 

[BC1836]

Gasoline still holding (as of 48 hours ago) at $2.09 per gallon at the Manahawkin, NJ Wawa.

Crude per barrel, though, up 50 cents, breaking the $70 mark this afternoon.
Perhaps that could be it for "low" gasoline prices.

We'll see.

 

[bgohre]

My wife and I left our jobs in Anchorage, AK one year and drove to Disney via Madison, WI to pick up my mom. Then drove back to Madison to live. Total, about 6,100 miles. That was a looooooooooonnnnnnnnngggggggggg trip.

 

[Donald is #1]

My wife and I left our jobs in Anchorage, AK one year and drove to Disney via Madison, WI to pick up my mom. Then drove back to Madison to live. Total, about 6,100 miles. That was a looooooooooonnnnnnnnngggggggggg trip.

Alaska -> Florida? How many days did it take you to drive it?

 

[Flyerfan]

hi everyone, we leave tuesday morning!!! that 5 months went fast. we will be heading down on 81-66-17-95-4. if i can get the lap top away from dd and dw ill log on!!if not , ill talk to you in 2 weeks!! (flyerfan!!!what a start! im gona miss opening night. ill be watching the news and hopefully we take care of the pens while im gone!! yell "score" for me!!!!)

Have a safe trip. We're taking the same route next month. And the Flyers...

 

[rotlex]

My wife and I left our jobs in Anchorage, AK one year and drove to Disney via Madison, WI to pick up my mom. Then drove back to Madison to live. Total, about 6,100 miles. That was a looooooooooonnnnnnnnngggggggggg trip.

I will never, ever, ever again complain about the drive from PA to WDW again!

Seriously, how long did that trip take you!