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

[loveysbydesign]

Help...trying to talk dh into driving to WDW for the first time for a short, cheap trip...he thinks I'm nuts as our kids are not too fond of long drives. We live near Allentown, PA so I'm sure we'd stop somewhere overnight. What's the best rte. to take(dh is not fond of I 95) and where's a good place to stop for the night?

 

[Flyerfan]

Help...trying to talk dh into driving to WDW for the first time for a short, cheap trip...he thinks I'm nuts as our kids are not too fond of long drives. We live near Allentown, PA so I'm sure we'd stop somewhere overnight. What's the best rte. to take(dh is not fond of I 95) and where's a good place to stop for the night?

My pick would be 81-77-26-95....much nicer than 95. Where to stop overnight depends on how far you want to drive the first day. We're from Schuylkill County and drive about 12 hours the first day (it's just DH & I) and stop in Walterboro, SC overnight. Happy driving.

 

[BC1836]

The price of a barrel of crude oil spiked $2.51 to $77.69 today. Our retail price per gallon at the Manahawkin, NJ Wawa was up a penny to $2.16.

We may have to get on the road to WDW soon.

 

[DVCisME]

We are leaving Saturday from Tuckerton. Hoping the prices don't go up much higher...and that the weather is not too bad.

 

[BC1836]

We are leaving Saturday from Tuckerton. Hoping the prices don't go up much higher...and that the weather is not too bad.

Do an on-line 10-day Orlando, FL weather forecast and watch the smile on your face grow wider.

 

[DVCisME]

Do an on-line 10-day Orlando, FL weather forecast and watch the smile on your face grow wider.

I know the weather down there is great! My concern is driving through the what we are supposed to be getting this weekend. Won't stop us though.

 

[dvczerfs]

Help...trying to talk dh into driving to WDW for the first time for a short, cheap trip...he thinks I'm nuts as our kids are not too fond of long drives. We live near Allentown, PA so I'm sure we'd stop somewhere overnight. What's the best rte. to take(dh is not fond of I 95) and where's a good place to stop for the night?

hi loveysbydesign, i would take 81-77-26, its a nice ride and less traffic. the only place you will have trouble with is 78 getting out of the lehigh valley. were driving back home on sat. morning, hopefully the snow will hold off, its only going to 86 today.

 

[sticker231]

Only 16 hours? Impressive!

We are also "about an hour north of Cape May" and have yet to make it straight through in less than 17+ hours from the Barnegat Bay area in southern Ocean County.

[10/08: 4:45 a.m. departure; 10:27 p.m. arrival (no stops except for gas and bathrooms)...total time: 17 hours and 42 minutes]

[6/09: 3:22 a.m. departure; 8:48 p.m. arrival (again, no stops except for the above)...total time: 17 hours and 26 minutes]

Could a heavy Jersey foot on the gas been the key to your rapid success?
Please advise!

I'm sure we are from the same area, I live in Manahawkin. We only took five stops, for gas and bathroom breaks. Not too excessive on the gas, only 5-7 over the posted limits. We took 95 the whole way down and straight through, didn't take any of the around routes to avoid DC and such.

Last trip driving it took us 16 1/2 with several more breaks.

 

[BC1836]

We are in Lake Buena Vista!

We arrived a day early and stayed overnight at the Holiday Inn after a stay in Colonial Williamsburg. We make the long drive later this morning to WDW: Exit #68 to Exit #67 on I-4!

Cool, clear and dry!

Smooth drive except for the rain in NJ and an half-hour accident traffic delay on route 70 in NJ.

All the best.

 

[dvczerfs]

We are in Lake Buena Vista!

We arrived a day early and stayed overnight at the Holiday Inn after a stay in Colonial Williamsburg. We make the long drive later this morning to WDW: Exit #68 to Exit #67 on I-4!

Cool, clear and dry!

Smooth drive except for the rain in NJ and an half-hour accident traffic delay on route 70 in NJ.

All the best.

congrats bc!! we drove home sat. on 4-95-17-66-81-78 and there wasnt that much traffic at all!! the richmond area was very light. we departed okw at 3:30am and got home at 8:15pm. have fun in the sun.!!! say hi to exit 68 for us!!!!

 

[Flyerfan]

congrats bc!! we drove home sat. on 4-95-17-66-81-78 and there wasnt that much traffic at all!! the richmond area was very light. we departed okw at 3:30am and got home at 8:15pm. have fun in the sun.!!! say hi to exit 68 for us!!!!

I have to ask....What kind of vehicle do you drive? Is it comfy enough that you can drive straight through? Something about the seats in a Pontiac G8 that just make it uncomfortable to go that long. DH is actually looking for a "Road-trip" car...something comfy enough that we can withstand hours of non-stop driving.

 

[dvczerfs]

I have to ask....What kind of vehicle do you drive? Is it comfy enough that you can drive straight through? Something about the seats in a Pontiac G8 that just make it uncomfortable to go that long. DH is actually looking for a "Road-trip" car...something comfy enough that we can withstand hours of non-stop driving.

sure, we have a chrysler town and country touring. i fold in the middle row of seats. the back row, i leave one seat up(the widest seat) all our "stuff" fits behind the last row of seats. i made out of a 3/4 ply wood and 3 inch thick foam padding a "pillow" that covers the entire floor in the back. including the area next to the last row of seats. now, if someone wants to lay down, they have a 6 foot 4inch long area to lay down on and well padded. dd uses it more than anyone and i use it for about 2 hours on the way home.we leave okw at 3:30am, ill drive fl. and 1/2way into ga. at that time the sun is up.we get gas and some eggmcmuffins. dw will drive the rest of ga and about 120-150 miles into s.carolina. than i can drive the rest of the way. we get home between 8 and 8:15. we also take 95-17-66-81, rather than 95-26-77-81. it shaves off a few hours and you dont hit the beltways and alot of traffic.when we hit the gas station in warrenton vir., we know we only have 4 hours to go!! we have been driving that way since 96.before that i used 77 till a friend of mine from wapwallopen pa.(near hazelton) got me using 17. the only city you deal w/ is richmond and we go straight thru it. just dont hit it at rush hour! 81-77-26 you deal with char. nc. we use to drive from 5pm till 10am straight thru the night but we are getting to old for that.

 

[sticker231]

We got home Saturday night. Took us 15 hours 45 minutes, back to NJ. Took 16 hours getting down. Probably could have been a little shorter on the way home but we hit rain starting in Virginia. Missing it already, but starting to think about when the next trip will be.

Can't believe gas went up 25 cents since we left. It had gone up 14 cents in four days at the Hess in DTD right before we left.

 

[BC1836]

I have to ask....What kind of vehicle do you drive? Is it comfy enough that you can drive straight through? Something about the seats in a Pontiac G8 that just make it uncomfortable to go that long. DH is actually looking for a "Road-trip" car...something comfy enough that we can withstand hours of non-stop driving.

Our last several drives have been in a 2004 Honda Civic. Comfortable seats in the vehicle make it all possible.

And we just completed a ride on Toy Story Midway Mania this morning after a 30-minute line!

All the best.

 

[Mary T in PA]

Well, we are leaning towards driving for our next trip. We will be doing a 2 day drive, not driving straight thru...I think we can make it to South Carolina on the first day. Then the next day, finish it off and land in Disney.

We have a SUV, and the comfort level is pretty decent...but how do you all feel after doing such a long drive?

Mary

 

[Mom2JaSaKa]

We went from southeastern massachusetts to miami florida for Christmas 2008. We left in the middle of a snow storm and were only able to drive 30 mph on 95. I thought for sure we would miss our cruise, but low and behold we made it to the port with pleanty of time. We left on a Saturday morning about 4 am, stopped in richmond va, then drove all day Sunday and stayed in daytona beach on sunday night. it was a great road trip and we will be driving to Disney when we go in April 2009. The girls are already thinking of games to play in the car.

 

[sharadoc]

Well, we are leaning towards driving for our next trip. We will be doing a 2 day drive, not driving straight thru...I think we can make it to South Carolina on the first day. Then the next day, finish it off and land in Disney.

We have a SUV, and the comfort level is pretty decent...but how do you all feel after doing such a long drive?

Mary

Hi. We stop every couple of hours for potty breaks, gas and walking around. We usually feel just great when we get there. We drive a Dodge Grand Caravan.

Our last trip stop overnight was in Walterboro, SC. That was great - the second day was only about 6 hours and we felt pretty refreshed when we got there.

My advice is to not leave too early in the morning. Get a good night's sleep so you don't start out tired. It's not hard to recover if you sleep at least 6-7 hours. Don't get too caught up in stopping to eat breakfast or lunch. Bring stuff or do a drive-through. Save the stop for dinner when you're stopped for the night. Oh and don't stay at the Quality Inn and Suites in Walterboro - it's gross!

 

[onelugnut]

sure, we have a chrysler town and country touring. i fold in the middle row of seats. the back row, i leave one seat up(the widest seat) all our "stuff" fits behind the last row of seats. i made out of a 3/4 ply wood and 3 inch thick foam padding a "pillow" that covers the entire floor in the back. including the area next to the last row of seats. now, if someone wants to lay down, they have a 6 foot 4inch long area to lay down on and well padded. dd uses it more than anyone and i use it for about 2 hours on the way home.we leave okw at 3:30am, ill drive fl. and 1/2way into ga. at that time the sun is up.we get gas and some eggmcmuffins. dw will drive the rest of ga and about 120-150 miles into s.carolina. than i can drive the rest of the way. we get home between 8 and 8:15. we also take 95-17-66-81, rather than 95-26-77-81. it shaves off a few hours and you dont hit the beltways and alot of traffic.when we hit the gas station in warrenton vir., we know we only have 4 hours to go!! we have been driving that way since 96.before that i used 77 till a friend of mine from wapwallopen pa.(near hazelton) got me using 17. the only city you deal w/ is richmond and we go straight thru it. just dont hit it at rush hour! 81-77-26 you deal with char. nc. we use to drive from 5pm till 10am straight thru the night but we are getting to old for that.

wow, we related or something? My vote is for the minivan too.
we go every year from NJ too, we have the town and country,
we get about 23 MPG and plenty of room and comfort
and we fold down one of the middle seats,
but we use an extra crib mattress, (fits just right)
so one of the resting drivers can sleep, (fetal position of course)
or watch some t.v., (i didnt hear anyone mention the portable t.v.,)
its almost a given now. As i drive down in the middle of
the night, all you see is glowing cars with movies playing in each
suv and minivan heading to D.W.
we also stop at McD's for b'fast. its most dependable and fast,
and if you get one with a playground, its a great way for the kids to
stretch the legs and get rid of some energy, while the drivers refuel and get coffee.

is 95-17-66-81 a Pennsylvania trick or is that good for NJ too?
always looking for a better way around D.C. -Balt

where is the best place for gas? S. Carolina right?
(but not south of the border!)

 

[pwdebbie]

My dd just bought a Dodge Journey because it is specifically designed with long journeys in mind. The just did their first ten-hour road trip in it and loved it.

 

[DVCisME]

We got home Saturday night. Took us 15 hours 45 minutes, back to NJ. Took 16 hours getting down. Probably could have been a little shorter on the way home but we hit rain starting in Virginia. Missing it already, but starting to think about when the next trip will be.

Can't believe gas went up 25 cents since we left. It had gone up 14 cents in four days at the Hess in DTD right before we left.

We left NJ Saturday night and the rain was horrible all the way to mid- Virginia. We left at 6pm and arrived at 12, which wasn't bad because we have a 2 year old potty training. Have to say he did GREAT, no accidents!!! But a bit more stopping...lol.