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

[sharadoc]

Hey Sharadoc,

Driving is lots of fun. We usual have fun creative stories when we come back. Whiel driving we play "create a background" story for a vehicle around us. It can actually be quite humorous tales.

Sounds like a fun idea! Thanks.

 

[cheerbop]

We are nervous. We have 4 boys from 12 down to 1 year.

We are leaving as soon as school is out on the 9th at 2pm and figure we can be in Statesville, NC area to spend the night then get up to continue driving the next morning.

My Question: I caught on here that you all hate driving through that area and on down past Charlotte. Is this going to be a big problem in the morning ya think? I am really nervous now and wondering if we should continue driving down past Statesville and get a little South of Charoltte to avoid what you are all speaking of.

Any advice appreciated!!! On this subject or things to make our drive easier.

 

[blondietink]

I would try to avoid going from Statesville south through Charlotte during morning or evening rush hour. I drove it once leaving Statesville at 9 am and it wasn't too bad. I would really try and drive through Charlotte the evening before if at all possible and stay in South Caroline. Just MHO ... I have been stuck in way too many traffic jams around Charlotte to want to drive through again during rush hour.

 

[thumbalyna]

i made this drive in 96-97-98 and then starting flying in 2001 - we are going in october and i cant find a reasonable airfare so it looks like we will be driving this time - im at only driver so i will leave around 3 when my daughter gets out of school and drive as far as i can (hopefully to at least SC) and the drive the rest the next day. my daughter is 16 so i think this will probably be one of the last trips we go on and looking forward to the bonding we will do in the car for 2 days.

 

[pwdebbie]

We are nervous. We have 4 boys from 12 down to 1 year.

We are leaving as soon as school is out on the 9th at 2pm and figure we can be in Statesville, NC area to spend the night then get up to continue driving the next morning.

My Question: I caught on here that you all hate driving through that area and on down past Charlotte. Is this going to be a big problem in the morning ya think? I am really nervous now and wondering if we should continue driving down past Statesville and get a little South of Charoltte to avoid what you are all speaking of.

Any advice appreciated!!! On this subject or things to make our drive easier.

On our trips down from south-central PA, our goal is to always get past Charlotte AND Columbia to stop in Orangeburg the first day (we leave on Sunday afternoon). On the way back we again aim to get past Charlotte to overnight in Statesville. I believe that it is in Charlotte that there is a sudden single lane turn to the left that has surprised us both times -- you need to be in that left lane and then the turn is quite sharp -- we hit it at 55 mph and the speed limit signs for this turn is 25 mph. Someone else might be able to clarify whether this is in Charlotte or not, but I think it is. Or maybe it is Columbia, I'm looking at a map trying to figure out where that hairy spot. I know it is in a construction area.

 

[njchilds]

We are driving down from the Jersey Shore on a Saturday in July. It will be myself, DH, DS (2) and DS (5). This is our first time and plan to drive for about 13 hours the first day, leaving around 3 AM and hoping to make it almost to the Georgia/Fla. border. I am torn between not booking a hotel and finding something when we decide to stop or picking a spot beforehand. I was thinking of staying around Kingsland, Georgia and was wondering if any drivers out there have stopped in this area. Hotel recommendations and restaurants would be greatly appreciated. Also if anyone knows of any playgrounds not to far off 95 that would be helpful also.

 

[matosfam]

I am trying to get DH excited about driving for our early June trip so he will stop trying to spend our entire budget on plane fares... LOL!

Is there anybody here who drives from Western PA / Pittsburgh who wants to share some of their fabulous strategies with me? (i.e. time to leave, recommended places to stop, etc.)
Any input would be very greatly appreciated!

 

[BC1836]

We are driving down from the Jersey Shore on a Saturday in July. It will be myself, DH, DS (2) and DS (5). This is our first time and plan to drive for about 13 hours the first day, leaving around 3 AM and hoping to make it almost to the Georgia/Fla. border. I am torn between not booking a hotel and finding something when we decide to stop or picking a spot beforehand. I was thinking of staying around Kingsland, Georgia and was wondering if any drivers out there have stopped in this area. Hotel recommendations and restaurants would be greatly appreciated. Also if anyone knows of any playgrounds not to far off 95 that would be helpful also.

Your decision to depart from the Jersey Shore at 3 a.m. is a good one since you get a great jump on traffic, which is normally lighter on the weekends anyway.

Here are some of our departure times and when we reached the GA border:

12/'08: 3:00 a.m. departure; GA border: 3:46 p.m.

3/'09: 3:30 a.m. departure; GA border: 4:10 p.m.

6/'09: 3:22 a.m. departure; GA border: 3:59 p.m.

12/'09: 3:00 a.m. departure; GA border: 3:19 p.m.

As you can see, 13 hours of driving gets you into GA. We know little of Kingsland, GA; however, rather than stay there why not push ahead and cross into FL (about 90-100 minutes more), take a quick dip in the just-off-I-95 hotel/motel pool, grab dinner, go to be early and wake up for even a shorter final drive to WDW?

You can make a reservation on the road (based on where you expect to be). Just remember: you can cancel most reservations prior to 6 p.m.

All the best.

 

[sticker231]

Got back last night from our trip.... But already looking forward to the next trip.

 

[MinMouse]

We are driving down from the Jersey Shore on a Saturday in July. It will be myself, DH, DS (2) and DS (5). This is our first time and plan to drive for about 13 hours the first day, leaving around 3 AM and hoping to make it almost to the Georgia/Fla. border. I am torn between not booking a hotel and finding something when we decide to stop or picking a spot beforehand. I was thinking of staying around Kingsland, Georgia and was wondering if any drivers out there have stopped in this area. Hotel recommendations and restaurants would be greatly appreciated. Also if anyone knows of any playgrounds not to far off 95 that would be helpful also.

Good plan. Our first driving trip we stayed over in Savannah, Georgia (we're coming from Wilmington, DE. Took us about 12 hours, we stayed at a hotel with an indoor pool as a treat to the girls for the long day's work! I would book a hotel that has a 6 p.m. day of arrival cancellation. That way if plans change you can just cancel your reservation and going further or stopping earlier.

 

[sharadoc]

Got back last night from our trip.... But already looking forward to the next trip.

Welcome back - and you gotta update your signature!!

 

[patclairesmom]

We are driving down from the Jersey Shore on a Saturday in July. It will be myself, DH, DS (2) and DS (5). This is our first time and plan to drive for about 13 hours the first day, leaving around 3 AM and hoping to make it almost to the Georgia/Fla. border. I am torn between not booking a hotel and finding something when we decide to stop or picking a spot beforehand. I was thinking of staying around Kingsland, Georgia and was wondering if any drivers out there have stopped in this area. Hotel recommendations and restaurants would be greatly appreciated. Also if anyone knows of any playgrounds not to far off 95 that would be helpful also.

We just stayed at the Comfort Suites in Kindsland. We got a great rate. The area looks nice, so any of the hotels shouldn't be bad. With that being said, we left central jersey @4am and I thought we would we get to Kingsland by 5pm. Well with rain till NC, traffic, stops etc, we didn't get there until 8pm. If you want to make a reservation, make sure you can cancel before 6pm and then see how the trip is going.

 

[BC1836]

Oil is trading at around $87 per barrel and is expected to hit $100 by the end of the month.

 

[dvczerfs]

Oil is trading at around $87 per barrel and is expected to hit $100 by the end of the month.

guess whos gonna pay to clean up the oil spill!!! one of my oil customers that i call on told me this morning dont be suprised if gas doesnt hit $3.90 by the 4th of july. in some places around her its 2.95 already.

 

[Vickis3js]

guess whos gonna pay to clean up the oil spill!!! one of my oil customers that i call on told me this morning dont be suprised if gas doesnt hit $3.90 by the 4th of july. in some places around her its 2.95 already.

Gas prices are the only thing that worrying me right now. I have $150 in gas cards and I think I will probably need 2 times that. Still cheaper then flying for our family of 5.

We all know who is going to pay for the clean up not BP thats for sure. More like you and me.

 

[dvczerfs]

Gas prices are the only thing that worrying me right now. I have $150 in gas cards and I think I will probably need 2 times that. Still cheaper then flying for our family of 5.

We all know who is going to pay for the clean up not BP thats for sure. More like you and me.

dont worry jp5 (jet fuel) im sure will go up also! whats left of the cheap flights will be going also. the other couple that was going with us was going to fly, i quess they will have to see what is gonna happen. it just kills everything when it jumps up like that.

 

[DisneyChick]

Hey dvczerfs, some fellow Lehigh Valley people here!!!!! We're thinking of doing the drive this June instead of flying... Haven't driven in quite a while, used to drive all the time when our two girls were small. Now they're 20, 21 and both in college so trying to cut back a few $$$ on the transportation to use for Disney Dining and other fun things. Just don't know if we could make it straight through without a night's stop. Which route do you usually take, down 95 or the inland route n cut over in SC??? Did you ever go straight through??? What kind of time does it usually take you guys??? Sorry for so many ???? Good to find some fellow Disney Fans so close to home!!!

 

[dvczerfs]

Hey dvczerfs, some fellow Lehigh Valley people here!!!!! We're thinking of doing the drive this June instead of flying... Haven't driven in quite a while, used to drive all the time when our two girls were small. Now they're 20, 21 and both in college so trying to cut back a few $$$ on the transportation to use for Disney Dining and other fun things. Just don't know if we could make it straight through without a night's stop. Which route do you usually take, down 95 or the inland route n cut over in SC??? Did you ever go straight through??? What kind of time does it usually take you guys??? Sorry for so many ???? Good to find some fellow Disney Fans so close to home!!!

no problem, im in nazareth. we take two days to drive down but we drive non stop on the way home. it takes me 16-161/2 hours. depending on the time of year, we generaly take 78-81-66-17-95. we also use 78-81-77-26-95 if we venture down in the summer months. we leave 3:30am from okw and we get home 7:30-8:00pm. we dont stop for sit down meals just welcoming centers, gas and rest stops. if you leave wdw at 3:30am you miss alot of the traffic and you will get to south of the boarder at 10:30am.

 

[beachgrl001]

Hi I have the drive down from S.Jersey all planed out, now I am thinking about where to stop on the way home, what would be the 1/2 way point? I was thinking N.Carolina or should we shoot for VA? It will be on a sunday in September.

 

[Mickey's Sister]

Hey dvczerfs, some fellow Lehigh Valley people here!!!!! We're thinking of doing the drive this June instead of flying... Haven't driven in quite a while, used to drive all the time when our two girls were small. Now they're 20, 21 and both in college so trying to cut back a few $$$ on the transportation to use for Disney Dining and other fun things. Just don't know if we could make it straight through without a night's stop. Which route do you usually take, down 95 or the inland route n cut over in SC??? Did you ever go straight through??? What kind of time does it usually take you guys??? Sorry for so many ???? Good to find some fellow Disney Fans so close to home!!!

Hi DisneyChick!

We're close to you as well - outside Lehighton. We always drive - though we have no trip planned right now - unfortunately. Enjoy yourselves in June - think of of us stuck back here in PA!