For those who drive to Disney, WHY???

[married2grumpy]

Our next trip is only 3 months away and we are unsure if we will fly or drive. We have always flown in the past and my husband finds the whole airport thing with the kids to be a hassle. He figures if you get up so early for the early flight and consider all travel times involved, it takes about 8 hours combined total to arrive in Disney from Long Island. He figures we can drive in 18 hours and save some money. I am not looking forward to an 18-20 hour car trip with 3 children, DD 5, DS 4 and DD 2. We can get airfare for all 5 of us for about $740 right now. The only good thing I see about driving is if we want to extend our stay we can and we won't need a rental car or a town car from the airport.

Why do you all drive? Do you do it to save money or do you actually enjoy the drive? What are some other benefits to driving over flying? Please convince me that driving is the way to go. Thanks!

 

[CSX2]

We considered the driving option from Washington, D.C. but just couldn't see where it was any advantage over flying. Are you planning on driving straight through with no motel stop? I know we decided that would be a little crazy with a kid (let alone three) in the car. Also, is 18 hours a reasonable estimate -- seems it would be a longer ride from New York. Either way it is going to add a lot of extra travel time on both ends of the vacation.

I think the final deciding factor for us was that we didn't want to start vacation with a looooooong, boring drive that may leave us exhausted on arrival.

Just for comparison, I drove from Miami to Washington with my 6yo DD and even if I had had another adult to share the driving there is NO WAY she would have made the trip non-stop.

However, lots of people drive down every year and some have even longer drives.

Have a great trip either way!

 

[skiwee1]

We drove 4 times so far because I really don't like flying. We also take our time getting there over 3 days instead of hurrying to get down there. We travel from Maryland and it took us about 14 hours of drive time. By the time we split it up daily we went about 6 hours a day including stops. It wasn't any cheaper for us then flying as we stopped overnight twice on the way there and back. It was actually more costly then flying but we really enjoyed it and made it part of the vacation. We also could take as long as we wanted so it didn't affect how long we vacationed. Unfortunately we have to fly down in April as we are squeezing in a trip and do not have the 6 extra days it takes to drive down and back. We could never drive straight through, especially with kids. We even found it too much to drive down with one stop over. That's why we take 3 days! I wouldn't recommend taking less then at least one stopover with the ages your kids are. You and they will not be happy campers being penned in driving straight through. Stop over halfway and make sure to find a hotel with a nice pool. Indoor is preferable if it chilly when you travel. We've always found that to really give the kids some exercise to burn off that energy.

 

[apagano]

18 hours is not a reasonable estimate. You plan to drive straight through without stopping? With kids in the car? This will never happen. Figure on bathroom stops at least every 3-4 hours. Depending on what kind of vehicle you drive, you'll make at least 3 stops for gas. Even if you bring your own food, it's going to be tough not stopping at McDonald's at least once, especially with the kids. There's also the great unknown of traffic. After all, you'll be driving through NYC, Philly, Baltimore and DC on the busiest Interstate in the U.S. Then there's the weather, which is always a question mark. Throw in the cost of gas, tolls and wear & tear on the car and driving doesn't seem like such a great idea.

There are only two circumstances where I would EVER consider driving that far for a trip.

1) If money was a major issue that would prevent me from flying.

2) If we wanted to make numerous stops along the way to "see America."

Otherwise, I would rather deal with 8 hours of hassle than 20-22 hours of hassle.

 

[goofy4tink]

As far as how long it will take....my brother, stationed in Pensacola in the Navy, drove home to central ma several times. His best time was 22 hrs. Now, understand, he didn't share the driving with anyone, drove straight thru and let's just say he had a little 'help' with the staying awake part!! I wouldn't suggest that to anyone. Plan on at least 36 hours and stop somewhere. Maybe even 2 days. Make it part of the trip.

 

[toystorymom]

We drove from MA last summer with 3 kids ages 5, 3, & 1 and are thinking about making the trip again. Actually, it wasn't bad at all. We will do one overnight stop each way and the kids are fine with that. Of course we did make stops to eat and walk around, usually just McDonalds or something. We tried to combine everything into our stops, gas, food, bathroom, shopping, etc. We had a tv/vcr for the kids and other little surprises. We also packed lots of snacks and drinks. They handled the whole thing amazingly well.

The reason for us is simple, $$$$. We drove or we didn't go. Overall, the drive cost us about $350 for everything. No way 5 of us could fly for that. Planning our next trip I have been keeping a close watch on the airlines but haven't been able to find any great deals yet. Even after the cost of tickets, taxes, and fees we have to think about transportation to and from the airport on both ends. Plus, we enjoyed having a car the whole time we were there.

So, if someone handed me 5 round trip tickets to Orlando of course we would fly. But if it's a matter of drive or stay home, well I'd make the trip any time and I know the boys would agree with me!

 

[seashoreCM]

I estimate that 500 miles is the breakeven between driving and flying considering the time consumed, including traveling to and from airports, and making allowance for a small amount of post 9/11 style hassle.

More Disney tips:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/disney.htm

9/65 Disneyland
3/75 World Inn (now Doubletree Club)
4/85 Kon-Tiki (now Econolodge Hawaiian)
'80s Disneyland once or twice
7/94 Dixie Landings (now Port Orleans Riverside)
9/97 All Star Music
11/98 ASMu & first premium annual pass
12/98 Knights Inn on 192
9/99 All Star Movies
12/00 All Star Sports & PAP#2
9/01 ASSp
11/01 ASSp
1/03 Motel 6 & ASSp & PAP#3
11/03 Pop Century planned

 

[JOC]

We would have a roughly 20-hour drive to Disney from our home state, which is a bit much for us (we have one 3 yr. old son). We drive to visit relatives who live about 10 hours away and even that tires us out; we wouldn't want to drive to Disney and be too tired from the drive to do anything but sleep! Also, we factor in the gas, lodging, wear and tear on our car, etc. $740 for airfare for the five of you seems like a good price to me, but I can also see where airfare would be too expensive for others who also have large families.

 

[married2grumpy]

My DH has several friends at his job who do the driving thing and insist it is the way to go. They say 18-20 hours is about right, driving straight through of course. They said if you leave at 7 PM you drive through the night so the kids sleep for the majority of the car ride. They say you arrive at Disney at around 2 PM the next day. We have done a 5-6 hour car trip to visit relatives in Virginia a few times and usually it is a pleasant drive. That is when the kids are sleeping of course. When they are awake the trip can seem like an eternity. Flying after 9/11 and even before 9/11 is not one of my favorite things to do but it does seem like the better option to me. Thank you for all your opinions and experiences. I'll have my husband read this and it may help us make our decision. The amount of our tax return will also help in this decision!! Thanks again!

 

[roadtripper]

We drive straight through from central MA-- leaving at 4 on Friday afternoon, and arriving at Disney at about 2 on Sat. Kids (8 and 6) fall asleep in NJ, wake up in SC, have a leisurely Cracker Barrel breakfast in SC or GA, and we're almost there! The first day we check in, swim, and get an early night's sleep so we'll be ready to tackle the MK the next day.
The kids sing songs, listen to books on tape, and color. They say they like the drive! By the way, we don't bring a VCR either.
Last trip, with gas for the minivan, food, and tolls, it cost about 285.
One other reason we drive is that our son uses a wheelchair, and I can't imagine the hassle of getting all his equipment on the plane. I like having all our stuff with us, and we can pack food and drinks in a cooler, which also saves money.
Good luck with your decision!

 

[CarolA]

Am I the only person who thinks that driving 18 - 24 hours straight is endangering your family???? A great majority of accidents are caused by "sleepy" drivers. I personally don't think the risk is worth it. You should stop at least once and spend the night.

I have a VERY hard time believing anyone who tells me that "I can drive straight thru and be alert ALL the way."

 

[married2grumpy]

roadtripper-

Your making the drive down seem more tolerable. Stopping for a hearty sit down breakfast sounds like a good idea. We do have a VCR in the minivan but would have to find videos that they would all agree upon. My husband also said he would need earplugs to drown out the constant Barney videos that my 2 year old watches over and over again. We should consider ourselves lucky that our airport hassle is 3 kids, suitcases, a car seat and a stroller. We never stopped to think that we are lucky that we don't need a wheelchair for any of our children. Thank you for putting that in to perspective for me.

My husband and I would split the drive so each could get some rest. We would never endanger the lives of our family!!!

 

[DisneyKidds]

Approximately $800 in airfare (for 4, I can't imagine when we have to buy 5 tickets ), saving $150 on airport parking, plus $250 savings on a rental car (we always get a car) is enough to make me think about driving from NY - but I sure don't want to and doubt we will - until we absolutely can't afford to fly .

 

[TreeOfLife]

Whatever their reason, I salute those who travel with young children on such long trips without TVs or minivans!

Heck I won't even fly with kids unless it is a direct, non-stop flight!

But kids are resilient and they adapt to whatever you put them through... If you must take the long drive, I suggest a few several hour drives to train them!

 

[ncligs]

Originally posted by CSX2
I think the final deciding factor for us was that we didn't want to start vacation with a looooooong, boring drive that may leave us exhausted on arrival.

I agree 100 % with the above post.We always fly, we would rather not waste 2-4 days of vacation in a car.When we are retired(no airplane tx, no car rental) than it would make more sense to drive and take your time.But to go for a week to 10 days at a time now,it doesn't make sense to spend 2-3 days of it sitting in a car.
But I can uderstand large families of 4-6 people,the expense of airline tx would be a huge factor.

 

[OKW91]

We drive down twice a year, but have no little ones with us, our son drives down with 2 small ones 1 year & 5 years, he say its tolerable if you make frequent stops and have a vcr for the kids to watch! On the other hand my daughter would never drive with her two daughters 2 & 5 she says that flying is the only way to go with the little ones!
I think that being strapped into that car seat for hours at a time would make me crabby too! It's about 18 hours from out home in S Jersey! We drive because we are retired now and have plently of time, but before retiring I would never have thought about driving!!
I would go with flying at least till the kids our near their teens! I think it will save a lot of fraid nerves, and make for a much happier vacation!!!

 

[CarolA]

Even if two adults split the driving you are bascially awake for 20 hours.
You don't get good quality sleep napping in the car while the Barney Video plays in the background and the kids fight!

 

[bobcat]

I'm one that doesn't mind the drive. We drive every year and I am the only driver. It's an 15 hour trip and I will drive 12 hours the first day. We stop every 2 hours or so to get out of the car, and we have a picnic lunch and a sit down meal on the way. We have an easy drive from Ohio and I usually enjoy the trip. I won't take a TV/VCR with us. The kids get that enough at home. They will read and play games in the car, and we usually have a couple of books on tape to listen to. Harry Potter is great on tape! We've driven since the youngest was 4 with no problems.

I don't mind flying but I spend $200 on gas, hotel, tolls to drive vs. $800 to fly, park, town car for the three of us. That's a pretty big difference in my budget. I know there is wear and tear on the car but that's what cars are for. I bought my van to drive and use for vacations so I will accept the miles with a smile.

 

[ASFCurly]

It really just depend on if you can handle the drive, I always fly, but I have a hard time driving for more than 2 hours so driving to Florida would be out of the question for me.

 

[vellamint]

we have four children and I would really like to try the drive as it would probably save us $1200 between airfare and a rental car (and that is after I deduct gas etc.) but I have an unwilling hubby so would never try to talk him into it!!!! He gets a little grouchy in the Florida heat sometimes as it is - LOL!!!!

Would like to try it once though...