Good hotels halfway between Michigan & WDW

[DaniH]

Anyone have a good halfway hotel along I-75? We drove straight through in December (we usually fly but driving is so much cheaper!) but next time we go down I'd like to stop halfway just so it's not quite so exhausting on me & the hubby. Budget friendly is good but not essential, I'm more interested in clean & sanitary

 

[chartle]

Anyone have a good halfway hotel along I-75? We drove straight through in December (we usually fly but driving is so much cheaper!) but next time we go down I'd like to stop halfway just so it's not quite so exhausting on me & the hubby. Budget friendly is good but not essential, I'm more interested in clean & sanitary

I 75 is pretty long, any idea where you would stop?

What I do is put the trip into Google maps and then add a destination somewhere I think is halfway and move it up and down the route depending on how much I want to drive in the first or last day.

I then zoom into the stop and type hotel in the search bar and then look for large concentrations near the interstate. Exits with more properties will have more competition so better prices and more likely to have resturants around them.

We then look for things we have to have like 2 queen beds and thats about it besides cost.

We usually don't eat the free breakfast because we are big breakfast eaters. So we also make sure there is a good breakfast place like a Cracker Barrel near or on the way within 30 minutes or so.

Lately we like Microtels, every room is exactly the same so we know what we are getting and it has interior hallways. Though having your car right outside your room is nice for a quick in and out.

 

[MidgeD79]

We are also driving to WDW from Michigan. I always buy "Dave Hunter-Along I-75. It has a lot of useful information as well as lots of trivia. have fun!

 

[Jetta8300]

We have driven down twice now from Ohio, and instead of stopping around the half way point, usually we will stop around 12-13 hours, so we only have about 3 hours left the next day! It has worked really well for us, so we don't feel like we have two huge days of driving, but 12 hours or so is much more manageable than 16. We usually stay somewhere in between Savannah and Jacksonville, I think both times was a Springhill suites. They are nice and not too expensive!

 

[meachell13]

Anyone have a good halfway hotel along I-75? We drove straight through in December (we usually fly but driving is so much cheaper!) but next time we go down I'd like to stop halfway just so it's not quite so exhausting on me & the hubby. Budget friendly is good but not essential, I'm more interested in clean & sanitary

When you drove through the first time how long did it take you to get there? We are leaving from lower-lower Michigan and driving down I75. Deciding if we want to get up really really early and drive till past bedtime and spend the night actually at our resort or sleep in and then drive all night (with a possible nap on the way) and arrive the following day in the morning in Disney.

 

[cuteduck223]

we drive from Chicago...usually stop around Chattanooga on the way back. We go straight through on the way there. We stopped at a great, cheap, clean place the last time. It wasn't a chain at all, a little independent place just past Chattanooga into Georgia. Hometown Inn--Ringgold, GA. It was very nice. Looking at it, I was unsure, but we were tired, it was cheap, and we were pleasantly surprised. For just a place to sleep, it was terrific. The only thing I would put as a word of caution...since it's independent, I'm afraid each experience might be different. We plan to stop there on our way back again in July...hopefully it will be the same

 

[scrappinannie]

Anyone have a good halfway hotel along I-75? We drove straight through in December (we usually fly but driving is so much cheaper!) but next time we go down I'd like to stop halfway just so it's not quite so exhausting on me & the hubby. Budget friendly is good but not essential, I'm more interested in clean & sanitary

Give me a minute to check the exact location, but there we've stayed twice at a Comfort Inn in Tennessee. Right off the highway, nice and clean, quiet and perfect for an overnight stay. It has outside hallways, which many don't like, but I have always requested a 2nd floor room in these cases and never had a problem. I'll see if I can find the town for you.

 

[scrappinannie]

When you drove through the first time how long did it take you to get there? We are leaving from lower-lower Michigan and driving down I75. Deciding if we want to get up really really early and drive till past bedtime and spend the night actually at our resort or sleep in and then drive all night (with a possible nap on the way) and arrive the following day in the morning in Disney.

We did this 3 years ago. Out DD was 3 at the time. Left from Dundee and took 75 all the way down. Drove all night, DH & I switching every few hours driver/sleeper. DD slept in her car seat, but not well. We arrived at Florida Welcome Center around 7am (where we changed clothes and freshened up a bit) and were checking it at POR around 11ish. Our room wasn't ready yet, it was 100 degrees and we were beat. If you can afford to drive half way by getting up early and then staying over night in a hotel before arriving at Disney do it. You'll be happier. I wish we had done that. Driving all night just made us all zombies for our first day.

 

[Jetta8300]

When you drove through the first time how long did it take you to get there? We are leaving from lower-lower Michigan and driving down I75. Deciding if we want to get up really really early and drive till past bedtime and spend the night actually at our resort or sleep in and then drive all night (with a possible nap on the way) and arrive the following day in the morning in Disney.

Just wanted to point out to anyone thinking of driving though the night from our area of the US:

I know it really works out well for a lot of people, however when we tried to drive though the night in early may, we had a HUGE deer problem and really lost a lot of time because we had to go so slowly for about 4 hours though the mountains. There were literally HUNDREDS in the road throughout the whole mountains during the night starting around West Virginia, and there were so many twists and turns that we had to go 50mph or less and really came close to hitting them multiple times. We won't drive at night again for this reason, at least not around this time of year.

 

[scrappinannie]

For anyone traveling on I-75 check out this link: http://www.i75exitguide.com/lodging/tennessee.php

Lots to great info, including lodging.

 

[meachell13]

Just wanted to point out to anyone thinking of driving though the night from our area of the US:

I know it really works out well for a lot of people, however when we tried to drive though the night in early may, we had a HUGE deer problem and really lost a lot of time because we had to go so slowly for about 4 hours though the mountains. There were literally HUNDREDS in the road throughout the whole mountains during the night starting around West Virginia, and there were so many twists and turns that we had to go 50mph or less and really came close to hitting them multiple times. We won't drive at night again for this reason, at least not around this time of year.

I hate driving through West Virginia regardless because of those mountains. WE have driven many times through the night in them to go to Myrtle Beach so we are not unaccustomed to driving through the night.

We are really leaning towards getting up extremely early and driving through and getting to Disney very late at night. That way we can sleep till we want in the morning and then we are already there and can go to the parks.

On the way home we plan on stopping somewhere though to stay.

 

[CyndiLooWho]

Last year we drove from Central KY to a Comfort Suites on 1-75 in Valdosta GA (just inside the GA/FL line). The room was clean, spacious, comfy and very reasonably priced. They had BOGO meal certificates for several nearby restaurants (there is a Fazoli's across the street).

From there, we were in Orlando well before lunch. We had an early check-in at our resort (offsite - Wyndham's Bonnet Creek condos), and had lunch, did our grocery shopping, unpacked and were at the park before 4pm.

The time before that, we left late on a Friday, drove to the south side of Atlanta and stayed from 1am til morning. Won't do that again - I liked being in Orlando early enough to actually do something the first day if we wanted.

 

[alisha123]

We will be coming down I75 from Chattanooga TN and I want to drive about 8 hrs of the trip so we will be about an hour from Disney. Can anyone suggest a place to stop right off 75 so we can jump right on the freeway next morning to try and make rope drop??

 

[Jetta8300]

I hate driving through West Virginia regardless because of those mountains. WE have driven many times through the night in them to go to Myrtle Beach so we are not unaccustomed to driving through the night.

We are really leaning towards getting up extremely early and driving through and getting to Disney very late at night. That way we can sleep till we want in the morning and then we are already there and can go to the parks.

On the way home we plan on stopping somewhere though to stay.

I agree, my husband and I are both in medical sales and spend most days driving in the car, and also driving late at night so we are in no way timid about driving. I just can't believe that more people do not bring up this issue, I mean we could not go 5 minutes without seeing a family of deer IN the road or within 5 feet of the road for about 4 straight hours. Not to be gross, but for ever live deer we saw there was also a dead one, blood and body parts EVERYWHERE for hours through these mountains so obviously people (probably mostly semi trucks) were hitting them constantly. It was still pretty chilly out...I don't know if this has something to do with it or not.

 

[DaniH]

When you drove through the first time how long did it take you to get there? We are leaving from lower-lower Michigan and driving down I75. Deciding if we want to get up really really early and drive till past bedtime and spend the night actually at our resort or sleep in and then drive all night (with a possible nap on the way) and arrive the following day in the morning in Disney.

We left at 8am and got there at 8am the next day. Our room wasn't ready so we just ran on adrenaline and went to the parks. We went back to our room in the afternoon and unloaded our stuff and took a nap. As for were we'd like to stop for our overnight I am thinking mid-tenneseeish. That's about where we stopped for dinner both ways I think.

 

[DaniH]

Just wanted to point out to anyone thinking of driving though the night from our area of the US:

I know it really works out well for a lot of people, however when we tried to drive though the night in early may, we had a HUGE deer problem and really lost a lot of time because we had to go so slowly for about 4 hours though the mountains. There were literally HUNDREDS in the road throughout the whole mountains during the night starting around West Virginia, and there were so many twists and turns that we had to go 50mph or less and really came close to hitting them multiple times. We won't drive at night again for this reason, at least not around this time of year.

We didn't have any problems with deer but I did all the night driving & going through the mountains in the rain at night is NOT FUN!!! That is another big reason I want to get a hotel half way.

 

[DaniH]

Lately we like Microtels, every room is exactly the same so we know what we are getting and it has interior hallways. Though having your car right outside your room is nice for a quick in and out.

Good to know! We've never stayed at Microtel before. Consistancey is good!

 

[ls3015]

Can't remember just what town it is in, but the Bates hotel is very nice to stay and grap a shower in, and for a nite of pleasure.

 

[WIDisneyFan]

We drive down to Florida from Wisconsin a couple times a year. One place i would recommend is the Hampton Inn in Dalton, GA. Plenty of options for food and a pretty good hotel.

 

[BridetobeDisney]

If anyone stops in Macon, GA on the way down, I want to suggest two exits. The bass road exit in north macon is perfect. There is a bass pro shop, chickfila, zaxbys, publix, and a very nice hotel that stays packed. It's called home wood suites by Hilton. This is the safer side of town. The other exit is on 475 called Zebulon rd. There's a few hotels to choose from, krogers, buffaloes, chickfila, walmart, Krystal, sonics etc. DO NOT stop in south Macon. Riverside/Tom hill/Arkwright area are also nicer and safe. If you don't want to stay there keep going and stay in Warner Robins, Byron or perry. All safer areas than south and east macon.