Has Anyone Done This

[cola1068]

HI, IM FROM LONG ISLAND AND AM THINKING ABOUT DRIVING TO WDW W/ 2 KIDS 6 & 2. I JUST FEEL ALOT SAFER THAN GETTING ON A PLANE. I LEAVE THE 24TH OF SEPT. HAS ANYONE MADE THIS LONG TRIP, IS IT AS BAD AS PEOPLE SAY. ALSO WHAT DO YOU DO TO KEEP THE KIDS OCCUPIED. THANKS!!

 

[Ted and Holly]

I drove with two friends from CT to WDW back a few years ago. With three drivers, we switched off and drive straight through. It took about 20 hours. We thought it was great! Driving back wasn't that bad either. Keep in mind, though, that this was three college stooges. I imagine a long trip like that with kids would be more difficult.

We are thinking about driving for a Feb. trip next year. I think it will be just as fun with the two of us, but driving home will be a drag.

Ted

 

[Juli1706]

I have driven to Florida from Wisconsin with my two kids several times. The first time they were 3 and 5. We've always taken the drive straight through approach with 2 or three drivers.

Although there can be irritable moments, it really is not that bad. In fact, I kind of enjoy the drive! We bought small presents and wrapped them up, then gave them to the kids at various different times on the trip down. We also had tapes of songs and stories for them. Whenever we stopped to eat, we always stopped at a place like McDonalds that had a playground where they could wear off some energy.

 

[loriandmatt]

julie1706 has some great suggestions that i myself will be using.

We (if we still go) will be driving down from philly in mid Oct and will be doing the following...

- small wrapped gifts (we are doing one for each state. some pertain to that state, some start with the same letter of that state....) you may want to give them more often in the "longer" states.
- the tapes of kid songs (music from disney puts us all in the mood to!) work well for us as do the books that have audio tapes along with them.
- small magnetic travel games might be good for the older child, the 2YO may get the pieces in their mouth though, so maybe not a good idea.
-don't keep to rigid of a schedule. (my MIL HAS to stop and eat at noon, even if the kids are sound asleep.) drive thru a planned check point or rest break if even one of the kids are sleeping. Make time while you can.
-do make those McD's or other fast food rest stops with the playgrounds. Let the critters blow off steam and work up a good nap.

If you have more than one person driving, doing it in one shot isn't too bad. If it's just you driving, split the trip up and plan to stay at a hotel with and indoor pool. Hotels can be a drag for little kids, and the pool can be something they can look forward to.

good luck
- lori

 

[cola1068]

ANY IDEA HOW LONG IT WILL TAKE US FROM NY WITH STOPPING TO SLEEP AT NIGHT.

 

[loriandmatt]

Acording to this cool website ...
http://www.indo.com/distance/

the driving distance from franklin square NY to lake buena vista FL is @18hours (1124 miles).

If you split this up carefully it wont be too bad. (first determine what time you want to arrive at WDW and then determine how far you think you can/want to drive on the first leg of your trip. This will help you figure out when to leave your house, when and where to stop for the night and when to get going the next day. )

It isn't much farther for us from outside Philly than for you from Franklin Square. Here is an example of our plans.

We want to arrive on Monday the 8th at around 1pm (give or take - disney is very flexable with check in times. you can check in early and stash you stuff and hang out at the pool or someplace in the resort.)

We will leave Philly at around 4 am on the 7th. We will drive for approx 12 hours and stop at around 4pm. (in your case you may want to make it 14 or just pick up the extra 2 hours in the morning.) The next moring we will leave the hotel at around 9am and should be in or very close to WDW by 1pm.

We will be stoping somewhere in Georgia for the night and i will do some internet investigating to find out around where. Then i'll do some more internet searching to find a hotel in that area with a pool to let my little one wind down.

Hope this helps.
- lori

 

[4disneyfans]

WE BOUGHT A TV/VCR FROM SAMS THAT YOU CAN USE IN THE CAR.THE BEST PURCHASE WE EVER MADE THEN BOUGHT MOVIES AND WOULD NOT LET THEM WATCH THEM UNTIL WE WERE ON OUR WAY!! USE THOSE FAST FOOD PLAYGROUNDS TOO!! WE LIKE TO DRIVE INTO FLORIDA AND GET A HOTEL SO THAT WE ARRIVE AT WDW REFRESHED,BUT DO DRIVE THRU SOMETIMES.GOOD LUCK AND HAVE LOTS OF FUN!!!!!!!!!!

 

[oshun]

We drive down with our 3 children from DE. It is about a 16 or 17 hour trip. We usually stop somewhere for an overnight in SC or GA. We have even taken our niece and had 4 children. They had their moments in our mini van, but it wasn't that bad. Some suggestions to take along are snacks, juice boxes, game boy and games, coloring books, crayons. I even found some magnetic tic-tac-toe and license plate games at K-Marts. If your children are like most; they probably will be better if you stay somewhere overnight, unless you are lucky enough. Our children always stayed awake.

We have made this trip back and forth, 5 times and continue to do so. Our next trip is scheduled October 11 and we are driving again. Have a safe and magical time!!

 

[Mickey76]

I have made the trip, by car, twice, and I'm from New York, too. I didn't drive, my parents took turns. It wasn't the most pleasant experience of my life. I like flying, instead, but in light of everything that has happened, I can understand why you would rather drive. As for your children, have them bring travel size games to play, a walkman, even a book (if they're not prone to car sickness). I won't lie, after you get through Maryland, there really isn't much scenery, and at times you'll wish that you could be on a plane, instead. But remember, you're going to WDW, and you'll be fine. Have a great time.......Mickey76

 

[cola1068]

thanks for all the great info, we don't know what we are doing yet, i think we are aiming to cancel. oh well i'll have to see. thanks again.

 

[ebhurleys]

We have made the trip a few times with a motor home and we drive straight through the night. The last time we drove we took the minivan and stayed over one night just shy of NC. I have to say the kids 4 and 7 at the time entertained themselves. I found the drive relaxing. Both kids slept at least 3hours during the day. The way home we drove through the night and my kids were so exhausted I think they slept more than half the way. We now have a 3yo and I think we are ready to try the drive again.

 

[susy]

I've lived in FL since I was ten. Before that, I lived in NJ and we always vacationed in FL. I think when we first came to Disney, we rode the autotrain and it was wonderful!!! As far as driving , I remember that we always stopped for the night at the Quality Inn in NC or at South of the Border . I would leave super early in the morning (like 4:30), because you always make your best time before 8 or 9am. Stop and have a nice relaxing breakfast or brunch. We always stopped and saw things along the way (like south of the border) and the trip was basically just part of the vacation. I would bring movies (if you can), new toys and special snacks. If you have a van or larger car it would probably be more comfortable for everyone. We always did it (since I was very little) and we always had fun!!!Try switching the kid's seats around in the car half way through, so they get a different view.

 

[Michigan]

I drive everywhere. My oldest DD competes in wheelchair games so I have driven as far west as San Jose CA and this year to Piscataway NJ. My kids are now 11 and 3. When we travel for wheelchair games Ford Motor gives me a van to take, but when we go to places like WDW we are in my van that has a tv and vcr. I guess I'm lucky my kids ride really great with or without the tv. One of the things we do is look for license plates from other states and write them down.

 

[2boys]

We are also supposed to fly out of islip on the 24th and was considering driving. I have a 4 year old and 2 year old. My husband believes it will be safe, but i'm very concerned. I just don't know what to do. Will you definately be going?

 

[singitalto]

I have driven from Long Island to Orlando. It takes about 18-19 hours, depending on how fast you drive. The last time we drove(MAY), we left on a Sunday morning, about 8:30. It was a great time to drive. NOone was on the road. We were driving past DC in about 4 hours. We usually stop at Fayetteville, NC. We found it to be a good halfway point. (About 10 hours each day, with breaks). We pack a cooler and have a tv/vcr.

I would drive again in a second if my husband could learn to not get so uptight while driving!

 

[travelcoupons]

Done it once. It went ok with 6 yr. olds. After flying 9 times since, I plan on continuing to fly...next Feb.

 

[seashoreCM]

I saw this suggestion in a travel book about 20 years ago.

When driving on a long trip, stop and take a picture at least once every 25 miles. They went so far to say that if 25 miles have passed and nothing worth photographing is in sight, stop anyway at the next place you can stop safely, such as turning onto a side street, and take a picture there.

After a few years you will open up your snapshot collection and see that you have a very intersting set of pictures of lots of different places in the country.

Also gives the kids a chance to stretch their legs.

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

9/65 Disneyland
3/75 (World Inn* off I4 near DD)
4/85 (Kon-Tiki* on 192)
'80s Disneyland once or twice
7/94 PORiv
9/97 ASMu
11/98 ASMu
12/98 (Knights Inn on 192)
9/99 ASMo
12/00 ASSp
9/01 ASSp
11/01 ASSp planned
*no longer exists

 

[ScottOKW2K]

I have to throw my vote in with the "drive" crowd. We live in central Mississipi, and drove down on our last family trip. Though somewhat long but not overly so (9 am CST to 10 pm EST travel time, with stops) we actually found it to be enjoyable, amd plan on doing it again in December.

I have to admit that the recent events are part of the decision, but not the main reason. Though I do not fear flying, and actual think it will be SAFER from this point on, we do have to take into account of what my 8 y/o daughter might think in we decided to fly. Why add anxiety to a trip if it is not necessary ? In addition, the longer check-in times that will be standard for quite some time to come reduce the travel time difference between flying and driving. For example, last weekend I returned from a trip to WDW (alone), flying Northwest. From the time I was to be at the Mears pickup a the resort (12:30 pm EST) till the time I arrived at my house (7:00 pm CST) was a total of 7½ hours travel time. If you do the math from above, you can see that I can drive it in 12 hours, and have my own personal vehicle available to me while I am there.

Also, there are economic reasons - to be able to pick flights where the travel time is reasonable and where the flight to Orlando leaves in the morning and the return flight departs in the afternoon/evening our only choice is Delta. Unless we get lucky with a fare sale, the best we can hope for as far as ticket cost is about $170/person. With 3 of us, we are already out over $500 there, and we would still need some form of ground transportation at the Orlando end. Whether you use Mears, Tiffany, or a rental car you will still be out at least another $100 or more in addition to the airline tickets. Those few hours that I save driving is looking more and more expensive !

Also, the cost of one plane ticket would pay for a portable TV/VCR combo, which we would have for every trip thereafter. The ticket, used once, is only good for a bookmark . Shucks, between driving down, using (already paid for) annual passes, and staying on DVC points (OKW Grand Villa) this will probably be our least expensive trip to WDW yet.

 

[seashoreCM]

Recently I drove from Boston to a convention in Baltimore (just over 400 miles). After figuring in hassle, airfare and the need to get to the airport early, etc. versus gas and tolls and the convenience of a car at my destination, I considered 500 miles as the break even point between driving solo and flying, that was before today's airport check in. With a family of four the breakeven will be different.

 

[Humpbacks1962]

While some people may be concerned about flying after the terrorist attack, I can assure you that we're safer than ever now! Though belated, security will be enforced and I am sure that the financial loses taught the airlines a lesson.

I live in CT. Driving for so many hours would leave me exhausted! I love getting out of the plane and heading straight to the parks. I suppose you'd need some extra recovery time, if you plan to join the rides and attractions all day! And you'd need extra vacation time too..

Wanda