Has Anyone Driven Straight Through??

[Wickedmom75]

Hi all , need some advice. I live in Virginia Beach ,Va and will be driving to DsineyWorld August 20th (actually am leaving at midnight on the 19th) My cousin ( same age as me but cannot drive due to having a siezure condition) my 4 kids 10,9,7,4 her 2 kids 7,4. I will be driving a 2001 chevy Suburban (read tank) My question is , Has anyone driven straight through (yes I know we have to stop for potty breaks etc...and gas companies have yet to come up with an IN Drive fueling method) if the military can do it in flight why can't we apply it to auto's??? Last summer I drove with my dad and my kids to minnesota we drove all the way to Iowa before we stopped. I plan on sleeping the whole day before (well at least 8 hours which is 2 more than I normally do) I am figuring on at least 15 -16 hours of driving if less then great ( I do love that 95 is 70 in some spots ) We will have DVD players for the kids they get along pretty well and we have driven to columbia SC a few times and they have done great , plus with us leaving at that time they will sleep for most of it ( i am making hubby stay up with them as he gets to fly down that day ) If I get tired I will stop and get a hotel room. Any thoughts and tips from those of you who are commando drivers will be greatly appreciated. Susan

 

[MSOULES]

I live in New Jersey and drove all the way through w/ my three kids ages 12 10 and 2.I left New Jersey at 9pm on a Tuesday and arrived at disney on wednesday at 2 in the afternoon.It was the best ride the kids slept while i drove.

 

[It's A Happy Day]

Another one hoping to do a one day trip from MA Leaving around suppertime 5ish October 1st and hope to be in FL around 5ish October 2nd - we have a day to play with if it's too much and we need to stop at a hotel but I hate to pay upwards of $100.00 for 4 hrs of shut eye. Also want to do most of the driving while the kids eat supper & sleep!

 

[bdcp]

It won't take you 15-16 hours to drive from VA Beach to WDW. More like 12. We drove back straight through years ago with a 3 1/2 and 6 year old and it took us 14 hours to get to the DC area where we live. We just stopped every 3-4 hours, switched drivers (which you cant do) and used those times to eat, go to the bathroom, stretch, etc. By the last hour, I was driving at 11pm, and it was tough (and I was only 29 at the time). Just pace yourself. If you leave at midnight, you'll be in WDW by early afternoon. My 75 year old FIL does this trip a couple of times a year and my MIL doesn't drive, so they drive about 9 hours the first day and finish up the next.

 

[Wickedmom75]

Thanks for all of the replies. I plan on driving as far as I can ,If that means stopping somewhere then I am fine with that (we better be in Georgia somewhere ) If I make it all the way then that will be cool too. We don't plan on doing a park day they 1st day so Hubby and cousin can take all the kids swimming and I can get a nap ( don't want to sleep too long have to stay on schedule so we can get up and out to the parks early the next day). I think the coolest thing about the trip is the kids have no Idea (ok one does but she has always been very observant (and someitmes a little bit too nosy ) we are just going to throw them all in the car I think we are going to tell them we are going to NC ( I don't want to say grandparents coz they would get dissapointed if we did not stop, and If they figure out that we have passed NC then we will tell em we went the long way and are going to see a friend of mine in GA). I can't wait to see the looks on their faces ( cousin will be taking pics!!!!!! )

 

[twoeeyy]

My brother drove stratght from Ma to FL and he was the only driver. He said he would not do it again. He also said that he did not need to stop at a hotel but he would have to stop somewhere for a few hours sleep in the car, if he were to ever do it again.

When they did arrive at WDW he ended up so tired and ' sick ' from the lack of sleep and the huge amounts of coffee needed to stay awake, they ended up not being able to do anything that first day so in the end the should have stopped.

But maybe he is just a baby and it really isn't that bad to do.

We drive also from Ma. We usually make it to somewhere past south of the border then stop, that way the next day is not that much farther to WDW, but then again it all depends on how fast you drive we try to average 80-85.

 

[elmo2wdw]

We have done it from PA 8 times with no problem! My husband does all of the driving. We leave around 5 pm and we only stop for potty breaks. We usually make it down in 13-14 hours. We usually get there around 8-9 and head straight to a park. The best part is my 3 DSs sleep most of the way down!

 

[umaangel00]

We had to stop twice on the way down in March. I am from Michigan and we had to stop in Indiana due to a snow storm. Then once we were in Macon, GA we had to stop again due to food poisoning. On the way back, we didn't stop but only for a few hours so I could sleep. I am a complete control freak and wouldn't let DH drive. LOL

 

[Wickedmom75]

Well that was an interesting trip Hopefully it won't snow (actually it might be nice would mean cooler temps lol )How did you guys get food poisoning . Hopefully you aren't scared for life from road travel again

 

[umaangel00]

Nah. I would rather drive than take a plane anyday. But that is another story. DH drove through some of the snow storm though. We got food poisoning from Cracker Barrel. We had stopped there to miss the rush hour traffic ( and go through later) in Atlanta, GA. We won't be doing that again.

 

[dgaston]

We drive straight through from NE CT (half an hour from Auburn, It's a Happy Day), but have two drivers at least. We start out now in the evening around 6pm and get to WDW around 4pm the next day. We drive the longer, more peaceful 84-81-77-26-95 route, and change drivers every 3 -4 hours. Near the end I'm tired, but love to travel that last section of I-4 from Daytona. It usually revs me up a lot.

Good luck on your trip.

 

[RichieGraciemom]

we also have driven straight throught. we were going to leave at 3am but my husband and I were so excited we decided at charlie browns over dinner to leave as soon as we get done eating. we left about eight thirty, and by 11 we were tired, my husband pulled over around 2 am for a twenty minute power nap and we were good to go. we had a 1 and two year old at the time. we were in disney again by 2 ish. we would do it again but have it planned out and one of us would have gotten some sleep during the day. we also did it in the reverse, left disney at two am and home in jersey by ten straight throught. good luck

 

[PA DISNEYLOVER]

In Jan. There was a Blizzard that was supposed to hit the day we would be driving home so we left Disney at 10am and arrived home at 5am the next morning. It took us a little longer then it usually does because we stopped so many times for coffee, but my husband plans on doing the same thing in Sept.

The biggest problem was the kids slept on the way home so when we got home they were wide awake and we were ready to sleep.

 

[nursetink]

We drove straight through from Little Rock, leaving about 6:30 PM and arriving at Animal Kingdom Lodge around 10 AM. One more day with the mouse was much important. Driving all night the kids went to sleep easy and woke up just inside the Florida border.

We bought gas whenever someone needed to go potty, and only had to stop for breakfast. My DD's were 2 1/2 and 5.

This year we are flying to maximize our days and shorten our travel.

Good luck! Have a great and safe trip!

 

[Obi-Wan Pinobi]

We've driven straight through from Richmond to WDW. It's about a 12-13 hour trip for us, so figure on about the same for VA Beach to WDW.

 

[Wickedmom75]

Thanks everyone you have made me feel even better about my decision to drive. In all there will be 16 of us total going but we are the only ones driving , I really wanted to have at least 1 car so we could do a gorcery run or whatever if we needed it (plus i get to check out the great outlets woohoo gonna do some christmas shopping) SO to anyone Heading down 95 in va. after midnight on the 19th I will be in 2001 sub with a Virginia Wildflowers tag that says WKDMOM wave to us !!!! We are staying at POR 8/20-8/28 (yes we are going this year because of the dining plan)

 

[WOODY13]

I drove straight through on the way home fromWDW March of this year. We (DD10 and DS12)left WDW at 5am and got home (western suburbs of Chicago) about 11pm. I had a hotel booked in Kentucky but we were making good time so we decided to go all the way so I canceled the hotel and kept going. The kids are good in the car on long trips. We also drive a Suburban (1994) its a great way to travel.Good luck I think you can make it though personally I like leaving early in the morning rather than late at night.

 

[CarolA]

As I pull on my flameproof suit....
I was at the Dermatolgist office today and while there read a May or June issue of Redbook magazine. There was an article on sleep in there... The article said that according to the National Transportation Saftey Board you are THREE times more likely to be involved with in accident with a drowsy driver then with a drunk driver... food for thought.... Is arriving at Disney worth the risk of not arriving at all?

 

[Wickedmom75]

. We also drive a Suburban (1994) its a great way to travel.QUOTE]


I love my sub , it travels so well andthe ride is so comfortable the drivers seat is huge . I also like that I can put 2 car seats in the middle of the seats (with a locking clip and a tether strap ) and my DD10 (who is almost as tall as me ) has plenty of room and so do the others. I can't wait I am getting so excited!!!!! (me) (DD10) (DD9) (DS7) (DS4) (DC) (DCS7) (DCD4)

 

[WOODY13]

. We also drive a Suburban (1994) its a great way to travel.QUOTE]

I love my sub , it travels so well andthe ride is so comfortable the drivers seat is huge . I also like that I can put 2 car seats in the middle of the seats (with a locking clip and a tether strap ) and my DD10 (who is almost as tall as me ) has plenty of room and so do the others. I can't wait I am getting so excited!!!!! (me) (DD10) (DD9) (DS7) (DS4) (DC) (DCS7) (DCD4)[/QUOTE Just talking about it makes me want to drive but not this time. We are going this Sept. We were going to drive but we got such a cheap flight we couldn't pass it up.