how far will you drive in one day?

[kacaju]

we live in NJ and are planning to go to Myrtle Beach in 2 weeks for a family reunion. My plan was to stop about 1/2 down, sightsee and then sleep over somewhere and continue on to MB the next day. Well, I am not finding anything to do along I-95 that is worth making a stop.
DH does not want to drive for 11 1/2 hours. He (and MIL, who is coming with us) are not the kind of people who will get up at 3 in the morning to hit the road before the traffic.
We go down Northern VA all the time, so I know what a nightmare around DC can be.

So, I know many of you do drive for long periods of time. Is it worth it? I have a 14 and 10 year old. They can keep themselves busy.
I am just trying to figure out if we sholud try to drive straight through. I would help with the driving

 

[A4Disney]

we live in NJ and are planning to go to Myrtle Beach in 2 weeks for a family reunion. My plan was to stop about 1/2 down, sightsee and then sleep over somewhere and continue on to MB the next day. Well, I am not finding anything to do along I-95 that is worth making a stop.
DH does not want to drive for 11 1/2 hours. He (and MIL, who is coming with us) are not the kind of people who will get up at 3 in the morning to hit the road before the traffic.
We go down Northern VA all the time, so I know what a nightmare around DC can be.

So, I know many of you do drive for long periods of time. Is it worth it? I have a 14 and 10 year old. They can keep themselves busy.
I am just trying to figure out if we sholud try to drive straight through. I would help with the driving

We are in CT and we have driven straight through to FL once but we prefer to stop in Brunswick, GA. It's about 16 hours from us.We leave the house at five am and we get to Brunswick around 9pm.This way we can be well rested when we get to WDW. We do this with 4 kids and my dh driving almost the entire thing(he likes to drive)

When we vacation in NC (11 hours) we drive straight through also.

 

[FireDancer]

I've driven non-stop from Cleveland, OH to Clearwater, FL twice. I did stop for things like food and gas and did pull over for about an hour to take a nap. I'll be driving to Point Pleasant Beach, NJ from here (Cleveland) in a couple of weeks.

It would have to be a very very long drive for me to stop for the night, I'd rather just drive through personally.

 

[Minnesota!]

I would drive straight through. stop for gas, food, walk around for a while. We used to make frequent trips to KC, MO. About 8 hours from us. We would stop in IA somewhere for gas and literally just walk around the gas station for a good 45 minutes. Pick up some snacks, etc. We drove to Cincy from here (about 13 hours) and we only stopped at a hotel b/c all 3 of us had worked LONG days and nobody could keep their eyes open! If we had planned better, we would have driven straight through - and rested before hand!

 

[Rupert B Puppenstein]

I am probably crazy to travel with because I would much rather drive all night and day to get from point A to point B than stop all the time. I drove from WDW to Flagstaff, AZ in a day and a half because I only stopped for gas, lived on Mountain Dew and Cheetos and would stop at rest areas to nap. I slept for a bit when I got there, but it seemed a lot better that way. We have driven the 7 hours to Disney World twice and it hasn't been bad...and we drive from Atlanta to Chicago once a year in one day and that is a 12 hour trek.

 

[GeorgeG]

NJ to Myrtle Beach can be done in one day, but it's a long day if you don't like driving. A lot depends on what kind of traffic you hit the first half of your trip. I personally think stopping for a decent meal and a good night's sleep is a good idea even if there isn't much to see or do where you stop. I've never understood the benefit of starting out in the middle of the night and driving straight through if you're too exhausted to enjoy your fist day at your destination. If you have the time, I suggest pacing yourselves.

 

[Heidict]

I love to drive and am good for 12 hours or more. As long as I can stop every few hours to stretch and use the bathroom then I'm good.

I would love to drive to Disney but my DH hates the idea.

 

[emer95]

The longest drive we did with our kids was to Amelia Island, FL. It was 16 hours and we drove straight through on the way down (overnight). Our kids were 8 and 10 at the time, and we left right before dinner, stopped for food/gas/bathroom breaks but that was it. They slept the majority of the way, and my husband and I took turns driving. It was a breeze! No traffic, and we got it over with.

On the way back, we stopped halfway through in W.V. We stayed overnight but there was really nothing to do. We spent two gorgeous days stuck in the car driving, hit tons of traffic and maddening construction, and we were crabby and started fighting. All four of us were not speaking to each other when we pulled into the driveway.

Huge difference in the two drives! We will only drive straight through from now on.

 

[Karalea]

I am driving from South Carolina to upstate New York Labor Day weekend. It is about 15 hours. I thought about driving it all in one day but decided to stop for the night. I plan to drive 10 hours the 1st day and 5 the next. The last few hours of the trip are off the interstate through rural areas and it is just too hard to see after dark.

When I lived in Charlotte I did the drive to New York straight through a couple times a year - 11 hours.

 

[DMickey28]

We drove from S. Florida to MB back in April 2009. It was about 10.5-11 hours. My DS was two. It was fine ... we drove on a Saturday I think, or Sunday, and hit some traffic but nothing crazy. It stinks when you are doing it but it's nice to get it over with.

When we moved home we drove from S. Florida to Orlando to SC, stayed over night, drove to NJ stayed over and drove to the Cape.

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

I drive to El Paso quite often - it's about a 12-hour drive from Los Angeles, unless I go faster & miss traffic in Phoenix - then about 11-1/2 hours for me. I always go without stopping, and have never had issues.

 

[scrapquitler]

I would rather drive straight thru for 12 hours rather then lose an extra day of time at my destination

 

[AndreaDM]

My husband and I both hate driving long distance, hate it! We won't drive to Florida although I did it once alone over 10 years ago. But, we are driving to Atlantic Beach, NC next weekend and it's about an 11 hour drive. It's a Sunday to Sunday rental and we want to be there early on Sunday, so we are driving 7 hours or so Saturday afternoon/evening, spending the night at a cheap hotel just so we can get to the rental house before noon on Sunday and enjoy most of that day at the beach. The following Sunday we're doing the whole drive home and I'm already dreading it! We like to listen to audio books so that helps and whoever isn't driving can also watch movies on the portable dvd player.

 

[Ceila]

We recently drove from southern NJ (near Philadelphia) all the way to Savannah, GA in one day. We left around 6 am and got there around 7, so making it to Myrtle in one day is possible.

 

[SpecialK]

If we can get to our destination in 12 hours or less we drive straight through.

 

[AshleyW]

At least once or twice a year, we make the drive from Iowa to central Mississippi to visit my fiance's family. It usually takes us about 13 hours, including a brief stop at McD's for breakfast, a sit-down place for lunch, and 2 stops to fill up the gas tanks & let the dogs stretch their legs. It's really not too bad. The worst part is having to drive through St. Louis and Memphis.

 

[Praying Colonel]

When I was young, stupid and in love, I once drove straight from Newport RI to Kentucky (about 16 hours) to see my then-GF/now-DW. Now that I'm old and not as stupid but still not bright, we drive straight through to WDW, about 13-14 hours (870 miles).

 

[Handbag Lady]

I don't know. I once drove from Los Angeles to Three Rivers, Michigan ROUNDTRIP in seven days, and that was with staying two nights in Michigan for a funeral.

I'd drive straight through if there isn't a desirable place to stop and do touristy things.

 

[whogirl'smom]

We drive about 11 hours to WDW and have decided that is our limit! If we ever went anywhere further, we'd have to break it up. So, I'm thinking that your trip to the beach is doable. Maybe you can get hubby and mil rolling by 10 a.m., and then you'd be at the beach by dark!

 

[kacaju]

I'd drive straight through if there isn't a desirable place to stop and do touristy things.

That is what I am thinking... I just don't know if DH and MIL will be on board with that idea. Plus, if we only drive half way that could be 5 1/2 hours...that seems too short of a drive...then we'd still have to drive that much more. If we drive say 7-8 hours...well then we only have3-4 hours more of driving and it seems silly to stop for the night..
I know the kids would be ok...this way they can see their cousins a day early. Do you think it is a bad idea not to get a hotel room and just wait and get one only if we feel the need to stop??
Since it would really just be for sleeping, I don't care where we go (as long as it is clean!!)
I am not one to *wing it* so the thought of not reserving a room ahead of time scares me some!!

Ok onto another question... how long will it take to get from the NC border of VA to SC Myrtle Beach??