How long do YOU drive??? :)

[Tistal]

We drive straight there (about 13 hours). Granted, we don't have kids. We only stop if someone has to go to the bathroom or if we need gas. It usually ends up about being 4 stops the whole way. We also drive at night. DH works night shift, so he drives first and we trade off in the wee hours of the morning.

 

[softballmom3]

Hey KY neighbor-we are 865 miles from the entrance of Disney.
We have done many ways:

-Leave after school and drive straight thru-arriving at 4-5 AM.
-Leave at midnight and arrive around 1-2 PM
-Leave at 3-4 AM and get there at dinnertime.
-Leave after school and stop in GA-arriving just after lunch the next day.
Option 1 was done twice, I won't do it again-very wiped out.
Option 2 was done twice, likely won't do it again.
Option 3 is most common, the evening is for rest, parks the next day.
Option 4 was tried last month and worked out great. We plan this in Dec for the Christmas trip.
We always drive straight home, leaving Disney around 8 AM.

I believe we will be doing this also .....

Kudos to all you that drive long periods of time before stopping!!!

 

[softballmom3]

There is a huge difference between getting a good nights sleep and driving for 13 hours, that's tiring but not a huge deal, and putting in a days activities and then heading out for that long and, in my opinion a very unsafe way to travel.

Even though traffic, overall, is lighter at night it is prime truck travel time so you are always on the road with semi's all around you. This can be very intense. I suggest just going half of it or slightly more on that first day and then proceeding on the next for a leisurely drive to WDW. Check in and rest up and be ready for the next day of park touring.

When I used to drive from Vermont I would plan on two nights in a hotel on the way. 12 hours the first day, maybe 8 the next and the third day into Orlando. I was the only driver so I wanted to make sure I wasn't too tired, not only because of safety but also because I wanted to feel good when I got to Disney, not exhausted. But that's just me.

To me 13 hours is reasonable if it is all you are doing that day, but since, in this case, it is capping the day...I would consider stopping.

Couldn't agree with you more. It's really not a big deal if you haven't worked all day before driving as we will be driving straight home (as we did last year). My issue was more with not leaving until 3 or so in the afternoon. Yeah we can switch up drivers and will but I was really just curious at what others do and appreciate all of the cordial responses.

 

[hearts8701]

we drive down from chicago 19 hours we stop just pass canton or dalton ga. the first night arriving in disney the next afternoon drive home a little different we drive straight thru
just remember the driver will be very tired when you arrive and go to bed early so make plans to explore the hotel..swim..anything to entertain those who had sleep on the ride and get the driver some quiet time to relax and start fresh the following day