I-77 or I-75 route - looking for feedback from people that have driven both routes

[Csaks]

Thanks for the responses. I'm quite comfortable driving in the snow/winter - commuted from Cambridge to Richmond Hill for 5 years, and still commute now, just to Burlington.

I just wonder if it's any different driving through the mountains and whether there's even any snow during March????

Still looking for recommended cities to stop on the way down -either route 75 or 77. At this point I'd say I'm leaning toward I-77.

Well I called them mountains but compared to the Rockies they are molehills. The only thing I noticed is there isn't a straight part anywhere in the Virginia's. You are either turning left or right or going up or down. If there was one I musta blinked and missed it. I also second the advice on the US 19 speed traps. Do not do it, speed that is.

Tolls are the most on 90 and a couple in the Virginia's. Make sure you have some American change with you, not all are maned, at least one I can remember late at night.

Sounds like you have the best of both worlds, the choice of either route without a time penalty. We live in Oshawa so it's one way for me.

We stopped In Hardeeville, SC at the Quality Inn and Suites. It was a nice place but the powdered 'Free' eggs in the morning needed a bunch of Maple Surup to eat. LOL That was just under 17 hours from my house, leaving a short 5 or 6 to the World the next day.

 

[Reese]

We've taken both routes and we found that the time difference was insignificant. We're about 20 min from Cambridge. I prefer the 1-75. I found that there were a lot of convenient stops along the way that were clean. The rest stops were well lit and most of them were open at all times (we drove straight through).

 

[DonaldDC]

Would like to get more opinions on this if they're out there.

Thanks

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

My family and I have taken I-75 every summer since 1996 and have had no problems going along that route, so I would highly recommend it.

 

[polyhm83]

We have driven at least 10 times from Barrie. We usually go the I-77 route down, but because of the traffic on I-4 end up coming home the I-75 route. The longest part of the trip seems to be Ohio, Mich, and the 401 from Windsor. For where we live I much prefer the I-77 route, much more scenic and it does seem to save alot of time. However we always go during March break and have hit quite a few wicked snow storms over the years. If you hit the mountains in the daytime, as others have suggested, I think it is a nicer drive, (weather dependant). Enjoy your drive either way. If you go I-75 the
Along 75 book is excellant.

 

[Da2154]

On our last trip, we took I-77 on the way down (met up with family) and I-75 on the way back. The time difference was insignificant but I much prefer the I-75 route. More stops available on I-75, mountain route on I-75 does not feel as dangerous as I-77, etc.

 

[OntFamily]

On our last trip, we took I-77 on the way down (met up with family) and I-75 on the way back. The time difference was insignificant but I much prefer the I-75 route. More stops available on I-75, mountain route on I-75 does not feel as dangerous as I-77, etc.

What was the end point of your trip? For some people, I-75 will be shorter, and others i-77 is shorter (dependent on where you drive to).

 

[eeyoremommy]

I haven't read the entire thread, but I-75 has a LOT of traffic through the southern part of Georgia (below Macon to the GA/FL line).

 

[Da2154]

What was the end point of your trip? For some people, I-75 will be shorter, and others i-77 is shorter (dependent on where you drive to).

London was our end point. I-75 is closer. A friend from Sarnia found I-75 pretty clogged during the week. We drove on a weekend.

 

[greenclan67]

We are thinking of driving next year in March, we will probably go up through the Sault area and do I-75 route! I was told something interesting from a friend yesterday that has driven, they drove so far, then put their car and themselves on the train, I think they said in Maryland, is where they did this, but can't remember. Has anyone done this, and how did it work out! Our biggest problem with driving is we don't own a personal vehicle, we have a company vehicle, as my hubby is the manager, he pretty much is allowed to do what he wants with it, we just pay the gas, when we use it for trips like that. So we were going to have to rent a vehicle to drive down, if we can do the train and limit miles on our vehicle we can do that. Any help would be appreciated!

 

[Nahanni]

We are thinking of driving next year in March, we will probably go up through the Sault area and do I-75 route! I was told something interesting from a friend yesterday that has driven, they drove so far, then put their car and themselves on the train, I think they said in Maryland, is where they did this, but can't remember. Has anyone done this, and how did it work out! Our biggest problem with driving is we don't own a personal vehicle, we have a company vehicle, as my hubby is the manager, he pretty much is allowed to do what he wants with it, we just pay the gas, when we use it for trips like that. So we were going to have to rent a vehicle to drive down, if we can do the train and limit miles on our vehicle we can do that. Any help would be appreciated!

It is the AMTRAK Autotrain that runs from Lorford, VA to Sanford, FL. Regular fares look expensive ($670 one way for 4 people & car) but I have no idea if there are discounts available. It could make sense if mileage is a factor.

I'd love to hear from anyone who has used it.

 

[A&CsMom]

We take the I90/I79/US19/I77/I26/I95/I4 route. In fact, we are in Florida right now. However, because it is March and weather could still be an issue, I did have hotels booked on both that route and the I75 route. We are in the Burlington area. We personally find the above route more interesting. However, we always check the weather and plan accordingly. We usually leave in the morning for our first day driving but would leave the evening before the get "ahead" of any weather if necessary. We stayed overnight in Mooresville, NC a few days ago and on the way back are planning on staying in Wytheville, VA, about half way for us. We are not big on very early mornings and usually hit the road around 8:30 am and drive about 11-12 hours, including stops, on the first day, with a shorter second day. The only traffic we encountered on the way here was in Orlando. We stayed at the Springhill Suites in Mooresville, NC and I would recommend it. Picked it from reviews at trip advisor. The route we take isn't as built up and I think that's part of what we like. You do have to have a GPS or someone to "navigate" though because there are several highway changes whereas with I75 you pretty much stay on the same road the whole time.

 

[Ken_Breadbox]

We've done both routes. On the advice of DISers and Google Maps we took the I-77 route down last time. We're glad we took that route--fantastic scenery--but we will never do that again. We pulled out of Waterloo at 3 a.m. and arrived Charlotte NC at exactly 6:00 p.m. with stops totalling maybe 1.5 hours--the second day started at 6:30 a.m. and we pulled into OKW just after 4:00 p.m, with, again, minimal stops barring a colossal traffic jam less than 20 miles from WDW. We found the trip through the mountains beautiful but considerably more demanding. The traffic was very heavy most of the way to U.S. 19.
I-75 is, for my money, the better route, especially if weather is an issue. There are places to stop pretty much everywhere and Dave Hunter has mapped out the speed traps for you--we felt a little more comfortable pushing it just a tad. It took us about an hour less coming home via I-75 than it did going down.

 

[A&CsMom]

FYI, we left the Burlington area at 8:30 am on a Friday morning and arrived at Mooresville, NC, just before Charlotte, at 7:30 pm. 11 hours travelling but 10 hours actually driving. Weather was clear and didn't hit any significant traffic or construction delays.

Edited to add: We left Mooresville at 8:30 am the next day and pulled into our rental home in Kissimmee at 5:30 pm. We stopped a bit more often because we were having problems with our cruise control and did hit a bit of traffic in Orlando (not much though).