Is Driving worth the trip?

[Mainemama]

I realize that I am asking a crowd that will likely say yes to Disney being worth it no matter if we had to walk, but I am asking anyway, and hoping for some folks to chime in who have done it. We live in Maine and have flown the last 3 years for Presidents Week. Flights are prohibitively expensive this year. We are a family of five, so it really adds up quickly. We are entertaining the thought of driving, but are limited by our school vacation time, so it would need to happen between a Friday evening, and returning at a reasonable hour the following Sunday in order to be prepared for real life again. When I do the math, I am torn about it being worth it. I really want to go to Disney this year (my last chance with a 2 year old, and 9 year old), but I don't want to feel it was torture to get there for 5 packed park days. (Our favorite day last year was a day we took very slow. Not so sure I will slow down if we only have 5 days). Our kids are good car travelers, but the longest trip we have ever taken is to Philly. Thanks for advice!

 

[msb578]

Yes!

We (family of 5) recently drove from Syracuse, NY. We will never fly to Orlando again! The whole trip was much less stressful.

 

[bbak3030]

My kids are good travelers, but our trip is only 10 hours. I would say try it. You're right, it's Disney! You will probably regret it if you don't go. If it doesn't work out, you will know not to do it again.

 

[tina.tina]

Our trip was 12 hours. We left town after school at about 4:30pm and we never turned on the radio or any other electronic devices. We had the best time talking about our trip and just having great family time. We did small gifts sporadically to keep the bickering to a minimum. The kids went to sleep at about 11pm. We stopped for the night at 1am.

Driving gives you the opportunity to see more than just flying. We stopped at the Florida border and got free fresh OJ. We drove on the beach in Daytona and the kids hopped in the ocean with their clothes on.

Our kids were 5 and 10. I'm not sure if I would be brave enough to drive that far with a 2 year old. What about looking for flights from an airport farther from your home or farther from WDW. I saw where someone was flying into St. Petersburg/Clearwater instead because of the price of flights.

On the way back, electronic devices & the radio were used but everyone was tired and happy to chill out.

 

[ilovedisneymm]

Our trip is 16 plus hours and we drive every year. Yes, it is totally worth it. Gas this trip will run about $250 verses I have no idea as we just drive.

Flying is stressful. Be there at xx time, worry about car parking, worry about baggage check, worry about delayed flight, worry about what crazy you will sit next to on the plane, worry about your luggage being lost.

And then double all the stress above cause you get to do that when you return too.

Nope. We drive about 12 - 14 hours the first day, check into a hotel, awake fresh and two plus hours to go

 

[katallo]

For the first time in many years, we are driving in March. We kept hoping but Weekend flights from BWI are expensive. The only decent choices are first flight in am or last flight in pm. Makes more sense to drive at this point.

 

[nacho113]

You didn't say exactly where in Maine you are coming from but anywhere in the state is going to give you a 1500+ mile trip, a full 22-24 hours of driving (posible longer depending on the number of meal and potty stops that are needed). That's a couple of grueling days driving on the way down and the same back and 5 days at the parks in between.
YOU ARE GOING TO NEED A VACATION FROM THE VACATION!

If everything goes perfectly for you ie: no roadwork delays, no storms, no rainy Park days, no one gets ill or just has a cranky day, then it's definitely do-able.
Will it be an enjoyable experience for all, this could be an altogether different story.

The DW and I did something similar in our younger (and more foolish days) before kids. Drove down from Minneapolis straight through to WDW (1550 miles), left Friday after work and arrived Saturday just after midnight. Slept away most of Sunday and then spent 5 days park hopping. Paced our driving a little better on the way back and took 2 days to get home.
Took the whole next week at work to get over the vacation!
I can only imagine the fun this would have been with young children along.
Our first trip to the World with the kids involved flying and lots of leisure time between park visits.

 

[Mainemama]

Thanks to all for chiming in. I see both ends of the spectrum posted, and this represents exactly how I feel! On one hand, my 2 year old is potty trained and an easy car rider. Having two older sibs keeps her always entertained. Plane travel is stressful, and coming from Maine typically involves about a 13 hour travel period door to door, anyway. There are no cheap flights anywhere, except driving 7 hours to NYC for a non direct flight that lands in JAX at off times. I can't talk my dh into that one, and believe me, I have tried! The whole vacation after a vacation thing is what gives us pause. My DH's favorite part of vacation is resting. He works long hours and can't afford to return to work exhausted. I think what I really want to do is just book a resort before the discounts are all gone, and then keep searching for flights, but know that driving is an option! The pp's mention of storms, etc., though gives me pause. It is a 22 hour drive without weather being an issue, and there is always weather somewhere at that time of year! (Part of the stress of flying is always seeing if we will make it out. We have been lucky so far!) Back to dreaming!

 

[twinspluscade]

We drive a similar distance: it's almost 21 hours drive time for us one way. We've driven it once, and will again this May.

I don't find that it's too bad, BUT we do a road trip every year for our vacation so we are used to long distances: our longest trip was 26 hours one way drive time (not including any stops), and that was a long haul! I will say there's a huge difference between a 12 hour trip and a longer trip...those posters who drive 9, 10, 12 hours with no problem might think differently with a 20+ hour drive.

In your case, personally the drive would not be worth it to me for just 5 days in Disneyworld. Now, if you could add even two days on, I think it would be worth it. . Any chance you could add a few more days to the trip?

 

[Alesia]

I wouldn't do it, but I think short trips are a waste of time and money. If I can't spend at least 7 full days in the parks, I'd much rather go somewhere else - especially If I'd already been there in the last 4 or 5 years or so.

There are so many closer, less expensive places to go. I'd take the opportunity to take my family somewhere we haven't been before.

 

[canadiankim]

Its a tough decision whichever way you look at it. We are heading to Florida in August 2015 and have 11 days booked and are considering driving from Toronto or flying from Buffalo. Its about a 24-26 hour drive and we have done it once before. DS will be 15 and DD will be 13 when we go this time and are both excellent travellers. DH and I will be happy to share the driving.

The cost difference is almost $900 when you take into consideration flights and car rental, parking at the airport etc compared to driving and spending a night each way in a hotel to break the journey.

I have no problem with the drive there as everyone is excited and looking forward to the trip, we chat, play games, use the electronics etc and plan, plan, plan! BUT the journey home is always a bit of a let down, with the only thing to look forward to is work/school etc.

I am keeping a watchful eye on flight prices and if I can get the spread down to less than $700 difference we will be flying!

 

[bigbabyblues]

Our trip is about 15 hours, and it is worth it to us. We drive straight through, switching off between me and DH driving (he does most of it). We live 2-3 hours from the airport, depending on where we would fly from, and it is much less hassle to drive.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Dh & I both have driven (approx. 20 hrs) before we met & I had flown as a child. When we were dating I surprised him with a birthday trip. It was his first time on a plane and he swore he'd never drive again. Flights have never been so expensive to make us want to drive. These days, in our 40s/50s, our max car trip is around 6 hours. Beyond that and we'd rather be at the dentist, regardless of where we're driving to.

We cruised over TG week back in 2008 and I was stressing about possibly getting stuck with high airfares. So I booked a rental car one way from home to Port Canaveral and figured if flights were outrageous, we'd just book a one way flight for going home and use the rental car to drive down.

At least for the drive down everyone is excited. Going home is another story.
We like to just get home already. If we leave the ship around 8:30am, we get to MCO around 9:15. We take an 11:30 flight home and land by 2pm, still with plenty of time to unpack/unwind before going to work/school the next day. If we drove, we still be somewhere in SC at 2pm, with still a looong way to go.

For the pp who mentioned all the stress of flying:
Flying is stressful. Be there at xx time, worry about car parking, worry about baggage check, worry about delayed flight, worry about what crazy you will sit next to on the plane, worry about your luggage being lost.

If it's that worrisome, you're better off driving. Personally, I don't worry about any of this, just getting out the door on time which is no different than any typical day for me going to work. It's only a 20 min ride to the airport and then I'm sitting back chilling at the gate, eating lunch/dinner etc. Vacation has begun.
As for luggage being lost, I've had mine delayed a few hours but never lost in probably around 35 flights. Any bags would be delivered to the hotel (happened once) and on the way home they'd deliver it to our front porch. (Happened 2-3x) I really don't care if it's delayed going home. Someone else can lug it in their trunk and it's just dirty laundry anyway. No stress over that.

Do what works for you.

 

[Susiequsie60]

That's a tough one. I'd say go for the drive.

One thought: Any way you could pull the kids from school for one day, and leave the Thursday afternoon rather than Friday? It would give you an extra day which would really help!

My husband and I (and our kids when they were living with us!) drove just about everywhere. We're in NJ and have driven to WDW, southern Florida, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Orleans, the Outer Banks, etc. Some of those trips were pretty darn long! We love driving though. Much much less stressful (and almost always cheaper) than flying.

Many people seemed to be shocked that we'd travel such long distances with 2 kids (a boy and a girl one year apart in age) without any major issues. It sounds like your kids are like mine were in that they're good car travelers. We took these trips from the times our younger was probably 10 until he he went off to college. (Now our family vacations are a little different.) But seriously, back in the day I think we were lucky in that we didn't have to worry about fighting or stuff like that.

I think that if you don't do it, you might regret it because you'll never know how it would have turned out. Yes, you do run the risk of it not turning out exactly how you would like, but I think I'd go for it.

Good luck!

 

[NARM Forever]

We've driven down from Canada about 5 times. The first time we only stayed for 5 nights and decided that it really wasn't worth it for such a short trip.

Our other trips we have been fortunate enough to be able to stay for 8 or 9 nights and visit friends in NC on the way. However, one trip we were all sick on the way back (bad flu, severe fatigue), it was really tough going and it took us a couple of weeks to recover.

In March we will be flying because the kids only have a one week Spring Break and they're at an age where taking an additional week is not an option. We enjoy the drive but, for us, its not worth it for 5 nights.

N

 

[Allison]

Nope, not worth it to me and not a good choice for my family.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

I am lucky enough to be able to pull my oldest out of school. He's only in 2nd grade but way ahead of his other classmates and his teacher is going to be sending work home so he can do some on the drive down. We drive down from nj stop over night in sc and then drive the rest of the way. We are also fortunate that it can be a longer vacation that we are able to stop a long the way and also get 7 full days in Disney. I honestly don't think I would make the drive if I had to cram it all into that 1 week they get for spring break. To me that's not worth it. If I am driving that far a distance I need time to recover before getting back into my car again lol

 

[Madame]

We are also a family of 5 and are in a similar situation. Our March break we are leaving at 2:30pm on Friday - I teach & we can't do it any other way.

It's 21 hours straight through, so 24 or so with stops. We are taking 2 days on the way back. So we'll get 6 full days.

It is what it is. I can only travel during school breaks as we get no personal days. But seriously $2500 in airfare when the other components of the trip are $3500? No way, it's way out of our reach.

If it works for us, I see us driving on future trips. Good luck with your decision!

 

[pepe of ohio]

I don't fly ....period...

That being said, we drive and use Amtrak...

The skinny on the train is, we're in northeast Ohio and have a 2 part trip... One from Ohio to Washington and then Washington to Kissimmee... problem is the layover in DC, 8 hours...making the trip 36+ hours but we do enjoy the comfort and peacefulness of traveling by train...

Our drive is 16+ hours and we drive straight thru but stop at the Florida Welcome Center for a few hours rest...

Price wise they are about the same money, train vs car... But on a train, you can close your eyes and drift off while the train keeps moving...

I rather do the train but rather enjoy getting into WDW around 6 am by driving but as we're getting older, the drive seems longer..

Thinking this trip to stop somewhere in Georgia, oceanfront...then short day the next to WDW....choices choices... It's not about the money, but more about the time and ease of traveling...as for the train, we don't need a car in WDW, when we drive to WDW, it sits in the lot..

 

[nacho113]

Its a tough decision whichever way you look at it. We are heading to Florida in August 2015 and have 11 days booked and are considering driving from Toronto or flying from Buffalo. Its about a 24-26 hour drive and we have done it once before. DS will be 15 and DD will be 13 when we go this time and are both excellent travellers. DH and I will be happy to share the driving.

The cost difference is almost $900 when you take into consideration flights and car rental, parking at the airport etc compared to driving and spending a night each way in a hotel to break the journey.

I have no problem with the drive there as everyone is excited and looking forward to the trip, we chat, play games, use the electronics etc and plan, plan, plan! BUT the journey home is always a bit of a let down, with the only thing to look forward to is work/school etc.

I am keeping a watchful eye on flight prices and if I can get the spread down to less than $700 difference we will be flying!

If you're going in August, I think flying would be a better alternative. It will give you 2 extra days actually in Florida and trust me you will need it. Crowd volume in the Parks is high/extreme so days at the parks tend to be long and not nearly as productive as when you go in the quieter seasons.

A note the the OP: similar is true about park crowds during spring break periods (very/extremely busy). Spending the extra money on the airfare may seem like a lot, but will 2 extra days in Florida and a more leisurely pace on your vacation balance out that equation somewhat. As I get older, I find that sometimes my time is more valuable than the money.
Here's a small scale example: have you ever just popped down to the corner store to buy a gallon of milk because it wasn't worth the time and effort to drive the 15 minutes down to the supermarket to save 50 cents on the milk??
Same idea with the vacation, just the numbers are much larger.
Is it worth spending the extra $$$ to have 2 whole extra days of vacation time?
Will 50-60 hours of driving (round trip) sour the enjoyment of 5 rushed days of vacation?
just my $0.02