Kids sleeping at night in the car?

[Magic4UsZ's]

When you drive to WDW,do your kids sleep in their car seats/belted up? or do you let them lay down?

I'm a safety nut and never let my kids (8 & 12) out of their car seats/belts for almost anything, but we are thinking of driving in the future and I do think that it makes sense to start at night to avoid the traffic,but I'm not for sure how much actual sleep would take place for them. I think from the middle of Illinois it will be a 18 hour trip.

How do you all handle this issue? Do you get them up in the middle of the night to start your journey? Do you start of in the evening? Are they really rested for the start of a very physical vacation?

I'd hate to get all the way down there and have crab monsters our first day. We have drove it in two days but was thinking it sure would be cheaper to do it in one day (down at least).

Thanks

 

[schlepsnort]

Not driving to FL but to NJ with a 4yrold, 2 yr old and 6mo old. They will all be strapped into their safety seats! It is just safer! We've driven at night and they are fine the next morning.
When they are laying down the seatbelt won't be across their body correctly and would serve pretty much no protection as it would if they were sitting up. I also give them (the older two) big pillows to lean against.
Hope that helps--and btw--I did do the drive from IL when I was much younger and probably 18 hrs is a good guesstimate, including stops for gas, potty breaks, COFFEE!!!
And yes, we travel at night, rotating drivers!

 

[BlindTyldak]

Honestly they are not going to get a lot of sleep no matter what, and have a good chance of cramped necks. When we moved from MA to SD (twice) we'd let my DD put the shoulder strap behind her so she could lay down a bit against the armrest in the van on a pillow without having the shoulder strap digging into her.

If there's any way you can stop to sleep, I'd definitely do it and not take the chances, but that's just me.

 

[checkwriter]

When we did this the kids were always belted in. We'd leave (from NY) very early -- 4 a.m. or so, to avoid the NYC rush hour traffic -- and just keep going until we hit Orlando. All I had to do was to think once about how I would feel if the unthinkable happened and one of our unbelted kids was injured or worse.

When you get down there we found that you do need a non-WDW day to decompress and recover. It's tough to jump out of a 20-hour car ride and hit the parks full speed.

BTW, I grew up in beautiful Decatur, IL, and have family in Peoria. The ride from NYC is about the same. Just a bit more traffic.

 

[IMGONNABE40!]

Within the last five years or so a family was driving from FL back home to somewhere in the midwest. They were doing the drive in the wee small hours of the morning. Not sure if the driver of their van fell asleep, or if another driver fell asleep, but....there was a horrible accident. Don't remember the details, but I do remember that a teen aged friend of the family was ejected from the van because she was sleeping without a seatbelt. She did not survive the accident. Some of the other kids were critically injured as well. Not sure if any of them died.

So, I'd say--definately proper safety restraints. Not sure about the crab monsters. If it were me, I would get a reasonably priced hotel 2-3 hours from Orlando and finish the drive refreshed and ready to have some fun!

 

[Crazy4Disney72]

When you drive to WDW,do your kids sleep in their car seats/belted up? or do you let them lay down?

I'm a safety nut and never let my kids (8 & 12) out of their car seats/belts for almost anything, but we are thinking of driving in the future and I do think that it makes sense to start at night to avoid the traffic,but I'm not for sure how much actual sleep would take place for them. I think from the middle of Illinois it will be a 18 hour trip.

How do you all handle this issue? Do you get them up in the middle of the night to start your journey? Do you start of in the evening? Are they really rested for the start of a very physical vacation?

I'd hate to get all the way down there and have crab monsters our first day. We have drove it in two days but was thinking it sure would be cheaper to do it in one day (down at least).

Thanks

We have driven from MD to WDW several times over the years with our kids and we always drive straight through on the way down, about 17hrs or so. They are always in their car seats/ seat belts the entire time and they sleep just fine. We generally leave after dinner and drive for a few hours. During this time, we talk, watch movies, listen to cds, play games, whatever. About 10-11:00 we stop and everyone uses the restroom, washes face, brushes teeth, and when they were little, I would put them in pjs just to signal that it really is sleep time. Now that they are a little older (last time we drove in 11/04 they were 4, 7, and 11) they stay in their clothes. Anyway, once we are back in the van on the road, it is quiet time, no more games, movies, only quiet calm music, and no talking. Because it's so much past their bedtime anyway, they are usually out within a half hour. During the night while they are sleeping, DH and I stop when we need to stop for bathroom or gas breaks and to switch off drivers, and if one of the kids wakes up they usually just ask where we are and then go back to sleep. Usually around 7 or so they are waking up for the day and we stop at a Cracker Barrel and have a nice breakfast and have about a 1.5-2hr break from driving. It generally works out that we are hitting WDW around lunch time.

On the way back, we don't drive straight through, as we are too tired from our week at WDW! We usually leave WDW around 4 in the afternoon and drive for a while, generally a quick fast food dinner somewhere so as not to have a long stop, then stop for the night at a motel around 10, wake up by 7 the next morning, have breakfast, and then get on the road.

Many people have said we were crazy, but it has worked well for us in the past. We take turns driving, I would never try to drive straight through with only one driver, and our excitement for the upcoming trip keeps us going. Our kids are just used to it, that's how we do our WDW vacations, so it's no big deal to them. That first day in WDW we don't go to a park, we just check into our resort, usually have lunch in the food court, and then go hang out at the pool or in the room, something low-key, and make sure we all get to bed fairly early so we can be ready to hit the parks early the next morning!

 

[seven dwarfs]

When we drive the kids stay in the car seat with seatbelts as well. We give them a small pillow to place between head and seat and a blanket and they sleep fine. Never have any problems.

 

[Magic4UsZ's]

Thanks everyone for your input. I was glad to know that I'm not alone when it comes to seat belts/booster seats. I think the same thing, if something were to happen I couldnt live with it. (I actually know people who have let there kids lie down in there van/car to sleep) but I couldnt do that. It looks like some kids sleep well at night in the car while others need to recover a day from the trip down. I think the best route if driving to break it up into 2 days. My husband likes to drive but i would not want him to do it all in a one shot trip,just doesnt sound safe to me. I guess I need to rethink the price of airfare, it would save a day, if not two, of vacation time if we fly. I didnt fly for a year after 9/11,but then i got to thinking it was exactly what terrorists wanted you to do, to interupt your life and be scared, so I decided to h*** with them and lets go fly to wdw. Now my issue is with the rising costs of fuel and how it is making travel more expensive,wether it be via plane or car. I guess I should count myself blessed if this is what kind of "problem" I have,but still it just ,makes you soooo mad when the prices just keep climbing and you hear about how much the oil companies make every quarter/year.
But everyone is right....Safety first.

 

[Nancyg56]

I didnt fly for a year after 9/11,but then i got to thinking it was exactly what terrorists wanted you to do, to interupt your life and be scared, so I decided to h*** with them and lets go fly to wdw.

Sorry, I just have to share this. My Mom had never been in a plane , not for 80 years. My nephew was graduating from boot camp at Paris Island November 2001, and my DS and I were trying to think of viable options to get her there comfortably. Well, she surprised us by saying that no terrorist was going to keep her off a plane. My feisty Mom was more angry than scared at that point!

 

[CamColt]

When we drive from MA to WDW it is about a 24 hour ride. We do it 10:00am-10:00am (hopefully earlier if it goes well). We always stay buckled up while we sleep. the kids usually dont fall asleep until later than they normally would but they approximately 7 hours sleep. DH and I get less than that, but its enough to get by on for 1 night. We then plan to have an easy day and early night the first night to rest up and be ready to go.

 

[mjkaferle5]

We drove from Michigan down to Valdosta, GA, the last 'big' town off of I-75 at the southern edge of Georgia. Spent the night there. Then we finished off the trip to Disney in the morning. It took about 4 hours or so from there and we were full of energy when we got to Disney!! No Crab Butts!!!

 

[Mersmom98]

My dd (8) is a major car sleeper! She'll fall asleep within 5 minutes of being on the road sometimes. She keeps her seatbelt on because she knows it's a "no discussion" situation. However, when we drove to WDW in November from TX (about a 15 hour drive ) she was too excited to sleep. I was shocked! Well, we left TX at about 5am and arrived in Orlando around 9pm that same day. We got a great nights sleep and arrived completely refreshed at the parks the next day. I guess what I'm saying is to not expect your kids to sleep in the car because of all the excitement. The full nights sleep made all the difference in the world!

 

[Gabkatt]

We drive from Canton, Ohio about the same distance as you and leave at night as you said. The seat belts stay on! The kids bring their pillows and a blanket if they want and their fine! They prop themselves up and get as comfortable as they can. We drive straight through on the way down but take two days to come back. No problems with the kids sleeping.

 

[Belle2667]

We always drive too. Our kids sleep in their seatbelts, with a pillow or blanket from home.

We leave our house at 4am. Kids usually sleep from Philly to Virginia, and then off and on during the day. My DH and I take turns as needed during the day.

We arrive in Jacksonville by 8pm. We walk to an Applebees for dinner, and we get right back on schedule with sleeping and feeling refreshed. We hit the road to Orlando by 9 and are at our resort by 11:30.

Coming home, we usually drive straight through.

(Yes, we drive it all the time!)

 

[Northstar]

For those who let their kids lie down without seatbelts, you do know it's against the law in Florida (and probably most other states you'll drive through)??

About when to start the trip... my DD is a heavy sleeper until about 4:00 am and we do well with starting a trip in the wee hours. She goes to sleep in comfy soft clothes, not jammies, then we kind of half-carry her into the bathroom for a pee when we're ready to leave and help her into the car and strap in with big pillows and a blanket. A key factor is not turning on bright lights or speaking much. She drifts right back into dreamland.

 

[bluejasmine]

My DD 9 still falls asleep in the car all the time! She is always buckled up I allow her to just have the lap one on when she is laying down but she must pull the strap across her chest when sitting up. We have left in the middle of the night early in the morning too but have found leaving in the afternoon and getting a hotel in Fl is better for us, then we wake up about 7 and head to WDW check in our resort (cant normally get room that early but atleast get KTTK cards) and jump on the next bus to MK!
I cant wait 18 more days!

 

[frayedend]

Oh my, I remember when I was 11 or so (20 years ago) going to Orland with my friends family in the back of their wagon. Seats down, sleeping bags, snacks, wipes, games. No seat belts at all! It wasn't even a thought back then. Funny how things have changed.

Well I just can't imagine my kids making a 20 hour or so drive now while sitting up and buckled. We have to fly. Maybe when they get a little older.

Funny thing is they can go on the schoolbus every day with no seatbelts

 

[Sleeping Becca]

We prefer to drive rather than fly. Flying cuts into out park time, you basically lose one day in the parks by flying. We live in South Louisisana, it takes us around 13 hours including stops for gas, bathroom, meals etc. We leave early around 4 or 5 AM and get there around dinner time and stay at a hotel in Kississimee, wake up early check into our Disney hotel and hit the parks before opening. We do the same thing on departure day, check out of our Disney hotel early load up the car hit the parks all day and that night we stay at a Kississmee hotel, wake up the next day and head home.

My daughter stays buckled the entire time and has no problem sleeping.

On a side note: as a child on our Disney trips we rarely wore seat belts. My mom would remove the middle seat in our minivan and put a matress down so we could sleep and play. It was like a rolling playpen. We all survived.

 

[frayedend]

We prefer to drive rather than fly. Flying cuts into out park time, you basically lose one day in the parks by flying. We live in South Louisisana, it takes us around 13 hours including stops for gas, bathroom, meals etc. We leave early around 4 or 5 AM and get there around dinner time and stay at a hotel in Kississimee, wake up early check into our Disney hotel and hit the parks before opening. We do the same thing on departure day, check out of our Disney hotel early load up the car hit the parks all day and that night we stay at a Kississmee hotel, wake up the next day and head home.

My daughter stays buckled the entire time and has no problem sleeping.

On a side note: as a child on our Disney trips we rarely wore seat belts. My mom would remove the middle seat in our minivan and put a matress down so we could sleep and play. It was like a rolling playpen. We all survived.

I'm not sure how flying would cut into your park time. If you leave on a plane at 4 or 5 in the morning you will be at the park by ~10AM? No hotel in Kissimmee needed. Same thing on way home. Wake up, go to park all day. Have late flight and go home. No Kissimee needed. What am I missing?

 

[margiemc]

We have driven from Philly to Orlando the last 5 trips we made. Our DD9, sleeps in her clothes and we usually hit the road by 2am. We drive as far as Kingsland, GA, which is 3 miles outside the Florida border. We usually get there around 4-5pm. Grab a good night's rest and the next morning, we are at WDW before noon. DD is always buckled and will usually sleep in the car until 7am or so.