Newbie with a question

[dlkrn]

I am a newbie to this board. I have to admit I am totally an addict already. I have a few questions. First are we crazy for going to WDW Aug 14 - 21? We have reservations at POR but I am worried about the weather. Does anybody have any input?
Also we are trying to save some $$, we are a family of 5 and our airfare is approx $1200.(which isn't horrible for a family of 5), but I was wondering is it worth it to try and drive? We are in Illinois so I am not sure exactly how long it would take. We are able to add days on to the vacation for driving but will it save us money in the end? Thanks for your help with this and for all the other info and tips I have been getting from this board!!!

 

[1MegMeg]

Hi! Welcome to the boards!

Weather
Yes, it will be hot in August, but you aren't crazy at all. Thousands of people do it all the time and they live to tell about it. Hehe! Weather-wise, is it just the heat you are worried about, or something else?

Driving versus Flying
Well, if you just drive down and don't spend extra days, then yes, you will save some money (assuming you can get a refund on your airfare). I am not sure where in IL you are coming from, so for ease of caculations I picked Chicago. The distance from Chicago to Orlando is 1242 miles and will take you approximately 24 hours. Again, not knowing what you drive I picked a nice round number of 20 miles per gallon for your vehicle. Even at $2.25/gallon for gas, it will only cost ~$140 in gas money to drive down here. However, if you add on additional days at WDW, then no, you won't save money.

 

[dlkrn]

Thanks for your quick response! Does it rain alot in August??? Will it be extremely crowded? 24 hour drive I think it may be worth just flying. I was thinking the extra days would be for driving and still just the 7 day at POR so the only extra would be the hotels for way down and way back.(we would find cheap hotels) i don't think we could drive 24 hours straight through.

 

[L107ANGEL]

Welcome DLKRN! I am not as knowledgeable as the DIS veterans, so I don't have the answers for you ( I am sure the DIS board will be a great help), but I do have a couple of questions for you. What are the ages of your children. The reason I ask is I think the driving time would really rely heavily on the ages. I am from PA and the drive, I believe, would be about 22 hours. I suggested driving and my 41 YO Dh and now 12 YO Dd, said no way!! I thought "Why not, my Mom is coming and between 3 drivers we could go straight through"? I approached my Mom and she said "No way"! I was totally shocked!! Why on earth not! Well after finally sitting down with the family I did finally have the chance to ask what was wrong with my plan. I was quickly reminded, that all though I adore my family, DH and I do not even drive to church together ( which is less than a mile and a half away). We just have different styles of driving. Once we are in a situtaion where we do go to the same place and do need to go together, he insists on driving. All the time!! I have learned to take the opportunity to just stare out the side window and take in all of the things I miss because you should not do that while driving! I then approached my Mom and inqured as to her apprehension, her reasoning was we all listened to different music. At first I thought that was sort of a wierd excuse but realized it did make sense.. DH, classic rock. DD, pop, DM, most commonly a audi for a book. Once I thought about all of these I realized we should fly.
Now if you have very young children who will get antsy, impatient and cranky...I think "get me there as soon as humanly possible!!!
I am sure the DIS board will help you out and I hope you have a magical time!!!!

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Weather in August is hot but not unbearable. Everyone has a differnt level of tolerance for heat though.

Plan on drinking lots of water to stay hydrated, take frequent breaks in cool places (pop into a shop or restaurant to cool off), plan pool breaks. It will probably be in the 80's/90's most days and humid.

It will likely rain a little every day in the afternoon as it does often if Florida and other tropical places. It's not as bad as you'd think though. It usually just rains long enough to clear the crowds out of the parks.

 

[dlkrn]

My kids are 12, 6 and 4. I can handle being in the car with my DH but he complains about my driving. The longest road trip we have done is 3 hours and the kids were great but I am not sure about how much longer till the fighting will begin. I could have plenty for them to do. I just was trying to save some $$ because WDW (like most vacations) are very costly.

 

[WillCAD]

I went in late August once and in early September several times.

Yeah, it's hot. And humid, too, which makes it feel sticky, muggy, whatever you want to call it. It's uncomfortable to be outside for long periods of time. But that's just motivation to stay inside and see more attractions, shop in more shops, and stop for more snacks. It's certainly bearable if you keep in mind that you won't be able to run full-tilt from one attraction to another.

Drink lots of water and take breaks now and then.

Also in August and Sept is the afternoon thunderstorm, which passes through the area every day at exactly 3:42 and 30 seconds, on the tick. It lasts 30-60 minutes, turns the whole place into a steam bath, lowers the temperature by 5 or 10 degrees, and then is gone. The rest of the day is sunny and clear, unless you happen to get hit with the odd weather front.

The best part about late August is that the closer you get to September, the lower the crowds will be. By Sept 1 WDW is deserted and everything becomes a walk-on.

I have driven to WDW from Baltimore many times. From here it's a 14-16 hour trip, depending on how many stops we make. When taking a trip with a group of 3 or 4, it always saves us money to drive, because the cost of gas reound-trip is usually equal to or less than the cost of one airplane ticket. Of course, with gas being so expensive these days, it might be more like 1-1/1 or 2 tickets, but with a group of five it can still be cost-effective to drive. And you will also save the cost of airport transfers or rental car. To get a good idea of cost, simply find out how many miles from your home to WDW (MapQuest.com can do this for you), then divide that by your average gas milage to find out how many gallons of gas it will take one-way, then multiply by the average price of gas to get a rough estimate of the one-way cost of gas. Add one full tank to the cost for any driving you might do during the week.