Now i dont know..........

[disneymom0811]

What part of NY are you driving from? I live in the Syracuse, NY area and we drove 4 times. The last two times, we stayed overnight outside of Charlotte, NC on the way down and went to Disney World from there. I'm not sure if the airport you'd use has JetBlue, but it's worth looking into.

NYC area- we would start going toward staten island Verrazano areas to new jersey turnpike, that route

 

[disneymom0811]

Here is a cool tool. Just plug in your vehicle info, starting address and ending address and it will tell you how much it will cost. But you also have to figure in wear and tear on your van.

http://gasbuddy.com/Trip_Calculator.aspx

If it were me I would fly. 18 hours in a car is a LONG time verses about 3 hours in the air. Why spend 36 hours of your vacation sitting in a car! That is almost an entire work week spent in a car.

Thx I'll check it out

 

[disneymom0811]

A lap child must be under 2 years old. You will need to show the airline a birth certificate as proof of age.

I have proof is under two but thx I didn't know how that worked, I assumed they would require some documentation

 

[disneymom0811]

Thx for all your responses, still undecided, but considering flying, and I'm almost certain that if we fly, I'm going to pay for an extra seat even tho I'm not required too, I just feel more comfortable that way.

 

[disneymom0811]

I wouldn't do it with only one driver. I know I'm a big worry wart, but I would worry about what if the one driver started to feel unwell. What if the driver became tired? Would you have the time and money to stop more than one night if needed?

I also think that is an awful long drive for a toddler, who will have a hard time keeping themselves occupied. At least with an older child you can try and explain that it will be a few more hours, and if you keep going you will get there quicker. Hard to make a toddler understand that.

I know I have been thinking about that too, that's a lot of driving all on me, my husband just brought up Amtrak too but again that's a 20+ hr trip, with a toddler, (yes we will have iPads and DVD players) but still a longggggggggg trip. I'm so excited I just kind of want to get there ASAP. Lol

 

[bigbabyblues]

We drove from Ohio two weeks ago, drive is about 15 hours with stops. We have a 2004 Toyota Sienna, and it cost around $275 in gas, average miles per gallon was 29.9 for us. We have flown down twice but much prefer to drive.

 

[kandb]

For $700-800, definetely FLY. This is from someone who doesn't even like to fly but does because it is sooooo much easier.

 

[Ladygoldenhair]

We decided we would drive (from ny area), staying overnight somewhere so we didn't have to do it all in one day (only one driver) and now my husband mentioned how airfare prices are a little more reasonable, and might cost about the same. We will be traveling with a toddler, so I think most airlines provide lap child option, but it would still be about 700/800. Now I have never driven there, so idk what the cost would be, if it's close at all or what, it's a minivan too. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, not sure what the best option would be

I think that is contributing decision is at what savings do you give up two days at Disney, pay for an extra room if it is 1,000 miles.
Also, if my driver hints that airfare is lower now, I won't ask them to drive.

If I can find an airfare for a reasonable cost I am flying. On the other hand, if I want to take last minute trip airfare will not be possible. Then I have to hope there is a driver willing to battle the other drivers on the road, traffic, accidents, or multiple potty stops with what seems endless miles in front of us.

Driving is my last alternative personally. I would do AM track or Auto train first if no airfare before a road trip.

 

[leebee]

Can you drive to an airport where fares are cheaper? We live near Bangor, ME, but airfare is prohibitive from here, so sometimes we go to Portland, ME, which is 2 hours' drive away. HOWEVER, both Manchester NH and Boston are about 4 hours drive time from home, so I can choose from three airports other than Bangor; just need to pick the cheaper one! It might not save you tons of time, but I cannot imagine driving to/from Disney if I could fly for about the same money. (Of course, it's about 27 hours, non-stop, from here!)

Having a lap child is sometimes controversial on these boards; just a warning! If you do purchase a seat for your toddler, I believe you'll have to bring his car seat on board as they usually won't allow you to use a lap belt on a toddler, and you can't put him/her on your lap and use your belt for both of you.

 

[sam_gordon]

We drove from Ohio two weeks ago, drive is about 15 hours with stops. We have a 2004 Toyota Sienna, and it cost around $275 in gas, average miles per gallon was 29.9 for us. We have flown down twice but much prefer to drive.

Great gas mileage for a 9 year old minivan!

 

[maxiesmom]

Having a lap child is sometimes controversial on these boards; just a warning! If you do purchase a seat for your toddler, I believe you'll have to bring his car seat on board as they usually won't allow you to use a lap belt on a toddler, and you can't put him/her on your lap and use your belt for both of you.

You don't have to bring a car seat along. It is purely optional. But you are right, the child would have to be buckled into their own seat.

 

[disneymom0811]

Can you drive to an airport where fares are cheaper? We live near Bangor, ME, but airfare is prohibitive from here, so sometimes we go to Portland, ME, which is 2 hours' drive away. HOWEVER, both Manchester NH and Boston are about 4 hours drive time from home, so I can choose from three airports other than Bangor; just need to pick the cheaper one! It might not save you tons of time, but I cannot imagine driving to/from Disney if I could fly for about the same money. (Of course, it's about 27 hours, non-stop, from here!)

Having a lap child is sometimes controversial on these boards; just a warning! If you do purchase a seat for your toddler, I believe you'll have to bring his car seat on board as they usually won't allow you to use a lap belt on a toddler, and you can't put him/her on your lap and use your belt for both of you.

I didn't even consider airfare would be cheaper at other airports, I have been living in NY my whole life and am used to NY prices. Lol. I decided that if we fly we are going to get an extra seat, I would just feel more comfortable that way. From what I read, you can bring car seat, there are certain dimension guidelines tho, but they sell this attachment thing that attaches to the seat, and it's the same thing that straps them into their seat in a car (I don't know if I'm explaining that right) but they are approved. Been doing a lot of research lol thank you for your response

 

[Gracie09]

I didn't even consider airfare would be cheaper at other airports, I have been living in NY my whole life and am used to NY prices. Lol. I decided that if we fly we are going to get an extra seat, I would just feel more comfortable that way. From what I read, you can bring car seat, there are certain dimension guidelines tho, but they sell this attachment thing that attaches to the seat, and it's the same thing that straps them into their seat in a car (I don't know if I'm explaining that right) but they are approved. Been doing a lot of research lol thank you for your response

You can also rent the harness. There is a shop on eBay that I used last year. They were clean, not damaged in anyway and easy to work with the rentor.

 

[disneycrazy01]

I just checked JetBlue and it appears that some fares have dropped. For the vacation we have planned for July 9 through July 23rd at BC our airfare out of New York (LaGuardia Airport) for 4 adults and 2 kids age 13 & 3 cost $1636.80.

A month ago I priced the same flights and it was over $2100 and yesterday it was down to a little over $1700.

I did a dummy pricing and for 8/1 through 8/15 for 2 adults, 1 lap child and 1 child under age 14, it would cost from LaGuardia or JFK 1031.40. JFK has more flights going to MCO than from LaGuardia.

At the time I booked my trip, I got a better price flying out of LaGuardia than JFK, but it had less flights to choose from, but the price was worth it.

I went on a trip to Orlando with a friend two years ago. She owns a timeshare and we were going to Star Island for a week. I really can't complain too much because I wasn't paying for the hotel. We chipped in for the van and gas. We made a lot of stops on the way. The kids wanted to eat every few hours or bathroom stops. Only two people of the 11 in the van were drivers.

We rented a large van and it was 11 of us. It was kind of uncomfortable with all our luggage. Traveling back and forth ended up to being about 3 days or a little more with all the stops. They stopped to see some relatives on the way. We didn't stay overnight anywhere. I was happy to have a vacation, but 11 in the van was a little too much with 2 car seats also. I think I would have enjoyed the road trip if I was the driver with just my family. It also ended up expensive for me because every time my nephews wanted to eat I couldn't just buy food for them. Of the 11 of us 5 were kids.

Good luck on your trip. Have a great time.

 

[disneymom0811]

I just checked JetBlue and it appears that some fares have dropped. For the vacation we have planned for July 9 through July 23rd at BC our airfare out of New York (LaGuardia Airport) for 4 adults and 2 kids age 13 & 3 cost $1636.80.

A month ago I priced the same flights and it was over $2100 and yesterday it was down to a little over $1700.

I did a dummy pricing and for 8/1 through 8/15 for 2 adults, 1 lap child and 1 child under age 14, it would cost from LaGuardia or JFK 1031.40. JFK has more flights going to MCO than from LaGuardia.

At the time I booked my trip, I got a better price flying out of LaGuardia than JFK, but it had less flights to choose from, but the price was worth it.

I went on a trip to Orlando with a friend two years ago. She owns a timeshare and we were going to Star Island for a week. I really can't complain too much because I wasn't paying for the hotel. We chipped in for the van and gas. We made a lot of stops on the way. The kids wanted to eat every few hours or bathroom stops. Only two people of the 11 in the van were drivers.

We rented a large van and it was 11 of us. It was kind of uncomfortable with all our luggage. Traveling back and forth ended up to being about 3 days or a little more with all the stops. They stopped to see some relatives on the way. We didn't stay overnight anywhere. I was happy to have a vacation, but 11 in the van was a little too much with 2 car seats also. I think I would have enjoyed the road trip if I was the driver with just my family. It also ended up expensive for me because every time my nephews wanted to eat I couldn't just buy food for them. Of the 11 of us 5 were kids.

Good luck on your trip. Have a great time.

Thank you. I'm going to keep checking

 

[disneymom0811]

You can also rent the harness. There is a shop on eBay that I used last year. They were clean, not damaged in anyway and easy to work with the rentor.

Yeah I have seen them on amazon, looks simple enough to install, thx for your help