NY to orlando on I95...is it that bad?

[nicholas 25]

We are going to drive for our first time in two weeks. Plan on doing it in one day with two drivers and leaving on Sunday morning. Ive read about all the alternate routes and the horror stories about the DC area. Based on when we are leaving what do you think is the quickest way down? 95 looks the most direct while the alt routes seem to take us more inland (leaving out of NYC area). Opinions?

 

[elmo2wdw]

We have driven 9 times and we always take 95 from Baltimore to Orlando. It is not bad as long as your not driving thru Baltimore and DC at rush hour!


Good Luck!

 

[barbar11]

We've always driven from Rochester thru Balt. and Washington. The last couple of times we've taken the west Virginia route which was much nicer.I try and stay off 95 as traffic around any major city is heavy,and fast.We even drove the florida turnpike instead of 95,and hardly any traffic(tolls?).

 

[ahoff]

If we are driving we try to plan the trip so we are going through DC after midnight. The rest of the way has been no problem.

 

[ducklite]

Try to leave aroud 3:00am, take 84 to 87, at that time of the day you can take it right to the GS Parkway, follow that to the NJ Turnpike. Take that South into DE and get on 95. Follow 95 south into Baltimore. Take the Harbor Tunnel, then get onto 295 (B-W Expressway) follow to 495. Take that around DC, regardless of the time of day there will be some traffic in DC, but you should be there at about 7:30, maybe 8:00 so it won't slow you down. Go over the bridge, pick up 95 south, take that down to Richmond, use the bypass (295) much easier drive, get back on 95 and stay on it to Daytona, where you'll pick up I-4 which takes you right to WDW.

Should take you 18-20 hours if you don't stop too much and don't hit a wreck or Nascar traffic anywhere.

Here's a note on potty breaks...The restrooms in the service areas in NJ, DE, MD are fairly clean and safe. Use the restroom in MD before you get to Baltimore, there isn't another until you are south of DC in VA. Stony Creek, VA (exit 33 of I-95) has a great clean travel center with clean restrooms and both Starbucks and Krispie Kreme. We almost always stop there to gas up and get something to eat.

The rstrooms in the rest areas in NC are generally clean and safe. SC and GA rest areas always made me feel uneasy, and many of them are gross.

The FL rest areas are pretty safe and clean.

I have made that round trip drive from Central NJ to FL half a dozen times in the past year (2x in teh past three weeks), and would be happy to answer any questions.

Anne

 

[stacy6552]

usastar.com has great I95 resources. Check it out. Here's a fun fact that you won't find on the site....Just south of DC on 95, in Woodbridge, VA, is Potomac Mills Mall (take Prince William Pkwy exit or the next one). Inside the mall is a Disney Outlet. Still owned and operated by Disney. Its a great place to stretch your legs and get a Disney fix to see you the rest of the way south.

 

[SomePixiedust]

As you are travelling on a Sunday, you probably won't have much of a problem in the DC area, especially if you hit it early. Leave as early in the am as possible, and since you are going straight through, make sure you take plenty of breaks to keep yourself alert. I agree with an earlier poster about the rest stops in SC and GA, not as clean as the rest of the states. If you need to stop in SC, the Florence area isn't too bad. You might find other tips on this board about gas prices. I've heard that gas is cheaper in GA than in FLA, so you might want to gas up before you cross the border into FLA.

Good Luck

 

[Uncleromulus]

There will be more traffic than you think in DC on Sunday!! But it isn't nearly as bad as a workday. Take the advice and leave as early as you possibly can so as to be around DC as early as possible.

 

[goofyforlife]

Actually on sunday afternoons traffic anywhere south of philly (not just DC) can be murder......(beach traffic).

My DSis lives in Philly and sometimes it takes us four hours to get back to MD.

 

[ducklite]

You're not kidding. I left central NJ last Sunday at about 2:00pm, hit HORRIBLE traffic from the time I crossed the Deleware Memorial Bridge until I was south of DC. I had wanted to leave earlier, but had things that needed to get done first.

Anne

 

[agnes!]

In about two (maybe four?...hasn't been definitively scheduled yet)weeks, I-95/Southbound at the Woodrow Wilson Bridge will be closed down to ONE LANE on the "Inner Loop"(coming from Maryland/Prince George's County into Virginia/Fairfax County). This is the same deal as now, when the Outer Loop/Northbound sections have been closed down to ONE LANE. Ack. I live south of the Beltway, near Mount Vernon - we are basically not going out much this weekend.
There were a couple of threads earlier in the week @ the closures/construction delays this weekend, below are some I-95 links that were originally posted in that and also in another thread. (Many thanks to whomever posted them originally !) Check them before you leave. Also, if you do decide to travel through the DC area, keep your car radio tuned to AM630 or AM1500, both stations have frequent traffic reports.

http://www.usastar.com/i95/homepage.htm

http://www.i95de.com

http://www.i95coalition.org/travinfo_laneclose.html

http://www.interstate-guide.com/i-095.html

http://i95getaways.com


agnes!