Please help me figure out what to do with "extra" time.

[FirstTimertoDiz]

We are going to wdw this August for free dining; we are staying at Pop from Sunday, Aug 16-Thurs Aug 20. We're a family of 4; dh, me, ds6, and dd7months.

We are renting a van here in PA and driving for the first time (we have always flown before.) Friends of ours just got back, and it took them 15 hours, but they drove overnight with minimal stops, so we figure it will take us about 18 hours with breaks for the kids.

Here is what I am thinking so far....we are picking up our van on Friday at 9:00am. Hoping to have it packed and be on the road around 12 noon. Thinking about driving until about midnight Friday night, then stopping for some rest. Getting back up for breakfast, and back on the road by 8am, and into Orlando around 5pm is the plan.

So, here is where I don't know what to plan for Saturday night- book a night at Disney? maybe offsite somewhere? plan on a dinner somewhere- resort maybe? head to dtd- although that may be terribly crowded since it is a Sat night? Not sure what to do.

Also, our rental has to be returned Sat morning, Aug 22; we check out of Pop Thurs. I would love to visit a Gulf beach- Siesta Key. It is about 2 hours from Orlando...in the wrong direction, lol. We are thinking after checking out of Pop, heading to Siesta Key for the day Thurs, booking a room for Thurs night there, and heading out sometime in the overnight hours- 3am or so; if we drive straight thru on the way home, that would get us there around midnight with stops.

Not a perfect plan, and I keep changing my mind, lol.

So, with knowing how creative all you Diser's are, I ask you- what would you plan in our situation? Thanks for any help / suggestions!!

 

[purpletiger]

I would maybe check out one of the many dinner/shows they have around for Saturday night.
On another note we are going in July and one day we are driving to Daytona speedway (my DH is really really into NASCAR) and taking a tour and then going to Daytona beach for a couple of hours before heading back to Disney. Just a thought.

 

[myprincessgirlisa]

Id go to one of those awesome outlet malls...especially the one with the Disney outlet store!!

one year we went to this Titanic exhibit in Orlando~not sure if its still there but it was neat!

We also like heading over to Sea World & Universal

 

[fussymonkey]

Last time we got in to the hotel at about 6, kind of late for swimming (brrr) and didn't want to do downtown disney, so we went to see Capone's a dinner show. It was cheezy, but fun, and our daughter loved the music and dancing, also the food was very kid friendly. I think it was like 21.99/adult.

Maybe think about going to a beach closer to your route home? Like Daytona or Coco beach? That would make your drive time a little shorter. You could stay in Orlando, drive to teh beach for the day, then back to the hotel to sleep and get ready to leave.

Or consider a great waterpark like Aquatica, perhaps?

 

[Singinglizzie]

If you really want to spend the time at a beach, I think you should consider going to Daytona beach on the way back home. That way you wouldn't have to drive 2 hours out of your way, and back, tacking an extra 4 hours in the car with kids. There are also some neat beaches in Georgia, including the Cumberland Straight, where you can take a ferry to an island and see wild horses (you need advance arrangments for this if you are interested). One year we drove to Florida and stop in Charleston and had dinner at Paula Deens restaurant - maybe fun for you? There are a million choices, so have fun deciding. This year we are looking into one of the boat tours where you see alligators. dont know if you can take young kids but that might be fun too. Trip advisor has a page on what to do in Orlando that might also give you some ideas. Have fun !

 

[bpetrow]

I'm basically doing almost the exact same thing as you a week earlier! I'm leaving (in a car) on Aug 5th with my mom and my 10 1/2 month old daughter. We'll be staying with my Aunt in Richmond, VA (7 hours the first day) on Aug 5th, then Aug 6th we'll stop somewhere in GA and grab a hotel room for that night, then Aug 7th we'll stay with my other Aunt and Uncle in The Village sin FL. Morning of Aug 8th we'll take our time with my Aunt and Uncle and then head towards Orlando in the afternoon and we're going to stay off-site that night and do DTD. Morning of Aug 9th we'll check into our villa at WL

Our return home plans - we check out of WL Aug 15th and we'll head towards somewher ein SC and stay the night and then Aug 16th we'll stay anothe rnight with my aunt in VA and plan to be home Aug 17th. On our way up to SC though we're going to stop in St Augustine for DD to see the ocean and touch her feet in the sand and water

Hope that helps! Sorry we'll miss each other by one day though!!!

Beth

 

[3mickeymom]

is alot harder than on the way down. Especially after a day in the sun and sand. We drove straight through down and back twice. Going down we have always done fine, taking turns driving and napping. Coming home, my poor husband ended up driving most of the way as I couldn't focus or nap very well. I always recommend ear plugs and a sleep visor for the resting relief driver for this reason. The kids were crankier on the way home too, as our vacation was almost over.

As for your arrival night, we have gone minature golfing(not cheap) which was fun for the older kids, a little tough on the younger one. On one trip, we hit Beaches and Cream, strolled around the boardwalk to get us in a Disney mood and to bed early at our hotel. It was a little less crowded than DTD. have a wonderful trip!!

 

[FirstTimertoDiz]

Thanks everyone for the great ideas and input! I knew I was coming to the right place for advice.

I am thinking we will skip seeing a Gulf Beach this trip. I really wanted to go; we went to Cocoa Beach last trip for a day, and while it was ok, I really want to see water that is more clear, lol. I have grown up going to the Atlantic Ocean, but have never been to the Gulf. We have another trip planned for next June with all of my family, though, so maybe then I will be able to make it work. As much as I want to this trip, I don't want to sacrifice having a good time because we are all cranky and tired.

As for the night we arrive, I still can't decide, lol. After seeing another thread here, though, I think I will make a stop by the will call offices at Magic Kingdom- the day we arrive in Orlando (Aug 15th) is actually my birthday, so I can get a free ticket that day at MK, or maybe get the card that is worth money for merchandise, and I will buy myself a birthday present with it, lol.

DH said that since it is my birthday, maybe we should book a room at one of the deluxe resorts for one night as a special occasion- I have always wanted to stay at AKL, but it is never in the budget. I am not sure about this though, because by the time we get there and check-in, it will be into evening hours, so I don't know if I will get to enjoy the resort like I would really want to. Plus, we would have to pack everything up the next morning to head to Pop, so I am wondering if I should just add a night to my ressie for Pop and be done with it?? So many decisions...!

 

[powellrj]

We just got back a few weeks ago.

First, I would just add an extra night to your POP reservation and be done with it. It gets confusing to have to move. I would add the extra night to your POP and then hang around the resort and have dinner there that night. The food court has lots of options and there is enough to see to keep the kids happy for one night.

I would really consider stopping sooner unless you have reservations someplace for the night. We just stopped when we got tired and had problems finding rooms. The first night we stopped at several places before we found someplace that was available. We lucked out because it was really nice and we would stay there again, the second night we weren't so lucky. Once again we stopped at several places before we found a place with rooms and while it looked fine on the outside, the rooms were a dump and I never felt really safe.

Going back home once again we found many places were booked for the night and it took several stops before we found something and then we had to drive several miles off the interstate.

My other suggestion is to have a bag just for your hotel so you don't have to unpack the van every time you stop. I had a small overnight bag with clean clothes for everyone and another with health and beauty items so all we needed were just the two bags when we checked in.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I haven't driven to FL in a really long time but just wanted to add my $.02. Just like all other aspects of parenthood, we can't do things at the pace we were used to once we have children.
I wouldn't count on driving until midnight that first night. Most likely your kids will be asleep or cranky cuz they wish they were. I'd say quit by 9 or 10pm at the latest. If your kids are already asleep, getting carried into a bright hotel at midnight might just wake them up and have a hard time falling back to sleep. You know your kids best.

Another idea: any Marriott branded hotel allows cancellations right up until 6 pm on day of check in with no penalty. This includes their bugdet brands too like Fairfield Inn which offers free cont. breakfast too: toast, fruit, yogurt, make your own waffles, bagels, cold cereal, etc. They're usually reliably clean and modern and less than $100/nt.
If you're not sure how far you'll be when you decide it's quitting time, you could always book 2 or 3 along your route and see how far you get that 1st day and cancel the others before the 6pm deadline.

Happy trails...