Questions From a Neurotic Traveller

[KLondon]

For London and Area posters...

Scenario: My family and I are flying from Detroit to Orlando this Saturday. The flight leaves at 11:30am. I live in London, Ontario and intend to drive that morning (early!) to Detroit to catch the flight.

Questions:

Do I cross into the US via Windsor/Detroit or Sarnia/Port Huron?

How much time should I leave myself to complete such a journey?

Am I realistic in thinking I can drive to Detroit from London to catch an 11:30am flight?

My knee-jerk is to go Sarnia based on potential border-crossing volumes (assuming that time and distance are roughly equal between the 2 crossing points). I figure I should give myself about 2.5 hours to get to the airport. I am, however, overly worried about all this as we usually fly out of sleepy little London Slightly-International Airport directly.

This drive to Detroit thing is a new experience, so a BIG THANKS to all who can offer advice!

 

[Cruisin]

KLondon

We live in Chatham and we fly out of Detroit all of the time.

We cross the border at the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor.

From our house it is 1.5 hours of driving time to the airport. You should arrive 2 hours before departure, so just to be safe we allow 4 hours from time of departure.

Since you are leaving from London, I would allow another 1.5 hours depending on what part you are leaving from. Therefore to catch an 11:30 am flight you would probably leave home at around 6 am.

It is quite doable and on a Saturday, you wouldn't have near so much traffic to contend with. The border crossing has never been a problem for us and the trip to the airport is not really that bad.
I takes .5 hr from the border to get to the airport.

If you do decide to take this route, let me know and I can give you a few tips on the roads.

Detroit airport is really easy to fly out of. You park in the lot, the free shuttle is right there to pick you up and take you to your terminal, no hassle at all.

Let me know if I can help, I am willing to answer any questions you may have.

Robin

 

[PoohBWV]

MikeJ are you out there!!!! Mike is also from London and has flown from Detroit in the past. It seems to me that he goes through Sarnia though. Hey Mike, are you there!!!!

 

[paulinesa]

Hi there, I live in London, as well we will be catching our flight this Friday the 19th to Detroit. We are actually taking Robert Q, leaving at 2:30 am in the morning for the 7:00 am flight. I think that for domestic flight you only need 1 hour, we will be there 1 hour and half before our flight, it gives us plenty of time. I think four hours is a bit much. Wow, a londoner, we will be leaving almost the same time.

 

[Cruisin]

paulinesa:

I guess the reason why we leave so early is that I always worry that we won't make it there on time.

I figure that I would rather be sitting at the gate 2 hrs early waiting for the plane to leave than sitting in a traffic jam or at the border wondering if I will make to the airport before the plane leaves.

We went in November and it was 2 hours from home to the airport gate, so things went very smoothly that time. It doesn't always work that way though. Also the airline we fly on says they want you there 2 hours before departure.

I guess it all depends on your comfort level.

 

[jersey shark]

Hello Neurotic Traveler:

As a NJ resident who travels extensively throughout the US and Canada....(people tell me I must know every sqaure inch of the N American continent) I'll offer you this...your decision is a no-brainer...cross at Sarnia/Pt Huron! Here's 5 great reasons why:

a) very small chance of any border delays at Sarnia...Windsor would always be a riskier cross due to possible traffic delays (though Saturday am one certainly wouldn't expect it....but one can never predict these things)

b) your situation is totally different from Cruisin'K who lives in Chatham...I know Cruisin'K was just trying to help but if you live in Chatham...of course you'll cross at Windsor....you would be seriously back-tracking if you crossed at Sarnia.

c) if by bad luck there was a terrible traffic jam on the freeways leading to the Airport....there are so many exits along 1-94 from Pt Huron to Detroit that a bad accident could be relatively easily routed around...NOT SO on the 401 to Windsor where you could be stuck for a long time!

d) I personally find that 5 mile stretch in Windsor where the 401 ends (begins?) and then having to drive through city streets on the way to the bridge really annoying....there's none of this nonsense on the Sarnia route!

e) finally (and I'll get into trouble for this)....to US visitors there is something about the 401 that seems unbelievably treacherous and not just in bad weather...either the lanes are too narrow (compared to interstate standards) or the way there's not much of a paved shoulder on either side....or maybe it's the lack of reflector thingys on the signs ....(traffic mileage signs are so dark in Canada at night!)....and this drive in particular (the London-Windsor corridor) is so boring...I vowed to never do it unless absolutely necessary. Sorry to say, but I would want to minimize time spent driving on the 401 as much as possible!

Going to I-94 seems safer, quicker, and less boring of a drive.

Have fun on your trip...the "new" Metro Airport in Detroit is beautiful! One of the finest in North America now!

 

[Cruisin]

Well Jersyshark, I respectfully disagree with some of your comments .

Just for your information, Chatham is in a position that it takes virtually the exact amount of time to get to Windsor as it does to get to Sarnia, with the added benefit of a ferry crossing to the US on Walpole Island to Algonac, MI, when the weather is suitable. There used to be a ferry at Sombra too, but I'm not sure if it is still there or not. So it is not necessarily easier for us to go thru Windsor.

I don't think the 402 to Sarnia is going to be anymore exciting to drive than the 401 to Windsor. Also I don't think the distance is minimized by going London-Sarnia or London-Windsor, you just have a longer drive in the US to get to the airport when you go thru Sarnia. Actually distance wise it looks like it might be farther to go thru Sarnia.

The drive thru Windsor is not bad as long as you stay out of the truck lanes and we have never really had any long delays when we have crossed the border either. When was the last time you drove on the 401 from London to Windsor? Just wondering cause they have done a lot of work on the stretch from Chatham to Windsor. Still just as boring as driving the I-75 thru Ohio and Michigan though.

Anyway those are just my humble opinions on the subject. There is nothing wrong in going either way, just as long as you arrive at the airport in time to get your flight.

 

[FayeW]

We did something similar for our recent trip, however we drove from Ottawa to Syracuse, about a 3.5 hour drive. What I suggest is that you investigate the cost to stay at a hotel near the airport the night before, so that if there is inclement weather or an accident you won't miss your flight. In our case the indoor parking at the airport was $8.00 per day, outdoor parking was $6.00. The cost for the Best Western at the airport was only $89. with a park & fly rate, and that included leaving your vehicle in their parking lot for up to 10 days, which was the exact length of our trip. For us it was certainly worth the few extra dollars to arrive the night before, have a good night's sleep, and not have to worry about something unexpected on the morning of departure.

 

[fredIII]

hello , i would cross at sarnia/port huron as the delays are much shorted from what i have heard and on the border crossing website that has delay times posted practically no wait in sarnia, and stress free 402 to I-94, im not a fan of the 401 to windsor i find that a dangerous highway especially this time of year. anyway my 2 cents. have a great and safe trip whatever one you choose. ill be leaveing friday mornig from wasaga beach and will be crossing in sarnia as well. fred

 

[eleanor]

Last March we went to the Best western the night before because we had an early flight. Next March we will fly out of London on Northwest. It will cost a little more but we wont be putting in hours of time getting there from here.

 

[MikeJ]

I heard somebody call my name......

I agree with everything Jersey Shark says (except for the nasty bits about Windsor, but I have my own nasty Windsor stories, mainly concerning girls' hockey - anyway, I digress) and I'll relate the highlights of our two stories of driving to DTW.

1) We always take the 402-I94 route. Granted, it's been a while since we crossed at Windsor, but I have never, never had a wait of longer than 15 minutes at the Bluewater Bridge.

2) I think the route we take is a little longer, but it's much faster - you're on highways for the entire route and on I94 between Port Huron and Detroit the speed limit is 70mph for long stretches. We live in the Oakridge area of London, and from our door to DTW is typically 2.25 hrs with no traffic/weather problems. (That's just to get to the airport. You still need to allow 45 minutes or so to get to your gate.)

3) Be aware of the weather. Several years ago we left London at 4:00am to catch a Spirit flight which left around 7:30 and we hit a squall off Lake Huron around Watford. We made our flight, but it was a very hairy drive (particularly in the dark) until we crossed the border.

4) Faye makes a good point about going the night before. There are several hotels in the DTW area which advertise a Stay-Park-&-Fly deal in the London Free Press. If you're going to spend $60 or so to park for the week you might want to consider spending an extra $20 and stay overnight. Then you don't need to worry about the drive and how early to get up. You can also get a extra couple of hours' sleep, as well. If you're still planning on driving down Saturday morning, check out http://www.freep.com/features/travel/park2_20020602.htm which lists some sites you can get discount coupons for offsite parking.

5) Next time, check out Air Tran from Flint. They have one non-stop flight daily FNT-MCO, they are inexpensive (think Westjet), and the Flint airport is very similar to London's - small and easy to navigate.

Personally, I think your plan is foolproof. But, then again, only a fool might think that. If it were us, assuming no weather problems, I'd leave London at 7:30am for an 11:30 flight. We'd arrive at the airport before 10:00, park, and get to the terminal an hour before the flight. If you feel more comfortable with an earlier arrival, you can adjust your departure time accordingly (particularly if you live in the east end of London).

Personally, I think that if YXU had a couple of direct flights weekly to/from MCO they would be full. If I could fly direct-nonstop I wouldn't go to DTW, FNT, or YYZ, I'd fly from home and I expect a lot of people in southwestern Ontario would feel the same way.

Hope this helps.

- Mike

 

[KLondon]

You guys are just the best. Thanks for all the replies! In response:

• we'll go thru Sarnia as planned, but I've booked a hotel for the night before (Crowne Plaza on Merriman).
• I'll have to lookup Air Tran out of Flint. It may be a better answer for next time!
• I agree... a regular YXU/MCO route would get used! I heard this was planned at one time as part of the new London airport opening. I guess it's gone away....

Thanks again to everyone!

 

[DSNY FN]

We just returned from Disney we drove down and crossed at Windsor. Cross at Sarnia the bridge in Windsor is still under constructin and down to one lane on each side so everythng is a pain in the butt on that bidge right now. We usually get a limo to the airport then we don't have to worry about the drive to the airport it pays to have a good family friend who drives one.

 

[jersey shark]

Just picked up after a full day off the boards...sounds like we've solved the original posters' dilemna, just wanted to reply to Cruisin'K from Chatham....

a) re: being equidistant from Windsor and Sarnia...fine, but you wouldn't go thru Sarnia en route to Metro Airport, would you?
Maybe my map is old, but that looks like backtracking since Metro is of course a little west of Detroit! (and this is what I was talking about)

b) re: the 402 not being more exciting than the 401...agreed!
It's the I-94/402 combo that's better than the 401 (namely the I-94 component)...I was referring to my (hand on heart now) preference for interstate standards on the freeways....as I alluded to earlier, I always feel like I'm "walking a tightrope" on the Cdn freeways...the lanes seem narrow, the trucks seem maniacal (even in snowstorms), gotta love the "invisible" signs....oops I better stop there!

Have a nice evening!

 

[Cruisin]

jersey shark:

You are right I would probably go thru Detroit, because I know that we have no problem going that way at all. And yes we have contemplated going thru Sarnia before, even if it meant backtracking, if we thought it would be the easier,more convenient way to do it.

The main problem with going thru Sarnia is then you have to drive thru the whole city of Detroit, versus only the little edge that you have to go thru when you go thru Windsor. And I don't know where you drive but those highways in Detroit are Nasty!!!
They have holes big enough to lose your whole car in, or so it seems some times. At least the 401 is in good shape with no potholes and extremely smooth.

As to the maniacal truck drivers, I think if you did a survey you would find just as many American drivers as Canadian and most of them drive the same highways in the US and Canada.

But that is just my opinion, you are free to go whatever way appeals to you and I am free to do the same. What a dull place this world would be if everyone was exactly the same.

I wasn't putting down your opinions, I was just stating why I disagreed with you.

 

[jersey shark]

Quick note:

Good point....going the Sarnia/Pt Huron route to Metro Airport requires more diligent avoidance of rush hour as you don't want to be caught in downtown Detroit en route to the airport

Agreed on the downtown Detroit "holes" in the roads...I'm with you there. Those downtown Detroit freeways are in just about the worst condition I've ever seen for US interstates...however the Detroit suburbs are a differenct story (very nice areas and roads) ...I've often thought Cdns living in sw Ontario would look at Detroit/Buffalo and not get a very pretty picture of the US!

My beef more has to do with the SPECS of the freeways in Canada (lane width, shoulder width on both sides, distance from the opposite-bound traffic, signage with night reflector lights)...interesting, around Toronto this doesn't seem to be an issue and I noticed parts of the 401 now look "upgraded" to 6 lanes, smoother etc... so maybe there is a broad move to improve the freeways etc..

My only other comment that I don't understand about Cdn cities (beautiful as they all are, almost without exception) is that it is not very easy to get around in them.....London could really use a "belt freeway"...what happened there? It's not that large, but London is a bear to get around in....I whip around northern New Jersey with relative ease compared to London! Ever been to Edmonton....the "belt freeway" there is only in bits & pieces....you go 2 miles on a freeway...then lights for 2 miles...then 2 miles on freeway....then lights...and it does NOT appear to be a construction project to be finished soon...Vancouver? (unbelievable lack of freeways there!)

Okay, time to hit the (traffic-free, I hope) road here in St Louis!