Road Trip Trip from Sac to DL with kids - tips?

[Malcon10t]

My kids were not quite that lucky. They knew when we started driving, mom didn't like stopping. If they were asleep, we kept driving. If they were traveling well, we kept driving. If they had issues, then we would stop briefly. Usually we made 3 hours, then stopped before crossing the Grapevine (1 stop only.) If you keep stopping at all those locations, it is going to add several hours to your trip.

The best route is the 210E to the 605S to the 91 E to the 5. The traffic from the 605 to the 91 on 5 is bad during the day. This (210-605-91) adds about 10 miles, but save 20-30 mins

 

[707MickeyGirl]

Are there any other suggested detours around the LA I5 traffic besides the 210 to the 605?

If you have a smartphone, put the Waze app on it. It's navigation via social media, basically. It's community-based so users are providing feedback as they drive. It will give you the best real-time alternate routes. Plus... if you like to go a little faster down I-5 (sooo boring), it will alert you when someone has reported a CHP officer.

 

[egritz]

If you have a smartphone, put the Waze app on it. It's navigation via social media, basically. It's community-based so users are providing feedback as they drive. It will give you the best real-time alternate routes. Plus... if you like to go a little faster down I-5 (sooo boring), it will alert you when someone has reported a CHP officer.

Thanks, I'll look into that app. We usually use Google which is pretty good at diverting for accidents/traffic,construction but I did notice that when I input Disneyland today it was taking us I5 the entire way. I like the CHP alert thing too, lol.

@Malcon10t we'll play it by ear. If they are sleeping/content, we'll continue, but if the the baby is crying/whining, etc. we'll stop to let them burn some energy. We have nothing planned on travel day besides running to the store so even if it takes us 10 hours (which is what we are estimating our minimum to be) we'll still be there around check-in and plenty of time for unpacking & settling in with an early bedtime. If time permits we *might* walk down to Disney to upgrade our PH tickets for AP's, but more than likely we'll end up doing that sometime on Sunday.

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

Wow, thank you all for the replies & suggestions!

I Can't sit in the back with the kids, there isn't room as we don't have a minivan and their car seats are too wide for a normal sized adult to sit between them. And I definitely can't trust the "baby" with any sort of electronic, he is likely to chuck it and probably hit someone in the head. And I know too many people who have tried the whole "drive while the kids sleep" thing and it has backfired with the kids being wired and awake. Plus that will make us super tired/grumpy. And my 16 month old is historically NOT a great sleeper.

I'm going to write down a bunch of these suggestions. I like the idea of big areas for the kids to play at the rest stops (which are reportedly clean, yahoo!) I also like the idea of Andersens Pea Soup, looks like they are just over a 2 hour drive from our house, so leaving at 5am would make us one of their first customers of the day. And then it looks like Kettlemen City (where my mother in law grew up, actually) is about another 90 minutes and it looks like that Bravo Farms has a play area, and then the outlets another 80 minutes so we may plan on stopping both places to let the kids burn energy.

Are there any other suggested detours around the LA I5 traffic besides the 210 to the 605?

Ha ha. The first thing I was going to comment on is maybe you don't want to leave too crazy early because your kids might not sleep in the car, and then everybody would be starting their vacation tired and cranky. My kids never became car sleepers until their teens.

If you change your mind about sitting down to breakfast or find you have arrived too early and don't want to wait, the exit with Pea Soup Andersen's also has a Starbucks and McDonald's on the other side of the freeway. Never been to the McD's, but we have stopped by that Starbucks numerous times.

We used to like the Kettleman stop but find it aggravatingly crowded and expensive these days. We tend to hold out for Lost Hills. Not as good for you I suppose since there's no really good spot to burn off kid energy, but if you do find the kids are doing fine after all and want to press on a little further then keep that in mind. There's a lot of fast food and gas stations there. We actually stop at the Love's. The bathrooms are sometimes decent there. If you do stop at Kettleman, the bathroom at the In 'N Out is your best bet. Plenty of stalls in the women's restroom and pretty clean.

And, yep, love that Laval Road exit. Plenty of choices of food and gas there and not a bad place to get out and stretch.

 

[707MickeyGirl]

I've made the drive down from Santa Rosa a few times. If we're going into the parks on our arrival day, I like leaving by midnight the night before. My granddaughter stays awake out of excitement for an hour or so, but then she sleeps most of the rest of the way. If we're not going into the parks on our arrival day, I like leaving super early in the morning - 5am or so. We drive down I-5 and use rest stops for bathroom breaks.

One thing I learned is to keep a "bathroom bag" in the car because the rest stops aren't always stocked with the necessities. It's just a toiletry kit I put together with a roll of TP, some paper seat protectors, hand sanitizer, foaming soap, paper towels and a pack of tissue.

I prefer to drive down I-5 in the dark because that way you can't see that never-ending, boring expanse of road out in front of you.

 

[egritz]

I've made the drive down from Santa Rosa a few times. If we're going into the parks on our arrival day, I like leaving by midnight the night before. My granddaughter stays awake out of excitement for an hour or so, but then she sleeps most of the rest of the way. If we're not going into the parks on our arrival day, I like leaving super early in the morning - 5am or so. We drive down I-5 and use rest stops for bathroom breaks.

One thing I learned is to keep a "bathroom bag" in the car because the rest stops aren't always stocked with the necessities. It's just a toiletry kit I put together with a roll of TP, some paper seat protectors, hand sanitizer, foaming soap, paper towels and a pack of tissue.

I prefer to drive down I-5 in the dark because that way you can't see that never-ending, boring expanse of road out in front of you.

I used to live in RP, for 11 years! Called "G-Section" home from 2002-2011 Went there for school and then returned home after we started our family.

Great idea about the bathroom bag, I had not thought of doing that, we normally have all that stuff "around" but not centralized so I will make sure to do that.

 

[lorijohnhill]

When my daughter was younger we took the potty chair with us on those long trips from Sac/Elk Grove down I5 to visit family in San Juan Capistrano. It was a life saver for those "I have to go NOW!" moments.

I was blessed with a good traveler, so we could get by with a few toys and singing kids songs or telling stories to keep her occupied. When she got old enough (about 4) we picked up a kid tough camera at the thrift store and she would spend most of the trip taking pictures. Some very strange photos, but it sure kept her entertained!

 

[egritz]

When my daughter was younger we took the potty chair with us on those long trips from Sac/Elk Grove down I5 to visit family in San Juan Capistrano. It was a life saver for those "I have to go NOW!" moments.

I was blessed with a good traveler, so we could get by with a few toys and singing kids songs or telling stories to keep her occupied. When she got old enough (about 4) we picked up a kid tough camera at the thrift store and she would spend most of the trip taking pictures. Some very strange photos, but it sure kept her entertained!

She actually has a kid camera that she got when her brother was born, though the constant beeping as she takes pictures might make us insane, lol.

 

[meggles]

Would the possibility of Tule fog along the 5 in the central valley be an issue this time of year?

 

[agamble]

Would the possibility of Tule fog along the 5 in the central valley be an issue this time of year?

We haven't had any fog yet.

 

[egritz]

Would the possibility of Tule fog along the 5 in the central valley be an issue this time of year?

I don't *think* so. I think fog comes closer to Christmas and well into January/February.

 

[dotfurio]

There was one recent day after all the rain/mudslides, but I find driving in the fog isn't so bad with other traffic. There's a little slow down, but at least the headlights/tail lights help you gauge how far you can see.

 

[meggles]

Thank you!

 

[bumbershoot]

It's so funny...living in San Jose, I felt that Anaheim was sooooo far away. The two roadtrips we took there felt like 1000 years. Now, living in WA, I realize how close we were.

The best way to handle a baby in the car is to drive when they're sleeping. Last Thanksgiving I drove with my then 4 y/o and 1 and a half y/o from Modesto to Las Vegas. I left just after midnight and drove all night.

We tried that once for a flight, figuring DS would go right back to sleep in the shuttle. HA! Did NOT happen.

I definitely can't trust the "baby" with any sort of electronic, he is likely to chuck it and probably hit someone in the head.

Don't *give* it to him. Get something that can mount up on the car's seat (not carseat) back. We had a portable DVD player that hung from the headrest. Not when DS was 16 months old, we were too broke then, but a bit later.