Route suggestions?

[bandman]

We are planning to drive to WDW for the first time this fall. Anyone have suggestions for a route from Little Rock, AR? Would you go southeast through Lake Village to Tallulah, La then across to Jackson and down to Mobile and then I-10 to I-75, or would you go to Memphis and across US 78 to Birmingham then to Atlanta and down I-75? Is there another route that I am not thinking of?
Thanks for any advice,
Michael

 

[Obi-Wan Pinobi]

Wow. I didn't realize until looking at the map that there's no completely interstate highway route from that direction.

Okay, directly between Little Rock and Orlando, mapquest.com is giving me the Memphis/Birmingham/Atlanta route (960 miles, 17 hrs 48 minutes). Breaking down the Jackson/Mobile route, Little Rock to Mobile is 449 miles, 10 hrs 22 minutes, and Mobile to Orlando is 497 miles, 8 hrs 22 minutes (total 946 miles, 18 hrs 44 minutes).

I have no idea what the road conditions are like on either route, though. Hope this helps.

 

[ALostBoy]

Hi bandman,

I think the best route is from
Little Rock to Memphis to
Birmingham to Atlanta to WDW.
From LR to Memphis is 4 Lane.
Hwy 78 in Mississippi is 4 lane
not sure about 78 in Alabama.
And then it is interstate from
Birmingham on to WDW. The
only 2 places you might have
2 lane is near memphis to get
to hwy 78 and in Alabama.
Good luck

 

[bandman]

Thanks obi wan and lostboy. Anybody else know any super secretive time-saving routes? What is your experience with the mapquest estimated time as opposed to how long it really takes?
Michael

 

[drogerstn]

We usually make the trip in shorter time than posted by Mapquest, especially if we are traveling on non-Interstate highways. It appears that Mapquest leans heavily towards the interstate highways, even if there is a state highway which may get you there quicker; seems to be a heavy penalty time wise for non-interstate travel. Mapquest time for Memphis to Orlando via Atlanta is 15-1/2 hours while it took us closer to 14; traveling through Montgomery takes us about 13-1/2 hours. I might drive about 5-7 mph over posted speed limits?

I prefer going from Memphis to Birmingham, then I-65 to Montgomery, Hwy 231 through Dothan to I-10. Going through Atlanta is a longer distance and it has taken us longer time wise (but not much difference). You get to stay in the Heart of Dixie longer by going through Montgomery and can get some good boiled peanuts in L.A. (Lower Alabama). Hwy 78 is "slow going" for about 55 miles or so west of Birmingham and traffic is bad for 10 miles or so from I-240 in Memphis to the Mississippi state line.

Another Mapquest example is from Memphis to Tuscaloosa. We make the trip between 3-1/2 and 4 hours, while Mapquest indicates almost 5 hours (4:58). No part of this trip is interstate, but a major portion is on Hwy 78 which is a very nice, limited access highway through Mississippi.

 

[bandman]

I think I have gone that route through Dothan. It was with my high school band on a charter bus so we were busy watching movies or sleeping the whole way. I wondered if that was shorter time-wise than heading over to Atlanta and down.
Thanks for the hints. I'll think we'll try it. I know the interstates have higher speed limits, but they can be pretty boring,and I have a feeling I will be doing about 90% of the driving.
Michael

 

[drogerstn]

I'm still a little curious about the route you metioned going through Jackson, MS. It has to be a shorter distance than coming back up to Memphis from Little Rock, but the big question is what the roads are like going that route.

A guy I work with who travels to Cocoa Beach, FL (basically same route as to Orlando) from Memphis a couple of times a year and he has settled on the same route that I mentioned (going through Dothan). You can always try one way going down and another coming back.

Have a nice trip

 

[annie2871]

Bandman,

We are going to be driving to WDW in June from Searcy. The route we are planning on taking is going to Memphis, to Birmingham (there is about 50 miles of two lane road once you get to Alabama) to Atlanta, then south on 75 to Orlando. I work for a trucking company and have asked several of our drivers the route they would suggest and this is what they give me.

I'll let you know how it works for us!

 

[bandman]

Hey Annie. I would certainly appreciate the scouting report. Thanks everybody for your help. We'll be at the ASMU from 9/26-10/01. After the last two frigid trips in January, we are looking forward to being able to utilize the pools and maybe even break a sweat.

 

[bandman]

drogerstn,
I forgot to respond to your question about the route through Jackson. The only really bad part is the section of US65 in Arkansas from Pine Bluff to Lake Village and through northeast Louisianna. It is only two lane and there is commonly farming vehicles to slow you down during the day. At night, there are no problems other than boredom and bugs splattering on the windshield.

 

[ALostBoy]

If you are looking at going through
Jackson, I would look at crossing over
at Greenville Ms. and going to Indianola
and taking 49W to Jackson. You will have
only about 30 miles or so of 2 lane road.
Good luck.

 

[annie2871]

Bandman -

I'm not sure how far you are from Memphis in LR, but here in Searcy, we are almost 2 hrs from Memphis. Anyway, this morning in church I was talking to a friend who makes this trip to WDW almost yearly and he said they always go through Nashville, Chattanooga and then down through Atlanta. He said it takes them about 15 hours. I think the main difference is you can drive 70 through TN on the interstate, where as through MS and AL, you can only go 55. There are a lot of towns through there with stop lights to slow you down. We didn't think it would make that much difference for us since we are driving through the night, however, the more we think about it, the better off we might be going through TN and then south.

I'll let you know what we decide!

 

[bandman]

Actually we are in Fayetteville, but there is only one reasonable route to LR. That is where the biggest decision has to be made. We too will be travelling at night for a big chunk of the drive. With two small children, we have to get as many miles down the road as we can before they wake up and start getting fidgety. I'll look forward to your reconnaissance.

 

[drogerstn]

Here is another good driving direction/map site which seems to be more accurate that Mapquest, MapPoint I found it referenced on another DIS post.

I've been the route from Memphis through Nashville and Chattanooga as annie2871 mentioned and it was longer than our other routes, but it is all interstate. Going from Memphis to WDW through Chattanooga is longer in distance and time than going through Birmingham; you go way north to get to Nashville then back south to get to Chattanooga.

If going the Birmingham route, the highway through Mississippi is just like an interstate (limited access and 70 MPH limit). Birmingham to Atlanta and Birmingham to Montgomery are interstate. If you go through Montgomery, the road (Hwy 231) from there down to I-10 has long stretches of 65 MPH limits, but you do get the towns. Even though interstate travel is the best way to go, there are times when accidents will shut down an interstate for several hours.

The routes I've been in order of preference (shorter time but it can definitely vary):
1--Memphis-Birmingham-Montgomery-Dothan-I10-WDW
2--Memphis-Birmingham-Columbus, GA-I-75-WDW
3--Memphis-Birmingham-Atlanta-WDW
4--Memphis-Chattanooga-WDW