Sanford Airport

[bhafc2001]

I'm looking at going to Orlando at the end of September 2008 and First Choice seem to have cheaper flights than others but the only go to Sanford. How long and complicated is the drive from Sanford to Disney?

If anyone could help i would be very grateful.

Thanks,

Tom

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

No its a easy drive to WDW, straight down the I 4 or the toll raod until you see the WDW turnoffs. However its north of Orlando, so is a long drive, plus if you hit rush hour traffic the roads can get backed up, not nice if its your first driving experiance in the USA.
Its around 42 miles, so about an hour in good traffic

 

[tartangirl]

Although the drive is about an hour there isn't a huge amount of difference in time between landing and getting to your hotel/villa as Sanford is much smaller and you get through the airport much quicker - or at least you did when we last were there.

Drive is very straight forward down the toll road which is quiet. The I4 is also straight forward but can get busy.

I wouldn't worry about using the airport if you can get good prices in flights.

 

[Groovee]

My dh loves the drive from Sanford. He heads for the I4 via Lake Mary Boulevard. It's a straight road with no tolls. Only thing we do is read up on how to get to the resort as the first year we got totally lost and were knackered.

 

[JennyTigger]

My DH and I landed at Stanford last year, this was his first time in America and he thought the drive was fine, it's about an hours drive. This year we are actually going to international airport, but we would happily go to Stanford again if we found cheap flights.

 

[foxylady]

Although Sanford is north of Orlando, it is very easy to drive from there to WDW and the resort areas. It is a nice little airport, and as it was really designed for holiday makers, you don't get confused, like you can do at bigger airports.

As someone has already said you can drive down the I4, but we tend to use the quieter route and use the drive to get used to driving in the USA again.

From landing at Sanford, we've usually made it to our accommodation fairly quickly. Last year it was about 2 hours, and that was calling into the rental company to get the keys, and then finding our accommodation on the US27.

 

[Tony Toon]

Although I don't see when you are going to Indian Creek this year Foxylady you will certainly find it less than a 2 hour drive from Sanford, just over an hour I reckon.
As for the original question, Sanford is ideal for the first time driver in Florida. Coming down the quiet Greeneway (417) gives plenty of time to acclimatise to American style roads without being over long and tiring.

 

[Hilary]

Sanford is ideal for the first time driver in Florida. Coming down the quiet Greeneway (417) gives plenty of time to acclimatise to American style roads without being over long and tiring.

Absolutely agree with everything that's been said about Sanford to WDW being an easier drive than from Orlando International

We flew back from Sanford last night and were the last flight (19:30 with First Choice) on the departure board for the evening. It was really quiet while we waited, and as soon as we started to board, all the shops closed! The downside of Sanford is the lack of amenities if your flight is delayed, and last night the food court had very little on offer as they were running stocks down for the close of the day. Other than that, I now prefer Sanford to Orlando International, although I do love the monorail at International to get me in the Disney mood !

It took us 1 1/2 hours (with light to moderate traffic) from leaving Saratoga Springs Resort to arriving at check-in.