Those who drive from Virginia...

[susanab]

Do you drive the entire way to Orlando or do you stop overnight? If so, where did you stop?

 

[mischief32]

We drive from Virginia and we try and stop at least halfway. We stop in South Carolina and spend the night. With a 3 year old you can not drive all the way through.

 

[goin3d]

we drive through and just treat is as a long day (leave around 6am)

 

[disney_mommy]

We leave about 8 in the morning and stop in SC.

 

[Albytaps]

We drive through from NJ and it is a long ride but doable. We have kids from 2-8.

There have been times where we've driven and stopped in Florence, SC but we like to get it done straight through.

 

[myweegirls]

We drove through for the first time this spring, and it was great. We left around 4pm from Fairfax County and stopped just over the NC border for dinner. DD5 and DD3 were both jazzed for movies (we tell them the minivan's DVD player only works on really long rides ), and they knew that there would be one movie after dinner before sleep time. They both slept for 7 1/2 hours overnight while I kept on driving.

I'm a fan of long drives - love driving them, don't so much care for riding on them - so the trip was actually a lot of fun for me. We pulled into Cracker Barrel for breakfast at 7am the next morning. My stops were for refueling and Diet Coke, and that was about it - I'd packed snacks for sustenance. I dozed in the AKL lounge while DH took the girls to the pool (we actually got down there much faster than I'd thought we would!) before our room was ready. That catnap recharged me just fine for the rest of the day, and I slept *very* well that night. We are absolutely planning to drive on the next all-family trip down - DH and I will continue to fly for our no-kids trips down, as those are much shorter stays.

XO
Liz

 

[nancycg56]

We normally drive straight through but when we go in February we are stopping in Georgia because DH goes there for business all the time and he wants me to meet some people and go to this one BBQ place he always goes to, LOL!

I'm fine either way

 

[kirstenb1]

We stop near Savannah, Ga. There are several decent hotels off the Richmond Hill exit there. The next day is an easy 5 hr drive.

 

[susanab]

For those who stay overnight in SC, where abouts? Just trying to get an idea as I don't forsee us making the trip in one day. I have a 5 y/o and my DBF would probably go crazy after awhile.

 

[TakeMe2Disney]

We come from Central PA, but we've done both driving straight through and stopping. When we stopped we stayed in Savannah, GA and loved it. I, however, prefer to drive straight through. All the excitement about getting there keeps me going all 16-18 hours.

 

[alicia080979]

We drive from Ohio so about a 15 hour trip. Last year we stopped south of Atlanta and I wanted to keep going. The adrenaline of just getting there kept me going. On the way home, we drove straight through and almost died, lol.

This year we are planning on leaving at 4pm and driving straight through (3 adults to take turns sleeping/driving) to get there but on our way back, we are going to stop and stay the night with my best friend in Chattanooga. We will be so exhausted after 13 days in Disney...no way we could drive all the way through!

 

[Ash&Wes07]

We stop in Jax, FL to see family. Otherwise we'd stop in Savannah to see friends or drive straight through.

 

[rock_doctor]

We stop near Savannah, Ga. There are several decent hotels off the Richmond Hill exit there. The next day is an easy 5 hr drive.

Nice thanks for the tip.
----------------------------
We drive from SE PA and do it in three legs. Day one we stop in Florence, SC (8hrs), day two stop in Orlando (9hrs) and Day three we hit the Disney hotel around 8am (30min). We do it in three so we can hit Disney very early in the day. This year we own at Bay Lake Tower so we will do it in two legs. PA to GA and then the second day on to BLT. Honestly, the more difficult parts of I95 are north of central Va, once you get below Richmond it is an easy run and the speed limit jumps into the 70s once you hit the Carolinas. I would drive straight through and stop some place on I4 and then hit Disney early. When you get into Fla stop at the welcome station and get yourself a set of the hotel coupon books and start calling. We use the red cover one and we never pay more then $40 a night for the three of us. If you need gas...Dillion SC (Flying J) and exit 6 through 3 in Ga has the cheapest fuel. We use Diesel, hence the Flying J but if you get Js travelers (RV club) card (which is free) you can use your credit card and pay the cash price plus they give you a cent discount. There are Hess stations on Disney property that are not too bad plus the walmart there also has gas. Good luck and have a great trip.

 

[derricksonb]

From what part of VA are you departing?

We usually depart from Harpers Ferry, WV between 9 and 10pm (when the little monsters, ds3 and dd6, are sleeping) and alternate driving every 3-4 hours with the first driver swap near the VA/NC border on 95. By the time the kids wake up we're near the FL/GA line and stop for a nice long breakfast. We usually get to the resorts by 11am to 12pm... Usually the same time we'd get there had we flown from BWI or IAD to MCO and taken ME. Not to mention the substantial cost savings over airline tix and fees.

 

[mommyof2princesses]

Our next trip will be our first time driving from VA- Charlottesville exactly. But, when we drove from Nc, we usually stopped at Jekyl Island, GA. Very pretty, and the Days Inn there is decent and not expensive. Right on the beach! Makes for a beautiful sunrise!

We will probably stop there again on this trip and the next day is a short drive to Disney. gives us plenty of time to go enjoy the parks for the afternoon/evening!

 

[VAfamily1998]

We've driven twice, from Prince William county.

1st time, we started out after picking the kids up from school/dh from work (around 4 pm). We stopped for the night in Florence, SC.

2nd time, we started out at about 5 am and arrived in Orlando around 7 pm.

 

[saier1999]

We recently drove from CT. We left at 3:30 pm. on Friday, got stuck in some traffic around NYC for about an hour, but from there it was clear sailing all the way. We grabbed some dinner on the Garden State Parkway at a Burger King around 5:30 and went straight through until 6:30 a.m. the next morning when we stopped in SC about 50 miles north of the GA border at a Cracker Barrel for breakfast. We have 3 kids (11, 8, 7), and they slept a good portion of the overnight, and watched videos, played Nintendo DS or listened to iPod during other times. We arrived in Orlando about 12:30 p.m. the next day with very little, "are we there yet" complaining. On the way back we left Orlando at 4 a.m. the following Saturday, stopped for meals and arrived back at our home in CT at midnight (20 hours). Again, very little complaining. It all depends how you entertain the children and your own stamina and patience as to whether you can do it without stopping.

 

[flicx]

We come from Central PA, but we've done both driving straight through and stopping. When we stopped we stayed in Savannah, GA and loved it. I, however, prefer to drive straight through. All the excitement about getting there keeps me going all 16-18 hours.

Ditto here we also live in central PA.I prefer the straight through route.Get up at 4.30 am get there between 8.30 and 9.00 pm

 

[susanab]

We are coming from Fredericksburg.

2nd time, we started out at about 5 am and arrived in Orlando around 7 pm.

Seeing this makes me want to attempt the drive in one day! Did you stop at all?

 

[Disneychica]

We've driven twice with our little ones (now 3 & 5). The first year (18months and almost 4years, plus grandparents) we left from Charlottesville (7:00am) and stopped to spend the night in Kingsland, GA. We were there in time for dinner at a BBQ place and stayed at the Sleep Inn. The next morning we got up, left by 7:00am and were at the Caribbean Beach by 11am.

Last year (2 & 1/2years, almost 5years) we decided to drive straight through from Fairfax, VA. We left at 6:00am, we had a lunch stop at a CiCi pizza somewhere in NC, stopped at the GA welcome center for a stretch and ate dinner at an Arby's outside Jacksonville (with some extra, fast potty breaks thrown in along the way). We were at the Caribbean Beach check in desk at 8:15pm. It was a dream drive.

Both years we left on Saturday morning, so I'm not sure how the trip would be impacted during the week with work day traffic thrown in.