Those who drive from WA/OR...

[kaci]

We are planning our first trip! We haven't really made ANY decisions about ANYTHING yet, so many things to consider. Right now we're looking at either early December right after DH finishes finals or mid March after he graduates. We're also undecided on the drive vs. fly debate. Which brings me to my question; We live in SW WA and the only time I've driven all the way down I5 to CA was during the summer, is the drive a good decision during the first part of December? Or should we just assume flying is the better option (for safety's sake) during late fall/early winter?

Thanks!

 

[TheZue]

We drive from Canada. The latest I've come back is early November and it was absolutely fine. BUT for my own peace of mind I wouldn't go any later than that. I would fly if going in December, January, or early February.

 

[JoannaK]

I haven't driven from OR/WA but have driven from Sacramento to Tacoma in late December and never had a problem. We do that drive every year between Christmas and New Years.

 

[kaci]

TheZue, sorry didn't mean to leave the Canadians out

JoannaK I'm glad to hear that you've never had a problem!

Well, this just became a little less theoretical. Got the email for HOJOs super saver rate and we now have a res for 12/10-16. So excited!

 

[blackjackdelta]

We drive every summer from E Wa and its a nice drive but I am not one to drive the Siskiyou's in the winter. Just too unpredictable, one day great next the pass is closed. I would fly if winter time..same goes for the grapevine, it can get nasty. Have a fun trip.

Jack

 

[CamoMama]

I have family in northern Washington and drive up often to visit (and they drive down), and as Jack said, the passes can be iffy in winter; we try to avoid driving between December and February. It can be done, I've done it myself, but it isn't fun when the snow is falling. If you do decide to drive I'd suggest stopping in Redding overnight (not just because I live here), it's about 8-10 hours from Redding to Disneyland depending on traffic and how often you stop. My family stops at my house overnight and we travel south together from here. We usually leave early in the morning and arrive mid-afternoon.

 

[Disneylandfan1]

I would fly, especially if you only have to pay for 2 people, though I would base it on rates you can get. We've had weather challenges from Thanksgiving through March on that drive, primarily the passes in Northern CA. For example, the last 2 spring breaks, end of March, I've had a difficult time planning my drive around snow falls. Some years it's fine though...hit or miss.

 

[kaci]

I appreciate all the input!

I should add we're buying airfare for 4, 2 adults and 2 kids, not that I would sacrifice safety for money, but that it's definitely cheaper for us to dive than fly...unless, of course, we get stuck on the wrong side of a pass for several days.

And, we have family in Redding and will definitely stop there if this is a drive we ever make

 

[Disneylandfan1]

Driving, you most likely wouldn't be stuck for several days, usually just 1 day or just 1 night. So the trick would be to give yourself a little more time to get down just in case of bad weather on the passes. Once you're in Redding you're good to go, until the Grapevine.

 

[Escape2Disney]

We had to make the same decision for our trip. We'll be in LA the 6th-7th and in Anaheim from the night of the 7th through the 13th. Normally we'd drive to Sacramento to see friends and fly from there. Because of the time of year, we decided to fly direct instead. As others have said, we are not fans of the Siskiyous from December through February. It can be very unpredictable.

Traveling from Washington, there are 4 potential bad spots (that I know of) - Sexton Pass (just north of Grants Pass), the Siskiyou Pass (just south of Ashland) the section of 5 near Mount Shasta, and the Grapevine (just north of LA). Siskiyou Pass is the most brutal of the 3.

Another thing to consider is that this year, the winter was very mild. Historically a fairly harsh winter will follow a mild one - we didn't want to take a chance we'd have to cancel due to winter storms.

 

[lulugirl1968]

Personally, that time of year, I would fly if I could.

We were stuck on the Siskiyou Pass, for over 6 hours one year in December. We are on 1-5 and did not move. It was terrible.

We have also run into trouble in the Weed & Shasta area, with awful/scary driving conditions. I-5 was shut down for several hours because of this.

If you do drive, make sure you have traction devices/snow tires.

Good luck with what ever you decide on!

 

[kaci]

Any thoughts on the train? Price-wise it's in between driving and flying but I really don't know anything about taking a long distance train trip.

Can you tell I really hate flying

 

[Hoku]

I think the best bet would be to go after graduation. That way you could make the drive and you wouldn't be gambling on getting stuck in dangerous conditions. The train would be a great idea. Trains are so much fun and more comfortable, but the ride isn't cheap. Last I checked (when I lived in that area of the world) it was more expensive than the plane. But I was also checking for last minute travel. Don't know if advanced ressies are better.

 

[erikaren]

I have to chime on on this. We took the train several years ago and it took FOREVER!!! Amtrak is pretty notoriously late on the Coast Starlight out of Portland so be prepared. It also goes overnight and coach is certainly not that comfortable. We upgraded to a family bedroom on our way back and it was a little better but not much. Amtrak sounds nice and all but there is no way in the world I would ever do that trip again. Plus, it's dark when you go through the prettiest area's anyway. Now the trip from Portland up to Seattle is very train do-able.

PS. We had a 7 year old with us on that trip, she's 16 now and will still not get on another train. I have an 8 year old and 1 year old now and there is no way I could keep them busy for that long on the train.

Airfare from Jetblue out of Portland to Long Beach is pretty reasonable.

 

[Hoku]

I have to chime on on this. We took the train several years ago and it took FOREVER!!! It also goes overnight and coach is certainly not that comfortable. We upgraded to a family bedroom on our way back and it was a little better but not much.

Ok, I did forget the detail that when we took the train that distance we had a delux room with comfy beds. But it was awesome! We met lots of people, there was entertainment, you could walk around, and enjoy the scenery. I would do it again just for that. I took the train a shorter distance from southern Oregon to Seattle, coach, and still had a great time. Of course, I've done Greyhound from Seattle to Florida and back, two times, so I obviously have low standards.

 

[cp11]

Hi - we are out by the coast in Washington and we have done the drive a few times. My hubby makes us drive the first day to Stockton and then the rest of the trip the following day. The only thing I would be worried about is if it is a bad winter it will make for one miserable drive especially if things get closed down. We were in Boise a few years back when they shut the freeways down. I don't know if you remember that year, it was the weekend before Christmas. We almost didn't make it home for Christmas and I was freaking out because we had left our teenage daughter home with her grandparents. I thought we were going to be spending Christmas without her.

My husband is convinced now that we will not save anything driving because of the cost of gas. If you make your reservations early enough you should be able to fly Jet Blue out of Portland for about $200 pp. We have been four times in the last couple of years and we have paid between $200-$250 pp round trip.

About Amtrack, we know of a family in our home town that tried this. They are a family of five. It was the most awful experience. They ended up sending two home on an airplane. I can't remember all the specifics now (its been a long time ago), but it seemed like it took a few days. They had tracks that were closed because of slides, I believe. So know if there is bad weather it might affect the train also.

Good luck!

 

[aleighc1]

Any thoughts on the train? Price-wise it's in between driving and flying but I really don't know anything about taking a long distance train trip.

Can you tell I really hate flying

I hate flying too, and the thought of flying with all 8 of my kids sends my heart racing, but we just decided to fly instead of drive for our trip in October due to time constraints. It'll only be a 2.5 hour trip, and we'll be able to spend an extra day in the park. For the train I think it would depend on the ages of your children. Can they behave in a semi-confined space like that for a long time? When I was 14 I took a train trip from Seattle to New York (and back), and it was great! I rode coach with my mom, and we were perfectly comfortable. There were movies, we met lots of interesting people (especially our companions in the dining car), the scenery was great, and our only stress was when we had to switch train cars in Chicago. If you think your kids could handle the long ride and not disturb other passengers, I say go for it!

 

[8timesblessed]

I appreciate all the input!

I should add we're buying airfare for 4, 2 adults and 2 kids, not that I would sacrifice safety for money, but that it's definitely cheaper for us to dive than fly...unless, of course, we get stuck on the wrong side of a pass for several days.

And, we have family in Redding and will definitely stop there if this is a drive we ever make

We drove our first trip but are taking all our kids in Dec 1-10 and flying into Long Beach out of Seattle and were able to get tickets for $160 roundtrip. You can be there in 2 hours. I would hate to get stuck on the passes in the snow. Try Jet Blue right now.

 

[rramstad]

December 10th is pretty early for the weather to be super bad, but it could be.

If you do decide to drive, I'd absolutely give yourself the maximum chance of success and make sure to leave home EARLY EARLY EARLY in the day to maximize daylight in the passes. The drive from SW Washington into Oregon is very easy, up through about 150 miles of Oregon where things begin to get a bit more challenging. You can drive that first part in the dark, no problem. Conversely, you want daylight for the last 150 miles of Oregon and the first 100 miles of California, or thereabouts, and if conditions are poor, that could easily be six or seven hours of driving, even more, so you want to start that part of the drive in mid morning daylight, so you've got a good shot at getting through the whole shebang before dark. Everything south of Redding is a piece of cake...

I personally have had good luck driving through the area in the winter months, but that's just good luck, not good sense LOL I've never gotten stuck anywhere waiting for I-5 to open, but I have white knuckled it through major stretches of snowy roads, and lost three to five hours to bad weather or bad traffic or both.

Portland to Long Beach via Jet Blue or Alaska Airlines sure sounds way more relaxing... and I'd never make the trip in a car with my kids (12, 9 and 6) but that's just me, knowing them... so YMMV.

 

[ociana]

We have driven down from Salem, OR a few times in the winter and it has been hit and miss. We needed chains one year and barely squeaked by a road closure. That was terrible! We decided that it is worth flying now if we are going in the winter.