Travel on I75 Christmas Day

[buzz1fan]

We maybe traveling on Xmas day from Ohio TO FLorida. Will anything be open on I75 to eat at, and refill tank? Anyone traveled this day before? Thinking of leaving after Present time. Any advice would be great. I have used Marriotts site on where to stop on I75, most dont have full service dining..

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

This was not along I-75 but in the past my family and I have gone from WDW to Clearwater Beach on Christmas Day and when we wanted to stop at a McDonald's along I-4 it was closed, plus there was a Burger King and other fast food locations that were closed. However I would assume gas stations would be opened, because there are always going to be people travelling along the Interstate and they would eventually need to stop for gas.

 

[NotUrsula]

Don't know about I-95, but I often drive long-distance on Xmas, and my advice is to pack food and drink, just in case. Gasoline is easy to get as long as you are paying by CC, but food is much harder to come by (unless you buy it in a gas station, and even they sometimes don't put on their usual food items, because they assume that they will go to waste.)

The restaurants I've found most likely to be open on Xmas are breakfast-type places, particularly the Waffle House. Personally I don't like eating really high-carb foods like that when I'm driving; heavy meals tend to make me drowsy.

My fallback for holiday road travel is to eat at big hospitals. They just about always have food available, though it might not be too appetizing.

 

[Traveliz]

Not to hijack your thread but along these same lines - we are driving from IL to FL on Christmas day and I was wondering if the traffic will be much less than typical - we have driven to FL on the day after, 4th of July, summers and winters but I am hoping Christmas Day itself will be an easier driving day.

Liz

 

[mgilmer]

Along I-75 you will find ample gas and food, even on Christmas Day. Now the gas will be at truck stops like Pilot, Petro, T/A, etc. and the food will also most likely be at the same places (most truck stops now have either a fast food outlet or a sit down restaurant or both which is open 24/7 and holidays) and the food will definitely not be gourmet, but it will be ok.

 

[mgilmer]

FYI, here are a couple of websites with exit services info for I-75 you might find useful.

http://www.i75exitguide.com/index.php

http://www.georgia-navigator.com/

Here is another one:

http://www.truckstopguide.com/Search_Interstate.aspx

 

[kydisneyfans]

Around here, many gas stations are open, BUT, the restaurants attached are not. We have a Pilot/Wendys and Pilot/McDonalds here, and neither of the attached restaurants are open past 7:00 on Christmas Eve.

Waffle Houses and Dennys are open, but beyond that, you won't find much.

 

[LadyBeBop]

Waffle Houses and Dennys are open, but beyond that, you won't find much.

The good news is, there's a Waffle House at nearly every exit. They're more numerous than McDonald's.

In fact, they know they're the only restaurant open on Christmas, and they'll put up small signs at every exit directing you to them.

Food isn't bad. I'll recommend them as a stopgap. No way is it as good as a Cracker Barrel or Bob Evans. But it's good once in a while.

If you're willing to spend the bucks, I know that some of the hotels in Cincinnati (and probably Lexington and Knoxville) have Christmas buffets. I'm pretty sure the Commonwealth Hilton (the Turfway Road exit in Florence) has a Christmas buffet.