Canadave
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 25, 1999
- Messages
- 891
The CAST: DD1 (Brittany, 15 yrs. old), DD2 (Emily, 11 yrs. old), DW (Marylynn, let's just say early 40's) and myself (Dave,same)
Day 2 was pretty much going to be a 'drive" day, but I will offer these suggestions about driving to WDW, especially with kids.
1. DVD player, particularly the inboard model. What a godsend. Our girls watched it most of the way to WDW and back. Hint: try to watch musicals, so the driver can enjoy too. We took 12 DVD's (took them out of their cases and put them in a travel CD case. Takes up very little space in an already overloaded vehicle
) Was a bit distracting for the driver at night, because sometimes it looks like a flashing light behind you. (It didn't bother me so much, but DW didn't like it). Almost all the movies we took were Disney, so it helped put us in 'the mood'. It also gives you a whole new perspective of the movies. ie. background music, sound effects, and especially the dialogue. Personal note - the dialogue in Pirates of the Caribbean and how it is presented by Johnny Depp is just hilarious 
We caught POC 2 1/2 times on our trip.
2. If you have more than one child, two words - "captains chairs". Unfortunately we didn't get the van with them.
On a long trip, it would be a nice way to keep the kids separate and in control of their own seat. That was probably the only 'sibling' problem we had on the driving trip. We heard "I just got comfortable, you move", a few too many times on the drive
3. A tip I learned on the DIS boards is when driving, go the speed of the traffic. Believe me, it can save you MAJOR driving time. Our first trip down, I was so worried about the US Highway Patrol, that I used cruise control, set at the speed limit, all the way down and back. I kept hearing DISers talk about how you could make it to WDW in 22 hours from Toronto, and I thought they were crazy. Last trip, at the speed limit, it took us 27 hours from WDW to our place...this year, going with the speed of the traffic, it took us 24 hours.....that's 3 HOURS saved. An extra 10 miles an hour may not sound like much, but over 20 hours, that's an extra 200 miles in the same time. But a warning, use Dave Hunter's I75 book and keep an eye out for speed traps. As I said before, the book is very accurate.
Back to the trip...We woke up at 8 (very late for us, but we had had a good drive the day before, and we were supposed to be on vacation). I walked down the street to the gas station to get a coffee and check out the weather and road conditions. Outside, a light freezing rain was coming down. The side road had a thin layer of ice and was very slippery. We got on our way at 9 o'clock and the I75 was great...slightly wet in some lanes, but not slippery at all
We enjoyed our trip through 'horse' country. Some of the ranches are amazing.
One of our last trip's disappointments was not getting to the 'original' Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant. (I'm a big KFC fan) We pulled into the restaurant/museum at 11:30 and had a great lunch. The chicken pieces in the US are about twice the size as the chicken in Canada, although not quite as tasty. And their gravy is different (IMHO it doesn't hold a candle to ours). We walked around the museum for about 45 minutes! I was really surprised, but I think my DD's had a better time there than I did. They thought it was pretty awesome to be in the site of the original KFC. Got lot's of pictures and took home some great memories. Anyway, I would recommend to anyone that this is a great side trip.
We filled up with gas and washed the car (the self serve car wash is MUCH cheaper here than in Canada) and were on our way.
We took a break in Knoxville and again at the Welcome Centre in Georgia (grabbed magazines with hotel discount coupons) and hit Atlanta during rush hour. But don't fret...Atlanta has one of the greatest traffic ideas I have ever seen...the HOV lane. The lane, marked with diamond motifs and a double line on the right side, is a lane that goes through Atlanta on the I75 and is restricted to buses and car pools (any vehicle with 2 people or more) Even though the traffic was slow (sometimes stopped) in the regular lanes, we travelled with the traffic flow of the HOV lane, usually at 80 mph! We were through 'Atlanta at rush hour' in almost no time at all If you use the lane, make sure you watch the signs and don't exit at the special 'HOV exit' lanes. It's not difficult, just make sure you follow the HOV I75 South signs. Wish we could have something like this in Toronto!
We had a couple more short breaks before we hit Valdosta, Georgia at around 9:45. We used a coupon from the discount book at a Motel called the GuestHouse Inn. We would definitely recommend it. It was very clean, the beds were comfortable, everything was handy (ie. ice machine), palm trees in the nicely landscaped yard (DD1 loves palm trees, even has one on her Zoppini bracelet...so she was quite happy with the view). And the service was very friendly and gave that extra.
We had a relaxing evening and made plans for our next day.
Day 2 was pretty much going to be a 'drive" day, but I will offer these suggestions about driving to WDW, especially with kids.
1. DVD player, particularly the inboard model. What a godsend. Our girls watched it most of the way to WDW and back. Hint: try to watch musicals, so the driver can enjoy too. We took 12 DVD's (took them out of their cases and put them in a travel CD case. Takes up very little space in an already overloaded vehicle
) Was a bit distracting for the driver at night, because sometimes it looks like a flashing light behind you. (It didn't bother me so much, but DW didn't like it). Almost all the movies we took were Disney, so it helped put us in 'the mood'. It also gives you a whole new perspective of the movies. ie. background music, sound effects, and especially the dialogue. Personal note - the dialogue in Pirates of the Caribbean and how it is presented by Johnny Depp is just hilarious We caught POC 2 1/2 times on our trip.2. If you have more than one child, two words - "captains chairs". Unfortunately we didn't get the van with them.
On a long trip, it would be a nice way to keep the kids separate and in control of their own seat. That was probably the only 'sibling' problem we had on the driving trip. We heard "I just got comfortable, you move", a few too many times on the drive 3. A tip I learned on the DIS boards is when driving, go the speed of the traffic. Believe me, it can save you MAJOR driving time. Our first trip down, I was so worried about the US Highway Patrol, that I used cruise control, set at the speed limit, all the way down and back. I kept hearing DISers talk about how you could make it to WDW in 22 hours from Toronto, and I thought they were crazy. Last trip, at the speed limit, it took us 27 hours from WDW to our place...this year, going with the speed of the traffic, it took us 24 hours.....that's 3 HOURS saved. An extra 10 miles an hour may not sound like much, but over 20 hours, that's an extra 200 miles in the same time. But a warning, use Dave Hunter's I75 book and keep an eye out for speed traps. As I said before, the book is very accurate.
Back to the trip...We woke up at 8 (very late for us, but we had had a good drive the day before, and we were supposed to be on vacation). I walked down the street to the gas station to get a coffee and check out the weather and road conditions. Outside, a light freezing rain was coming down. The side road had a thin layer of ice and was very slippery. We got on our way at 9 o'clock and the I75 was great...slightly wet in some lanes, but not slippery at all
We enjoyed our trip through 'horse' country. Some of the ranches are amazing.
One of our last trip's disappointments was not getting to the 'original' Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant. (I'm a big KFC fan) We pulled into the restaurant/museum at 11:30 and had a great lunch. The chicken pieces in the US are about twice the size as the chicken in Canada, although not quite as tasty. And their gravy is different (IMHO it doesn't hold a candle to ours). We walked around the museum for about 45 minutes! I was really surprised, but I think my DD's had a better time there than I did. They thought it was pretty awesome to be in the site of the original KFC. Got lot's of pictures and took home some great memories. Anyway, I would recommend to anyone that this is a great side trip.
We filled up with gas and washed the car (the self serve car wash is MUCH cheaper here than in Canada) and were on our way.
We took a break in Knoxville and again at the Welcome Centre in Georgia (grabbed magazines with hotel discount coupons) and hit Atlanta during rush hour. But don't fret...Atlanta has one of the greatest traffic ideas I have ever seen...the HOV lane. The lane, marked with diamond motifs and a double line on the right side, is a lane that goes through Atlanta on the I75 and is restricted to buses and car pools (any vehicle with 2 people or more) Even though the traffic was slow (sometimes stopped) in the regular lanes, we travelled with the traffic flow of the HOV lane, usually at 80 mph! We were through 'Atlanta at rush hour' in almost no time at all
If you use the lane, make sure you watch the signs and don't exit at the special 'HOV exit' lanes. It's not difficult, just make sure you follow the HOV I75 South signs. Wish we could have something like this in Toronto!We had a couple more short breaks before we hit Valdosta, Georgia at around 9:45. We used a coupon from the discount book at a Motel called the GuestHouse Inn. We would definitely recommend it. It was very clean, the beds were comfortable, everything was handy (ie. ice machine), palm trees in the nicely landscaped yard (DD1 loves palm trees, even has one on her Zoppini bracelet...so she was quite happy with the view). And the service was very friendly and gave that extra.
We had a relaxing evening and made plans for our next day.
Most of the exits from the HOV lane kind of go "up" a ramp, so it's pretty easy to not get confused. Although, there actually is one spot where you actually take a HOV exit -- it's where I-85 (I think) meets up with I-75. Technically you're taking an "exit", but it just curves around and meets right back up with I-75. As for when it ends, the lane remains in place for a bit, but it just doesn't have the double lines separating it from the other 6 lanes of traffic. 
Now that we have captains chairs in our van, the kids never travel with us...they have their own car. 
)...I really enjoyed it & I'm anxiously awaiting Part 3. 
. I'd have to check my Dave Hunter book for sure. It is near the Kentucky/Tennessee border. Quite an interesting landmark, even if your not a KFC nut. Gives you a glimpse of what a real 'entrepreneur' is made of.
