WWYD? Fly or drive?

[DarthMole]

I'm seriously considering driving from CA to WDW next year for an extended vacation. The art of the road trip has been lost, and I just adore road trips.

Agree 100%. Some of my best memories as a kid were road trips... and train trips.

 

[MomToOne]

My parents tortured us every year growing up with vacations where we drove 2 days each way. 2 parents and 5 kids. In a car with no air conditioning I remember fighting with my brothers the entire time, getting car sick, and generally not being happy with those days. And the years when my little brother was a baby were particulary not fun (the added screaming just added something oh-so-special). So my first instinct on anything more than a few hour trip is to fly.

But for financial reasons, I chose to drive the 7 hours to DLR a couple of years ago with my then 10 year old daughter. It wasn't bad on the way down, but we fought the entire way home Interestingly enough, though, when I asked DD if she wanted to fly or drive this year, she said she wanted us to drive again! She said she liked having more room to spread out (in the backseat) and because she loved stopping at all the rest stops along the way. I don't get it, but we're driving again!

(One tip if you drive: We load up on books on tape from the library before we leave.)

 

[DisneytheKid]

Id go with the cheaper option...

 

[chrissiecutie]

It's so fun to see how others feel about flying vs driving.

Some think flying is less stressful. Clearly they've never flown with my DH. Some think flying is safer. Hmm...how so?? Some wonder about kids sitting in a car all day while others relish the idea of a good old fashioned road trip. I love reading all these posts!

For my family...we always choose the cheapest option. But when I price things out, I have a column for flying and one for driving & I include EVERYTHING!

Driving- food, hotels (we try and drive straight through), mini mart stops for something sweet, gas...

Flying- checked baggage, any extra "hidden" airline fees, fees to park car at airport while on vacay, car rental fees, transportation to & from airport, meals while waiting for flights....

If price is about the same, and it usually is...then I consider our timeline. If DH has the time to spend off work and we can afford a longer vacation, then we will always drive. If he only has a week or we are working with a smaller budget, then we will fly. Flying means we take a shorter vacation because if we drive, we like to make a few extra stops just for fun!

And for DH, flying is very stressful. He is NOT a good flyer. So if price is the same, I always go for what's easiest for him.

 

[chrissiecutie]

My parents tortured us every year growing up with vacations where we drove 2 days each way. 2 parents and 5 kids. In a car with no air conditioning I remember fighting with my brothers the entire time, getting car sick, and generally not being happy with those days. And the years when my little brother was a baby were particulary not fun (the added screaming just added something oh-so-special). So my first instinct on anything more than a few hour trip is to fly.

But for financial reasons, I chose to drive the 7 hours to DLR a couple of years ago with my then 10 year old daughter. It wasn't bad on the way down, but we fought the entire way home Interestingly enough, though, when I asked DD if she wanted to fly or drive this year, she said she wanted us to drive again! She said she liked having more room to spread out (in the backseat) and because she loved stopping at all the rest stops along the way. I don't get it, but we're driving again!

(One tip if you drive: We load up on books on tape from the library before we leave.)

Sometimes people just feel more comfortable and safe in an environment that they know. Maybe this has something to do with why your daughter prefers driving?? She's comfortable in her car with you, she knows what to expect (airports can be scary!) and she gets to see/do some fun things along the way that she doesn't normally get to do. My DS loves rest stops...don't know why, they are super gross! But he seems to think they are a grand adventure. Kids...go figure!

And to keep DS occupied on the drive, I borrow Disney movies from the library for him to watch. Gets him in the spirit and keeps him quiet!

 

[jojomojo]

We have 3 kids ages 2, 6 and almost 9. We are going this fall and can't decide whether to drive or fly. We flew in March and it didn't feel like it saved a ton of time because we live 3 hours from the nearest airport. They all do great in the car.

It's about a 13/14 hour drive that we can split up over 2 days. If we fly in 1 day it takes us about 8-9 hours since we have to drive 3 hours, wait 2 at the airport, 2 hour flight, then drive down to Anaheim from LAX (no direct flights into Orange County )

We have enough points to get 4 of the 5 airline tickets. Flying will cost us about $500 with limo service picking us up and dropping us off. Driving will cost about $450 with a night in a hotel half way.

If we drive this time, we can use the tickets next year. If we fly, a tip next year MAY not happen. I honestly don't care either way.

What would you do if you were in my shoes?

Since we live so close we kind of are in the same shoes (kids are 5, 8 & 14 though, with an extra 12 yr old in the mix this year). We are driving. Last time we left at 3 am and got to the hotel by 3 pm (just one driver too, kids were 3, 6 & 12). iPods or portable dvd players for each kid are a must. This year we are considering getting a temporary mobile hotspot with my husbands cell service so everybody has internet along the way too. I'm also hoping to leave by 2 am if my husband can get to sleep early enough. This will give us time once we get there to freshen up, let hubby take a nap and have plenty of time in the evening at the park. By the time the kids are awake in the car (8 am or so?), from that point, the ride will only seem like a 6-7 hour car ride (for the kids anyway, not poor hubby ).

I'm even considering letting the kids stay up extra late the night before so they are super tired and sleep on the ride there (I hope that doesn't backfire!) One thing I'm very strict about when driving long distances with kids is allowing ONLY water to drink...as much as they want of course. If my kids had something "tastey", they'd chug it down in a minute and we'd have to stop in an hour.

Since flying will be about the same cost with points, I'd be tempted to do that (we've never flown anywhere as a family though). But...since you say if you use up your points this year, it might mean no trip next year, I'd definitely drive and save the points for next year

I recently chatted with a member on this board from the same area about taking amtrak. It would end up being about the same price as gas if we drove (would have to add in transportation to/from the hotel though). Its tempting...I still haven't ruled it out yet.

 

[chrissiecutie]

Since we live so close we kind of are in the same shoes (kids are 5, 8 & 14 though, with an extra 12 yr old in the mix this year). We are driving. Last time we left at 3 am and got to the hotel by 3 pm (just one driver too, kids were 3, 6 & 12). iPods or portable dvd players for each kid are a must. This year we are considering getting a temporary mobile hotspot with my husbands cell service so everybody has internet along the way too. I'm also hoping to leave by 2 am if my husband can get to sleep early enough. This will give us time once we get there to freshen up, let hubby take a nap and have plenty of time in the evening at the park. By the time the kids are awake in the car (8 am or so?), from that point, the ride will only seem like a 6-7 hour car ride (for the kids anyway, not poor hubby ).

We do something similiar but start at 7pm the night before, usually Friday and we are in SoCal by 4pm Saturday. I agree that a DVD player is a must!

Also...have you tried melatonin? It's a natural herbal supplement that helps regulate sleeping and is safe for children. Although you would always want to check with your MD before giving it...it might be worth looking into if you feel comfortable with that. I know...some folks dont. This stuff works like a charm for DH but not at all for me and only half the time for DS, so it doesn't work on everyone. I have tried keeping DS up late, I've tried sleeping in...pretty much tried it all. DS doesn't want to miss a second of our road trip so he's still wide awake at midnight.

 

[redbonec]

I saw your option about amtrak train.

For our trip a month ago, we checked into going from Anaheim to San Jose, which was our next stop. The cost was okay I think, but the time to get there was waaayyy longer than driving, because of all the stops they make, plus they always have to defer to other trains on the track, which can make for unexpected and time unknown delays.

Just something to inquire about if you look further into it.

 

[jojomojo]

Also...have you tried melatonin? It's a natural herbal supplement that helps regulate sleeping and is safe for children. Although you would always want to check with your MD before giving it...it might be worth looking into if you feel comfortable with that. I know...some folks dont. This stuff works like a charm for DH but not at all for me and only half the time for DS, so it doesn't work on everyone. I have tried keeping DS up late, I've tried sleeping in...pretty much tried it all. DS doesn't want to miss a second of our road trip so he's still wide awake at midnight.

That's my kids too! From the time they were babies, never been the type of kids to zonk out in the car (hence keeping them up to make them tired). One of my other rules for traveling long distances with kids is electronic devices can only be used when the sun is up...forces the odd one out thats awake to fall asleep out of boredom lol I didn't think about melatonin. I take it myself, but it HAS to be the 5mg time release (not sure if that would be okay for kids? I'd assume it would). If I take the 1 or 3mg pill, it helps me fall asleep, but if I'm woken up by something after an hour or so, I'm completely wired. The natural children's cough syrup we use has melatonin, so all of the kids have had it. I'm going to have to give this some thought

 

[chrissiecutie]

That's my kids too! From the time they were babies, never been the type of kids to zonk out in the car (hence keeping them up to make them tired). One of my other rules for traveling long distances with kids is electronic devices can only be used when the sun is up...forces the odd one out thats awake to fall asleep out of boredom lol I didn't think about melatonin. I take it myself, but it HAS to be the 5mg time release (not sure if that would be okay for kids? I'd assume it would). If I take the 1 or 3mg pill, it helps me fall asleep, but if I'm woken up by something after an hour or so, I'm completely wired. The natural children's cough syrup we use has melatonin, so all of the kids have had it. I'm going to have to give this some thought

Do you have a naturopath? That would be a good place to start...mine recommends giving melatonin to kids in certain situations. Definately NOT for every day use. And of course as I said above, it really works very differently on each person. I may have to try the time released ones for myself as the regular ones don't do a thing for me. And as you said, if for some reason DS or DH wake up after taking the melatonin- well...they are wide awake now! I actually gave DS some on Christmas Eve out of sheer desperation. It was 1AM and he was wide awake. Well, it totally backfired on me! He only slept until 4AM- my naturopath said it might have something to do with all the endorphins & excitement.

 

[PinkBudgie]

When I was a child I used to assign points to the rest stop bathrooms. 1 point for a lock on the door, 1 point for seat covers, ect.

My boys were always great travelers when they were little. They loved to look out the window and see things and ask questions. They never argued like my sister and I did in the car.

 

[MomToOne]

Sometimes people just feel more comfortable and safe in an environment that they know. Maybe this has something to do with why your daughter prefers driving?? She's comfortable in her car with you, she knows what to expect (airports can be scary!) and she gets to see/do some fun things along the way that she doesn't normally get to do.

Good guess, but nope. My daughter has been flying several times a year since she was 1-1/2, when her inaugural flight was a 16 hour one home from China (adopted). By 3 she was toting her own roller suitcase through the airports At 12, she even has a touch of "first class" snobbery going on, thanks to her Aunt who usually gets us upgraded when we fly with her, which is a lot since we vacation together often. But maybe that's the problem - when she flys with just me, it's coach all the way baby!

(But really, I think she preferred driving just because of the novelty, since we do fly so much. But since the only "fun things" we do on the drive is stop at a few rest stops for a couple of minutes, I suspect after one or two more road trips she won't find it so much fun anymore LOL)

 

[SomeDude78]

I'd drive, it lets you haul more stuff, bring back more gifts and souvenirs, have more flexibility while in Anaheim, and puts you in total control of your schedule. But I'm biased because I fly all the time for work and absolutely despise flying I find it freaky at times, and irritating all the time ... when it comes to driving, it's just me, whoever I'm with, and the open road, which is a little bit of leisure in itself

Like a lot of PP in this thread I only live ~6 hours away from DLR so my visits are almost always via car. But I drive to farther destinations as well, so even at 2-3 times the distance to DLR, I'd still opt to drive so long as I have enough vacation days to accommodate it.

 

[Paulakoala]

We are in the midst of driving down from Okotoks, Alberta right now. 22 hour drive. last night in Idaho Falls, tonight in St George Utah, Anaheim lunchtime tomorrow! Kids are almost-5, almost-6, almost-12 and my 15 yo niece. We're saving approx. $2000 by driving rather than flying.

Kids have been great. iPads, DS, DVD players.....and crazy mama with the playlist that keeps everyone singing along.

 

[Kat in WA]

PinkBudgie - we do the restroom tally sheets as well!! Glad to hear there are others who are just as silly!
We leave next Saturday for our annual trip from Eastern WA to DLand and we have driven every year!! Leave really early (3:30) Saturday morning and push it for 13 hours. Stop in Patterson, CA for the night, and then it's a quick 5 hour drive Sunday (with stops at Ralph's and In and Out).
We have done this every year since the girls were 8 and 11. They are now 18 and 21 and wouldn't do it any other way.
Restroom tally sheets (i.e., "no flying flies") are just one of the many things we look forward to. Got our road trip snacks yesterday!! Now, just waiting for the last long week to hurry so we can hit the road!!

 

[whoopsiedoodle]

We are planning a trip in Feb from Idaho and we will definitely be driving! But we are also making our trip more than just DL. We will be driving to N. CA. and staying at the beach for a couple days then driving down to DL for 4-5 days and then back home. I LOATHE flying! I hate all the time you spend waiting around, security, cranky kids crammed into a tiny space, etc. At least in the car you can stop if it gets horrible. We try our best to just enjoy the trip and not stress too much. That being said, my kids are great car kids and are easily entertained (3 and 2). Good luck!

 

[Jennifer2983]

You could try driving straight thru....we live in Oregon, were about 17 hrs away, it wasn't so bad. You could leave at 4 am and get there that night! We r flying this year, but mostly cause I got a good deal, and my daughter wanted to try a airplane

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[arthur06]

For where we live, if its anything at 12 hours or less we would drive. Anything over 12 hours we look at the cost and flight times and weigh it on a case by case basis. Anything under 6 days we will fly, but if we had 9 days or so we possibly drive.

I have driven the 23 hours to WDW straight thru several times. It's not the drive there that we hate, it's the drive home that is a killer!