You guys in NC......

[DLBDS]

I'm in Raleigh. For those of you that only drive half way and are leaving from central NC, where do you spend the night (Town/Lodging)? We originally planned to fly but the more I thought about it, I decided that driving would be much more beneficial. Not to mention cheaper for a family of 3. This way we aren't on a time schedule like we would be flying and we don't have to worry about a towncar and trip to the grocery store and someone to drop us off and pick us up at the airport etc etc. And, if we need it, we'll have a car to eat off property, take to a resort or go to Gatorland or whatever. Much less stress driving. We can leave on our last day whenever we want. There won't be any long delays at the airport. No cancelled flight worries. Anyway, I think I've made my point. Driving is just better. Period.

I'm relatively new here but wouldn't it be nice to have forums based on state? That way people could find each other and ask questions based on hotels to stay at along the way, driving routes/distances and just general conversation. Anyone think this is a good idea?

 

[NC State]

I'm in Johnston County (Four Oaks). We don't spend the night during our drive down. We leave about 3:30 am (too excited to sleep) and stop just a couple of times for gas/bathroom and a quick bite to eat. We arrive around 12:30 pm; check in, eat at the Resort then we nap until 6:00 pm and we're ready to eat again. We're not the party type so we're back in the room by 10:00 pm to start our first day at the park. We enjoy driving to the parks because of the free parking and we don't have to wait on the bus to pick us up.

 

[DLBDS]

Thanks for replying, NC State. Anyone else have anything to offer up? I found a reply elsewhere that recommended the Hampton Inn in Darien, GA, and a few that said they stay somewhere in Savannah, GA. There must be folks out there with suggestions. I know not everyone drives non-stop from Central NC all the way to WDW.

 

[mma]

We almost drove this past Sept. until Southwest came up with those really low airfares. I looked at a map of Florida and where I 95 was closest to the ocean. I can't remember the name of the town but I thought it would be a pretty place to stop and it was only an hour and a half away from Orlando. You could drive for nine hours from 9:00am to 5:00pm and then stop and have dinner and spend the night. The next morning you could leave around 9:00 and get to Disney by 11:00. Hope this helps, Melissa

 

[LVSWL]

Always drive and make it in about 9-10 hours. Really not about a bad drive, but if you wanted to stop, just south of Savannah isn't bad, but if you can get to Jacksonville, Fl. that's even better, so you don't have far to go the next morning. I just think it's easier to pack a lunch and drive, take a few potty breaks and get to that mouse !!!!!

 

[DLBDS]

How long does it take to get to WDW from Jacksonville? Are there any palces you can recommend in Jacksonville to stay at? My only requirements are a clean and quiet room close to I-95 (with interior corridors preferably but not required). I checked some of the travel sites and Hampton Inn in Jacksonville seemed to get good reviews from folks.

 

[Nisa]

We always stay in a Hampton Inn around Jacksonville or somewhere around Savannah, depending on how soon we can leave Raleigh. We've always left in the afternoon and like to break the trip up. There is no specific Hampton Inn we stay--seems like every year there is a convention or some other type thing that fills the hotels up all along that area. Last year we made reservations.

 

[Contemporary_Man]

I’ve only been in Raleigh for about a year, so I was actually happy to have such a short drive to Orlando. We left at 8am and checked in around 6pm. It really wasn’t a bad drive and we even stopped for a sit-down dinner. I have stayed at the Jacksonville Marriott a couple of times and have been very pleased with it.

 

[JillinNC1964]

What time of day will you be leaving? We've heard of people leaving Raleigh after work and driving to Florence, SC or Savanah, GA. Another option is to drive to St. Augustine and try to take in some of the sites. Very historical. The next day you won't have a very long drive at all to Orlando.. you could tailor the time to fit your needs.. meaning sleep in and leisurely get to Orlando in early afternoon... or still get up early.. get to Orlando and have a full day of sightseeing, pool, etc. before hitting the parks the next day.

Next trip I'd like to leave around 3:30am.. heard you make great time that way.

Jill

 

[ccw]

We have driven straight thru a couple of times but, if we are not able to get away from Raleigh til mid-day, we drive to just south of J-ville and spend the night at a Comfort Suite near the World Golf Village (St. Augustine). Nice place, spacious rooms, easy on/off I-95. About 7 hours to St. Augustine from Raleigh. That puts us about two hours from Disney so we can be in the parks the next morning before lunchtime.

 

[anny_c_99]

but we drove last time, and stayed in St Augustine. Hampton Inn, it was nice and there was a Shoneys within walking distance of it. Got up the next morning and drove on into WDW.

We stopped at a welcome center, and got the Travelers Discount Guide book, and used a coupon out of that for the room, instead of making reservations somewhere. We had no problems using the coupon.

We are planning on using it again this trip.

 

[Jan3571]

We are getting ready to drive down for the 4th time since our daughter was born. She is now 2 years old. She seems to do OK driving straight through on the way down, but after a week of fun, doesn't do well on the long drive back.

Here's what we are doing this time...Leaving Holly Springs about 8am, stopping a few times to strech our legs and let her run around, then arriving in Orlando around 6pm, eating at Downtown Disney and letting her run around some more, then staying at a inexpensive place near WDW that night. The next morning, we will head over to the GF to park and check in, then on to the Magic Kingdom. On our last day, we will stay in the parks until around 1-2pm then hit the road and drive back as far as Savannah. Stay the night at the Comfort Suites there right on I-95 and make the remainder of the drive back the next morning.

We have previously stopped overnight in Kingsland, GA a few times, Yulee, FL once (the Comfort Inn was not that great, but you are just a few miles from great restaraunts on Amelia Island), and the north side of Jacksonville. For the money and time, I would recommend the Kingsland area. Good selection of hotels on only 30 minutes to Jacksonville.

One more suggestions, google search "I-95 exits". There is a website that lists hotels & restaraunts at exits all along I-95. It's useful to know what lies ahead.

Have fun!

 

[DLBDS]

Great information, guys! I was thinking about picking up one of those travel magazines with the coupons! I still need to know what places to search for in the magazine though so these recommendations are great. Some of the places advertised in them aren't exactly the type of place one wants to stay in and you don't realize this until you drive up. We can't afford to be driving around looking for just the right place! We aren't leaving until the end of Nov. We'll be in WDW for 8days/7nights. As it stands now, we plan on picking our daughter up at school on the way out around 12:00-1:00. I have to decide between driving straight through, arriving between 9:00-11:00 (depending on when we leave and how many stops we make) and staying the night at one of the All Star properties before heading over to the WL the next morning. No use booking an extra night at the WL when all we'll need is a bed. I have an AP so figure I can get a pretty good deal at AS since it'll be during the Value season. Otherwise, we'll break the trip up into 2 days and I'll need to stay somewhere along I-95. I don't want to be real tired from driving once we reach WDW so I have a tough decision to make. When we travel, we don't like to mess around with frequent stops. We're on a mission to get where we're going so I figure we'll get there within 8-1/2 to 9-1/2 hours if we drive straight through.

 

[DancingBear]

Drove a few times when we lived in Charlotte. Drove at least as far as Jacksonville FL before stopping for the night. Since your driving day is pretty shot anyway, we preferred to keep on going at least as far as Lake Mary, which has several decent hotels and restaurants right off the highway (we stayed at Hilton Garden Inn there, and one other place I can't remember right now). Then you've got a pretty short drive (about 45 minutes) in the morning and can pretty much enjoy a full day on the second day.

If you stop anywhere north of Jacksonville, you've still got hours of driving ahead of you. South of Jacksonville there isn't a lot right on the highway (you're travelling through a lot of marshland) until Lake Mary. (There are of course hotels in St. Augustine and Daytona Beach, but they're not right next to the interstate, particularly the St. Augustine ones).

Depending on the time of day we left, we've also gone all the way to WDW and spent the first night off property, such as at the Fairfield Inn by Marriott very close to the Crossroads.

 

[goofy4dis]

We live in cary and we usually stop in Kingsland which is pretty much the southermost city in Georgia (en route to Disney)