Logistical nightmare

[wizards8507]

I really hope some honorable soul is brave enough to read my story and share some advice.

Situation
My fiancee (DF) and I are senior college students in South Bend, IN. DF is from Philadelphia and I'm from Providence. We each have a car here in South Bend. The wedding is July 9 in South Bend. Honeymoon to follow is July 10-17 at WDW and 17-24 on a Western Caribbean Cruise out of Tampa. I start work for Disney on August 1. All of our "stuff" will be in Philadelphia. Flights are already booked from South Bend to Orlando for the honeymoon and from Tampa to Philadelphia to oversee the moving company pack up our stuff.

Current Plan
I drive my car to Florida after graduation and leave it in long term parking, then fly home to Rhode Island. DF drives her car home to Pennsylvania after graduation. I drive to wedding with my parents, DF flies to wedding her with parents, leaves her car in PA. After wedding, fly to Orlando for honeymoon. Get my car from long-term parking and use it for the week. Drive to Tampa with my car. Cruise, leaving my car in TAMPA long term parking. Fly home to PA to oversee moving company. Drive together from PA to FL with her car, taking detour to Tampa to retrieve my car. Start work with Disney August 1.

Questions
Basically, I just feel like all of this is unnecessarily complicated, but I really can't work out another solution. I'm hoping that someone with experience traveling and planning logistics can work out a simpler way for everyone and their stuff to get where they need to be without abandoning a car somewhere. Hopefully someone can help.

 

[mickeysshoes]

Without going over every detail in my head the very first thing that comes to my mind is this...looking to the cost to have a company pick up your car at some point (can it stay at school till closer till your arrival in FL??) and transport it to your new home in FL?? what would be the that cost and the cost to get you to RI from school. Think about the time you would spend driving when you could be doing something else like packing??? Not sure if it makes since dollar wise or in your schedule. Hope this make since...but like i said this was the first thing that came to mind and shoud not be to hard to you to figure out if it would work for you all. Good luck and congrats on graduation and the wedding!!

 

[Phonedave]

Both drive to her house in PA, and you leave both cars there. You then get to RI somehow (parents pick you up, take a train, take a bus - your choice)

You both travel to the wedding with your parents. (If you really wanted to, you could even drive from college home to RI, and then on the way to the wedding, you could drop your car off at your fiancee's house and then continue on with your parents)

You get married, do the honeymoon thing yadda yadda, then you both fly back to PA.

You rent a car trailer from U-Haul (and a bolt on hitch if necessary) and drive to FL together, towing the other car.

Or you just both drive down in seperate cars (how romantic)

Or you ask the moving company to tow one of your cars down.

Or as the second poster said, ship one of the cars down.

http://www.autotransportdirect.com is one place. They quoted $600 from Philly to Orlando. (Depends on make of car)

-dave

 

[tizzo]

Without going over every detail in my head the very first thing that comes to my mind is this...looking to the cost to have a company pick up your car at some point (can it stay at school till closer till your arrival in FL??) and transport it to your new home in FL??

That's what I was going to suggest. When my employer relocated me from NJ to FL, the moving company they provided simply put one of our cars on the truck with everything else. I'm not sure how much that added to the cost, because I didn't pay for it (plus, it was 12 years ago anyway), or whether it would even help you out at all. But it's the first thing that occurred to me because I was wondering what to do about the extra car for my own relocation - I didn't know until I asked that putting it on the truck was even possible.

 

[Phonedave]

That's what I was going to suggest. When my employer relocated me from NJ to FL, the moving company they provided simply put one of our cars on the truck with everything else. I'm not sure how much that added to the cost, because I didn't pay for it (plus, it was 12 years ago anyway), or whether it would even help you out at all. But it's the first thing that occurred to me because I was wondering what to do about the extra car for my own relocation - I didn't know until I asked that putting it on the truck was even possible.

There is quite a few companies that ship cars from NJ to FL and back again.

There are many people the winter in FL and summer in NJ and want their cars, but do not want to drive down. If you time it right, you can get some good deals, and not have to wait too long for your car.

-dave

 

[mickeysshoes]

Thats what my dad did when he moved here (VA) from FL and then did the same when he did the same when he left a year later. He fly and had the truck transported.

 

[wizards8507]

Thats what my dad did when he moved here (VA) from FL and then did the same when he did the same when he left a year later. He fly and had the truck transported.

Disney is paying for my relocation, they're only paying for one "leg" of the move. So they'll move stuff from PA to FL but I don't think we can send some stuff from one location and other stuff (i.e., the car) from another location. Plus, I'm trying to avoid paying rent on the apartment until I actually move in, so timing the move is going to be a bit tricky.

 

[Phonedave]

Disney is paying for my relocation, they're only paying for one "leg" of the move. So they'll move stuff from PA to FL but I don't think we can send some stuff from one location and other stuff (i.e., the car) from another location. Plus, I'm trying to avoid paying rent on the apartment until I actually move in, so timing the move is going to be a bit tricky.

So do as I said.

Drive home to RI. Then you and your parents leave in SEPARATE cars to go to the wedding. You all swing by your girlfriends house in PA and drop off your car. Then you all continue on in your parents car.

You fly from the wedding to Florida, then to PA. You have one car shipped with all of your stuff from PA, and you drive the other down to FL together.

-dave