But I don't want to drive!!!!

bucklepants

Active Member
Okay, so we live in MN, 26 hrs from Orlando. :( Our next trip isn't until next August, but I'm already looking at airfare prices. About $400+/ person (for 3 of us). Plus, if we fly, we will need to rent a car because we will be visiting family the first couple days down there (and we wanted to see if we liked having a car vs using the Disney buses).
Anyways, my DH is pushing again for driving due to cost. The idea just depresses me. 26 hrs in the car! UGH! We would need to tack on or take off days of our planned trip. I don't know if our 5 yr old (or me) could handle it, and another variable is my Dad would need to meet up with us in FL after we are already there and get back to MN when we leave, so we would probably need to offer to have him ride back with us, AND... DH's mom will probably want to drive down if we do (it's her family we are seeing). We certainly can't fit 5 in the car. UGH!!!! Thoughts. This seems to be kicking down my planning high.
 

Dad 2 M & M

Well-Known Member
First of all...I haaaate to drive! Ignoring everthing else, you are talking about 4 days of driving, + 2 hotel rooms? A hotel room X 2 nights would be min $150 bucks (being conservative here). How many days are you planning for this vacation? And...you will already be worn a little before the Magic begins.
 
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bucklepants

Active Member
Original Poster
First of all...I haaaate to drive! Ignoring everthing else, you are talking about 4 days of driving, + 2 hotel rooms? A hotel room X 2 nights would be min $150 bucks (being conservative here). How many days are you planning for this vacation? And...you will already be worn a little before the Magic begins.

I hate driving too! When I was 19, my first trip to Orlando, we drove. OMG! They had to drug me up on the way home. The only thing that we would save is money, and probably only in the hundreds. Time vs. money.
 
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PUSH

Well-Known Member
Adding to what I've already said, driving 26 hours with a 5 year-old might not be a great idea. Didn't realize you had a little one with you. The one time we flew we rented a car and we drive to every park except MK, monorails and ferries are a pain sometimes. As for the drive itself, you do tend to either get cranky or crazy after a long drive, but from my experiences once you get out of the car at your resort you are instantly in a good mood. We did once take 6 people in a SUV that sat 7 and it was tight (lugged was packed tight as well). It depends on what type of vehicle you have too. Five people in a car would be too much for me, but three people in a car wouldn't bother me all that much.
 
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donaldtoo

Well-Known Member
No offense to anyone here who loves it, but, we ain't NEVER gonna' drive to WDW. We love gettin' on a plane here in Austin, (I'm havin' a coupla' - overpriced, but I don't care - adult beverages on the flight ;)) and knowin' that about 3 hrs. later the main gear is gonna' be touchin' down at MCO. Ain't no BETTER feelin'...! :)
 
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Tinkerkell

Active Member
If you add up the gas, food, wear & tear on car, hotel stays for there and back, extra time off work because the trip will be longer, etc. flying may look more attractive to your dh.

One more option is taking a train. We've never done this, but I have friends from Delaware that travel to WDW via Amtrak and love it. I'm not sure what the cost would be in comparison to flying.
 
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Weather_Lady

Well-Known Member
If you don't have a credit card that gives you airline miles, I suggest looking into it and finding the one that is best for your family. Also, check multiple airports and learn the pricing practices of your favorite airlines (e.g., will they release the lowest fares first, or should you look for a last-minute deal?).

We discovered that by flying out of a different airport, 20 minutes further away, we save about 25% and can get direct flights rather than ones with 1 or 2 connections. Our "airline of choice" releases the lowest prices first, so we signed up for alerts that tell us when the new schedule is coming out so we can snag the lowest-price seats. Also, we have an airline credit card that we use for just about everything (and then pay off in full every month, so we're not paying interest), which gives us enough points that once every two years, the four of us can fly to Orlando for free.

I did the math, and for us (from Upstate NY, 20+ hours' drive from Disney World), driving would cost $500+ in gas money, plus 1 night's hotel ($75), a few on-the-road meals ($75), 1-2 days of precious vacation time each way, and lots of wear-and-tear on the car. Taking the train would cost $900 ($1,500 if we wanted a sleeping car) and would also take 2 days. In contrast, our flights were $244 per person, and will take 3 hours. Although the flights cost 150% as much as driving would, I think the time savings is well worth it.

Keep watching those airfares -- I hope you find a good deal!
 
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Master Yoda

Pro Star Wars geek.
Premium Member
First and foremost you will need to calculate your cost of driving. This link will give you a fair idea of what you will spend in gas. This link will also help. After that you need to account for a hotel room and meals. Once you have that number simply subtract it from the flight price. If that savings is worth 4 days of your time then drive. If you are staying on property and do not need to rent a car, I have found that flying tends to be a better option when you can not realistically do the drive in 1 day as the hotels and meals tend to make the over all cost to drive pretty close to flying.
 
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zurgandfriend

Well-Known Member
I feel for you! I drove to Canada from Boston in August and it was one long drive, from MN to FL would not be fun.One of the many reasons I love Disneyworld is that I don't have to drive. We take the airport limo to Boston Logan so from the time I get in that limo I'm on vacation. Everything is in place, meals, transportation etc. No worrying about road conditions, weather, where to stay, where to eat, will the car be okay etc. It's all done and I can relax.
 
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wiigirl

Well-Known Member
Ughh...hate driving too. :(
75.gif
 
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sgtmgd

Well-Known Member
So here's a thought:

Spilt the travel..let your husband drive..you and the youngster fly..the cost will be probably wash out for flying but you wont have rental car charges....he can make much better time driving alone..at most its a 2 day trip...one night in cheap hotel.
 
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steviej

Well-Known Member
With no stops, disney is about a 17 hr drive from Jersey, I've done it twice, and after the 2nd time, I said never again. It's a vacation, I know going into it, it's going to be expensive, so I'll spend the money and fly, just my perspective
 
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The Incredible Schmulk

Well-Known Member
The prices on airfare will come down some, and you will start seeing sales within six or so months of the trip. Not everyone has extended their calendars out that far, yet, so there's no competition.

Once those tickets hit around $300, which I would wager will happen at some point, the cost of driving there and back is far outweighed by the convenience of flying, especially considering the bag service and complimentary transportation, should you decide to use it.

Oh, I also checked out some prices from Minneapolis to Orlando for a Saturday to Saturday trip in March, just to get an idea of what's out there, and there are tickets with good times on Airtran available for under $340. Not too bad. I bet you could do better if you keep an eye on it.
 
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psukardi

Well-Known Member
A 5 year old in the car for THAT long. I'm thinking you may want to reconsider flying. We all can get grumpy after being in the buggy for 5...10...15 hours. You do not want to deal with a kid of that age with a short attention span locked in a tin box on wheels for 26 hours.
 
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luv

Well-Known Member
This is something you and your husband need to work out.

But I assure you that it can be done. Your daughter will not explode and neither will you. It is completely possible to make a road trip. People do it every day. Some even have some fun along with their inconvenience.
 
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HouCuseChickie

Well-Known Member
While our driving savings was a bit greater b/c we're a family of 4- we saved around $1,000 last summer by driving. Our trip is about 10 hours shorter than yours, but we were driving w/a 2 year old and a 4-about to turn 5 year old. We found that TONS of DVDs, games for the Leapster, the MagnaDoodle, favorite snacks, and a few breaks to run around made it a really pleasant road trip. We're driving again next month b/c with the elevated price of Thanksgiving time travel- the savings this time works out to over $3,000. This time we're also saving time and $ by doing the bulk of our driving at night---i.e. the kids sleep solid for about 10-11 hours while we drive in peace.

Sadly, both major airports in our area are priced about the same so it doesn't matter where we fly from; however, I would recommend a CC offering airline miles if you opt to fly. You might also stay on top of deals offered by airlines like Southwest...example, today they put out a 40% off sale for dates over the next few months.
 
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jenluvswdw

Well-Known Member
I'm in the same boat with you, Bucklepants. We are going in Aug. and I am stalking the airline prices. :mad: They are well over $300 in the Northeast (we are a family of 4). I would totally drive, but my husband is totally against it. I am praying and hoping the prices go down. We already booked the resort so my next step are airline tickets. Hope you have some luck! I hate the airline price gods!!!
 
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bucklepants

Active Member
Original Poster
If you add up the gas, food, wear & tear on car, hotel stays for there and back, extra time off work because the trip will be longer, etc. flying may look more attractive to your dh.

One more option is taking a train. We've never done this, but I have friends from Delaware that travel to WDW via Amtrak and love it. I'm not sure what the cost would be in comparison to flying.

For giggles I looked up a train ride for one way to Orlando. 52 hrs! LOL!
 
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bucklepants

Active Member
Original Poster
So here's a thought:

Spilt the travel..let your husband drive..you and the youngster fly..the cost will be probably wash out for flying but you wont have rental car charges....he can make much better time driving alone..at most its a 2 day trip...one night in cheap hotel.

I totally thought of this last night! LOL!
 
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