Driving down the east coast to WDW!

[Bri1121]

Any tips, suggestions, advice!?!?!

We are leaving from north NJ, basically the border of NY state. On Google maps its about 1109 miles- sigh! We are use to driving. We have done it numerous time to Hilton Head which is about 13 hours- this should be 19-20 depending what route we take.We have two smallish kids 6 and 3! But have drove to Hilton Head since they were 1. They are much easier to entertain now with movies, games, toys and pure craziness that comes 10 hours in the trip!

I am trying to get a game plan to price it right and compare it to flying. Right now airline tickets are just under $400/pp. We have 4 going. So its looking like around $1600 to fly. And that does not include checked bags!

Ok so we are borrowing my moms Camry because we have a navigator that eats gas! We shall see what gas prices are like come then and can only hope they go down :veryconfu

But I am going with price of gas now. So it should be between 6-7 fill ups round trip including gas to the grocery store in Disney. I am rounding up and that should be about $400. We found some hotels around $70-75 a night. x2= $150. We will pack breakfast and lunch for the car trip there. Stop for dinner =$60. Free breakfast at the hotel and we are in Disney for lunch the next day! On the way home we would have had breakfast at Disney. Now we need lunch and dinner-$120. And be home for lunch the next day. So rounding up again we are at about $750. Even if you tag on an extra $50 for some coffee or a random snack (believe me I am an expert packer for snacks for us and the kids) we are at about half of the cost to fly.

If for some reason the tickets drop dramatically before we go I think driving is worth it. More $$ to spend at the parks, eating, souvenirs etc....

Sound about right or am I missing something?? And any route tips would be greatly appreciated. I heard that ppl in my area usually make it to around Savannah or ???? something with a B in georgia and stay there?

We plan to come down 1-95 as we do to SC but plan to leave a tad later in the am. We usually leave between 3-4am and have not had issues with DC traffic. But we are always so tired. No time to be tired in Disney. So dh thinks we should leave like 6am. Just worried about the traffic. Leaving on a Sat!

Thx!! :kiss:

 

[tizzo]

The wife and I do the FL to NJ and back route at least once a year for the last roughly 13 years. The best traffic tip I can offer (and I know it's a hard sell) is to drive at night.

We used to travel on roughly the schedule you're talking about, usually shooting for a 4:30-5 AM departure. Travel times for our 1100 mile route vary wildly from 18-22 hours (we drive non-stop).

Since we started driving overnight, leaving around 10PM at either end, we get a pretty reliable maximum of 18 hours, and have gotten in as quickly as 16:30.

While DC is certainly the worst part of the route, it's not the only trouble spot. During the last several non-overnight trips, mainly because we planned for it, we managed to get through DC without much trouble. But we've had a lot of trouble lately in southern SC. It could be a coincidence, but it happened the last three non-overnight trips in a row that the last ~50 miles of SC (heading south) took 3+ hours. We used to hit this stretch in the late afternoon, 3-4PM.

So anyway, even if you don't do the overnight thing, consider trying to plan things so you're not hitting the SC/GA border at this time of day. Maybe stop a little farther north, maybe central SC, if you're not driving all the way through. It's only about 4:30 from the GA/SC border to WDW. If you stop around maybe Florence, you'll still have only about 6 hours the second day.

 

[Magical Dreamer]

Have you looked into the discount airlines? $400pp is pretty steep.

Check out:

jetblue.com
airtran.com
southwest.com

I've seen Jetblue from JFK to MCO at $84 one way.....with 1st bag free!!

Check daily (prices constantly change) something will come up.

 

[ajt5027]

I have done the drive several times. I live outside of Philly. Last year we left at 10am and arrived in Disney World at about 3am. Mind you this was during that huge snowstorm we got, so D.C. was in a state of emergency and we were able to coast right through. We also had 3 drivers.

This Friday we'll be making the same trip! Heres our plan: We are leaving PA at 3:30pm, stopping for dinner before Baltimore, this way we hit Baltimore and D.C. after rush hour. I travel to Richmond a lot on the weekends, everytime I leave at 3:30 and get the same results. So obviously the bulk of the driving will be through the night on Friday. The South Carolina situation has been something I investigated, I would aim not to around SC during the day.

If you leave at 6am on a Saturday you can probably make it to Savannah by night fall, which is a great stopping place. If youre leaving on a Saturday I wouldnt worry too much about traffic. The only advice I have is if you get tired stop. I'll let you know about our drive when I get back from WDW. Did I mention I leave this friday!

 

[Bri1121]

We have been looking at airfare. Locally Newark International is the closest. Getting into NYC would be a pain and costly. As it would be to get a service from MCO. I will keep an eye on flight. Sounthwest, last time I checked was $1200 for all of us to fly and that was from NYC.

TIZZO- so we need to stay away from south-south Carolina around 3-4? You we have been driving to Hilton Head SC and have had some traffic around that time too. Forgot about it. How do you drive through the night? Aren't you tired. I dont know if we are up for it?

ajt5027- so jealous!!! Have fun!! So you are driving through the night? You have about 2 hours jump start on us! Good luck with your drive and you better check back in after!! Will be waiting!

 

[The Mom]

The name of the town with a "B" is Brunswick, GA. There are a number of motels there.

Also, be very, very careful driving - many smaller towns/counties are increasing their patrols of I-95 and issuing more tickets than in the past.

 

[mickeysshoes]

I am not sure when you are going but i have learned on this site that Southwest drops their fares right around the 3 month mark. And I was able to back that up just last week. So I would keep close eye on Southwest at the 100 - 80 day mark. Southwest you are able to check 2 bags free. If you are able to get the air down to say...closer to $1000 for the 4 of you I think it would be well worth it. Yes it is still more than you would pay to drive but i think your time (close to 40 hours driving) is worth more than $200. :shrug: And if you fly you can use Disney Magical Express to and from the MCO and you will have a DRIVING FREE vacation. Something else to keep in mind that an airport that might be further away from your home that you might be able to get a better rate could work out to your advanatage if you know how to play the game. Say you have to drive 2 hours to a differnet airport to better better rates and flight times...you get a room for the night before at one of the hotel at the airport...they will allow you to park your car at the hotel for the week and you will use their shuttle to and from the airport. So it cost you a night hotel but if the cost saving was more than the room its a win. Good luck and I hope you and your family have a great vacation.

 

[Phonedave]

I have said it before, but still many people ignore it.

The REAL cost of driving is not just the fuel. It also included the wear and tear and loss of value of your car.

Of course for the OP, it is her mothers car. so that invalidates that argument

2,200 miles is going to include an oil change, and will put you that much closer to a tramission flush, coolant service, air filter change, tune up, new tires, etc.

2011 AAA data

Ownership & Operating Cost
Taxes, depreciation, finance charges, registration, insurance and license fees are ownership costs and are incurred regardless of how often you drive your vehicle.

Operating costs including gas, oil, maintenance and tires are incurred for each mile you drive.

OPERATING COSTS ONLY

Average Operating Costs Only per Mile:

Vehicle Type
Small sedan Medium sedan Large sedan
Gas and Oil 9.24¢ 11.97¢ 12.88¢
Maintenance 4.21¢ 4.42¢ 5.0¢
Tires 0.65¢ 0.91¢ 0.94¢
Cost per Mile 14.1¢ 17.3¢ 18.8¢

-dave

 

[mickeysshoes]

The cost of your time.....over 40 hours....my time is worth the cost of airfare...but that is just us!! I will work the extra time and save that much more just to afford airfare...and that will reward me with that much more time in the World instead of looking at the highway. But to each is own!! What works for one does not work for the next!!!!

 

[ajt5027]

ajt5027- so jealous!!! Have fun!! So you are driving through the night? You have about 2 hours jump start on us! Good luck with your drive and you better check back in after!! Will be waiting!

Yeah we're going to drive straight through. I'll def check-in let you know all the good details (especially places to eat along the 95 corridor, thats seriously my favorite part of the drive).

 

[tizzo]

TIZZO- so we need to stay away from south-south Carolina around 3-4? You we have been driving to Hilton Head SC and have had some traffic around that time too. Forgot about it.

That would be my recommendation based on experience. Of course it's all anecdotal. I've made the trip something like 15+ times over the past 13 years or so, but almost all of them have been the at the holidays. Patterns could be completely different at other times of the year.

Something else you might consider is looking for alternate routes. Our house is literally minutes from I-95, so there really is no alternative for us. But you're heading to Orlando in the middle of the state, so you have to leave the coast and cut inland at some point. I4 runs kind of NE/SW from Daytona-Orlando-Tampa. But I thought there were other routes that branch off from I-95 far north of Daytona - possibly even before the trouble spots in SC - that might take you more directly to Orlando. It might be because we've done it so many times, but I-95 is BORING most of the way, and I enjoy the little detours my wife plots for us when we're trying to get around a traffic jam even if they take longer. If we had unlimited time, I'd someday like to try making the whole trip without driving on I-95 at all.

How do you drive through the night? Aren't you tired. I dont know if we are up for it?

It's definitely not for everyone, and it takes some planning and getting used to. What works well for me is I take half a day off from work the day we're leaving. I stay up really late the night before, get up at my normal time and go to work half a day (I'm tired but make it through OK - it would be different if I was operating machinery or something), come home from work at lunch time and go to bed. I've tried it without the staying up late part, but I can never get to sleep in the middle of the day that way.

The hardest part is usually when we get where we're going. If we leave at 10PM, we're usually to our destination mid to late afternoon, and we're both dead tired. But it's kind of critical not to give in to the temptation to go to bed right away. As long as we stay up until roughly bedtime, we're back in sync by the next day.

Of course we've never done this with kids either...

 

[sanaj2000]

I have done the nighmare drive from NY/CT to Fl since 1988. We take i95South all the way down to i4.
we always leave in the wee hours of the morning, stop in SC after about 14 hours and then leave early the next morning for the rest of the 8 hour trip.

Again, nightmare drive. Especially coming back home. But anything for the world right?

 

[Bri1121]

Thanks for the tips guys!! I dont think we could drive through the night. First I dont sleep well in the car and would have to be up to keep dh up. That said we both could not nap in the afternoon with two kids at home! Wishful thinking.

95 is easy for us to get too and we are use to it from going SC. But since we move 2 hours north from where we use to be I am more worried about hitting traffic and dh wants to leave later so we are not exhausted!!

I thought if we left like 3-4 in the afternoon on Friday we would beat the traffic but its summer and everyone might be heading south at that time too?! We would also have to check in a day before and pay for a whole night without staying the day! KWIM?

We really dont mind the drive, its half the fun and the kids think its an adventure. With current prices we are saving 600-700 dollars. If it came down to about $200 we might fly. We are also staying at the Dolphin so no Magical Express for us. We are getting a great AAA discount so we decided to go for it. If we werent going to Disney we would be going to Hilton Head so the car was getting used. Thats why we have cars - to use them. Again it is my moms car but it 6 yrs old almost 7 and barely has 60,000 miles on it! Even if it was ours we wouldnt think twice about putting the miles on it.

Anyway we will keep looking up airfare- is there away to get alerts to price drops?

But we are just trying to get an idea of the best time to start our journey and where to stop for the night!

Thank you -for the warnings about tickets! Will take it slow in the Carolinas. I saw on some other post that a family from LI leaves around 6 am and gets to Jacksonville around 10 pm. Wishful thinking but that would be nice!!

 

[Bri1121]

Tizzo - thx- when we route the trip- most likely with help from AAA I will see if we can cut inland before the traffic areas in the Carolinas.

 

[tizzo]

Tizzo - thx- when we route the trip- most likely with help from AAA I will see if we can cut inland before the traffic areas in the Carolinas.

AAA is a good resource. The mapping tool on their web site is a bit more clunky than Google Maps, and more frustrating to use, but it also has some really nice information that Google doesn't have - specifically gas prices, and road construction information.

Also, there are situations where all the technology in the world is no substitute for a good paper foldout map - still free for members at any AAA location. I always plan our trips online as much as possible, but when we do hit a snag and decide to get off the highway for a while, we absolutely rely on the printed maps.

 

[Springer]

Wow! $400/pp is a lot for airfare. I totally understand wanting to avoid NYC airports since I used to live there (in the city...not in the airports), but if you can be a bit more flexible on airports, you could get a much better air price. Try White Plains or Philadelphia. I don't know when you're going but, for kicks, I just found a $225/pp round trip (non-stop) on Southwest, leaving from Philadelphia on 7/16 to Orlando and returning on 7/23. Whatever you decide, have a great time!

 

[Susan Savia]

We live one mile off of 95 in VA and its 15 hours for us to Kissimmee. We drive because we like having our own car there to get around. We enjoy the drive, take our time, diviiding it into two days. (8 hours first day, 7 the second) We arrive feeling great and unpack and hit the parks immediately. We enjoy looking around the area, not just the parks. This year gas prices may crimp some trips but we still plan to go, just save that much harder.

 

[ajt5027]

Alright driving down wasn't too bad. We left Philadelphia around 3:30pm on Friday April 15th and arrived in Orlando around 11 am on Saturday. We hit a lot of traffic before DC around 6 so we stopped for dinner in Maryland. When we got back on the road around 7 we got through DC but hit traffic right outside. It took us to about 10:30 to reach Spotsylvania, VA Exit 126A (where we hit up a Steak n' Shake for a late night snack). From there we drove through the rest of VA and NC and arrived at South of the Border Exit 1B in SC around 4:00am. From there we arrived in Brunswick GA Exit 36A around 8:00am. From there we drove through FL to Orlando and arrived around 11:30/12.

Here are my thoughts on driving down. If we were to have left at 7pm we would have missed DC traffic and SC traffic. Do yourself a favor and plan on driving through SC in the middle of the night. On our return trip we spent a good 4 hours trying to get through SC. It backed up for about 10 miles right at the GA/SC border. Also we hit a lot of traffic on I-4 leaving WDW at 12pm on Saturday afternoon. We took back roads around there though and made pretty good time. Other than those two problem spots there was really no trouble up along the corridor. The trip home: we left WDW 12 noon on Saturday April 23 and arrived in Philadelphia around 8:30am Sunday April 24th.

We Drove a 2007 Toyota Sienna. I will get you figures on the gas bill if you are interested. So my biggest advice; if it's at all possible hit DC and SC in the middle of the night.