Driving from Central Illinois

[TMARE]

Hi! This is my first post. :wave:

Just wondering if anyone has made the drive from the northern half of Central Illinois. We are just south of Kankakee, and wondered if anyone had advice on quickest routes and best places to stay.

We are heading down in late June and plan on making the drive down in two days, probably stopping near Chattanooga on day one, and then staying off WDW property on day two. That way we can check into the Polynesian first thing the day of our ressies and head straight to the parks!

Can't wait!!

Thanks!

 

[TMARE]

Thanks everyone! We are so looking forward to our trip and can't wait until June.

 

[StitchMom84]

We did the drive last October from Minneapolis. Left in the afternoon on a Wednesday, spent the first night in Mattoon, IL. Went onto Kennesaw, GA for the second night ( a really nice Springhill Suites in Kennesaw ) and waited for rush hour in Atlanta to be over on Friday morning to continue onto WDW on Friday. We had gotten some very good advice on the drive times through Atlanta..and it was a breeze to get through after rush hour. I think we left our hotel in Kennesaw around 9:45 AM and we sailed right through Atlanta.
We drove into one of the worst thunderstorms I've been in a long time mid-day on Friday so that slowed us down. There were so many accidents due to the rain and poor visibility.
Arrived later than we had planned to the POFQ and into the worst humidity I can remember ( and I'm originally from Tennessee ).
All in all, the drive wasn't too bad. We did hit the Nashville area around a busier time, but still even, it's nothing compared to the rush hours/weather drives we can have here in the Twin Cities. And, as I said before, just plan to go through Atlanta at a lower traffic level time and you should do ok.
It's really interesting to see the landscape change going from the Midwest to Florida..and you gotta love those really tall roadsigns once you get into Southern Georgia and on into Florida!! Have a wonderful and safe trip!!

 

[sbkline]

Like what other people have been saying, DO NOT drive through Atlanta when there is any potential back-up. Even when its not rush hour, you will still end up in bumper to bumper traffic. I live in the NW suburbs of Chicago, and I do my best to go through ATL in the wee hours of the morning.

We drove through Atlanta last year, and I'm guessing it was around 5 PM or so and had no problems. Of course, that was on a Sunday and that probably accounts for much of it. On the way home the following Monday, we took the Atlanta bypass and still ended up coming to a screeching halt between Atlanta and Marietta, probably around 3 PM or so.

 

[Nansafan]

We've driven down 3 times from Chicago and always take I57. We like to leave early (3:00 AM) and drive to Macon, GA the first day. We then can sleep in a bit in Macon and leave around 9:00 AM and get to WDW by 3:00 PM on day 2. Our first driving trip in 1993 we left Chicago at 5:00 PM on Saturday and arrived at the Poly at 3:00 PM Sunday afternoon, three drivers driving straight through stopping only for gas, food and the bathroom. The only person who didn't feel like c**p when we arrived was my 6 year old son who slept for about 18 of the 23 hours of travel. The drive down is great, I really dislike the drive home.

 

[JustPlainBill]

I drive down from Northern Illinois, just a few miles south of the Illinois/Wisconsin border. I go S/SE and take Rt, 12 to IL-53 to I-294 to I-80 and cross into Indiana bypassing Chicago. I take I-65 out of Gary all the way through Kentucky to Nashville then take I-24 to Chattanooga then take I-75 to Florida then take the Florida turnpike to either RT.429 to Western Way, if we go to WDW or I-4 for Universal. I usually stay overnight somewhere between Nashville and Atlanta. If I leave at 5:00 AM from home I can arrive at WDW at about 6:00 PM the next day, including the overnight hotel stay.

 

[Mikester71]

We drive from Detroit every year. We Head all the way down I-75 from up here, We especially love driving through (or around depending on what time it is) Atlanta. We love the car pool lane rides. Up a ramp, down a ramp...those things are insane. When we are down on the turnpike in Florida we take 429 off of the Florida turnpike instead of going over to I-4...its a toll road, but waayyyyy less hectic and crowded than I-4. It isnt finished on google earth, but its there and been finished for a year and a half or two years. You take it south to the Western Way Rd. which heads onto the Disney proprty right next to the back of Animal Kingdom, You can see the back lots and the animal housing for the Animal Kingdom. When we were on 429, I think we were one of only a handfull of cars from the turnpike , down to the exit. 429 goes all the way to, and past 192 if your headed down that way for anything along there, like the World's most tacky souvenier stores, one with a Giant Wizard on the top of it.

We took this way last March and I, too would highly recommend it over the old way. Way less traffic and still very scenic. Actually seemed quicker too. Didn't even mind that it was a toll road.

We usually leave around 6am from Sarnia (an hour north of Detroit and in Canada) and take I-75 all the way down to Florida. We usually try to make it close to the Georgia/Florida border by the end of the first day. I think it is Tifton, Adel or Valdosta that we stopped at on our last two trips and it leaves us with a 4-6 hour drive to the Pop Century next morning. Usually arrive around 1pm at Pop anyway and leaves us with plenty of day left to do something (usually hit up DTD first day and leave MK for first FULL day).

 

[sbkline]

Somewhat off topic, but I've always been baffled by all the negative statements about I-4 in Orlando. I don't recall ever having any trouble with I-4. I've never experienced horrible traffic on that route.

Having said all that, I guess I should prepare to experience a total traffic backup when we go in two weeks! :lol:

 

[doop]

Somewhat off topic, but I've always been baffled by all the negative statements about I-4 in Orlando. I don't recall ever having any trouble with I-4. I've never experienced horrible traffic on that route.

Having said all that, I guess I should prepare to experience a total traffic backup when we go in two weeks! :lol:

Well, since you're coming from the west I would imagine it isn't as bad. The part that makes I-4 so bad is coming from I-95 through downtown Orlando.

 

[NadieMasK2]

Somewhat off topic, but I've always been baffled by all the negative statements about I-4 in Orlando. I don't recall ever having any trouble with I-4. I've never experienced horrible traffic on that route.

Having said all that, I guess I should prepare to experience a total traffic backup when we go in two weeks! :lol:

Same here. However the Florida Turnpike is a different animal!!! Been stuck on there many times. Seems like an accident prone area, we've seen lifeline heli's on there a few times, not to mention the obviously drunk drivers we've seen on there. Oh, and if you do your civic duty and call 911 to report them don't actually expect anything to be done....we were just blown off and hung up on twice.

 

[sbkline]

Same here. However the Florida Turnpike is a different animal!!! Been stuck on there many times. Seems like an accident prone area, we've seen lifeline heli's on there a few times, not to mention the obviously drunk drivers we've seen on there. Oh, and if you do your civic duty and call 911 to report them don't actually expect anything to be done....we were just blown off and hung up on twice.

I don't recall ever experiencing much traffic backup on the Turnpike either.

However, on every single galdang trip, traffic comes to a screeching halt at some point on I-75 in Georgia. Usually do to construction, but sometimes for an accident as well. I'm not sure when the last time was that I drove to or from Florida without getting backed up on I-75.

 

[Mr Wizard]

I have never personally been caught up in any large jam up on I4 but there can be large problems real quick. I allways have the noise of the local TV on when I am in a motel room and the traffic coverage they give I 4 is incredible. Live cams, helicopters, traffic reporters, its unreal. I would imagine it's because of the massive volume of rush hour traffic that it sees everyday that kinda makes it an accident ( or two ) waiting to happen.
Ah yes, yet one more reason to stay on property!

 

[coachz]

stop? don't understand the concept...always drove through for 20 years (before moving here)...easy going to WDW (motivation), tougher goint back north....Atlanta is 8 hours from WDW.. enjoy the journey

 

[DisneyPirate85]

I agree with many...The trip there from west side of Indy is EASY......We leave about 5:00pm on a friday usually the Friday before July 4th and make it 8:00-9:00 next morning. But that drive home is just AWFULL! leaving WDW and just being tired i guess. We always seem to hit Atlanta midight-2:00am so never really an issue on the way there. Got stuck coming home tho during Hurricane Dennis WOW DONOT recomend that, Took us a whole day to just get to Atlanta!
I agree sounds like we need to convoy there.:wave:

 

[HiddenMinnie]

I agree with many...The trip there from west side of Indy is EASY......We leave about 5:00pm on a friday usually the Friday before July 4th and make it 8:00-9:00 next morning. But that drive home is just AWFULL! leaving WDW and just being tired i guess. We always seem to hit Atlanta midight-2:00am so never really an issue on the way there. Got stuck coming home tho during Hurricane Dennis WOW DONOT recomend that, Took us a whole day to just get to Atlanta!
I agree sounds like we need to convoy there.:wave:

Hey..we are leaving the Saturday before July 4th from Noblesville this year! If you're on your way down then, wave at every red durango you see!!:wave:

 

[sbkline]

Another thing I suggest for the road trip is to take pictures along the way for your scrapbook. Here are some from our trip last year:

I-57/I-24 split in Southern Illinois


Nashville, TN:




Downtown Atlanta:



We went through Atlanta on Sunday at around 5 or 6 PM I believe, which may explain the lack of heavy traffic.

 

[JustPlainBill]

We drove through Atlanta last year, and I'm guessing it was around 5 PM or so and had no problems. Of course, that was on a Sunday and that probably accounts for much of it. On the way home the following Monday, we took the Atlanta bypass and still ended up coming to a screeching halt between Atlanta and Marietta, probably around 3 PM or so.

Atlanta, or Georgia in general was tricky for us last summer.
We went through on a Sunday as well, only it was closer to late morning 10 or 11:00 AM, having left our hotel room in Nashville earlier that morning. I was hoping our drive into Florida later that day would be quiet, considering it was Sunday. It was actually the worst leg of the trip. All through Georgia, there was road construction, not too many accidents though. There was no work going on being that it was Sunday, but the lanes were closed, nevertheless. There were a few spots, especially before and after Atlanta where the traffic just piled up to a standstill for miles, bumper to bumper, sitting still for 5-10 minutes at a time, inching along at a snail's pace, with no visible evidence as to the cause. Traffic would just clear up and resume to normal, leaving me to think, "what the heck was all that about?" The expressway through the city itself wasn't too bad, just coming into and leaving. This summer we're going do an over-nighter in northern Georgia, instead of northern Tennessee, and cruise through Atlanta in the early morning on Sunday again, hopefully we'll have better luck this year. As we went home from WDW we went through Atlanta on a Friday in early afternoon, traffic was much worse in the city limits, there were a few accidents that clogged things up this time. The whole drive to and from Florida, Georgia was the only state we had traffic. Louisville, Ky was congested but traffic was moving very well at about 50 miles an hour, just a lot of cars and trucks pushed in together, got a little hairy. Just before coming into Chattanooga, Tn coming down Monteagle Mnt. on I-24 got a little scary at times. Being from Illinois (flatlander-as people from Wisconsin call us) I'm used to a lot of flat-land driving. Coming down that steep grade, trying to maintain my speed I don't know whether I should ride my brakes or shift into a lower gear? The trucks fly by though, I try to stay in the right lane, then I would see a truck barreling up behind me coming fast. I have to decide, should I stay in the right lane and let the truck pass me on the left, or would it be easier for me to merge over to the left so the truck doesn't have to change lanes. It got real tense with all the trucks passing us going very fast.

 

[Mikester71]

Totally off topic here, but on our way down on our first trip in March of 2005, we happened to be driving through Atlanta around rush hour on a Friday, the Friday that guy walked into an Atlanta courtroom and shot it up. Talk about crazy traffic! There were lineups for miles and we didn't know what was going on until we woke up the next morning and saw the story on the television. I think he was still loose while we were driving through and they were looking for his vehicle, hence the long lineups. Might be wrong though.

 

[catne]

We're coming from Nebraska, and also hate the Atlanta section of the trip...every time we've gone through there it's been bad! Last year went through there twice (once on a Dis trip, once on a business trip). The first time was on a Monday at about 11:00 a.m.--took nearly 2 hours to go 20 miles (and no accident or visible construction going on, just bumper to bumper barely moving traffic.) Also went through at about 2:00 p.m. on a Friday afternoon, thinking we had the jump on rush-hour. Haha! Joke was on us, took 3 hours that time - later we found out that all day on Friday is considered rush hour in Atlanta because so many are coming in/going out for weekends (again, we never saw an accident or construction, just stop & inch forward traffic.) Another year, we went through on Sunday, mid-day...took 1 1/2 hours for 20 miles.

This year, we saw a notice that Georgia DOT was warning locals to avoid Atlanta on weekends because of some project going on from April-November involving closing lanes all weekend. We decided to go through Alabama instead--will add 2 hours to trip, but figure Atlanta always adds at least 1 1/2 hours stressful driving hours to the supposed trip time, so WTH...at least we won't be stressing out trying to guess if we'll get through in two hours...

 

[sbkline]

We're coming from Nebraska, and also hate the Atlanta section of the trip...every time we've gone through there it's been bad! Last year went through there twice (once on a Dis trip, once on a business trip). The first time was on a Monday at about 11:00 a.m.--took nearly 2 hours to go 20 miles (and no accident or visible construction going on, just bumper to bumper barely moving traffic.) Also went through at about 2:00 p.m. on a Friday afternoon, thinking we had the jump on rush-hour. Haha! Joke was on us, took 3 hours that time - later we found out that all day on Friday is considered rush hour in Atlanta because so many are coming in/going out for weekends (again, we never saw an accident or construction, just stop & inch forward traffic.) Another year, we went through on Sunday, mid-day...took 1 1/2 hours for 20 miles.

This year, we saw a notice that Georgia DOT was warning locals to avoid Atlanta on weekends because of some project going on from April-November involving closing lanes all weekend. We decided to go through Alabama instead--will add 2 hours to trip, but figure Atlanta always adds at least 1 1/2 hours stressful driving hours to the supposed trip time, so WTH...at least we won't be stressing out trying to guess if we'll get through in two hours...

Just to clarify, does this include the Atlanta bypass route, or are you just talking about taking I-75 straight through Atlanta?

You've kind of got me worried now! We'll be on our way through in 12 days and I'm wanting to make the best possible time. Now I'm afraid of major traffic backups through the Atlanta area.

 

[Unplugged]

Anyone with info on the Atlanta closures, please post. We're driving in October, which though far off, we have to coordinate with relatives on the East Coast to meet in WDW. The GA mess could hit a lot of us posters here hard.

Thanks in advance for any highlights.
:wave: