Driving from Northern Illinois to Florida

[wendysue]

We are leaving Northwest Illinois on April 1st. Where is a good halfway point to stop overnight, as we don't want to drive straight through. (Well, we do actually, but we want to be able to walk upright when we get there) :lol:
Any advice on a good place to stay would be appreciated.

 

[spfldfan]

We are from Central IL and we always stop on the way down. Last fall we stopped in Valdosta at a sleep inn and it was nice. Very short drive the next day. We hit Atlanta around 2:00 on a Friday and it was slow going but at least moving. This year we are stopping just north of Atlanta and plan on going through it 7:00 am or before (hopefully before morning rush on a Friday).

 

[cemeb4dk]

The 19 hour drive is really no that bad, at least on the way down. Because your excited about getting there, now the drive straight thru on the way back is a bit more dreadful. I usually do as some others have stated. Stop every few hours, stretch legs, eat, bathroom grab another monster and good to go. I usually try to keep my mind with games as far as distances to go and so on. As long as you can handle the drive it sure beats the cost of flying, plus it really pays to have your own car there, so you can do runs to the store, downtown disney or beach or another park. We can fly, but I really just prefer to have vehicle down there.

 

[JessicaB]

Hello we are from Nebraska also driving to Disney World :wave:. We were thinking of stopping in Nashville seemed like a good halfway spot how long did it take you to get to Perry, GA? :shrug: Were from Omaha and driving with three little kids should be fun :hammer:but it beats the price to fly let me know please I would really appreciate it what route did you take and how long it took yeah! Thanks so much! John:sohappy:

I live in Nashville and it takes us about 10 1/2 hours to get to Disney. We usually drive stright thru, but have stopped in Valdosta a couple of times. It usually depends on when we leave and how tired I am.:snore:

 

[cowanfamily]

Atlanta rush hour starts at 5:30 am and lasts until about 9:30 am. Then in the evening from 4:00pm until about 7:00 pm. Fridays are alot worse.

 

[eroyee]

I would say Valdosta, Ga. Like someone else said, if you stop at the GA welcome center they will book a room for you while you are there for Valdosta. Have a magical trip..

 

[wendysue]

Wendy what time are you planning on leaving IL. Is there little ones that factor into this. 2 AM seems to be a magic number for us, this gets us to ATL real early afternoon. But its even better when we go straight thru and go thru ATL at about 1 am nothinglike having 9 open lanes of traffic to fly thru town.

All those open lanes sound good. We do not have small children. Ours are all grown up and I'm sure are wondering if we ever will. :ROFLOL:

 

[wendysue]

You guys are nuts!! Our drive is 13 hours from Memphis and I absolutely dread it. If I had a 19 hour drive I'd be flying, no doubt!

OH NO. :lookaroun This is our first time driving that far. Maybe we will just leave the car there, and fly back.....:lol:

 

[CMV]

Joliet, Illinois here. We did it in about twenty hours at a somewhat leisurely pace. Heed the warnings about Atlanta. Take Briley Parkway around Memphis, just to scowl at where Opryland used to be. The Florida Turnpike will seem like the longest stretch of the trip. And beware the America's Best Inn in Dalton, GA...it's not.

 

[wendysue]

OK, so seriously, what time is the BEST time to travel through Atlanta????

 

[cemeb4dk]

I would say lunch time or after 8 pm. Like I said before the magic time is 2. 2pm if going straight thru and 2 am if planning on stopping for the night. it seems to be the best at least for us.

 

[Mikester71]

OK, so seriously, what time is the BEST time to travel through Atlanta????

Honestly, we have driven through Atlanta on a Friday, between 7 and 8pm, and during the start of the Canadian Spring Break, and although it was bad, it was still manageable. Sure, you would probably be better off really early in the morning or really late at night. But when you are trying to get down to a certain destination, in our case Adel, GA, and you happen to hit Atlanta at the wrong time, there is nothing much you can do. On the way home, we usually drive through Atlanta around 2am and it is pretty bare at that time.

The first couple of times, we actually took the I-285, otherwise known as the Atlanta Bypass, to try and avoid the rush hour traffic. AAA suggested it to us, so we tried it. I don't really think it saved us any time though. In fact, if memory serves me correct, we ended up bumper to bumper for miles and miles. I still think just shooting straight through on the 75 is the quickest way though.