Last minute trip--worth it?

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DreamerCM

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We are thinking of taking a last minute trip. I can get an AP rate at the Beach Club (saving $40 a night off rack rates). The problem is the transportation. Flying would cost us about $1,000...so we thought about driving. It would be 15 hours.

We'd have to leave right after school on Thursday (2pm) and driving straight through would put us there about 5am. Then we'd have to leave the same time on Monday (2pm) and be home at 5am for school/work. My son could sleep in the car no problem and my mom and I could take turns driving/sleeping.

It would be exhausting (no doubt) but the cheapest airfare still has us in traveling time of 7 hours each day, which is just about half of the time that it will take us to drive it.

My mom is worried about accidents (sigh) and my concern is the traffic on Labor Day.

What does everyone else think????

Dreaming..........sigh sigh sigh!
 
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CAPTAIN HOOK

CAPTAIN HOOK

Well-Known Member
Personally, I'd fly. I know it really bumps up the price of your stay - but there are two major considerations here -
1) Road safety - 15 hours driving (even shared), the passenger isn't going to be rested and tired drivers can drift off to sleep behind the wheel and cause accidents (no matter how careful you are).
2) Feeling refreshed - if you drive, both you and your mum will be mentally (if not physically) exhausted when you arrive. On a flight you BOTH get to relax and arrive feeling fresh and ready to take on the challenge of WDW
 
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barnum42

barnum42

New Member
Driving will not be free either. Work out the difference in price and see if that makes it more palatable to fly.

OR

Stay at a cheaper resort and use the money saved on the flight. That way you will be fresher to enjoy your time in the parks.
 
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Hakunamatata

Hakunamatata

Le Meh
CAPTAIN HOOK said:
Personally, I'd fly. I know it really bumps up the price of your stay - but there are two major considerations here -
1) Road safety - 15 hours driving (even shared), the passenger isn't going to be rested and tired drivers can drift off to sleep behind the wheel and cause accidents (no matter how careful you are).
2) Feeling refreshed - if you drive, both you and your mum will be mentally (if not physically) exhausted when you arrive. On a flight you BOTH get to relax and arrive feeling fresh and ready to take on the challenge of WDW
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I would disagree with the second part about being feeling fresh and ready after a 7 hours flying/airport time. I personally get more tired dealing with the airport issues than driving.

I would have more of a concern about labor day crowds than the travel part. I think that would be enough to keep me away verses the travel issues.
 
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DreamerCM

Account Suspended
Original Poster
I'm not so worried about the crowds...we did Thanksgiving last year and had minimal problems.

We changed the plans so we would not have to drive so crazily. We will leave Tuesday morning instead of Monday to go home. That way we can really take our time driving and get a good night's sleep before we have to go back to work/school on Wednesday. It means an extra day off of school, but I think overall it will make the trip much easier.

My mom is now having panic attacks over driving that far, but traveling should be half the fun anyway. Since we are adding an extra day, we can even take our time getting there. If we arrive at 5am what is the point? There is really nothing we can do. It's best to maybe just sleep for 3 hours or so somewhere and arrive at 8am or so.

Thank you for your input everyone!
 
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DreamerCM

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Original Poster
Videoteck said:
I just got back from a last minute trip! I say go to Disney whenever you can!
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Where are you from? Did you drive? Tell me about your experience! Did you feel rushed at all? I feel like I'm jumping out of my skin! I usually pack for 2 months before my trip--now I only have 4 days!!!!

Yikes!?! What did I get myself into?????
 
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DreamerCM

Account Suspended
Original Poster
I just thought of something else.....how am I able to get an AP rate at the last minute over a holiday weekend IF they are going to be so busy? I tried to do this same "last minute plan" a few months ago and they were totally booked almost everywhere.......
 
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tigger1968

tigger1968

Well-Known Member
We just got back a few weeks ago from a quick trip....flew down on Sat morn and came home on Monday evening. TOTALLY worth it....just hung out and soaked up the Disney atmosphere....first time to POR btw...highly recommend it!
 
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Laura

Laura

22
Premium Member
I don't think a 15 hour drive is a big deal. We drive back and forth to our home town in Upstate, NY to visit family all the time (14 hour drive each way). As a child we drove all the way to Orlando from NY (2-3 day road trip each way) a few times a year.

Right now I live in Eastern NC and it's an 11 hour drive and we prefer to drive rather than fly. I even found airfare for 4 people for this next trip for LESS than the cost of driving and we opted to drive anyway.

Anyway, I think you should drive. Look at it this way, once you factor in the cost of gas you'll probably save around $750 by driving. If someone would pay you $750 to sit on your butt for 2 days would you take the money? Because that's basically what you'd be doing!
 
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Videoteck

Videoteck

New Member
well...

This is from dreamer..
Yea I did drive to Florida from New York I always drive down I didnt feel rushed at all I toke my time I went to Disney early but only went to 1 park and Disney Quest and pretty much hung out at Downtown Disney!
 
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DisneyinKC

New Member
My wife and I drove, just as you are planning. Our drive was 18 hours straight through. The kids were fine for the drive and the next day, they slept and watched videos during the drive. We took turns driving, switching in 4-6 hour blocks. Late in the drive, we took smaller blocks of 2 hours. It became harder around 2-5 a.m. because we were concerned for the driver and did not feel comfortable with the other sleeping. We have both agreed that driving is not that difficult, but if we do it again we will get a room when it gets too late and finish the drive in the morning.

Another thing to consider is the drive home. It is much worse than the drive there, the goal of getting to Disney is behind you and your not nearly as excited to be on the road.

We are going back next month and originally considered driving. However, I received a notice from SW airlines for a great deal on a N/S flight. So we booked that. I don't know where you are coming from, but the SW site has flights available for under one thousand for 3 passengers from my area.

Just some things to consider in weighing your time/cost decision.
 
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WDWBro

WDWBro

New Member
Videoteck said:
This is from dreamer..
Yea I did drive to Florida from New York I always drive down I didnt feel rushed at all I toke my time I went to Disney early but only went to 1 park and Disney Quest and pretty much hung out at Downtown Disney!
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Why would you "hang out" at DTD when there's magic all around you??
 
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Ringo8n24

Ringo8n24

Active Member
natalia1681 said:
I absolutely think that it is worth it to go. If you can't afford the flight, then drive. Just think, one day that will make for such a remarkable memory.
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I agree. I have woken up on a Saturday morning after a bad work week, decided to pack up and drive to WDW. We are about 9 hours away. We got there Saturday, spent Sunday at our favorite park, then drove back Sunday night to be at work Monday. I loved it!! I was so on cloud 9 when I got to work on Monday because I got my "fix". Nobody at work believed I did that until I showed them my RnRC coffee mug. I know a last minute trip to WDW will be on my mind after this hurricane blows through here. We will need it.
 
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mrtoad

mrtoad

Well-Known Member
barnum42 said:
Driving will not be free either. Work out the difference in price and see if that makes it more palatable to fly.

OR

Stay at a cheaper resort and use the money saved on the flight. That way you will be fresher to enjoy your time in the parks.
Click to expand...

The driving price if going straight through would not be close even at the gas prices of late. But I would fly all the same and stay at a cheaper resort as you said.

Driving that much and you will be shot and won't have as much fun. I would drop down to POR or something like that and it will save you a good sum and make the flight cost easier to swallow...
 
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