For 2,000+ mile round-trip drivers only!

[Vickis3js]

Thanks guys! We decided we are going to give it a try. We don't really mind road trips, my girls travel well and the money savings is just too large to pass up.

We mapquested the directions this morning. Can someone tell me where I could look to find appropriate places to stop? (Rest stops with bathrooms, restaurants, gas stations?) Would I find all of that info through AAA? Also, I have a ton of rewards points on a credit card that I can convert to a gas gift card to cover $250 worth of gas but I have to choose between BP or Shell. Is there a way to know which of those we would be passing most frequently?

Thanks again for all the advice! I am sure that with all the advice and tips on this thread we will be smooth sailing!

I had the same question a few years ago and we found that its about equal. So either one is good. I know I got more in BP this year because their prices were a little lower, of course I got them before the mess with the oil spill so now I am just crossing my fingers they are still around in Dec when we go. Is there a way you can split them up? But like I said one exit will have BP and the next shell and sometimes they will have both at the same exit but its seems to be they are at every exit.

As far as where to stop for rest stops, bathrooms and such I use the I95exit guide online. Its not exact and I hear they are missing stuff but I use it for a guide. I also have an app on my Itouch but I have no clue if it works I haven't had the pleasure of using it yet.

HTH enjoy your trip!

 

[SplashMom]

We are driving from Nova Scotia to Florida in August. We did it before a few years back and took the I95 the entire way, from Maine to Daytona. We are planning this again but I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions for something better. I'm a bit nervous because of the fast traffic but my husband (the driver) doesn't mind. He likes to see the cities but I could pass, lol.

Also, we are looking for a few break spots--something to do for an hour or two that isn't too far from the I95. We will do the rest stops but is there anything interesting that we can do for a few hours. We are going to take several days to drive and this is really part of the vacation. It will be my husband and I, our DD (20) and her friend (20). All suggestions are welcome!

 

[marius97]

I will be 6 months pregnant at the time of the trip.

I've done the drive twice now with my family of five and wouldn't do it any other way now. I would just say please talk to your Dr. first about your plans to drive. I believe that it is not recomended to drive more tna two or three hours at a time while pregnant, especially later term like you will be. I believe that it is a blood cirulation issue. If he gave the okay, then go for it. Best of luck.

 

[Lilysmom]

I've done the drive twice now with my family of five and wouldn't do it any other way now. I would just say please talk to your Dr. first about your plans to drive. I believe that it is not recomended to drive more tna two or three hours at a time while pregnant, especially later term like you will be. I believe that it is a blood cirulation issue. If he gave the okay, then go for it. Best of luck.

I did at my appointment on Wednesday and she said just that. To take a 15 minute or so break every 3/4 hours stretch and move around. Shouldn't be a problem since the kids (and me!) will need to stop for restroom breaks.

 

[marius97]

I did at my appointment on Wednesday and she said just that. To take a 15 minute or so break every 3/4 hours stretch and move around. Shouldn't be a problem since the kids (and me!) will need to stop for restroom breaks.

That is great news...and I thought that bathroom breaks with kids would be frequent.

 

[nono]

Lilysmom,

We recently did our first overnight to FL with our two young kids. It was fun! (Yes, i said it! ) On the way home, we drove all day -- and at each stop, we had the kids run races and such for only about 10 min. It was enough, and we can't wait to drive again. Hope it is the same for your family.

 

[Tink-aholic]

We are driving from Nova Scotia to Florida in August. We did it before a few years back and took the I95 the entire way, from Maine to Daytona. We are planning this again but I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions for something better. I'm a bit nervous because of the fast traffic but my husband (the driver) doesn't mind. He likes to see the cities but I could pass, lol.

Also, we are looking for a few break spots--something to do for an hour or two that isn't too far from the I95. We will do the rest stops but is there anything interesting that we can do for a few hours. We are going to take several days to drive and this is really part of the vacation. It will be my husband and I, our DD (20) and her friend (20). All suggestions are welcome!

SplashMom -

I came here for the same tips and advice you did! I'll be leaving from NH and driving down and we'll be back before you leave. I'll give you any advice about routes, stops, traffic, tolls that I can!

To everyone else, it will be my DS15 and I. I've never driven that far by myself, and we are going to stop both ways. Works out to over 2600 miles round trip. Any tips or route advice would be great!

I've been reading some other pages (but not the whole 244) and it seems some people think it is worth it to get a toll transponder. Does anyone know if that is a good idea from up here? I'd have no use for it in daily life.

 

[BC1836]

SplashMom and Tink-aholic:

The key thing to keep in mind, SplashMom, is not the fast traffic: it's the slow traffic!

Avoid all major city rush hours, expecially greater NYC, all of NJ, and greater DC.

Don't waste too much time on mini-side trips on the I-95 drive. If you want a longer break (instead of a rest stop or a gas station stop), go to a restaurant and have a relaxing meal. Stretch those legs and return to your respective vehicles. On to WDW!

All the best.

 

[Malaguti Ball Clan]

Stretch those legs and return to your respective vehicles. On to WDW!

 

[BC1836]

Yeah, you've got to stretch those legs.

We have done up to around 3 hours in the car without a stop. But such a long haul takes its toll. After many hours of driving (and a few stops: rest rooms and gasoline), we have experienced "astronaut legs," a unique sensation that is something like an "outerspace" tingling. It's essentially a circulatory condition. That's why folks on long-distance flights need to stand up and walk around; it can be dangerous. But it's much easier to pull over and stretch while driving than at 30,000 feet -- and that's what this thread is actually all about!

All the best.

 

[sdchickie]

I guess we're right around the 2,000 mile mark and we did it 7 times last year!!! My kids and I hate to fly so I figured we'd just drive it. The only time it didn't save us money was on our 4th of July trip when the price of gas was actually higher than the cost of a plane ticket. I was usually a 14 - 15 hour drive depending on how many stops we had to make. Now when we go somewhere close (only 3 - 4 hours) the kids say "wow that was a quick drive".

 

[BC1836]

I guess we're right around the 2,000 mile mark and we did it 7 times last year!!! QUOTE]

Seven trips to WDW in 2009?

 

[mamaprincess]

Here I am again...

I've started preparing for our trip. My girls have old 512 mb Disney Mix Max players that are filled with music so I can't fit any video on them. They watch movies on them with sd cards. I've been filling more sd cards for our trip. A 2gb card fits about 8 hours of video or 4 to 5 movies. I'm going to try to do about 2 cards for each child. We really haven't tested the limits of the battery as we have only used them for 3 hour trips so I'm going to bring Gomadic AA external battery packs for when they need more battery or I might bring their jam stands and car adapters. One dvd player isn't an option as the older ones don't want to watch what the younger one wants to watch. Best to keep the peace on a road trip the length of this one.

I'll also be bringing their DS's. They love to read, but hate to read in a car because it makes them car sick, so books are out. We wll bring a cooler filled with sandwich fixins, fruit and drinks. Pillows. I'm probably leaving something out but when I think of it, I'll post it here.

 

[sharadoc]

Okay, BC, here's a question:

Contrast and compare rush hour in Philadelphia vs. 3:00 pm southbound on I-95 Washing DC/Northern VA on a Friday in December. 500 words or less, use cursive handwriting and as many vocabulary words as you can fit

We're now strategizing our December trip. We're either leaving Limerick at noon or 4:00 pm. We'd rather do noon so we can drive around 8 hours on Friday. If we leave at 4, we can only drive 5-6 hours at most before stopping.

 

[Amirah95]

Anybody covered by AAA? What are some of the other perks you get re: Disney and Orlando area...hotels and what not? This will be out first year using them. I plan on buying our park tickets from them if the numbers are right. I haven't talked to a rep yet, but I'm thinking AAA is the way to go if you do a lot of road trips.

 

[sharadoc]

Anybody covered by AAA? What are some of the other perks you get re: Disney and Orlando area...hotels and what not? This will be out first year using them. I plan on buying our park tickets from them if the numbers are right. I haven't talked to a rep yet, but I'm thinking AAA is the way to go if you do a lot of road trips.

We have AAA and have bought park tickets from them. Our office also gives you a AAA diamond parking pass when you buy tickets, BUT that lot is not necessarily better than the regular lot. At MK it's next to handicapped and is a far walk to the front entrance with no tram.

Some shops and restaurants at DTD that are NOT Disney-owned will give you a discount. Earl of Sandwich comes to mind, but you should ask.

You can get a AAA discount on a Disney room, I think it's 10% value, 15% moderate, 20% deluxe. Better than nothing!

Universal also gives discounts for AAA on tickets, food and shopping.

We love having it for road coverage of course. We always get a AAA hotel discount for our overnight hotel.

 

[loveysbydesign]

Okay, BC, here's a question:

Contrast and compare rush hour in Philadelphia vs. 3:00 pm southbound on I-95 Washing DC/Northern VA on a Friday in December. 500 words or less, use cursive handwriting and as many vocabulary words as you can fit

We're now strategizing our December trip. We're either leaving Limerick at noon or 4:00 pm. We'd rather do noon so we can drive around 8 hours on Friday. If we leave at 4, we can only drive 5-6 hours at most before stopping.

I know I'm not BC but we actually left on a Friday at 3:30p.m. for our trip in June and pulled into the Microtel Inn off Rte 81 in Christiansburg, VA around 11:00.
We did stop three times, once for dinner at a Bob Evans and twice for a potty break. I wanted to leave earlier in the day but I dh and I had to work that day. We do not live too far from you guys.

 

[BC1836]

Okay, BC, here's a question:

Contrast and compare rush hour in Philadelphia vs. 3:00 pm southbound on I-95 Washing DC/Northern VA on a Friday in December. 500 words or less, use cursive handwriting and as many vocabulary words as you can fit

We're now strategizing our December trip. We're either leaving Limerick at noon or 4:00 pm. We'd rather do noon so we can drive around 8 hours on Friday. If we leave at 4, we can only drive 5-6 hours at most before stopping.

This sounds like an Advanced Placement Test essay question!

We must confess that we do not fully comprehend your question.

Do you want us to compare and contrast driving on I-95 in Philly during that city's rush hour as opposed to driving on I-95 in the DC/Northern VA area? With an anticipated (though assumed) affirmative response from you, we respectfully submit that it would be somewhat less problematic (although it still would be a problem since we are talking "Friday") to be in the DC/Northern VA area at 3 p.m. southbound. Why? You are already exiting (albeit slowly) a notoriously bad traffic area as opposed to dealing with it at maximum time two hours later from Philly.

End of essay. [Of course, one never includes new information in the conclusion of an academic essay; however, avoid Fridays!]

All the best.

 

[dvczerfs]

Okay, BC, here's a question:

Contrast and compare rush hour in Philadelphia vs. 3:00 pm southbound on I-95 Washing DC/Northern VA on a Friday in December. 500 words or less, use cursive handwriting and as many vocabulary words as you can fit

We're now strategizing our December trip. We're either leaving Limerick at noon or 4:00 pm. We'd rather do noon so we can drive around 8 hours on Friday. If we leave at 4, we can only drive 5-6 hours at most before stopping.

im not bc but i would leave at noon. you could pos. beat most of the traffic till you hit dc. leaving at 4, youll sit in traffic 3 blocks away from your house. we are heading down nov. 30th and will get there dec.1st. we will be at okw sheradoc, if you see a guy with a mickey tattoo on his leg and little hair on his head, thats me!!!

 

[Marshay]

Sharadoc -- leave at 12 noon. You should be fine and only get the start of DC traffic by 2-3pm. Our rush hour really starts to kick in around 4pm. Before that, it will still be busy but not rush hour.