For 2,000+ Mile Round-Trip Drivers Only! (III)

[AaronInWI]

Originally Posted by faindrops27

Hey, thanks for answering! I am thinking that may be the best option. No other opinions, or input with all of you who already made the trip?

But, if not than thank you very much Patclairesmom for your input.

I come from a different part of the country than you. However, I know when we made our first drive in September, even though the day we arrived in Orlando wasn't a Disney day, we were happy/relieved that we had made it to Orlando. So based on that, I think a side trip to Universal, Sea World, or even Downtown Disney (which is what we did) would be the most relaxing start to your trip. If that makes any sense at all. You'll know that your long drive is over.

[disneymarie]

Originally Posted by pit303

Please share which airport and airline we are in Upper Chichester and would love also to do a short trip before our October drive.

They were rates last week in Scranton, AVoca. Allegiant, but they o hit you with overhead storage bin fee, check bag, nothing free to drink. Just a seat and back pack with the fee. Oh, and credit card fee I think. Igo to the airport to book. Close enough if bad weather to get there.

[stasijane]

Originally Posted by SondraC

We picked a good day for driving yesterday. We had no snow or rain, and we made it to Georgia!

How did the rest of the drive go?

[SondraC]

Originally Posted by stasijane

How did the rest of the drive go?

We had no issues what so ever! Not a drop of rain or a snowflake anywhere! We made great time. We really didn't experience traffic until we got close to Orlando and then it was CRAZY!

[pit303]

Originally Posted by disneymarie

They were rates last week in Scranton, AVoca. Allegiant, but they o hit you with overhead storage bin fee, check bag, nothing free to drink. Just a seat and back pack with the fee. Oh, and credit card fee I think. Igo to the airport to book. Close enough if bad weather to get there.

Wow they sound like Spirit out of Atlantic City!

[Gowahoowa]

Greetings fellow 2000mile+ drivers and Happy New Year!

We just returned from our wonderful Christmas trip spending 6 nights at Bay Lake Tower and our last night at Pop Century.

We left South Jersey at 6:45pm on Friday, 12/21, for our 7th drive to the World! I (DH) took the first leg of the trip and drove until 11:45pm. We caught a little congestion south of DC, but it didn't slow us down. DW and I then switched up again at 2:45am and 5:45am. We stopped periodically for bathroom breaks and filled up the tank twice and topped it off once. We got to the Florida Welcome Center, drank some delicious orange juice, pushed off again, and arrived at the Winn-Dixie just outside Disney at 12:00 noon. Total drive time: 17 hours, 15 minutes. Total Miles: 1,034.50

We spent the week at Bay Lake Tower and the weather was wonderful. Certainly a whole lot better than Jersey weather in December. We ate at Be Our Guest for both lunch and dinner and it was awesome! That will be the first res I make for our August trip. New Fantasyland is great. No detail left out!

Enchanted Tales with Belle is a must do. That was the first thing we did on Christmas morning at 7:00am. What an experience for both kids and adults!

So, fast forward through our week to Friday, 12/28, when we checked out of Bay Lake Tower and headed to Epcot for our last day in the World. We then checked into Pop Century late that evening to get some rest before our drive home in the morning.

We pushed off from Pop Century at 6:20am Saturday, 12/29. We had rain showers and some wind through Florida and parts of Georgia, but it didn't severely hamper our drive time. There was an accident on I95 in Jacksonville, so we drove the loop around Jacksonville for the first time.

The rest of the drive on I95 North was fast and uneventful. We stopped for some quick bathroom and gas breaks and Starbucks, too! We got some Burger King in Florence and Chick Fil A in North Carolina. The traffic heading south was pretty heavy with the Bowl Games and folks heading that way. We saw two accidents that closed the road and caused a pretty hefty backup.

We arrived home in South Jersey at exactly 10:35pm, which was a family record time of 16 hours, 15 minutes. Total Miles: 1,046.90.

We wish everyone a very Happy New Year and safe travels to and from Walt Disney World! We are already planning our August trip!!

[cruisingkat]

Finished our 5th drive to Disney this year with 7 stays onsite (visited other spots in FL in between Disney stays on two trips without driving home). Won't be able to drive again until after April 15 as DH is a tax preparer (helps pay for our Disney trips). He is also going to investigate surgery for his heel spurs as his walking ability decreased on each trip. Might be good to get it done while he is doing taxes since we can't go anywhere and he will be tied to the computer so maybe next year's trips will be a lot more enjoyable.
Happy New Year to all!

[BC1836]

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Now that 2013 has arrived, who will be the first WDW 2,000+ mile round-trip driver of the year?

All the best.

[dvczerfs]

im not going till may so that leaves me out.

[chipper10]

Originally Posted by dvczerfs

im not going till may so that leaves me out.

Same here! At least I'll be at AKV for 10 wonderful nights in May. It will be my reward for making it through this semester.

[stasijane]

I will be leaving Mo on Feb. 21! I doubt its the first one of the year but I'm still excited about how close it is!

[Salrx95]

Originally Posted by BC1836

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Now that 2013 has arrived, who will be the first WDW 2,000+ mile round-trip driver of the year?

All the best.

We probably will not be the first either but we hit the road in 37 days on February 7th. With all that has gone on in the last month here, we are even more excited to get out of town and anticipate it greatly.

I haven't checked in on this regularly recently but with the holidays over, it is time for focus on our long awaited 2nd Disney trip to WDW with our 2 boys.

[goofyfigment]

Im on my way back.

[loveysbydesign]

So just curious, have any of you driven from PA to CA to go to DL?

We'd like to go to DL but also see the Grand Canyon. My DH is not happy with my idea of driving that far! We've never been east of the Mississippi! only been to places on the East coast.
I'm thinking we could take our time and do 4 days each way, plus 6 days in CA.
Thoughts?

[LadyBeBop]

Originally Posted by loveysbydesign

So just curious, have any of you driven from PA to CA to go to DL?

We'd like to go to DL but also see the Grand Canyon. My DH is not happy with my idea of driving that far! We've never been east of the Mississippi! only been to places on the East coast.
I'm thinking we could take our time and do 4 days each way, plus 6 days in CA.
Thoughts?

Our fartherest trip was from Cincinnati to Mt. Rushmore, down to Colorado and back home. We took four days to get to Mt. Rushmore (stayed a week, exploring Western South Dakota), a day to drive to Colorado and another three days home. With the exception of the very last day (from Springfield, MO home), we didn't have any day longer than about 7-8 hours). And that was perfect

I Mapquested your hometown to DL..over 40 hours. That's over ten hours a day in the car, if you only took four days. Ten hours for one day isn't bad. Maybe, for a second day. But beyond that, no thank you.

Would I make the trip? Perhaps. But I would allow at least three weeks total...eight days to get there, five to six days in CA, and a week to get home. That way, you aren't rushed getting there, and you can enjoy the sites along the way.