Tips on Driving from Chicago Suburbs to Orlando

[MKJSMom]

Hi,
this summer we are planning to drive from the NW Chicago Suburbs to WDW. While we have been to WDW many times, we have never driven, so this is all new territory for us. I would love to hear some thoughts and experiences from others who have made the same trek recently. We are planning to leave mid-morning on a Friday and check into our resort sometime early afternoon on Saturday. We are debating about driving through or stopping for a few hours.

 

[Alesia]

Drive through Alabama, not Georgia. It's a much better, easier drive.

 

[poop1]

I would avoid atlanta during rush hour or any time during the day. Traffic is worse than the Kennedy or dan ryan

 

[grimley1968]

Here's an earlier thread about the same topic: http://www.disboards.com/threads/help-with-drive-from-chicago-to-wdw.3402547/

My advice from the Georgia line down (if you get on I-75):

- Avoid Atlanta during rush hour, but if you hit Atlanta during a non-rush hour, just drive straight through on I-75.
- Take the bypass around Macon, GA. It really does save a few miles, and it's one of the few bypasses where the business district hasn't simply moved out to the bypass (yet).
- When you near Orlando on the Reagan (formerly Florida) Turnpike, take 429 South at Exit 267A, which avoids Orlando traffic, and then take Western Way into WDW. This takes you straight into WDW without dealing with Orlando traffic. These are all toll roads, but more than worth it, in my experience.

 

[momto1]

We usually leave about 3:00 pm on Friday and travel to Nashville for the night. We then arrive WDW about 4:00. We have left earlier and went to Chattanooga and made it to Wide World of Sports for a noon game on Saturday.

 

[Minniedap]

We are just north of you and do the drive yearly. Since it is all interstate driving it is not a bad drive. If you leave mid-morning you will not be in Atlanta at a bad hour but it is Nashville where you might find yourself in Friday evening rush hour. Figure on 5.5 hour drive time to Louisville(they are eastern time), 8 hour drive time to Nashville (they are central time) and 12 hour drive time to Atlanta (they are eastern time). I always try to plan my drive based on the time we will hit these 3 cities. Once you get past Atlanta, it is very easy. We have done the drive straight through but the past few years spend the night just past Atlanta. Our next trip is in 2 weeks!

 

[Tardisblue]

Doing this same drive from the western suburbs next month. Stopping south of Atlanta for the night then doing an easy drive the 2nd day - planning on going to MK late in the afternoon the day we arrive and staying until midnight.

 

[Gr8t Fan]

We've driven from Chicago to WDW many times over the years (most recently in April 2015). We prefer to take 294S to 57S to 24E to 75S to the Turnpike. It's a few miles longer, but beats all of the craziness of driving through Indiana with semis bearing down on you if you're going the speed limit. We also drive straight through, switching drivers, stopping at rest areas if we need to. We used to break up the drive and get a hotel room overnight but we didn't sleep well and just wanted to get back on the road and get there. Same for the way home. We leave Friday evening after I get home from work (about 8 pm) and get into Orlando at about 5-6 pm depending on traffic and how many stops we make.

 

[Tardisblue]

We've driven from Chicago to WDW many times over the years (most recently in April 2015). We prefer to take 294S to 57S to 24E to 75S to the Turnpike.

I've done this route once, but can't handle the monotony of Illinois. I65 at least breaks up the drive by going through a few cities.

 

[Gr8t Fan]

I've done this route once, but can't handle the monotony of Illinois. I65 at least breaks up the drive by going through a few cities.

It is LOOONNGGG and boring, but that's why we choose it. We've done the I65 route a few times, thinking the tailgating semis can't be as bad as we remember, and we regret it every time. We're sticking to I57 from now on. Of course, there are still semis on I57, but they seem much more tolerant of drivers going the speed limit than those on I65.