Driving from Calgary to Disneyland?

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

I did a search and couldn't find what I was looking for. We're thinking of driving from Calgary to Disneyland this summer and just wondering if you've done that and what route you took?

we're looking for a few fun things to do along the way with 2 kids (6 and 9 at the time of travel)

thanks.
allie

 

[BELLEDOZER]

I think that it would take you 5 days to drive down to DL. This is just a rough guess, but I would think that it would take 2 days to reach the lower mainland of BC (aka Vancouver, Richmond, etc). The easiest way to go to DL from there is to catch the I-5 at the Peace Arch border crossing. This will take you more or less directly to DL. It's a 3 day drive from where I live in Richmond, BC, and have driven to DL in Feb in 3 1/2 days. It's also best to get to LA before 3pm, as the I-5 becomes gridlock at that point. If you have the opportunity and the time a side trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium is a nice side trip. We really enjoyed visiting there this past year. Hope that this helps you out. Any further questions please feel to PM me.

 

[shermomof5]

We have driven several times from Calgary. We take the I15 south straight thru to Anaheim. We do not stop a lot on the way down as the kids want to get to Disneyland ASAP. Last time we left around noon on Friday stayed overnight in Idaho Falls(around 11:00 pm) got up at 7:00 and were at our hotel by 8:00 Saturday Night!
Coming back we take the same route. We usually stay overnight in 2 different spots. We like to stop in Las Vegas, kids love Excaliber. We also have enjoyed the Hoover dam, and St. George Utah. We will usually stop at roadside attactions for lunch etc. We quite enjoy the drive and the kids are entertained with videos, gameboys and car games.

 

[endy]

We drive to San Diego every summer. Cross at Sweetgrass or Cardston and stay on the I15 until you're close to Anaheim, you don't even need a map until you're in CA.
My son is 13 now and we've done this trip each summer since he was 4 when he was 3 we only drove as far as Vegas.
Approx 27 hours each way. There's only me driving, we leave Fri after work, stay in Great Falls, Helena or Butte depending on what time it is. Stay Sat night somewhere in Utah, Provo down to Cedar City and early Sun afternoon we're in Anaheim or SD.
We tend to stop at Walmart or Target to stock up on treats & movies. Stopped last time just north of Salt Lake (don't know the name) there's a Target, Kohls & just about every other shopping or eating place you can think of. My son stocked up on used movies at Blockbuster here. My first time to Kohls and will stop next summer too.

We've stopped on the way home in Mesquite for cheap room. A couple times we went to Bear World just outside of Idaho Falls. My son loved it, drive thru to see moose, wolves, bears & small petting zoo. The best was feeding the bear cubs. Also did the opal digging at the very north of Idaho, fun for kids and only an hour or so, it's right of the interstate.
Last summer the gas was under $600 for the trip & we drive a lot while we're there. I drive a small-mid size suv.
Any other questions feel free to ask.

 

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

Thank you all for your help! Dh wasn't sure which would be better and I figure whichever is a straight line lol...

Silly guy gave me an option of camping in bc or driving to disneyland Duh...it's mickey hands down lol...

Endy, you say 600 for gas is that just driving down or is it the whole down and back and everything in between?

 

[endy]

The $600 was the total for gas for 2 weeks. Which I didn't consider bad, cheaper than air for 2 and rental car and gas. Check out gas costa here, I use Great Falls as the starting point and its a tank each way for me to get there. I just checked and it says it would cost $308 return for gas from Great Falls to SD, add in $100 for Calgary to GF. We go everywhere while we stay in SD so my $600 included trip up to Legoland and another to Santa Ana and Long Beach plus 6 or 7 trips to SeaWorld.
http://www.fuelcostcalculator.com/

We tent camp all the way, check out KOA.com for locations. We know them all and have likely stayed at them all along I15.
If you're tent camping there's even a couple places real close to DL and the ART stops closeby. We always stay at the KOA in SD & love it there. It's about a 20 minute drive to SW and 45 to Legoland. There's a great outlet mall on the US/Mexico border that we usually hit for an afternoon.
If you have a Costco card they're all over the place, there's one about 10 minutes north from DL. Another 5 minutes from LL. Great place for a real cheap meal. They have outside food court so you're no tempted by all the deals inside.

 

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

Thank you for all the input Endy! We were contemplating camping all the way too, although we'd need a bigger vehicle cause my trunk in the PT cruiser is too small lol... of course we've been looking at a new vehicle anyhow ha ha.

That site is perfect for calculating fuel. thank you!!!

How did you enjoy legoland? I'm tempted to go there with the girls too.

 

[endy]

We loved Legoland. Your kids are a great age to go. The landscaping and flowers are amazing & nothing like we see in Calgary. It's very relaxed compared to Disney.
Keep your eye open in the CA theme park & So Cal boards. Often nice people will have coupon for LL for kid free with paying adult. I've got them the last couple of years. My son is 13 now and no longer gets kid prices at LL.

When we camp it's not really camping. It's just sleeping in a tent. I take tent, air mattress, blankets or small sleeping bags (don't think I've ever needed a warm sleeping bag it doesn't get cold at night like here) and I bring a cooler.
We eat out always, I don't ever cook anymore it was more of a pain in the butt trying to cook & for the 2 of us I just didn't think it was worth the hassle. I always keep milk, yogurt, lunch meat, juice, water and pop in the cooler, and throw in an extra salad from a fast food joint. This is where a quick stop at Walmart comes in after you cross the border.

We drove a couple of years ago with another mom and her son. 4 of us in suv with camping gear didn't leave a lot of room.
I highly recommend driving. Well, it works for us. You see so much, it doesn't hurt the kids to experience the drive and having to get along with each other. Sure I'd love to fly but I also like to be able to buy stuff and having room to bring it back.

 

[Dragonfly*Tink]

Hi! Four of us went this past summer for about 2 1/2 weeks - gas total was around $650, however, here was our schedule:

Edmonton - Great Falls
Great Falls - Ogden (Salt Lake City -went to the Great Salt Lake for an hour)
Salt Lake City - Las Vegas
Las Vegas - Hoover Dam
Hoover Dam - Anaheim - Disneyland and Newport - Huntington Beaches
Anaheim - Los Angeles - Hollywood Boulevard
Los Angeles - San Diego - Zoo and Sea World
San Diego - Flagstaff
Flagstaff - Grand Canyon - WOW!!!
Grand Canyon - Las Vegas - we detoured and took Route 66 for awhile
Las Vegas - Boise
Boise - Great Falls
Great Falls - Edmonton

It actually takes about 30 hours to drive straight through from Edmonton but we wanted to stop and see things along the way. We left Edmonton on a Friday afternoon and eventually arrived in Anaheim on Monday late morning. If you have any questions - ask away!

 

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

Thank you for the tips on LL....I think my youngest would love it for sure! I agree with the whole cooking when on vacation lol. I hate it! I think I'll talk to DH about camping it along the way.

Dragonfly*tink Thanks for the route tips. We're thinking we want to stop alot along the way too.

AMA has offered a Trip Tick thing that will help us map out our route with hints on food places, lodgings etc too. It's free with membership and I had no idea it was available. We've done alot of driving trips and always get our maps from AMA (free lol) but were never told about the trip tick. they make it into a flip book from the map you bring in to them. it takes 10 days for them to get it back to us!

I also picked up Birnbaum's guide to DL 2010 edition from there for 18.00. Was very excited to see they are so up to date! Now to order the dvd and get to planning lol....

 

[Brian Shepherd]

How long does it take to drive from Anaheim to Salt Lake City?

Thoughts?

Comments?

 

[irisesareblue]

How long does it take to drive from Anaheim to Salt Lake City?

Thoughts?

Comments?

Google maps shows it to be 683 miles - 10 hours 41 minutes

Check any distance on google maps by going to www.google.ca and clicking on the link to maps

 

[Brian Shepherd]

How long does it take to drive from Anaheim to Salt Lake City?

Thoughts?

Comments?

Google maps shows it to be 683 miles - 10 hours 41 minutes

Check any distance on google maps by going to www.google.ca and clicking on the link to maps

I appreciate your input, and I guess I should have clarified what I mean;

I know how far it is and I know what google maps say, but realistically, how long will it take (considering traffic flow as opposed to speed limits).

 

[irisesareblue]

I appreciate your input, and I guess I should have clarified what I mean;

I know how far it is and I know what google maps say, but realistically, how long will it take (considering traffic flow as opposed to speed limits).

Ok, I figured I was being too simplistic - it's a great drive - you basically go through the mountains from LA to Vegas - it's a heavy traffic ride if you are travelling on a weekend because lots of folks from LA tend to go to Vegas for the weekend - its only 4 1/2 hours at the outside - it can be a pretty vista as you are coming down from the mountains and seeing Primm (at least I think it's Primm on the border - lots of lights!) The interstate through Vegas basically runs along the same route as the Strip - you can even get off the Interstate at one exit and then get back on further down after travelling the Strip. From Vegas to Mesquite Nevada it is pure desert - then you go through a gorge (can't remember the river name - it's been over a year and a half since I've done the drive) of some sort up to St. George Utah. There is no where to stop as the roads are steep and the shoulders are not very wide - beautiful though!!! Utah is pretty good driving , but the interstate is boring - lots of sagebrush and pretty towns up in the hills.

There are plenty of Rest Stops for restroom breaks and no tolls to speak of. If you are a hardy driver then you can likely do it in a day with restroom and snack/meal breaks. When we drove it, we left Vegas early in the morning and made it past Pocatello Idaho. Basically, I usually add 2 hours for every 10 that google estimates.

 

[CrazyDisneyMommy1]

We have done this trip four times. We can do it in about 2 1/2 days.
We drive:
Edmonton to Great Falls
Great Falls to Cedar City, UT
Cedar City to Anaheim

On the first day the only thing we stop for is fuel and food.
The second day we stop for fuel, food and a bit of shopping at a couple places
The last day we usually stop for lunch in Mesquite or Vegas for lunch a few pictures and shopping. We are usually in Anaheim by 6 p.m. depending what day your are getting there. You don't want to be going through the Mova Desert to California on a Sunday afternoon-evening. Also on the way back you do not want to be going through it to Vegas on a Friday afternoon-evening as this is when Califorians are heading to and from Vegas for the weekend. You can take more time and tour more things for sure. You could also go further West and go down the coastal highway, but this will take much, much longer, but very scenic. Enjoy!!!

 

[Brian Shepherd]

We have done this trip four times. We can do it in about 2 1/2 days.
We drive:
Edmonton to Great Falls
Great Falls to Cedar City, UT
Cedar City to Anaheim

On the first day the only thing we stop for is fuel and food.
The second day we stop for fuel, food and a bit of shopping at a couple places
The last day we usually stop for lunch in Mesquite or Vegas for lunch a few pictures and shopping. We are usually in Anaheim by 6 p.m. depending what day your are getting there. You don't want to be going through the Mova Desert to California on a Sunday afternoon-evening. Also on the way back you do not want to be going through it to Vegas on a Friday afternoon-evening as this is when Califorians are heading to and from Vegas for the weekend. You can take more time and tour more things for sure. You could also go further West and go down the coastal highway, but this will take much, much longer, but very scenic. Enjoy!!!

Great thanks, how long does your day two usually take (Great Falls to Cedar City)

 

[CrazyDisneyMommy1]

That's the really long day...probably 12 -13 hours. That's with stopping for food, fuel & shopping. We stop in around Salt lake to do most of the shopping.
The way I have it set up, we usually don't leave till noon or 1 pm. on the first day. But we have done it where we leave early in the morning on the first day and then have driven to Dillon, MT on the first day and then to St. George, UT the second making it not quite as long. If you want it to be a bit shorted second day, you could stay in Nephi, UT on the way down.

 

[Brian Shepherd]

That's the really long day...probably 12 -13 hours. That's with stopping for food, fuel & shopping. We stop in around Salt lake to do most of the shopping.
The way I have it set up, we usually don't leave till noon or 1 pm. on the first day. But we have done it where we leave early in the morning on the first day and then have driven to Dillon, MT on the first day and then to St. George, UT the second making it not quite as long. If you want it to be a bit shorted second day, you could stay in Nephi, UT on the way down.

We plan on:

Moose Jaw to Great Falls (7.0 hours)
Great Falls to SLC (7.5 hours)
SLC to Vegas (5.5 hours)
Vegas to Anaheim (4.0 hours)
Hotels all booked for drive down
---
On the way back is the debate:

I try to think back to previous vacations and think, all we wanted to do when the vacations is over is get home as quick as possible and get in our own beds.....soooooooo

I thought:
Anaheim to SLC (well, South Jordan) (9.5 hours)
SLC to Great Falls (7.5 hours)
Great Falls to Moose Jaw (7.0 hours).....

I'm just worried Anaheim to SLC might be too much in one day.....but if traffic dictates 130KMH's then we could do that drive (1078kms) in 9.5 hours (includes roughly two 30 minute stops)...that wouldn't be too bad I guess.

 

[Brian Shepherd]

Do I have to worry about any mountain range pass' roads?

 

[CrazyDisneyMommy1]

Depends when you are going. The drive from Helena, MT to a ways into Idaho can be a bit rough during the winter till about mid-April.