Driving from New Jersey to WDW

[cdispoto]

Considering driving from NJ to WDW with my wife and three year old and I know that the DC area is the major issue. Is it best to make sure I hit DC on a Sunday, in the early afternoon on a weekday, or leave late one night so I pass through in the early am hours.

I've read that DC is OK during the early afternoon during the week and all day on Sundays but I'm not sure if that is correct.

 

[amcnj]

The rush hour times I have seen posted by others for the DC area are 6-10 AM and 3-7 PM. I am an hour and ten minutes from the DE Memorial Bridge, leave home around 2:30 AM and am entering VA around 5:30 AM. Even when leaving on a weekend I still leave this same time. It allows me to get to the WDW area that same evening. But I am long past driving with young children, as mine are adults now.

Hopefully others can post their experiences at other times of the day and on weekends versus weekdays.

 

[JohnneeO]

Here is a thread on the merits of taking the "Inland Route" to WDW. The OP started out in MA.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/route-81-77-instead-of-95-was-definitely-the-way-to-go.2522586/

Whether this an option for you or not depends on how far north in NJ you live, and your access to I-78, which ends at I-81 in PA. Basically, this route starts out mostly west, veers southwest, then almost directly south on I -77 & I-26 to join I-95 in SC. It is longer, but bypasses traffic in Baltimore, DC, and Richmond.

 

[Lvsdisney]

I have driven through the DC area more times than I can count (we have family in NC). Anytime is a bad time!

Okay, in all seriousness, I would definitely consider the inland route posted above. but if you choose to do 95, get an EZ pass and pay for the express lanes. It'll help. Also, for some reason, going North always is horrible. We've hit traffic just north of Richmond and it NEVER ended and went all the way to Baltimore on more than one occasion. I'm not kidding.

If you're the kind of people who can leave at midnight and drive until dawn, than you'll have better luck.

 

[NH-to-FL]

On our trip south we left a family visit in southern NJ on a weekday morning and took the western DC loop in the early afternoon. Traffic was heavy but moving. Then we hit stop and go traffic north of Richmond. If you have EZ Pass, take the Express Lanes.

If you can, try watching Google Traffic over a couple of days for the times you are planning to go through Baltimore, DC, and Richmond. That will give you a good sense of what to expect. And even though Google Traffic might be showing green, be prepared for many miles of heavy, intense, urban driving.

 

[Paul N]

We always drive from Northern NJ to WDW, 2 young kids and we leave anywhere between 10p and midnight and I drive straight thru . We are in DC at about 2a and Richmond around 4 to 5am. Its smooth sailing if you can handle the overnight drive I hate traffic so its worth it. The way home is always the issue with traffic in the VA,DC Maryland area. I take 95 always and never have had any troubles.

 

[BC1836]

A NJ to WDW drive qualifies for the "For 2,000+ Mile Round-Trip Drivers Only!" thread, THE comprehensive long distance driving site. Check us out.

All the best from the founder of the thread (46 round trip drives from NJ to WDW since 2000!)

 

[5 Disney Fans]

We will be driving for the first time this year. For those who drive straight through leaving at 10pm... what time do you typically get to WDW? I was thinking of leaving around 6pm and stopping when we just can't go any longer. Or booking a hotel but wouldn't get there until 4am if we went 10 hours. I don't have young kids but young adults - 3 of which could drive but I'm not sure I'd let them drive in the middle of the night on 95.

 

[cdispoto]

We will be driving for the first time this year. For those who drive straight through leaving at 10pm... what time do you typically get to WDW? I was thinking of leaving around 6pm and stopping when we just can't go any longer. Or booking a hotel but wouldn't get there until 4am if we went 10 hours. I don't have young kids but young adults - 3 of which could drive but I'm not sure I'd let them drive in the middle of the night on 95.

I didn't drive straight through but I left Paramus NJ around 9 pm and got to Savannah at 11 am the next day (after two stops for gas and one for breakfast). If I had gone straight through to Disney I'm guessing I would've gotten there around 3-4pm

 

[amcnj]

We will be driving for the first time this year. For those who drive straight through leaving at 10pm... what time do you typically get to WDW? I was thinking of leaving around 6pm and stopping when we just can't go any longer. Or booking a hotel but wouldn't get there until 4am if we went 10 hours. I don't have young kids but young adults - 3 of which could drive but I'm not sure I'd let them drive in the middle of the night on 95.

I don't leave 10 PM, instead I typically leave early AM (2:30) and arrive in the WDW area around 6:30 PM, depending on stops, traffic, weather etc. For reference, I am about an hour and ten minutes from the DE Memorial Bridge.

 

[hertamaniac]

Agree with traveling west through PA towards Harrisburg, then south(I-81) if you are in central/northern NJ. We did this trip about 3-4X years ago and, although it was longer mileage wise, it was a more relaxing trip.

 

[kandb]

We live in Bergen County, NJ and have driven to Orlando around 5 times. The best time was when we left at 3am and got to Wash DC but 7am. The traffic at Wash DC at around 7am, seemed to be heavier going north, not south. We drove all the way to Jacksonville or Atlanta, GA (forgot which trip), anyway, we stayed overnight in a nice hotel right off 95, had a nice dinner and the kids went for a swim, got up and were at Disney by noon. We got into bed by 9-10pm, pretty much woke up and got right in the car at 3am (car was all packed). By 12 noon, we had more than half the trip done already. Was a great ride. Bring lots of stuff for the little one to keep entertained (balloons, dvd player, crafts, lollipops etc.) Wasn't that bad, enjoy and safe traveling.

PS-I don't believe in driving straight thru and overnight. Go to a hotel, you can find one for less than $100.

 

[chicagoshannon]

With a 3 yr old I highly recommend leaving at his/her bedtime and driving through the night. We used to leave at 7pm when our kids were little and it was so nice to have them sleeping most of the way.

 

[kandb]

I keep going back and forth if we should fly or drive to FL for our upcoming August trip. The flights right now are expensive (around $300 per person), we are a family of 5 plus we are taking a 2 week vacation (we are doing Disney 1 week, cape canavaral, Daytona beach, the other week), so not only will we need flights, we would need to rent a car for at least 10 days. It makes a lot more sense to drive but my husband is not big on being in the car for that long (big baby). lol

 

[5 Disney Fans]

We live in Bergen County, NJ and have driven to Orlando around 5 times. The best time was when we left at 3am and got to Wash DC but 7am. The traffic at Wash DC at around 7am, seemed to be heavier going north, not south. We drove all the way to Jacksonville or Atlanta, GA (forgot which trip), anyway, we stayed overnight in a nice hotel right off 95, had a nice dinner and the kids went for a swim, got up and were at Disney by noon. We got into bed by 9-10pm, pretty much woke up and got right in the car at 3am (car was all packed). By 12 noon, we had more than half the trip done already. Was a great ride. Bring lots of stuff for the little one to keep entertained (balloons, dvd player, crafts, lollipops etc.) Wasn't that bad, enjoy and safe traveling.

PS-I don't believe in driving straight thru and overnight. Go to a hotel, you can find one for less than $100.

This is exactly what we are planning to do... based on what I've read on the boards here we are going to leave around 2-3am, drive to Savannah, spend the night then continue trip to Orlando in the morning getting there just after noon. We don't have young kids... all teens now, which is a blessing and a curse. They entertain themselves very well, but their ear phones never come off so it is near impossible to get their attention to ask "anyone need a rest stop?" or "look at that beautiful sunrise!"

On the way back, I was thinking of doing a park until just after lunch, then headed back north stopping in Fayettville, NC which is a halfway mark for us... 8 hours 15 minutes from Orlando (if all goes well) and 8 Hours 11 minutes to home.

I know people say hotels are plentiful, but for peace of mind I'd like to reserve a room. We are a party of 6 so would need a suite or two rooms.

Any recommendations for Savannah, GA and/or Fayetteville, NC?

Also, how BAD is South of the Border? My teens might light to stop and see it "ironically". But I can't stomach dirty bathrooms or wasting time.

 

[kandb]

This is exactly what we are planning to do... based on what I've read on the boards here we are going to leave around 2-3am, drive to Savannah, spend the night then continue trip to Orlando in the morning getting there just after noon. We don't have young kids... all teens now, which is a blessing and a curse. They entertain themselves very well, but their ear phones never come off so it is near impossible to get their attention to ask "anyone need a rest stop?" or "look at that beautiful sunrise!"

On the way back, I was thinking of doing a park until just after lunch, then headed back north stopping in Fayettville, NC which is a halfway mark for us... 8 hours 15 minutes from Orlando (if all goes well) and 8 Hours 11 minutes to home.

I know people say hotels are plentiful, but for peace of mind I'd like to reserve a room. We are a party of 6 so would need a suite or two rooms.
The best thing about stopping and spending the night is that when you get to Disney, you are well rested and ready to spend the day as opposed to arriving exhausted, unrested and almost delirious after driving straight thru.

Any recommendations for Savannah, GA and/or Fayetteville, NC?

Also, how BAD is South of the Border? My teens might light to stop and see it "ironically". But I can't stomach dirty bathrooms or wasting time.

We always stay at either marriotts or Hiltons (Fairfield inns or Hampton inns seem to be cheapest and have a nice breakfast). We used to stop at south of the border but the last few times it was empty and to be honest, looked unsafe, not many people there at all and the few that were there looked shady.

 

[jeff_h]

Also, how BAD is South of the Border? My teens might light to stop and see it "ironically". But I can't stomach dirty bathrooms or wasting time.

We have stopped there many times... if you can't stomach dirty bathrooms then you probably want to skip this place, it's just a tourist trap with a lot of gift shops with cheap gawdy gifts and fireworks.

For anyone planning to do the drive, be advised that Sunday evenings northbound on I-95 through central/northern VA really tend to get backed up so plan for being delayed for 30-60 minutes as you crawl along looking at brake lights.

 

[TamaraQT]

I live in NJ and was also considering driving too. I am about 40 minutes from DE Mem Bridge. We had to make an unexpected trip last week to Culpepper, Virginia. And that got me thinking about possibly driving to Florida this year. We are going to Florida Friday 8/3 - 8/18. If I leave Thursday evening around 11pm, will I be past the DC, Baltimore and Richmond areas before Friday morning Rush hour?? I was considering renting a car to drive down and use while we are there for 2 weeks then drop it off at MCO airport and fly back. My DH says No Way!!! He wants to fly Roundtrip and not deal with the hassle of driving. It's only 3 of us, so he says the cost of tolls, gas, food, hotel stay will be almost as much as it would cost us to fly. What do you guys think? I want to drive to take my daughter thru different states as an experience. I am reading the boards and driving was something I never wanted to do before. But now, I think I want to try it to see if I would enjoy it. We go to Florida every year for the past 11 years. We always fly....just thought driving would be something different to try.

 

[amcnj]

I live in NJ and was also considering driving too. I am about 40 minutes from DE Mem Bridge. We had to make an unexpected trip last week to Culpepper, Virginia. And that got me thinking about possibly driving to Florida this year. We are going to Florida Friday 8/3 - 8/18. If I leave Thursday evening around 11pm, will I be past the DC, Baltimore and Richmond areas before Friday morning Rush hour?? I was considering renting a car to drive down and use while we are there for 2 weeks then drop it off at MCO airport and fly back. My DH says No Way!!! He wants to fly Roundtrip and not deal with the hassle of driving. It's only 3 of us, so he says the cost of tolls, gas, food, hotel stay will be almost as much as it would cost us to fly. What do you guys think? I want to drive to take my daughter thru different states as an experience. I am reading the boards and driving was something I never wanted to do before. But now, I think I want to try it to see if I would enjoy it. We go to Florida every year for the past 11 years. We always fly....just thought driving would be something different to try.

I am a little further than you from the DE Mem bridge, and leave very early in the morning. I am in VA in about three hours, and Richmond in 4-4.5 hours. So if you leave 11 PM, you should be in VA before 2AM, and Richmond 3 AM or a little after. Do you plan to drive straight through? You mentioned hotel costs so I assume you are going to stop, but at what point will you do that if leaving 11 PM?

 

[TamaraQT]

I am a little further than you from the DE Mem bridge, and leave very early in the morning. I am in VA in about three hours, and Richmond in 4-4.5 hours. So if you leave 11 PM, you should be in VA before 2AM, and Richmond 3 AM or a little after. Do you plan to drive straight through? You mentioned hotel costs so I assume you are going to stop, but at what point will you do that if leaving 11 PM?

Wow....I guess I never thought about an actual "stop time for overnight". I was thinking of stopping where ever I am friday evening at dinner time. I figured we would stop somewhere for a sit down dinner and overnight stay. Then get up around 7am and finish the drive. I guess if I really want to do it, I better plan accordingly. Until you asked, I never thought about the time or place I would be when I would stop. I guess I better map it out and see. Any suggestions for websites to help with that?? Or are you telling me that if I leave at 11pm Thursday night, that I will be in Orlando before Friday night??? I am really NEW to driving to Florida. I have NO IDEA how long it will take.