Flying vs. Driving

[passholderryan]

I guess I have it a little easier than most. From Ft. Lauderdale, it only takes me about 2 1/2 hours to make it to the world, so we drive. I've played the alphablet game so many times that I know where everything is. Now my wife won;t let me start it until we are about an hour in. I think I'll drive up Thursday, just because its a Thursday. Sorry everyone.

[illini]

It depends for us. We have 5 people to transport and it's rare for us to find airfare for under $400 once you factor in all the taxes and fees. We can drive (18 hours) for much, much less than that. The last time we flew, we encountered so many issues that it actually took us 16 hours from the time we left our resort until we got home. It was horrible and I vowed never again. I am finally ready to try again in March, I think.

We're very fortunate, though. My DH can take plenty of time off work, and I don't work. Time is only a factor if we're pulling kids out of school. This next trip I'd like to make 10 days, so we'll probably fly so we only have to miss 2 days of school (the rest will be spring break).

If our large city actually had decent airfare, we'd probably fly every time (well, except after our bad experience). I always want to weep when I see everyone posting about $59 each way, or complaining about $99 each way!

[steamboat willy]

First of all, I LOVE to
Living in NC, our drive is only 9 - 10 hours. The SUV is packed with Big Cooler that is taken into our room for beverages for the week. Small cooler for Diet Sundrop and Cheerwine (It's a Carolina Thang) on the road. Case of bottle water, Case of , munchies, snacks, some food, another case of , are all packed along with enough clothes to stay 4 weeks even though we leave after 10 days. Stops are made as needed, Ipod plays our favorite tunes, wife sleeps on and off, We talk alot, I drive faster as she sleeps but usually no more than 9 - 10 over the limit unless someone from Jersey or Florida drives by doing 90. Then I can bump it up a bit. We have Interstate ALL the way after leaving driveway. I-85, I-77, I-26, I-95, I-4 and now the new Toll road near Sanford takes you right to the back door of DISNEY By-passing Orlando Traffic.
We sometimes drive from Resort to Resort, drive Resort to Park and back. Miss the bus line, miss the bus wait and enjoy the ride.

[disneyboundagain]

We usually drive, but have flown a few times. I hate to fly, and I hate all of the hassle. I also like to drive, so I don't mind the 18 hour drive. We haven broken it up over 2 days since the kids were born, but we plan to drive straight thru this year. I am looking forward to driving so much this December that I used it as justification to buy a new vehicle last week . DW's Aspen was just too small to pack everything she insists on taking.

[Gregandmel]

Like so many have said - it depends on a number of factors. We are about 22-24 hours away and neither my husband or I can sit in a car longer than about 8 hours. That would mean (for us) probably 2 nights hotel stays just GETTING there, along with the food and gas, then of course - another 2 nights hotel stays to get back. Driving just seems to wipe us out. Our last trip was mega smooth. Although we got to the airport before 6am (meaning we got up at 3:15am) and were on the plane at 7am and took off on-time - arrived at MCO at 11am (their time - 1 hour ahead of us) and were at the WL by 1pm - it seemed to go so fast and we were very pleased with the experience. I"m not a fan of flying, but we are less of a fan of driving. So - you'll get a lot of opinions on this. If we were 700 miles or less away, then we'd drive it for sure - but 1200 miles, not so much! For those of you that are close by - I"m VERY jealous!!!! ha ha

[Daddy Mouse]

I've driven down to WDW everytime except once. Including when the speed limit was 55. We have always driven straight through because of the cost factor. The one time we did fly was because we didn't have a vehicle large enought to transport 6 people in relative comfort.

DW likes to fly, I like to drive.18+ hours while tiring, has not been a problem. We leave after DW get off work and drive straight on down. Now that there is only two of us (No Children) we will probably fly.

[TheVBs]

We drive too. I used to hate driving places, I would only fly. But we're a family of 4, coming from Michigan and even with an overnight hotel stay on the way down, we pay a fraction of what it would cost us to fly.

Besides, flying is not quick anymore. You have to factor in drive time to the airport, (then you've got parking or shuttle costs) you now have to be checked in several hours before your flight leaves, often sit on the plane during delays, can't always get affordable non-stop flights so add in layovers. And when I think of doing all this with two little kids - forget it! It's easier to drive.

We also pack a LOT of stuff. I don't know how we'd get by with carry-ons or just one bag. We don't buy all our meals on the road either, just dinner. Since it takes two days, that's one meal on the way down. We pack breakfast stuff and PB&Js.

Last trip we got to Disney at about 3:30pm. Hopped in our bathing suits, hit the pool, got some pizza for dinner, watched the movie by the pool. It was the perfect way to relax before our first day hitting the parks.

The trip home is depressing, I have to say that. But we leave when we're ready, no rushing out of WDW, and we look for interesting stops on the way home. Last time it was the Neil Armstrong Air and Space Museum. The girls loved it!

[iluvdizney2]

we generally drive because of the amount of things we have to pack, plus getting 4 wheelchairs through airport security is horrendous! Every time we get held up because our son has a central line by which he gets nutrition IV and fluid IVs 24 hours a day 7 days a week...everytime we have to tell them NO we cannot disconnect him! each time we have to be there at least 3 hours prior to the flight, then fight and struggle....then by the time we board, wait for the wheelchairs to get back up to us at our destination, and get to WDW actually takes over 9 hours....so now we drive every time. We leave home calmly, drive as long as we want, and rest as we need it. I only fly now if I am going alone or with one kid. Since there are 8 of us, it ends up a LOT cheaper to take one van and one small car for people and supplies. Everyone has room and happy. It takes us 21 hours from Massachusetts to get there and we used to do it in a straight shot, but health now has us doing it in 2 days. and we factor it in as the pre trip and the calm down from running everyday. PLUS when no one wants to leave WDW it makes it easier to slowly say goodbye to everything and everyone!!
I am flying in 10 days for our trip, but only because Its just me and my 7 yr. old...cheaper because I have free flights!

[JRocker]

When it is just the two of us, we fly.

When it is the whole family (5), or more (6 on this last trip), it is much less expensive for us to drive. Of course, it doesn't hurt that we pull our own hotel room (camper) behind us.

We load up the coolers with food for the trip, we don't eat out on the way there. Our average lodging cost per night is $18.

We get to see many interesting things on the way there and back (we never go the same route twice). The journey is as much a part of our vacation as the destination. (admittedly there have been a couple of trips that would make the Griswalds proud)

There are also an increasing number of "hidden costs" with flying. I can only imagine how much it would cost my family to check bags packed for a two week vacation...

[Tink#64]

Last year we drove for the first time & hated it! We've gotten very spoiled to hopping on the plane & being there in 2 hours! We were cutting costs last year & it was a very spur of the moment trip, we made our ressies a week before we arrived & airfare was going to break the deal at that point so we drove. Now I must say I'd rather drive than not go to WDW at all, but given the choice - I'd say fly! I felt like we wasted a lot of valuable vacation time driving and we encountered so much traffic during Sping Break and terrible rain & driving conditions, it was very stressful! I love being able to check into the resort about 3 hours after boarding that plane! Even having our van, we still parked it & used WDW transpo once we got there, to me that's vacation, let them deal with the traffic!

[andreallybadeggs]

Flying is wonderful when everything goes well. But when it doesn't go well-- and these days the odds are increasing that it won't-- I think flying is much more stressful than driving.
When we can find good airfares with reasonable connections we fly but this trip we'll be driving because:
1) Our DD lives in Orlando and wants a road trip home. She enjoys the drive and since her last 3 trips home she's encountered MAJOR flight delays (8-18 hours) she's sick of flying.
2) It's considerably cheaper. Yes, we consider all the "hidden" costs but wear/tear on the car is down the road (excuse the pun) and since we have a fairly new car and $ is tight NOW, we've decided that is a cost we can postpone. Furthermore, any car that is well maintained
should be able to make a few road trips without turning it into a piece of junk.
3) Cheaper even considering two nights lodging (one each direction) because I do my research and book inexpensive places to stay before we leave home.
4) Additional meal arguments does not ring true with me. We'd eat the same number of meals whether we'd fly or drive and I'd rather pack a cooler and eat healthy but cheap than get hungry waiting for a delayed flight and spend way too much for airport (or worse, airplane) food.
I've always said if one day I came into a huge amount of money I probably wouldn't make many lifestyle changes. BUT, my one indulgence would be to fly first class and belong to every airport club/lounge on the planet. Or better yet, to hire private jets. Until then, knees up under my chin and a bag of pretzels doesn't look much better than an extra day on the road.

[kemps@wdw]

We've flown several times and have always had a very pleasant experience doing so. That being said, we have driven more times than flown, We live in western KY, so it's a good 14 hr drive for us. The up side to flying...getting there quick. The down side...we can't pack and bring everything w/us we want. So, there's pros and cons for both ways. My DH prefers to drive, and I prefer flying. DD doesn't care for flying, but likes to get there quick! (she's 16...go figure). As I get older though, I find I don't enjoy the long drive like I used to. I'm alot stiffer at the end of the road!

[barnaby]

I like to drive. It is a 16 hour trip for us. We split it into 2 days last trip, stopping in Savannah, GA.
But we made the drive down part of the vacation. We went over the Cheasepeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, stopped at South of the Border, and stopped at Daytona International Speedway.
I like the idea of having my own vehicle when staying at WDW, even though we stayed on the property. I also liked not having to worry about baggage checks and I like being able to bring food and drink with us for the hotel room.

[WDWCrazyKaren]

In a nutshell-with kids, fly. Without kids, do whatever you want.

There's no way on this entire earth that I would sit in a car with kids for 28 straight hours. I'd be in jail sometime after the first 14 minutes.

But that's just me.