Help with driving plans please? About This Page:

[mindinflight]

My apologies if this has been discussed before. I've spent hours in here searching for info, but while I've found many threads from people driving from Ontario, they all seem to be leaving from the Toronto/Hamilton area.

I'm travelling to Disney in February 2012. I live in South Eastern Ontario and would be leaving from the Ivy Lea (Hill Island - 1000 Islands) Bridge. This is on I-81. The route I'm looking at has me taking this highway to around PA, where we would veer off to the I-476, then I-315, then back onto I-81 until NC. From here they show us on I-77 through North and South Carolinas to Charleston when we'd get onto the I-26, then onto the I-95 til I-4 around Orlando.

There is a different route where we'd get onto the I-95 much sooner, but according to Google Maps, it would only shave an hour off our total driving time. However, it would also put us into that D.C. traffic mess I keep reading about, so I have doubts that it would really save us anything in the long run. The routhe I've mentioned above, really does appear to be the easiest, most direct route to me. Has anyone else here driven this route? Any tips or advice if we end up driving this way?

We are 4 adults, 2 of us drive and will be switching off. We will most likely leave in the middle of the night (or VERY early on the morning of the 1st) and drive til we're pooped, then get a room and start early the morning of the 2nd for the final (hopefully much shorter) leg of the trip. Our goal is to be at the Pop Century Resort by early to mid afternoon on the 2nd.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

[pflamingo]

I can't help, but I wanted to say welcome to the boards! My parents are originally from Toronto, though they've lived in Orlando since the '50's.

I think I was 12 the last time I saw the 1000 Islands Bridge. I'm sure someone will be along soon with some ideas for you.

[yalibrarian]

Let us know your exact points where you would pick up 95 and maybe we can offer some other suggestions. I find that Map Quest, Google Maps, etc. have a tendency to send you off and back onto the interstates to no apparent benefit. If you are actually using 81, there are other options (like taking 64 from 81 across scenic Virginia to 95) to miss D.C.

I do see that they are trying to send to you 95 just south of Philadelphia, which is why you would hit D.C. If you decide to take that route, you would use the 395 Beltway to go around D.C. on the east, so avoiding rush hour would be beneficial. Some people also like to take Route 301 in Maryland (not an interstate) and cross over well south of D.C. into VA and pick up 95 again.

I'm trying to picture where exactly you would be getting on I-95 in your second example. I live just SW of D.C. and agree that it is very unpleasant to hit rush hour there -- and rush "hour" can last from 6 - 10 am and 3 - 8 pm, depending upon where you are leaving from. But thousands of travelers do it every day, so if that route seems better to you, consider going through the area at midday, or in the middle of the night. You will be taking the Beltway around D.C., not through it, so you would not be driving through the middle of town, but the commuting traffic is quite heavy on the interstates anyway.

If you are thinking of 81 to Frederick, MD, then 270 toward D.C., that would work pretty well. Pick up 495, the west/south section of the Beltway. You would go around the west side of D.C., across the American Legion Bridge into Virginia, and pick up 95 south of D.C. at the all new and amazing "mixing bowl" intersection near Springfield, VA. Traffic headed south is much less than traffic headed north, except at evening rush.

If you are willing to hop off an interstate, you could go south on 81; in Pennsylvania pick up Route 15 south near Harrisburg; go past Gettysburg, around Frederick, MD, over into Virginia (two lanes part of the way, but 45 - 55 mph), to east on Interstate 66 about 4 miles. Then pick up the 234 Bypass south (also called Prince William Parkway after our county, not the current British prince ) and take it down to 95, where you would get on south of D.C. near Dale City.

Sounds complicated, but if you look at a map, it is actually pretty straight-forward. Anyway, I am sure others will have suggestions too.

[mindinflight]

Thanks pflamingo. Looks like lots of good info on these boards. I suspect I'll be spending a good deal of time in here between now and our trip.

Thank you for the input yalibrarian. Both routes I'm looking at leave the I-81 near Clarks Summit and do a spell on I-476 and PA-315 before rejoining I-81 in (I think) Hazelton.

The easier map keeps you on I-81 til NC, where you get on the I-77 to SC, then I-26 from Charleston to Savannah, where you get back on the I-95 til the I-4 in Florida.

That 2nd route though, gets pretty confusing looking. After about an hour and a half of rejoining the I-81, we have all this jumping around:

12. Take exit 70 on the left for U.S. 322 E/Interstate 83 S toward South Harrisburg/York
1.3 km
13. Merge onto I-83 S/US-322 E
Continue to follow I-83 S
13.5 km
14. Take exit 41A on the left for W Pennsylvania 581 toward Camp Hill/Gettysburg
290 m
15. Merge onto PA-581 W
3.5 km
16. Take exit 5B to merge onto US-15 S toward Gettysburg
Entering Maryland
110 km
17. Continue onto I-270 S
49.5 km
18. Continue onto I-270 Spur S (signs for Interstate 495 S/North Virginia/Washington)
3.2 km
19. Merge onto I-495
Entering Virginia
27.8 km
20. Take exit 57A toward VA-644
1.4 km
21. Follow signs for I-95 S/Richmond and merge onto Interstate 395 Connector S/Interstate 95 Connector S
1.0 km
22. Merge onto I-95 S
136 km
23. Take exit 84A on the left to merge onto I-295 S toward Rocky Mt NC/Richmond International
70.5 km
24. Merge onto I-95 S
Passing through North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia
Entering Florida


This looks far more confusing than the route that sticks with the I-81. Also, I'm not sure how much of either of these routes is through mountains, or where I can expect a lot of snow and/or icy road conditions.

After a couple of days and countless hours of researching, I must say that I'm very tempted to make this trip with Amtrak. LOL I think I may have some discussion at length with my fellow travellers. So much less stress and confusion and more relaxation by train.

[yalibrarian]

Most of 81 is in hilly but not mountainous territory. I am not a fan of 81 in western Virginia as the truck traffic is heavy and there are often accidents. But if you can drive in Canadian weather, you shouldn't find much to bother you on the route through NY, PA and MD. All the big mountains in the U.S. are out west; the Alleghanies and Appalachians are old and worn down, so although they are mountains, they are not the Rockies. Most of the east coast on the eastern side of the mountains is piedmont, rolling or flat and unchallenging to the average driver.

The route description looks confusing because of the merges in Harrisburg, D.C. and Richmond. It's not as bad as it looks. The "exits" are mostly merges from one part of an interstate to another. (I have lived or worked in York, Harrisburg, Richmond and the D.C. area, so I am a bit familiar with your various route parts.) If you pull up Harrisburg on Yahoo Maps, you can see that those complicated directions essentially mean you will "turn" left or south off 81 onto 322, then right or west onto 322/83, cross the beautiful Susquehanna River, and then pick up 15 south. It's like three sides of a box -- take a look and you'll see it's not hard.

It looks like they are sending you on the second route I suggested, which is taking 15 from the Harrisburg area south through Frederick, Maryland, then onto 270 to 495. 322/83 is a connector route that will lead you across the river at Harrisburg and onto 15 (83 continues south to the Baltimore beltway). Once you hit 15, you stay on it until Frederick when you will pick up 270 just south of town and head toward D.C. Then you merge onto 495 south, eventually crossing the Potomac River into Virgnia. (In D.C. area, 495 is just the beltway around the western side of town.) You will merge onto 95 south of D.C. through the new mixing bowl intersection--looks confusing butjust follow the signs, and you'll be fine.

Take 95 South all the way to Florida! Don't bother taking the 395 bypass around Richmond as the traffic is rarely heavy enough to justify the extra miles. Last year I lost my sense of reason and took the bypass coming home at night. We spent two hours stuck behind a big accident. Sigh. Most of the time we just zip through town and out the other side very quickly with no delays, and that's the route I will follow from now on, having learned my lesson.

I'm a big fan of trains, so if that's an option for you, go for it. You can take a regular Amtrak train (which for you would mean probably two trains, one to NYC or D.C., then one south to Florida). Many folks who take the train recommend getting off at the Orlando rather than the Kissimmee station as it is larger. You may want to rent a car, or hire a town car to meet you and whisk you to WDW. The Autotrain is another option for driving part way, and taking the train part way. It picks up only 20 miles from my house, but we decided to drive again this year anyway. Maybe next trip...

[mindinflight]

Thank you ever so much for all the great info! After much deliberation, we've opted for the train. Perhaps another time, with lots of time and patience, and maybe not in the dead of winter, I will brave the drive down. For this time though, we're going to drive to Syracuse, take the train to NYC, then from NYC on to Orlando. I'm already getting excited about seeing the States from a train. I love riding the train, but have never done so south of the border. I think it promises to be a relaxing mode of transportation and an adventure for us all....a great way to start off...and end our holiday. Can't wait to get going!!! Is it February yet???

[fluttercat]

I recently drove the 81-77-26-95 route. We left from the southwest part of Virginia so I can't speak to any area north of that. But the 81 route really was quite simple and the roads were not bad at all. It really was easy. Traffic wasn't a problem anywhere and everything is really well marked.