no, waterbury is not very nice at all.

what route are you taking through CT?

The route is still up for debate. do you have any reccomendations?

where are you driving to?
What do you want to spend? Are you planning on sight-seeing at all in CT - or just passing through.

Agree Waterbury is not a good place to stop. Without knowing where you're heading, what you're looking for etc. impossible to help. Here are some older threads on Ct. if you're looking for ideas on where to go.

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselect.jsp?fid=1&tid=34704799

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselect.jsp?fid=1&tid=34768126

Just passing through on our way to Boston.

Norwalk.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g33871-d224357-Reviews-Hilton_Garden_Inn_Norwalk-Norwalk_Connecticut.html

Do you want a direct route or a more scenic route?
Debi

If you will be on 84, which I am assuming from the Waterbury question, there are many nice hotels in Danbury. From Danbury it is about 3 hours to Boston.

If you arent looking to do any sightseeing, I would probably stay in Danbury. Not the most scenic place but there are a lot of hotels and much nicer than Waterbury.

however, it will take you probably 5-6 hours to get there from DC.

Definitely no to Waterbury. No matter which route you are taking you'll want to get past Fairfield County and Danbury so you can set out relatively traffic-free the next day.

As for the route, I, personally, drive to Philadelphia on business pretty regularly. If you will be traveling through northern NJ/NYC/southern CT after 7pm then you can go I-95 to Merritt Pkwy and/or I-91 to I-84 to Mass Pike. If you are traveling through the NYC metro area before 7pm I would AVOID THE GW BRIDGE and take NJ tpke to Garden State Parkway to I-287 to I-684 to I-84 to Mass Pike (sounds comlicated but isn't - a few more miles but a lot less traffic).

Since you alluded to only sleeping here's a few suggestions, by route:

I-84: go past Waterbury by 10 minutes to Southington. There is a Residence Inn at exit 31, cheaper options up the road at exit 32 like Super 8 and Travelodge. Exit 32 has lots of chain restaurants, 31 has only Dunkin Donuts.

I-91 or Merritt Parkway: Go past New Haven by 15-20 minutes Meriden. There is a Residence Inn, Hampton Inn, Extended Stay with restuarants on site or nearby.

If you'd like to spend a little more time in central CT, reply to this with interests. We do have some nice museums, outdoor activities and even some decent restaurants.

If you decide on the Danbury area there is a nice Hilton Garden inn at Exit 2, just off the highway. It's less than 3hrs from there to Boston, and traffic around Danbury isn't too bad but for a crunch right around rush hour.

As stella indicated, you'll most likely be stopping not in any town, but rather at a highway exit hotel.

It's about 40min or so from Danbury to the Southington area (for stellas rec's) - not a tough drive if you want to get as far along as reasonable the 1st day.

I second the suggestion to head on the Merritt Parkway.

Make my vote the Merritt too! There was a recent Q on here about driving to Providence and it had specific drving directions. Type Providence in search box and it should come up.
Hope this helps...
Debi

tec is going to Boston, not Providence. The northern route 684 to 84 to 90 is, in my experience, a better route than the Merrit/95/91 route. Usually smoothe sailing the whole way with no heavy traffic.

The trip from Washington to Boston is 8-10 hours (mapquest calls it 8, but I always hit traffic in NJ) - so making it in one day is an option unless it is too much driving for you or sitting time for your parents.

I do not like Merritt Prkwy - I take NJ Turnpike to GS Parkway to Tappan Zee Bridge, 684/287/87 to Route 84 (in Hartford).

I might consider driving further on day one and stopping around Sturbridge, MA. Sturbridge Village is a re-creation early American village - don't know if you would find that interesting - but even if you don't there are lots of restaurants, hotels in the area. It is at intersection of Rte 84 and Mass Pike - you would then have less than 2 hours into Boston, could leave late AM and hit Boston before rush hour.

We stayed at a Red Roof Inn just of I-84 outside of Waterbury this summer en route from NH to NJ. As we were checking into our room, the police were raiding the room above us. There are some inexpensive motels outside Waterbury, but as others have mentioned, Danbury is nicer. However, downtown Danbury is not exactly a vacation haven, although the suburban areas are nice enough. If your looking for a place for a quick lunch, the Blue Colony Diner at exit 10 in Danbury is fun.

Southington is a good option as it is only 2 hours from Boston, 20 minutes from Hartford. The Residence Inn off of Exit 31, I84 is nice, quiet. There are some restaurants down the road that are rated very good. ESPN is on the same street (about 2-3 miles down the road if you want to see the entire campus and huge satellite dishes!) If you proceed to Exit 32 in Southington there are options there as well and many more restaurants/chains. Downtown Southington has some awesome restaurants and they are not hard to get to from either exit. Southington is definitely much nicer than Waterbury and is not a "city" like Danbury. I live here so maybe I'm a bit prejudiced!