Do's & don't for driving NY to Fla.
 

We're trying driving for the first time, leaving Sunday. Dog comes too so we're somewhat limited. Love to hear good places (& bad places to avoid) to eat & stay. We think we might do our first stop somewhere between Richmond & Petersburg. Thoughts? Please let me know about places to watch for speed traps etc. Share some stories please.

I believe Scarlett just did this drive, having moved from NY to FL. Do a search on her name, she has a trip report for the drive down, and might be the best one to help you on this!

If you are trying to split up your driving time in about half, you might want to consider stopping somewhere in the Carolinas.

mclaurie, be careful driving down I-95. Holiday traffic will make this worse than usual.

Where is your final destination? After Richmond, I-95 is a barren void until you get to Jacksonville. I love driving through Jacksonville at night and seeing everything lit up on the river!

I was going to suggest veering off I-95 and taking I-26 to Charleston but I'm not sure of doggy friendly accommodations in Charleston. If you can, stay downtown and enjoy a night in the Holy City.

From Charleston, one of the most scenic drives in the country is to take Highway 17 South through the ACE basin. Quite stunning.

Please be careful on I-95. It can be trecherous.

Thanks missjanna, I do remember Scarlett's drive but I'll read it again.

GoTravel, final destination Boca. What do you mean by I-95 being trecherous? Bad drivers? Winding road? Too many trucks?

We thought Sun. would be a good day to start given the long weekend. Didn't know whether this holiday is observed down south :) I would love to stop in both Savannah & Charleston but objective is to arrive in Boca by Tues. afternoon latest. Maybe one on the way down & the other coming back.

mclaurie, I-95 at its very best is one of the most dangerous roads in the country.

Because it runs the length of the entire east coast, you have drivers from towns that don't even have a stop light to drivers from the biggest cities in the country. Think Mr. Slowpoke driving 55 in the left lane with a semi on his butt and people passing on the right totally clueless.

Traffic will be heavy because it is a holiday in the north east. It is one of the busiest weeks of the year for Florida.

I can't think of any speed traps because traffic moves so fast on I-95. The speed limit is 70mph and traffic moves around 80mph.

Watch your speed in construction zones which is were police will most likely be patrolling.

I love Boca! I'm jealous! We were trying to get out for the boat show to no avail and then Key West which has also fallen through.

Keep checking on the Church Mouse! Try and rent a bike and ride the Palm Beach Trail. I promise it will blow your mind.

DO:

1. Pack a small cooler with water, beverages, snack foods, maybe a sandwich or two, whatever you like.

2. Go to Radio Shack and buy yourself a handheld portable CB radio (looks like a walkie talkie and plugs into your cig. lighter). You don't have to talk -- just dial into channel 19 and listen to the truckers. Not only will you learn where every policeman, accident, traffic jam, and construction zone is along the route, you'll also be entertained by just listening. There's a whole world out there you never knew existed.

3. Don't fear the Waffle House. Somewhere around Virginia or North Carolina you'll see plenty of Waffle Houses off the exit ramps. Stop in -- have a cup of coffee and if you're hungry, some grits, hash browns, maybe some cheese and eggs. It's a great place for late night/middle of the night/early morning coffee or food.

PS Presidents Day is a Federal Holiday, therefore it's observed across the country, not just in the northeast. Since you plan on stopping overnight, expect to find a lot of traffic on Monday, as all the people will be driving back from their 3-day weekend / valentines getaways!!

I'll try to locate Scarlett's post as she also mentioned about the pet friendly hotels.

The stretch of Route 98 between the Baltimore Beltway (695) and the Washington Beltway(495) is heavily patrolled.

Never get stranded in the left lane allby yourself

I have seen as many as 3 separate traps within a FIVE mile stretch. People that thought were safe, got nabbed.

Personally, I try to avoid the left lane in that stretch altogether.

A friend who makes the drive from VA to FL quite often likes to stop at Cracker Barrel and rent a books-on-tape to listen to. You can then return it to any Cracker Barrel. They charge a hefty deposit on your credit card, but deduct it when you turn it back in, which she usually does a few hours later.

This might help to pass the time.

As an addition to that last note - many public libraries offer free books on tape (and many now available on cd as well). That's worth checking into first - it is indeed a great way to pass the time, and it's free!

Have not driven to Florida since the 70s. Curious how the today's expense in gas compares with flight prices ? ((?))

missjana, I know that President's Day is a Federally observed holiday. For some reason, the school systems in the south do not get time off as a lot of the northeastern school systems.

Let me agree that Waffle House is a very delightful breakfast endeavor. The waffles are great and so are the hash browns.

mclaurie, I live near Richmond. DEFINITELY when you get close to Ashland VA, look for the sign for I-295 south to Rocky Mount NC. There are some nice motels around the Fort Lee exit or a bit further south at the Emporia VA or Roanoke Rapids NC exit. Lots of chain motels around there, and quite a few allow pets. Lots of the schools in VA and NC will be open on Monday 2/16 to make up for snow days, so that will cut down on family travels for the weekend.

Our public schools in Florida have Presidents Day off. We didn't want to but Jeb Bush made us.

Just kidding.

Hi

As one who drives the I-95 corridor often I can vouch for:

Waffle House has good breakfasts w/nice service.

We leave from just east of Washington DC and if you can get about 8 or 9 hours of driving in the 1st day you should be to near Rocky Mount NC - and it's a good place to stop. You can't count the number of motels there.

Be careful in Virginia around Emporia as there's always someone stopped by the troopers.

South Carolina and Georgia are also good places to get caught - we always find them on the side of the road waiting!! If you see a car on the roadside with its TRUNK up - it's generally a trooper w/radar.

Good places for cheaper gas are exit 184 in South Carolina and exit 6 in Georgia.

We don't drive around Washington DC - we drive down 301 from the east of Washington, cross the 301 bridge and connect with I-95 at Bowling Green. There's not as much heavy traffic and where I-495 and I-95 connect in Springfield Virginia there's a lot of construction so we avoid it best we can.

We stopped last time in Dunn NC and found the Brass Lantern restaurant that serves prime rib for 2 at $21.95 - dinner was very good - we were out of there in 40 minutes for $25.00 and back on the road again. I would highly recommend this place - really nice waitstaff plus there's a Comfort Inn (almost new) just 2 miles away.

Oh, another almost new motel would be the Red Roof Inn, Peeler Georgia - it's an exit by Savannah and you may find a need or may not - I'm just adding some nice motels.

Good luck and have a safe trip.

Thanks for all the great advice! We already have our books on tape from the library. I <i>wish</i> I could take Al's advice about the walkie talkie but my cigarette lighter doesn't work.

John this wasn't a $ decision. We wanted to take the dog &amp; he's not quite small enough for carry-on &amp; we worried about putting him in baggage. I also liked the idea of having my convertible in Fla. :S-

Please keep the info coming. Thanks!

BTW, missjanna, if you're still around have a great weekend.

It is every bit as expensive to drive for us as it is to fly. My husband's SUV only gets about 14mpg and we end up spending around $220-$250 round trip in gas. Airfare out of my area to south Florida is as cheap as $108.

Hey~sugar!

That is Southern for Hello mclaurie :)

This is what we did, without all the boring details.
Left NYC at noon on Sat. Got through WashDC around 5ish-we were warned about the circle that you take, the Loop, and not to take the wrong turn off for I-95..we were worried that we would be going around and around DC all night if we made that mistake. It was very easy to get right the first time around.
Made it to Rocky Mount, NC by 8:3- stayed at the Comfort Inn right off the highway by the hospital. They are dog friendly, got a King room, they have a fridge in the room and a coffee maker. We were told we could leave Pup, but the minute we walked out the door (just to go down to the Outback and get some take-out, he began his BigDog bark) so we took him with us. He enjoyed (or pretended) to love the drive, not a peep out of him the entire trip.
The hotel is a touch dreary, but clean and they serve a large breakfast in the lobby, part of your room price. They make fresh waffles.
We left there around 9 am, arrived in Jax at 5:00..8 hours each day.
In Jax we stayed at the La Quinta Inn on J Turner Blvd. New, very very nice rooms, very very nice staff. This time, Pup stayed in the room and was quiet, while we went to dinner downstairs at the Cracker Barrel ... didn't love the Cracker Barrel, but we had arrived so everything was right with the world.
The speed limits were mostly 60-65 so the Yankee kept the cruise control set at 80 :) No sign of police at any time..
It is lovely to drive South, you see the change in the landscaper, whenever you stop to let the dog take a break or take one yourself, you notice the air is a little bit warmer ... aaahhhh....
EMail me if you have any questions, everyone was SO helpful here when I was asking for help on this trip-I will be happy to reciprocate.
Happy trip! Scarlett ((F))

LOL, will I never learn to preview my repies!!
There is no change in the LandscapeR but the Landscape does change..

:)

This has all been useful reading for me as I will be making the first of many Boston-Savannah drives this fall (to take kid to college - will drive twice/year drop-off/pick-up). Had hoped to make it Boston to Richmond area first day, but that now sounds a little unrealistic.

Hi Mclaurie, My husband and I do this drive twice a year. We love it, we drive from Connecticut and did it last year on Presidents Weekend. We left on Friday at 3pm and got to Rocky Mount NC at about 1am.
We love the Comfort Inn in Rocky Mount , we loove the waffles too. There is the sweetest girl behind the desk at night. I think her name is LaTanya and see really goes out if her way to accomodate people. They are also Pet friendly.
I pack a cooler with water, juide and smoe small snacks . My husband likes to snacks when he is in traffic. Also throw some wipes and tissues . Worst traffic we ever hit was the sunday of Christmas weekend. We could have walked faster, but we enjoy the trip and time together.
As far as gas prices it seems pretty inexpensive, always less then 150.00 and I get to take what ever I want even my pillow, no baggage limitation.We are not in our SUV but a 6 cylinder Jaguar S type, which gets better mileage. We don;t bring our puppy as he is not so fond of the car.
For fun we always buy local lottery tickets , which is odd because we don't buy them at home. We stop at Pedro's South of the Border and read each other all the corny signs that lead up to it. We actually know someone who stays at the hotel there because they are very dog friendly and they say the rooms are clean too. My husband always stops ther for me as when I was a kid everyone had the bumper stickers and I had never been there. Feeling totally left out, not knowning ti was a glorfied gas station . Once there I realized it was pretty sad, I guess it changed alot from the 1970's .
We love the Cracker Barrell , Waffle House and the Golden Corrals, Half the fun of the drive for my husband is he gets to eat Junk Food. His main reason for the driving is he refuses to give our car back to Jaguar Leasing with miles left on it and since he works at home he puts about 25 miles a month on it.
Enjoy the ride with your husband and puppy. Sometimes I look forward to the trip down as much as the actual trip. I'll be in Miami the same week, let's hope we have nice weather

That reminds me, I was amazed at how many billboards there were for topless clubs in SC!
We managed NOT to stop at South of the Border, they must top the Cheesiest List somewhere :)
I brought Pups water bowl, food bowl and bottled water..didn't want to deal with the possibility of pup stomach trouble, if different water causes such a thing.
In the back seat was his favorite blanket, a couple of toys and the entire seat was covered with bath rugs, rubber backed and towels. I was worried about his getting car sick..not a problem, he looked out the window, slept and was generally a much better traveler than I :)

I recently made a trip to Beaufort, SC on business. I've always wondered about Beaufort as it's an old town with a lot of history sitting on the backwater. I did not spend much time there after driving up and back from Jacksonville but I thought it was an interesting Southern city with lots of Southern charm, great old architecture remeniscent of times past.

Unfortunately, I didn't stay in the city, in fact, drove there and back from Jax in a day. I didn't see a lot of hotels but I would not hesitate to recommend it to someone driving down I-75 who needs a place to stop -- they probably have the usual chains. There were some mean-looking BBQ joints, I thought if I wasn't careful I might just have to have some good Southern food. But I had to head out.

Best advice is when you stop for the night do it early 6pm - 7pm the hotels book up fast .Get your hotel room then go for a nice dinner. Rocky mt NC is a good area for hotels or Florence SC. Drive the speed limit in Maryland (DC AREA)

We booked the hotels before we left NYC. They only have so many rooms for dogs. We took the hotel phone numbers just in case, figured an 8 hour drive to get there. I worried it would be tough making it to the hotel the first night but it was an easy drive..boring can be the worst thing about long drives. And you are only going into Better weather, which is a treat~

missjanna,
Where is Scarlett's trip report???? I just spent 10 mins. trying to locate that thread since we will be traveling from NJ to FL with 2 cats in the fall! Thanks

Scarlett, whenever I see my little yankee neices, I always say &quot;Give me some sugah!&quot; which translates to &quot;Give me a kiss&quot;.

They think it is the funniest thing they've ever heard!

I've spent most of my life in Florida and the only person who ever called me Sugar was my uncle from New Mexico. There is a possibility that I'm just not sweet enough for most Southerners and that's why I've been left out of this.

Yes! My daddy used to say that all the time..and a boyfriend or two :)

Tandoori Girl, LOL You must Sweeten up then!! (although you are very helpful)

I topped my report for you, teacher~