Springfield MA to Orlando FL
 

My husband and I and our three young children are heading to FL for February vacation week. We have Friday off work/school and are trying to figure out the best route and time to leave. We are worried about NYC and DC traffic. Any suggestions and good places to stop with little ones would be much appreciated! Thanks!

The most direct route would be to take 91 to 95 and grit your teeth. If you do decide to do that and can get the kids to sleep in the car, leave Springfield by 3:30 AM or so and you will sail through NY city before traffic gets too bad. Check the local radio stations for problems and if you want, take the Merrit Tpk from near Meriden, CT to the Hutchinson Pkwy and follow the signs to the George Washington Bridge which will be back on 95. You will probably want to take the New Jersey Tpk rather than going on 95 through all that part and still have a chance of hitting traffic in DC or Baltimore. Once you are south of Richmond it is usually pretty open.

We have also taken 91 to 84 to 81 and then south of Roanoke picked up 77 to 26 to 95 in South Carolina. It was longer mile wise, but took the same amount of time, with none of the stop and go that you get on 95.

In any case, if you have a transponder for the Mass Pike, it will get you through all the tolls until you get to Florida. Make sure you have it set up with enough money on it or your credit card so that it will cover the tolls if a weekend is involved.

Stop at a motel/hotel that has a pool to give the kids a break. Cheesy tho it is most of the McD's have playscapes to give the kids some fun. Do pack a cooler with drinks, snacks, etc and have lots of activities in the car for them. Sometimes books on tape or one of those in car video players can be a life saver.

I'll hope for good weather for you.

We used to take it one step further than the suggestion above and leave Mass around the time the kids usually went to bed (10 PM or so) and drove over night as far as Washington DC - no traffic at all and the kids slept the whole way. Then we'd spend the day doing museums in DC. My husband and I would trade off so each drove half the night and so got a few hours sleep. A little tired the day in DC but not too bad, then an early night and left early the next morning. I think its about 14 more hours but the kids are pretty fresh cause they really only have that one 'day' of being in the car, and the traffic is much lighter south of DC so you don't have to worry about timing.

If the NJ Turnpike is backed up south of exit 9 (as it often is) do not hesitate to take rte 130 to 295... this will take you all the way to the Delaware Bridge. 130 can be accessed from pretty much any turnpike exit from 9 on down. Traffic lights yes... but way better than the alternative.

When we drive from Northampton to Fl we leave at 10 or so at night and get through DC before rush hour.

The so-called "rush hour" around here (the Beltway) is as follows: in the morning it has pretty much started by 6 AM and lasts until about 10 AM; evenings at 2:30 until 7PM or later.

Your biggest issue MAY be I-95 between the two beltways (Baltimore and Washington) in the morning and in the afternoon the stretch of I-95 between the Washington Beltway (495) and Fredericksburg.

Although timing is everything it is almost impossible to predict just how slow traffic might be around DC and if the weather kicks in (rain, for example) things can get even worse.

When we leave at night we have never in many trips hit any of that traffic.

Follow emalloy's second suggestion: I 91 to 84 etc to entirely avoid the NY and DC areas. Motels and restaurants are largely in easy-off/easy-on locations that I have always felt were less sketchy than many similar areas on I-95.

Late night driving is fine if you are used to it. It also kills a lot of people. Take a route that doesn't make you go around cities at absurd hours to make time.