Where to stop for the night between Tampa and Cape Cod?
 

Hi,

I'll be driving from Tampa to the Cape with my son and need to figure out where to stop overnight. I was thinking about Virginia Beach, but it looks like it's way off Rt 95. Any suggestions? Thanks!!

You are talking about 22 hours of driving. You should be thinking about a motel just off I-95 in North Carolina. Somewhere around Rocky Mount.

Good gawd. That's a haul!
Are you sure you don't want to break it up into 3 days. That's two days of miserable driving IMO.

Hi Rkkwan,

Thanks for the reply. How far away is the ocean from Rocky Mount? I'd like to do a bit a sightseeing the next morning.

We used to drive this route all the time years ago, but I doubt I'll be doing it again for a long time after this.

Would we be better off trying to go to the NC shore? We can actually do the drive in 2 nights if necessary. I used to drive straight through, but I was a lot younger then!!

Thanks again!

Starrs,

We must have been posting at the same time!!! What do you recommend??

Thanks!

You're adding a lot of distance and time if you want to go to Virginia Beach. There's no freeway going up there from NC. Only way you can do it is to make it a 3-day drive.

Rocky Mount to Virginia Beach is 152 miles or 3 hours itself.

Thanks again rkkwan! Hmmm, not sure it's worth it. No wonder we used to drive straight through!!

I've driven from Tampa to Montpelier in two days twice. The first time we stopped in Roanoke Rapids, VA and the second time we stopped in Richmond, VA. Richmond would be a nice place to visit.

Thanks coldwar27! I'll look into Richmond. Do you remember where you stayed?

Well, I like to enjoy a trip and SEE something. So, I'd probably stop in Savannah on the way (about 5 hours from Tampa). Get a good drive in and then stroll the squares and eat some good seafood (probably at the Pink House). Then, I'd drive about 8 hours and stop...maybe in DC? Take a night tour of the monuments illuminated at night? (I'd really like to go on to NYC for a stop, but that would be a long day's drive). The third day would be about an 8 hour drive.

I would be miserable with two 11 hour days on the road. I've driven to Denver straight through without stopping (25 hours) but I wouldn't do it again and I really hate letting that much "stuff" go by outside the window without stopping to see SOMETHING.

If you really are going to do this with only a one night stop, then forget about seeing anything or taking a detour anywhere - all you will time to do is drive, sleep, drive. In that case, North Carolina somewhere - try I95exitguide.com for specifics on each exit. Some warning - most of these exits are bleak and the hotels and food options are very limited. I just drove Washington-Savannah, stopping in Rocky Mount - OK to sleep there, but I would not want to visit.

If you break it into 2 nights, then the question becomes more interesting.

Hi Jayneann,

I'm sorry that I don't remember. I think it was something like a Sleep Inn pretty close to the interstate.

Starrs,

Thanks again for the response. I feel exactly like you do - don't want to drive this distance without seeing something! Definitely going to stop in Savannah for lunch!!

Gail,

Thanks for the info and the website! I'm going to check it out after this!

coldwar27,
Thanks for posting anyway!!

I've done

FL to Savannah (It's only 5 hours and you'll have plenty of time to enjoy the city.

Savannah to Richmond VA (Staying South of DC will help you avoid evening traffic problems and you can check out richmond a little bit)

Richmond to Cape Cod...if you plan it right, you'll miss the bulk of DC traffic in the morning, and hopefully squeeze through NYC before traffic gets too bad.

Thanks milemarker0, sounds like a good plan! I especially like the thought of visiting Savannah since I've never been there before!