Ten Tips to Survive (and Enjoy) a Family Driving Trip to Florida
When Friday rolled around and Spring Break officially started, I had visions of getting loads of things done (a la David Allen for all you time management gurus out there) until Clean Mom uttered those fateful words… “Why don’t we just pack up and drive to Florida?”
From that moment on, I knew I would get nothing done. However, what I did learn were a bunch of tips to share with all you parents who are thinking of doing this trip some time in the future. May these time and money saving tips help you as much as they helped keep my sanity (and bank account) intact.
Tip 1 – Advanced Online Hotel Booking
We decided to stay at the same hotel that Hockey Grandpa was staying at so I shopped around the different online hotel booking sites. They were all quoting around the same price. The ONE DIFFERENCE I found was when we booked with www.hotels.com, I was able to find a) an online coupon for an additional 10% off (thanks to good ol’ www.redflagdeals.com), and b) I also found a limited time rebate coupon for another $20 off. Nice! So by investing an extra 30 minutes of online searching, I was able to save another $60 US!
Tip 2 – God Bless the GPS
While we still printed our free online Trip Tik from our local CAA/AAA website, the GPS was invaluable in finding local restaurants (vs. the regular fast food fare) and local shopping, giving us a running ETA (estimated time of arrival) and even directions to major attractions. Best find with the GPS was a small pizzeria in the middle of nowhere called Spanky’s Pizza House, delicious!!!
Tip 3 – Audio Books as Caffeine
As Clean Mom and I were driving during the night while the kids were asleep, we listened to an audiobook on the Ipod which helped keep us awake. And if you’re wondering, we listened to Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, fun!
If the audiobooks don’t work, here are 13 other ideas from wikihow to try:
http://www.wikihow.com/Stay-Awake-when-Driving
Tip 4 – Real Gas Saving Tips
A fellow Canadian, Greg Seaman, has a great site to check out at www.eartheasy.com and they happen to have an excellent article on fuel-efficient driving. While you’re there, tell Greg that I said Hi! Some of the tips include:
-Avoid aggressive driving. “Jack-rabbit” starts and hard braking can increase fuel consumption by as much as 40%. In city driving, nearly 50% of the energy needed to power your car goes to acceleration.
-Make sure your tires are properly inflated to prevent increased rolling resistance. Under-inflated tires can cause fuel consumption to increase by as much as 6%.
-Use the cruise control. On long stretches of highway driving, cruise control can save fuel by helping your car maintain a steady speed.
Tip 5 – How To Keep the Kids From Noticing the Drive
This tip was suggested by Clean Mom with some great advice given:
- Leave in the early afternoon when the kids usually have their nap. You can get a good 2 to 3 hours of driving before they wake up. Driving straight through the night also reduces the amount of washroom breaks and repetitious chants of “Are We There Yet”?
- By now, every car and van has a portable DVD player (and if you don’t, get one before you leave!). We visited our local library before leaving and each child got to pick 2 movies to borrow that they watched on the way! I also took out 2 books that I was able to finish by the time we got home… now that’s relaxation!
- Ballet Girl and Book Boy also enjoyed reading books and drawing on the portable wipe board we had in the car for drawing and writing exercises.
- Of course we had the requisite games of Guess Who, Eye Spy, and a current family favourite where Book Boy asks the parents questions from an “Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader” trivia book we currently have in the van.
Tip 6 – Discount Disney Tickets without Time Shares?!?
When we finally arrived in Florida, there were SO many ticket shops looking to sell and even buy unused (and used?!?) tickets. After visiting about 5 of them and doing some surfing on the Web, here’s what I found out:
- All of the ticket shops’ cheap tickets came with a required timeshare visit. They say it will take 90 minutes but will probably last over 2 hours. You will get your tickets but will have to survive the hard sell.
- Be wary of buying partially used tickets. There’s actually no way of knowing if there are any days left on the ticket until you get to the gate… and if you’re wrong, you’re out of luck.
- Most legitimate savings come when you buy 3 to 7 day Disney Park passes. For one or two days, there really are no discounts. Ouch! However, you might be able to save a bit of money by buying online at the Disney World website.
Here are some other links to check out for this topic:
Tip 7 – Strollers are Worth The Money at the Parks
If you didn’t bring a stroller for your toddler (or younger) kids, you should rent one at the park. The ability to give them a) a place to rest while traveling from ride to ride, b) a place to nap if they’re tired and c) a container to hold all your purchases/sweaters/etc. was absolutely worth the $30 for the double stroller for us!
Tip 8 – Coupons Are Your Friend
Clean Mom is NOT into coupons… but luckily, I am and this saved us some money. From something as small as 10% off our meal at IHOP (make sure you try their Strawberry Shortcake Pancakes… YUM!) to saving extra money at the Grove City Outlet Stores in Pennsylvania (show the guest desk your CAA card to get a free coupon book), if you don’t search for and use coupons, you’re throwing money away.
Tip 9 – Take Pictures of Memories
During our most recent trip, we visited the Magic Kingdom and Universal Studios. But what were the memories that our family really treasured? Coming down to the hotel’s breakfast buffet every morning and having breakfast with Hockey Grandpa. Driving to the attractions with 2 families crammed into one van. Listening to an audiobook while driving down the I79S at 2:00 in the morning. Winning a free T-Shirt at LegoLand in Downtown Disney.
Whatever your ‘real’ memories are, make sure you take pictures of them. We took pictures of the breakfast restaurant in the hotel, pictures of our family crammed into the van, and yes, even pictures of the kids sleeping in the van while driving at 2:00 in the morning. You’ll be glad you did.
Tip 10 – Always Have A Case of Water On Hand
From drinking water on the drive (instead of buying it with our meals), to taking water into the parks (instead of buying bottles for $2 each) to bringing water into the hotel room (instead of tap), we saved HUGE money by always having a case of water in the van!
And there you have it, ten tips to survive (and enjoy) a family drive to Florida. Another related article to check out for tips on driving to Florida can be found here at Wheels.com and they have some great advice that we used on our trip.
Have fun and let us know if you have any other ideas to share by using the comments section below!
Driving image courtesy of sxc.hu – image by gun4hire
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