??Driving through the night with my 5 year old and 7 year old

[LiveUrlife2]

Ok so I need some advice/tips/experiences on driving through the night with kids. We are driving from PA to Charleston SC, about a 12 hour drive . This will be our 2nd cruise on Carnival out of SC. We love this port and rather not fly with the kids.

My husband and I did the same drive to SC for their first cruise 2 years ago with our kids, we left at 5pm and took lots of stops and made it to the port at 6am. Kids did ok, very restless, but I feel like they got a terrible night sleep and very uncomfortable. I felt terrible making them sleep in their car seat. UHH...its probably all in my head.

But anyway ok so I felt like we had so much time to kill since we got there at 6am we didn't know what to do. Charleston is beautiful to walk around but being there so early there wasn't much open. So should we do something differently this time around?

Thank you all. I love CC.

[cb at sea]

No way could I drive 12 hours thru the night...kids or no kids! And then, the trip home.....yikes!

 

I know flying is more costly, but soooooo much more convenient!

 

If you decide to do that, can you make the trip 2 days, and stop for the night in a hotel? I'd aim to be at the ship around noon or so...there's no rush!

[notentirelynormal]

Or you could leave later in the day, drive 5-6 hours and get a hotel. Get up early the next morning and head out. Everyone is rested and you had a nice break. I would eat breakfast in the car which will help with the drive time for the kids. If your car doesn't have one, bring a portable DVD player and that too will help with the awake hours.

 

Honestly, if you are good to do the driving, kids sleep in the car all the time at night. You don't say how old they are but most little ones fall asleep and will stay asleep until you move them and in most cases go right back to sleep.

[A&Jfamily]

Ok so I need some advice/tips/experiences on driving through the night with kids. We are driving from PA to Charleston SC, about a 12 hour drive . This will be our 2nd cruise on Carnival out of SC. We love this port and rather not fly with the kids.

My husband and I did the same drive to SC for their first cruise 2 years ago with our kids, we left at 5pm and took lots of stops and made it to the port at 6am. Kids did ok, very restless, but I feel like they got a terrible night sleep and very uncomfortable. I felt terrible making them sleep in their car seat. UHH...its probably all in my head.

But anyway ok so I felt like we had so much time to kill since we got there at 6am we didn't know what to do. Charleston is beautiful to walk around but being there so early there wasn't much open. So should we do something differently this time around?

Thank you all. I love CC.

 

I would leave a day earlier and plan on 6 hours of driving and stop half way. Pick a place with a pool and have a relaxing evening. Leave at 6 the next morning, arriving at the port at 12.

[MommaBear55]

We often did this when the kids were little. It was an adventure. We would have a picnic supper in the car, have them change into comfy clothes and crash in the back of the minivan with lots of pillows. We'd leave Maine in winter and 16 hours later we would be warm! 24 hours from home to Disney. The kids actually voted to do the same on the way home instead of stopping at a hotel.

[LiveUrlife2]

I would leave a day earlier and plan on 6 hours of driving and stop half way. Pick a place with a pool and have a relaxing evening. Leave at 6 the next morning, arriving at the port at 12.

Stopping halfway sounds awesome, Iam just worried about something happening to my vehicle/road closures/accidents/ or anything that will delay us at all! Ugh.

[LiveUrlife2]

We often did this when the kids were little. It was an adventure. We would have a picnic supper in the car, have them change into comfy clothes and crash in the back of the minivan with lots of pillows. We'd leave Maine in winter and 16 hours later we would be warm! 24 hours from home to Disney. The kids actually voted to do the same on the way home instead of stopping at a hotel.

 

I won't have room in my highlander for anyone to sleep anywhere else besides their seats. That sounds so cute though, love a good adventure like that.

[MommaBear55]

I won't have room in my highlander for anyone to sleep anywhere else besides their seats. That sounds so cute though, love a good adventure like that.

 

They were still in their seats, just had pillows stuffed around them to make a comfy little area. Did anyone sleep really well? Probably not the best nights ever!

[Newbea11]

We drive 12-16 hours with our kids stated when they were little and it has never been an issue.

[gymbomb]

I would not drive overnight because I would not want to start my cruise off exhausted!! I would drive as far as you can the day before, then finish it off the morning of the cruise. Plan it so you would be arriving at port by 10 or so in the morning, then you have a several hour buffer if you get delayed. Or even better, get there a day or two early and explore Charleston if your schedules allow.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[mjmalino]

Having been born and raised in Hazleton, Pennsylvania (with lots of family still there) and now living in Charleston, I do the drive at least once a year. Honestly, I can't do it in one day, just too much, even with others in the car. If I drive down I-81 to I-70 I usually stop around Charlotte, NC, which is about 3.5-4 hours out of Charleston, which, even if there is weather, traffic, etc., should give you plenty of time to reach the port, just plan to get a reasonably early start.

[LiveUrlife2]

Having been born and raised in Hazleton, Pennsylvania (with lots of family still there) and now living in Charleston, I do the drive at least once a year. Honestly, I can't do it in one day, just too much, even with others in the car. If I drive down I-81 to I-70 I usually stop around Charlotte, NC, which is about 3.5-4 hours out of Charleston, which, even if there is weather, traffic, etc., should give you plenty of time to reach the port, just plan to get a reasonably early start.

 

I would love to leave a day earlier or even leave earlier in the day to spend somewhere overnight. The earliest we can leave is 5Pm the night before the cruise. Even if we drive till midnight that would be close to VA spend 6 hours sleeping in a hotel get in car by 6am then drive another 6 hours, I just feel like thats cutting it too close. Ugh I think we have to suck it up and drive straight through like we did 2 years ago.

[Mistyhon]

We frequently make the drive from Minnesota to Galveston TX. It's about 18-ish hours but we split it into 2 days. We get up and are on the road by 5am and go until we're sick of it (usually 7pm with very minimal stopping.) Then, we do the other 6-ish hours the next day and enjoy the port for a day before embarking the next morning.

[notentirelynormal]

We frequently make the drive from Minnesota to Galveston TX. It's about 18-ish hours but we split it into 2 days. We get up and are on the road by 5am and go until we're sick of it (usually 7pm with very minimal stopping.) Then, we do the other 6-ish hours the next day and enjoy the port for a day before embarking the next morning.

 

That is exactly how I do it when driving from LA to Vancouver.

[bubba83]

We drove from PA to Myrtle Beach, SC two summers ago...My kiddos were 1.5 and 3.5....we left at 9 pm and drove straight through the night. We had 3 drivers though in the truck along with my two kiddos.

We have a DVD player with two screens so they watched movies and I had them in their pajamas and they had their blankets. My 1.5 year old passed out at 12:30am and my 3.5 year old didn't fall asleep until about 4 am!! She was just so excited.

The drive was rough, but we got there and I think everyone including the adults had naps poolside or on the beach that day and we went to bed earlier that night.

 

Your drive is do able and kids sleep anywhere, they will be fine. You all will just enjoy the next nights sleep even better :)

[anonmom]

I would love to leave a day earlier or even leave earlier in the day to spend somewhere overnight. The earliest we can leave is 5Pm the night before the cruise. Even if we drive till midnight that would be close to VA spend 6 hours sleeping in a hotel get in car by 6am then drive another 6 hours, I just feel like thats cutting it too close. Ugh I think we have to suck it up and drive straight through like we did 2 years ago.

 

I would just trade off driving and sleeping in the late evening/early night, then stop at a rest stop for both of you to sleep 4-5-6 hours, then continue driving in the morning

[Host Walt]

I would just trade off driving and sleeping in the late evening/early night, then stop at a rest stop for both of you to sleep 4-5-6 hours, then continue driving in the morning

Keep in mind that the embarkation process can be a bit challenging for the well rested, so keep that in mind. In addition, once you are on board in your cabin and the pressure is off the exhaustion factor will kick in so you won't be in very good shape to get properly acquainted with the ship let alone your fellow passengers.

 

Having done several "iron man" drives from NYC to school in North Carolina (approx. 550 miles and vice versa) I found a brief, 5 hour (+/-) sleep stop, even in the car when possible, followed by a take away breakfast with coffee, was satisfactory and made the rest of the day work well.

[Aelsantokie]

I would love to leave a day earlier or even leave earlier in the day to spend somewhere overnight. The earliest we can leave is 5Pm the night before the cruise. Even if we drive till midnight that would be close to VA spend 6 hours sleeping in a hotel get in car by 6am then drive another 6 hours, I just feel like thats cutting it too close. Ugh I think we have to suck it up and drive straight through like we did 2 years ago.

 

When we (and we had five kids ages 5 and under on our first cruise) lived in Ohio, we often did this for our cruise. I've done both, drive straight through from Ohio to Miami or Fort Lauderdale, or Tamps (depending on where my cruise was leaving from). Stopping midway to sleep was obviously more restful, but driving through in night traffic was much easier as well. I know I used to scare my mom doing this.

 

Make sure either you or your husband get some sleep while the other is driving. My husband can fall asleep anywhere, anytime so this helped. He would get some sleep while I start off the trip. When 11 PM hits, I start getting super sleepy and that's when he would take over.

 

Make sure you stop in a busy, well lighted rest stops (preferably with security). You didn't say how old your kids were but my boys were 3 when we started cruising so we had emergency potty ready in the car for when they HAD to go but there is no rest area for few miles yet.

 

I love driving, and road trips so it was fun times for us. Not last summer, but the summer before, we drove from south florida to Ohio, to Toronto, to Las Vegas and then back home. It's fun and the kids really get to see a lot of America!

[SadieN]

Stopping halfway sounds awesome, Iam just worried about something happening to my vehicle/road closures/accidents/ or anything that will delay us at all! Ugh.

 

 

How about leaving around 3am, drive to the port area, get a hotel the night before the cruise? You'll have most of a day and have a restful sleep.

[asdjl]

Honestly, at 7 and 5, they would probably do well flying. They are 2 years older than last you cruised. You mention their age as the factor for not flying. I say this because you sound really worried about driving and concerned about delays. At5 and 7 they can walk on their own, hold their own backpacks, etc. If not, I don't think sleeping in their car seats is so awful. We live in so CA and my kids have driven to Seattle and had several car trips to Ssn Francisco

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[DeeDee1214]

We drive from NY to FL every summer. My boys are the same age as yours, 7 and almost 5. We usually leave around 6pm, and drive 24 hours straight! (with just stops for bathroom/food). I would definitely do the drive, especially with your kids that age- kids this age are so much more flexible, independent, and tolerant. Also, since kids' bodies are also more flexible, they can sleep in their car seats and feel refreshed, unlike us. My advice is to make sure they have a busy day the day you're leaving, so they zonk out in the car and get a full, deep sleep so they're ready to go the next day when you arrive at the port.

[Cruisin' Chick]

I would love to leave a day earlier or even leave earlier in the day to spend somewhere overnight. The earliest we can leave is 5Pm the night before the cruise. Even if we drive till midnight that would be close to VA spend 6 hours sleeping in a hotel get in car by 6am then drive another 6 hours, I just feel like thats cutting it too close. Ugh I think we have to suck it up and drive straight through like we did 2 years ago.

 

Personally, we would never do this before a cruise. We would wait until we could pad in an extra day or two between arriving in the embarkation port and the actual cruise...whether we drive, fly, or use the train. The only times we don't do this is when leaving from our home port which is an hour's drive..and even then we try to leave by 9 or 10am. If we can't do this, we would postpone booking a cruise until we can, even if we don't go anywhere that year.

[3XX1XY]

We often did this when the kids were little. It was an adventure. We would have a picnic supper in the car, have them change into comfy clothes and crash in the back of the minivan with lots of pillows. We'd leave Maine in winter and 16 hours later we would be warm! 24 hours from home to Disney. The kids actually voted to do the same on the way home instead of stopping at a hotel.

This is illegal now. Get pulled over while your kids are laying in the back and you will probably get fined, possibly charged with endangerment. I know this is tempting and that we all did this when we were kids, but one has to decide if it's worth a huge fine or going to court over.

 

Stopping halfway sounds awesome, Iam just worried about something happening to my vehicle/road closures/accidents/ or anything that will delay us at all! Ugh.

This is what we do and it works really well. I try to build in a few extra hours since we are usually going out of ny or nj, but no problems yet. Honestly I've had far more issues with delayed flights in the past than I have with driving to the port like this.

[fireboat]

My in-laws live in FL. Raleigh to Lake Wales: road time 10 hours. Feels like we've been doing it forever. We leave at 8PM and get in before 8AM. Being a firefighter was good training to do most of the overnight driving. I usually slip away after arriving for a nap.

Between 9pm and 10pm, we find a Cracker Barrel and put the kids in their pj's. They seemed to settle in once back in the car. We did the DVD for a while but found that DS would fall asleep while DD would stay awake until it was turned off. Also at Cracker Barrel, they have audio books (on CDs now); the young-reader books are labeled. Now with smart phone, there are apps for audio books. Our local library has "Overdrive" where we can checkout all types of audio books. My DS is now responsible for checking out audio books from the library for all our family trips. Listening to a good book is a great way to past the time and both kids would fall asleep. We listened to many of the Lemony Snicket series.

Edited January 19, 2016 by fireboat

[asdjl]

No one said they weren't in car seats

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk