Day Trip - how long drive

[disneychrista]

What is the longest ONE WAY drive time that you would do for a Day Trip (6 - 8 hours at location)?

Clarification:
I am talking about a ONE DAY trip. Drive there, have fun, drive home.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

4 hours drive time (each way) is about my limit if I'm going to spend much time there.

 

[MrsDuck]

2 hours. I'm a bad car traveler.

 

[rastahomie]

I've done 15-16 hours before, will probably do it again when I go to WDW in December.

 

[cluvsdisney]

2-3 hours each way.

 

[scrhsa]

About 3 for me. Depends on the situation. I just did 2 1/2 to take my dd to the Disney Store(closest one to us) for her birthday. It's close to my home town so we spent a bit of time there too.

 

[disneychrista]

I've done 15-16 hours before, will probably do it again when I go to WDW in December.

For a single day? No hotel and head back home the same day?

 

[marthachick]

Three hours one way is about our max.

 

[PollyannaMom]

The longest we've done was 3 1/2.

 

[adisneyaunt]

For me it'd be 1 hour.
I would not be able to have more than that after a full day at a park.

 

[disneychrista]

For me it'd be 1 hour.
I would not be able to have more than that after a full day at a park.

This is NOT for Disney Trip. This is a beach trip.

I want to visit Santa Cruz, which is about 3.5 hours away. A hotel is over $200 per night, which is not in the budget. My plan would be to leave at 7am, go to the boardwalk (just because), visit the beach - love laying on the beach listening to the ocean, visit a few local spots and then head back. The biggest issue is trying to avoid commute traffic heading home. So I would likely not leave until after 7pm and get home around 10:30pm (so likely a 16+ hour day). Just not sure if this is going to be too much or not.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

3-4 hours each way.
I routinely drive 2 hours for the beach we like at home.
Be careful because traffic in Cali can make for a much much longer trip than you anticipated.
It took me 2.5hrs to get back to my hotel in Anaheim from Santa Monica and that's only about 40 miles away lol.

 

[MamaLema]

4 hours for a day trip is my limit

 

[wgeo]

I'd be fine under 3, but would prefer around 2 hours each way. If it was gonna be over 3, it would have to be very special and there'd have to be a very good reason that I wasn't spending the night AND I'd need to make sure there was another adult with to split the driving.

 

[sam_gordon]

I'd be fine under 3, but would prefer around 2 hours each way. If it was gonna be over 3, it would have to be very special and there'd have to be a very good reason that I wasn't spending the night AND I'd need to make sure there was another adult with to split the driving.

This. 3 hours there and back is 6. If you're going to spend another 8 onsite, you're at a 14 hour day. Not terrible, but that would be about the limit. I've done some 2 hour day trips and that's about perfect IMO.

 

[bcla]

I've done about 4 hours. It might have been 4. I went on a solo trip to Lassen Volcanic National Park from my home in the San Francisco Bay Area. I left at just before 6 AM and got there at maybe 9:45 AM. I hit all the major spots, and even stopped at a discount store in Red Bluff for supplies. And I went out a different way and spend a few hours in Redding. That was a fun trip, but I'm older now and I'm not sure if my body could take it.

 

[Squirlz]

No more than 90 minutes.

 

[Wishing on a star]

3.5 would be too much for me...

2 hours... 2.5 max. That is a day-trip for me.

 

[Micca]

I've done 15-16 hours before, will probably do it again when I go to WDW in December.

Aaron I think we're talking take a drive somewhere, hangout for 6-8 hours, and turn around and go back home. My hat's off to you though in any case. I don't know that I've ever spent 15 hours on a car trip. Maybe 10? And that was waaaaay too long. I suspect some people have a better time on car trips though. For me it's usually just sitting there (as DW doesn't like me to drive.)

 

[rastahomie]

For a single day? No hotel and head back home the same day?

On the way home we'll probably break it up into two days. But on the way there we're probably doing it in one shot.