On the road to recovery . . . & Universal Studios!

WildEEP

So those of you who know my past . . . I've had a rough tumble on the relationship front. Thats over and I now have an EX.
FYI for those on the divorce front - if you don't have kids and are willing to give up the crappy property - its fairly easy to finalize a divorce.
Seriously - crap made of pressboard and LCD TV's that'll break in a year anyway - are not worth months of your life. Think of it as an investment in sanity.

All that aside, I've met someone new and fairly awesome!
Team that up with a new job that spoils me both in pay and benefits . . . and I'm . . . wow . . . Happy.

So I would like to take my someone new to Universal Studios to see the Harry Potter world they have there.
My dates are between March 31 - April 8.

The problem is that the airlines are being crazy right now. I'm departing from Washington DC and heading to Florida...and it looks like its cheaper to drive it.
So if I'm going to have to make a 14 hour drive, why not split it up and see some things along the way.

What is there to see on the road from Washington DC to Universal Studios that me and Miss Awesome can visit?



tldr; Going to Universal studios from Washington DC. What stuff is there to see along the way?

Tox

Well, I'm assuming you'll be cruising the I-95 corridor. That said, there's really not a whole heck of a lot south of DC that's really tourist-worthy. Richmond is kind of alright, I guess, but I don't recommend spending any more time in Virginia as an out-of-state driver than you absolutely have to (and Do. Not. Speed!). I-95 in NC has...uhm...an outlet mall about halfway through (Smithfield/Selma).

Personally, I'd recommend looking into rail-based travel. It may not cost much more than driving, it should be faster, and it'll be a different experience than either driving or flying.

Thanatos

There's Arlington National Cemetery, but if you're in D.C., I'm sure you know that.

Train travel is kind of cool if you've never done it before. And they have little two-person mini-cabins that aren't much more expensive than coach, that are cool, and frequently include meals.

matt has a problem

If you take the 95 route, you basically go through the most boring parts of the southeast unfortunately. Things like the Outer Banks in North Carolina, and Charleston in South Carolina are multi-hour detours. Savannah, Georgia is nice, but that's near the end of the trip.

Train travel is a great way to travel, but expensive. Amtrak is about 19 hours down, and 17 hours back. Round trip, two seats would set you and the lady friend back $460 plus tax, and it's an overnight trip both ways (3pm - 10am down, 7pm - 1pm back). To get a room on the train with two little bunk beds, it turns into $1300 for you both. Meals are included both ways though, and if you think of the price in terms of it being your travel, a hotel, and at least two meals both ways, it's not too terrible.

Wassermelone

You will get to see 500 miles of billboards for South of the Border.

Just don't go to South of the Border.

wmelon

Wassermelone wrote:

You will get to see 500 miles of billboards for South of the Border.

Just don't go to South of the Border.

I have to whole-heartedly disagree. By all means STOP at South of the Border, just don't buy anything. It's likely to be 10 years out of date or already broken. I love that kind of kitschy stuff.

Charleston is only about 45 minutes off of I-95 if you wanted to stop there for a day and while I don't understand the appeal, Myrtle Beach is about the same a little farther north.

Jokerman

Man I really like driving through Virginia, but everyone here is right. DO NOT SPEED! YOU WILL REGRET IT!

Tox

When I was a kid, my family used to drive across the country to visit relatives. The rules was always "8 over every where but Ohio and Virginia. 3 over there."

Nowadays I imagine you don't even want to speed at all.

illig

I just drove from NYC to Key Largo. And i'm doing the return trip this weekend. Listen to what everyone says - unless you want to add lots of time to your trip, just stick to I95, set your cruise control to 4 over and relax. Most of the time, the speed limit is a comfortable 70, the road is good, and traffic is minimal unless you're cutting through a major metropolitan area like Baltimore or Miami, so it's not a bad drive.