Directions to The Villages

[pauld315]

After having received the video from the Villages for many years, having unofficially visited there over 10 years ago when we were vacationing at Disney, we are finally getting close to retirement age. We will be taking a preview in April. What is the best way to get there if coming down I-95 ? I know a lot of you must travel this way coming to and fro - what have you found to be the best way ?

[ijusluvit]

Go to the "Search" box and type the word Driving. Go to the 6th page and scroll down to the last entry, which consists of three pages of what lots of people will tell you is the best route. Have Fun!!!

[905home]

You cannot tell someone to look at a certain page (such as "page 6"). The list of entries keeps on growing. The specific item might now be on page 7 or 8. Can you be a little more specific as to where to find the answer to the poster's question?

I am heading north and also want to find a route to I-95 which avoids going thru "Waldo" the highway robbery capital of the world.

[ijusluvit]

Excuuuuse me, I thought the later pages changed, not the earlier.

(The search box here sure aint no google!)

Try this: Driving directions

There is only about a page. Scroll down to the thread by Sidney Lanier

[herbaru]

You cannot tell someone to look at a certain page (such as "page 6"). The list of entries keeps on growing. The specific item might now be on page 7 or 8. Can you be a little more specific as to where to find the answer to the poster's question?

I am heading north and also want to find a route to I-95 which avoids going thru "Waldo" the highway robbery capital of the world.

Going north we took 75 to 10 to 295 to I95
All highway time not bad.
We came south that way because it was after dark and did not want to travel the small towns at night. Liked the route so we took it back north during the day.

[downeaster]

You cannot tell someone to look at a certain page (such as "page 6"). The list of entries keeps on growing. The specific item might now be on page 7 or 8. Can you be a little more specific as to where to find the answer to the poster's question?

I am heading north and also want to find a route to I-95 which avoids going thru "Waldo" the highway robbery capital of the world.

As I have posted before, over a period of many years I have driven US 301 between I 10 and points southwest. I have never received a ticket and seldom see any police activity. I drive the speed limit. 45MPH is not unreasonable in those congested areas. They are clearly marked with plenty of signs.

I am not discouraging the use of alternate routes. More people taking alternate routes lightens the traffic on 301 and makes my drive easier.

BTW, I drive to Atlanta using I 75 and the traffic to I 10 is no day at the beach.

[Larryandlinda]

After having received the video from the Villages for many years, having unofficially visited there over 10 years ago when we were vacationing at Disney, we are finally getting close to retirement age. We will be taking a preview in April. What is the best way to get there if coming down I-95 ? I know a lot of you must travel this way coming to and fro - what have you found to be the best way ?

We drive straight from mid Maryland average 15-16 hours with a cat nap or two
Soon after we get into FL we take A1A over to 301 and then East on 42 (we're north of Camino Real)
It's a breeze and Waldo and the other trap have never been an issue, Plenty of Huge warning signs about the traps.

L&L

[downeaster]

We drive straight from mid Maryland average 15-16 hours with a cat nap or two
Soon after we get into FL we take A1A over to 301 and then East on 42 (we're north of Camino Real)
It's a breeze and Waldo and the other trap have never been an issue, Plenty of Huge warning signs about the traps.

L&L

Jeeze, L&L, now that two of us admit 301 is not a problem, the increase in traffic will be an issue. Just kidding.

The A1A option over the I295 option is a toss up. Going north we are ready for the interstate by the time we get to Baldwin. Coming south we are getting tired of I95 so we sometimes take A1A. A1A is not a good choice during school hours, You can get stuck behind a school bus for miles. Level train crossings in Baldwin can cause a delay. Since 9A has opened around the east of Jax there has been a decrease in traffic on 295.

Another local alternative is avoid Belleview and Ocala by going west on 484 then north on I75 to north of Ocala then back on 301. Adds a few miles and time is about the same. Probably less gas.

BTW, sounds like you live fairly near us. We find it is just over 100 miles and two hours to I10.

[tpop1]

Repost of previous post ...hope it helps....

We drive from Clinton CT to FL a couple of times per year. Previously Sarasota, now The Villages(20 hours driving).

Since I work on a company PC (Desktop not Laptop) driving is the only feasible way to travel back and forth with this computer .

We do 2 days...1 long day(12-14 hours) and 1 short day(6-8 hours). I've done this mostly with the wife but sometimes alone. We found that driving anything shorter on the 1st day, ends up with us sitting on a bed in a motel room, waiting for dark to fall asleep.We drive til 10-11PM and get a room wherever we stop.

Sometimes we make reservations during our Christmas travel....busy time.

Our normal practices & recommendations are:

Try to travel on Sat. & Sunday if possible,
Make Tappen Zee / GW Bridge decision based on radio traffic reports(WCBS 880 Traffic on the 8 minute mark, 1130 Bloomberg radio on the 5's, and 1010 WINS on the 10's)
Getting an EZ Pass for tolls can save 1-2 hours during busy travel at tolls(good for all tolls til you hit the FL line).,
Take 895 outside Baltimore to the Harbor Tunnel(avoids Baltimore Center city traffic)
Take the BW expressway & 295 Balt. to D.C. (straight shot and avoids I-495 around D.C.)
Take I-295 around Richmond(few miles longer, but much faster...avoids Richmond
traffic and curves)
IN FL we take I-95 to I-295 south above Jacksonville to I-10 to 301 south.

[downeaster]

Repost of previous post ...hope it helps....

We drive from Clinton CT to FL a couple of times per year. Previously Sarasota, now The Villages(20 hours driving).

Since I work on a company PC (Desktop not Laptop) driving is the only feasible way to travel back and forth with this computer .

We do 2 days...1 long day(12-14 hours) and 1 short day(6-8 hours). I've done this mostly with the wife but sometimes alone. We found that driving anything shorter on the 1st day, ends up with us sitting on a bed in a motel room, waiting for dark to fall asleep.We drive til 10-11PM and get a room wherever we stop.

Sometimes we make reservations during our Christmas travel....busy time.

Our normal practices & recommendations are:

Try to travel on Sat. & Sunday if possible,
Make Tappen Zee / GW Bridge decision based on radio traffic reports(WCBS 880 Traffic on the 8 minute mark, 1130 Bloomberg radio on the 5's, and 1010 WINS on the 10's)
Getting an EZ Pass for tolls can save 1-2 hours during busy travel at tolls(good for all tolls til you hit the FL line).,
Take 895 outside Baltimore to the Harbor Tunnel(avoids Baltimore Center city traffic)
Take the BW expressway & 295 Balt. to D.C. (straight shot and avoids I-495 around D.C.)
Take I-295 around Richmond(few miles longer, but much faster...avoids Richmond
traffic and curves)
IN FL we take I-95 to I-295 south above Jacksonville to I-10 to 301 south.


Good advice.

We got EZ Pass some time ago. Unfortunately it doesn't work in Florida but we rectified that by getting SunPass.

We have tried getting off I-95 just after Wilmington and going through Delaware/Maryland to connect with US-301, through Annapolis and connecting with I-295 north of Richmond. It used to work great but that part of Delaware and Maryland has grown to the point where traffic is terrible.

From some parts of NY state and most of New England (not Clinton, Ct.) I-84 to I-81 to I-77 to I-26 to I-95 is an option. A lot more miles but not the intense traffic found in The Northeast Corridor.

There is no good way to get there from here. Another option is, consider the day of the week, time of day, weather, local activities along the way, etc., then throw a dart at the map (blindfolded) or consult a Ouija board.

[tpop1]

We have tried getting off I-95 just after Wilmington and going through Delaware/Maryland to connect with US-301, through Annapolis and connecting with I-295 north of Richmond. It used to work great but that part of Delaware and Maryland has grown to the point where traffic is terrible.


Tried this last year on the advice of a friend....It was sooo bad he's a former friend!!!!:boxing2:

Just kidding about the friend..... not about the detour.