I lived here for four years, and I loved it here!
I especially enjoyed visiting the theme parks with my late sister, and the rare times he came down, my younger brother, and the one time she came down (for her 55th birthday), my mother.
You can make it from Downtown Orlando and the other six largest metropolitan areas (Orlando is #4) in the Southeast USA to Walt Disney World in a day's drive (well, obviously Orlando and Tampa, that goes without saying since they are in such close proximity!), although outside the Southeast USA (and perhaps even outside Florida if you have the money for multiple people or are only one person as flying is often cheaper than driving for one person) I highly recommend you fly.
I feel these are more accurate driving times than Google Maps gives, because seriously, who other than a grandmother on her way to church on Sunday morning drives 60 - 65 mph on the Interstate in a 70 zone? Which is one reason I created these maps, so you can more accurately gauge your trip time.
Many of these are not the actual posted speed limit, they are, in fact, a bit higher. I admit I feel the speed limit on expressways is usually inappropriately low. These are velocities I feel are safe for said highways. I've travelled 100% of these highways on the Southeast USA map and a good portion (I'd say a good 65% or 70% if not 75%) of those on the other map. I know many of the ones I've travelled like the back of my hand, and the others I remember somewhat well. A very large percentage of both maps I have driven personally, and some I haven't driven I have navigated my mother while she was driving. Those I haven't driven or ridden on I have viewed on Google Maps and I believe I have an idea what is a safe speed for based on geography and topography.
Here are the seven largest Southeast USA metropolitan areas:
And here are all the other seven metropolitan areas over five million population in the eastern half of the USA outside of the Southeast USA including the Northeast USA, Mid-Atlantic USA, Midwest USA, and even Texas:
These are not all the metropolitan areas in the USA over five million population. There are three in the west that are not included (Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Phoenix). I imagine they'd be more interested in Disneyland.
These are driving times only, they do not include rest stops and do not account for traffic. And they are realistic, I have personally driven from my mother's house in Collegedale, Tennessee (suburb of Chattanooga) to my house in St. Cloud, Florida (suburb of Orlando) before once after visiting my mother, my late sister, and my younger brother in 7 hours 18 minutes before. Just stay consistent, and don't take too many rest stops, if you plan to make good time.
Theme park tickets are not cheap! Resort hotel rooms are even more expensive! I would know because I am planning a trip for my mother, my younger brother, my sister-in-law, my ex-sister-in-law, and my two nephews for my mother's 72nd and my older nephew's 13th birthdays, and I fully expect to pay $25,000 for their trip....if not more! Expect to shell out multiple Benjamin Franklins for your vacation as well! If you're not affluent and / or have saved up, you could find yourself shell-shocked!
If flying, I recommend the following airlines highest: Southwest Airlines and Allegiant Air. Southwest flies into the main airport "McCoy" (MCO), Allegiant flies (or used to fly) into Sanford (SFB). Both are international airports, although Sanford is VERY small (although not as small as Chattanooga), although I prefer small airports due to faster security checkpoints, they usually were 15 minutes long when I flew, as opposed to one hour at MCO! I used Allegiant Air all the time when I lived in Orlando and would visit my mother, late sister, and younger brother in Chattanooga, as they flew directly into Chattanooga. Southwest is more expensive initially but your bags fly free and they serve free refreshments. Allegiant is cheaper initially (when I flew the cheapest I booked was $17 and the most expensive was $99 but that was 5 days before Christmas as in December 20, usually my mother or I paid $29 - $49 each way, and when they first start serving an airport, they offer introductory offers from $9, yes, you read that right, NINE dollars, you can hardly even buy a meal at a fast food restaurant for that after COVID-19, much less at a casual dining restaurant you can actually sit down and enjoy your meal at) but you pay for bags and for refreshments, but when I flew they were fairly reasonable, they weren't quite as obscene as some airlines. I usually would bring just a carry-on (the largest they'd allow) on my trips and keep some changes of clothes at my mother's house when I lived in Florida and buy maybe one drink in flight.
