My has travel changed!

[princessjojo]

My older DS and I were in the car the other day talking about our trip to the beach in a couple week. We generally just get in the truck and go, stopping whenever we get hungry, thirsty, gas, bathroom breaks, whatever. I tried to tell him how times have changed and that stopping at any given time for food or drinks is more of a convience than a necessity now.

I was telling him how when I was smaller,we would pack the car the night before a trip to the beach(3-4hr drive). Not only did we pack clothing and necessities, but we packed a small cooler with drinks, sandwiches, cookies, brownies, breakfast biscuits, ect. so we didn't spend the extra money on fast food along the way. He looked at me as if I had been hit by a truck. Gray just asked why would someone do that when you could just stop by McDonalds or something. I tried to explain the concept that families didn't spend money back then like they do now. I really thought about it and sorta missed that simplicity. I could remember going on my college visitation trip with my mom. It was only 3 hrs away, but we had drinks and breakfast packed in the car as well as snacks for the ride home.

Gray thinks I'm insane and that we were almost poverty stricken. Little does he know that when we leave in 2wks for Myrtle Beach, we're going to do the very same thing. It cost us $25-$30 for the 4 of us to eat at McDonalds. That money is going in our Disney bank and will buy t-shirts on our next WDW vacation.

Man was life simple then...

[hooberry]

When we were growing up, my dads idea of vacation was to pack us all up in our van with an ice chest of food and drinks and drive us to look at moutains or the beach. I never remember eating out anywhere as a kid, it just was not in our family budget of a police officers salary with 2 kids. My aunt took my brother and I on our first real vacation (to Disney of course) I hope as my daughter gets older she realizes how fortunate she is to be able to travel and see other countries and have those experiences we didn't have as kids.

[Christine]

Oh I remember the ice chest days of old!!

When we made the trek from Arkansas to Michigan every summer, my mother would pack sandwiches, fruit, chips, cookies, and a big igloo jug of kool-aid with paper cups and that would be our "picnic" along the way.

Of course, those were the days where you could stretch out and sleep in the back of the station wagon without those pesky seat belts .

Now that I have my own family, I just cannot be bothered with all of that and we stop and eat along the way. I guess it's just a sign of the times!

[SBETigg]

My grandmother even used to pack a porta-potty in the trunk for those long stretches of road with nothing but woods and hardly any rest stops. They just didn't have chain restaurants every few miles and easy exits off the highway for convenience back then. It's even weird for me to think back and remember that now.

[TheMartellFamily]

Yep I remember those days too. When we went for a road trip we took the cooler of sandwiches and the thermos filled with milk.
This had to do with my mom and dad owned A&W and Dairy Queens so the fast food we really never did growning up since we lived it every day. When we would have our family vacation to WDW we would pack the winnebago motorhome with all the food and clothes and always eat at the campsite at Ft wilderness. Everyday for lunch we would have these bologna, cheese(plastic wrapped of course), lettuce, mustard, mayo sandwhiches. Our family named them the DIsneyworld sandwhiches. to this day when visiting mom she will ask at lunch if we want a disneyworld sandwhich. of course I will always say yes. I still think of that when we now do our family trips and want to make meals to take along but know it is just so much easier to go through a drive up and order something and just keeo going.

[wdw_bound]

That's how we always travelled as well. McDonald's was a MAJOR treat.

We've done it a few times now that I have a family of my own, particularly on long trips. I don't think it's much cheaper, but it is much healthier. We drove to PA last summer, and I packed a cooler full of fruit, chicken, salad and drinks. We hit the VA welcome center on I-77 around lunch and enjoyed not only a yummy picnic, but the nice playground there as well.

It is a hassle, and not something I could do every trip, but it does feel good to do it when I can.

[ChipDale2708]

How funny I would find this thread today... Just yesterday my Mom and I were driving home from a weekend on Cape Cod and did this very thing. We had picked up sandwiches for lunch but had only eaten 1/2 and decided to stop at the canal on the way off later in the day to 'picnic'. We had some fruit and dessert left as well. When we went to the Cape when I was little that's what we always did. Mom packed the cooler w/ sandwiches and snacks and we had a picnic at the Canal - it was tradition. Yesterday it was a beautiful day there and it felt like I was 10 again!

[d_m_n_n]

Oh man, if this doesn't bring back memories. DM would always pack fried chicken and bread and butter (with homemade bread from the Amish bakery) for our vacations. I remember one trip in particular where we only got to the next county before we started raiding the chicken!!!

If we go on vacation now I still pack a cooler with breakfast items and lunchmeat. DS9 is starting to eat off adult menus and that really adds a chunk to the check. I just explain that if they still want to go places we need to try saving $$$ whenever we can.

[dinahvixen]

I recently started reverting back to packing with my own family this summer. I am a teacher and off for the summer and my DD5 and I are out and about many days. We have always been used to just eating out where we were on any given day, but with gas prices and the frequency of our outings and with an increased awareness of health, etc., I bought a good travel cooler and pack all the time now. We eat healthier, we save money, and I think I am teaching her a good lesson - don't just spend money without thinking, and don't eat so much fast food!

[TheRustyScupper]

1) Good gracious!
2) Am I the only one like the OP's boyfriend?
3) When we travel, we simply stop.
4) We only pack closes, not food.
5) There are just so many places to stop.

NOTE: Just so folks don't think us wimps, we drive 2-3 times per year from Iowa to Orlando (2 very long days), and 5-6 times per year Iowa to Cleveland (17 hrs).

[Daun]

I will go to Australia
what about the Disney in Australia?

[JRocker]

Wow...this thread makes me feel old fashioned.
We have always taken a cooler (or two) on our trips. We'll load up with sandwich fixins, drinks, and whatever sweet stuff the wifey wants to take along. If we are in a hurry to get somewhere we'll fix our lunch while were rolling down the road, otherwise we'll stop at a rest stop, a scenic overlook, or a historical marker on the roadside.
For a family of five that cooler saves us a tremendous amount of money. Which means more souveniers.