marriott hotel along drive route to myrtle beach

[pefs65]

Hi Guys
The family and I will be driving to MOW myrtle beach in June from central Pa.
Its about a 9 1/2 hr drive according to the directions.
we wanted to know what would be a good residence inn type hotel along the route say about 4 hr drive into the route to stay overnight at?
we are a party of 5 plus an infant.
Thanks for the help.

 

[Quilter]

What route are you taking? We like to stop in Charleston, W VA.

 

[dioxide45]

My guess is that you may get to Richmond or even Raleigh on your first day? Perhaps even Rocky Mount NC, I just stayed at a Courtyard on business in Rocky Mount and there was a RI right next door. It isn't right off of I95 though. So if you could find anything in between Richmond and Rocky Mount, you would be fine.

 

[Mr. Vker]

Richmond is 3 hours from Baltimore, so might be in the 4 hour range you are seeking. I am WAY too familiar with that stretch of 95. :annoyed:

First, you def. want reservations. If you are taking I-83 from PA and hooking up to I-95 through VA and further south, the hotels will fill as travelers decide to rest for the evening. There is a nice Richmond Marriott West with free parking. (The Richmond Marriott charges for parking.) I will often stay there or the Courtyard Airport location. You will find a good selection in the Richmond Area. Just south of Richmond is Chester, VA. They have a CY and FI.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[dioxide45]

Richmond is 3 hours from Baltimore, so might be in the 4 hour range you are seeking. I am WAY too familiar with that stretch of 95. :annoyed:

First, you def. want reservations. If you are taking I-83 from PA and hooking up to I-95 through VA and further south, the hotels will fill as travelers decide to rest for the evening. There is a nice Richmond Marriott West with free parking. (The Richmond Marriott charges for parking.) I will often stay there or the Courtyard Airport location. You will find a good selection in the Richmond Area. Just south of Richmond is Chester, VA. They have a CY and FI.

Good luck and have fun!

I have some experience with those hotels filling up. We were on our way to Virginia Beach one year and were planning on stopping somewhere. When it got time for us to stop it was around 8:00pm. There was nothing. I had one of those coupon books you can pick up at the interstate rest stops. I called several hotels that were along our route and was finally able to find a Fairfield Inn in Richmond. Of course at that point, we were not very far from our destination. we ended up getting to the hotel at about 11:30.

Another suggestion would be to get the phone number for the main Marriott reservation line and have some hotels in mind. If you have an idea of where you will be by about 3:00pm or so, call and make a reservation and you should be able to get something since most people will not have stopped for the night yet. We did this for a trip back from the east coast while getting close to Hartford, it worked great.

 

[Mr. Vker]

I have some experience with those hotels filling up. We were on our way to Virginia Beach one year and were planning on stopping somewhere. When it got time for us to stop it was around 8:00pm. There was nothing. I had one of those coupon books you can pick up at the interstate rest stops. I called several hotels that were along our route and was finally able to find a Fairfield Inn in Richmond. Of course at that point, we were not very far from our destination. we ended up getting to the hotel at about 11:30.

Another suggestion would be to get the phone number for the main Marriott reservation line and have some hotels in mind. If you have an idea of where you will be by about 3:00pm or so, call and make a reservation and you should be able to get something since most people will not have stopped for the night yet. We did this for a trip back from the east coast while getting close to Hartford, it worked great.

We learned the hard way too. 15 years ago (before I traveled work and bout MVCI). Driving to FL with my wife and two children and mother in law. Figured we would "stop along the way". Started 8 or 9 looking for a place. Most had signs posted at the door that they had no vacancy. Around midnight we found a place with rooms. We got the last 2 with people in line behind us. for us. for them

Your idea to call several hours in advance is good. If they call Marriott reservations, they can search for a hotel if their choices are full.

 

[ArBravesFan]

Go to marriott.com and do an "Advanced Search." You then can choose from several options including "Along a Route." Then put in your beginning point and ending point and it will give you every Marriott along the route.

 

[dioxide45]

We learned the hard way too. 15 years ago (before I traveled work and bout MVCI). Driving to FL with my wife and two children and mother in law. Figured we would "stop along the way". Started 8 or 9 looking for a place. Most had signs posted at the door that they had no vacancy. Around midnight we found a place with rooms. We got the last 2 with people in line behind us. for us. for them

Your idea to call several hours in advance is good. If they call Marriott reservations, they can search for a hotel if their choices are full.

When I was still a child, the family was traveling from Southern Ontario to Northern Ontario (almost the Manitoba boarder). We were traveling through the US. When we got to the Duluth/Superior area we found out that there was an airshow in the area that weekend and there were no rooms available anywhere. My dad kept driving. After many stops we had almost given up. We stopped at a Best Western (I don't even know where) and they had just finished up a party in the penthouse suite. So we lucked out and had a huge suite which was great for a family of five. We had to wait about a half an hour to for them to clean the unit after the party, but we were happy to have a room for the night.

Of course hearing the fight outside at the bar across the street wasn't the best, but since were were on the top floor we didn't really care all that much.

The lesson learned is you never know what kind of special event may be happening where you plan to stop. Best to book in advance with a hotel with a liberal cancellation policy. Many are 6:00pm hotel time. If you figure you won't make it by that time or can get further, you can call and cancel and book somewhere else that will work. Back when I was a kid, that wasn't an option without cell phones.

 

[rsackett]

Go to marriott.com and do an "Advanced Search." You then can choose from several options including "Along a Route." Then put in your beginning point and ending point and it will give you every Marriott along the route.

Wow, I never knew this! I thought I was a savey traveler, but I just learned something new.
:whoopie:
Ray

 

[mbeach89]

That's our home resort! We have a 12 hour drive from West Central Ohio, and we just take off at 4 am and arrive for checkin at 4pm. After the mountains in WVA and VA, it's an easy drive.

If driving through mostly daylight hours, it's just like any other day. Sleep schedule not affected at all, and arrive not too early to have to wait for a room to be ready.

Have you considered maybe leaving around 6-7 am, pack a picnic lunch and stop at a nice rest stop to eat and stretch for 45 minutes, and drive another 4 1/2 hours?

Honestly though, 12 hours is the maximum I would want to drive in a single day.

Just my 2 cents worth. Mark

 

[pefs65]

Thanks to all of my fellow Tuggers for all of the great responses and ideas.
I really appreciate it.
I think my wife would rather stop along the way with the kids and not have to drive 9 1/2 hrs in one day so I think I will do an along the route search like you guys suggested and try to find something maybe 4 hrs into the drive or about 240 or 300 miles in.
I will look for some type of RI or FI that can fit 5 people with an infant and I will definitely reserve this in the next 2 weeks well before our June trip since I know almost all of you guys said the hotels along that route fill up if looking on the same day.
Again thanks for all of your suggestions and we cant wait to go to MOW since it will be our first time at Myrtle Beach.
We have been to Hilton Head and loved it but wanted to go to MB this time since they have the boardwalk for our young kids.

 

[bdh]

Again thanks for all of your suggestions and we cant wait to go to MOW since it will be our first time at Myrtle Beach.
We have been to Hilton Head and loved it but wanted to go to MB this time since they have the boardwalk for our young kids.

Expect you'll love MOW as it is a great property for kids and parents - lots of pools and right on the beach! MB is a great family vacation area as is HHI - but there it is night and day difference between the two. MB is waaay bigger and more commercialized than HHI. The boardwalk is only a year or two old and is still developing - while parts of it are fun, I doubt you'll spend alot of time there. While there is lots to do in MB, the 2 most popular spots are Broadway at The Beach and Barefoot Landing.

 

[Quilter]

Go to marriott.com and do an "Advanced Search." You then can choose from several options including "Along a Route." Then put in your beginning point and ending point and it will give you every Marriott along the route.

Wow, I never knew this! I thought I was a savey traveler, but I just learned something new.
:whoopie:
Ray

Were you able to find it? I looked for it a long time the other day when I posted but couldn't find it. When I googled how to find it I got a link to Marriott Insiders saying it was no longer available.

 

[Quilter]

I've stayed at the Courtyard at Crabtree Valley in Raleigh and really liked the location. There is also a Residence Inn. It is next to a nice mall where you could grab a bit to eat for dinner and let the kids stretch their legs.

 

[amycurl]

Depending on where you are coming from in Central PA, the most direct route is probably down I-81 to US 220 South. 81 is a much prettier, and more sane, drive than 95 any day of the week. 220 is the process of becoming I-73/74, so it is interstate quality most of the way.

From Carlyle (where 81 connects to the PA turnpike) to here is about 6-7 hours; it's another 3-4 from here to MB. Just an idea to avoid the craziness of 95 and the Washington/DC/Richmond beltway/metro area.

Lots of good places to stay along the way as well.

 

[pefs65]

Again I just want to say thanks for all of the suggestions on where to stay and the driving direction tips and what to do in MB. I really appreciate it.
Tuggers are the best!

 

[sfwilshire]

Go to marriott.com and do an "Advanced Search." You then can choose from several options including "Along a Route." Then put in your beginning point and ending point and it will give you every Marriott along the route.

I've used this feature on the laptop in the car and reserved nights on points once we determined how far along we'd get. I usually reserve in advance, but sometimes I overestimate how far we'll want to travel, particularly if we get slowed down more than expected by traffic. I hate to stop too early if we have a long drive ahead of us.

Sheila

 

[BocaBoy]

If you want a treat, why not go a few miles out of your way and book a night with your MVCI discount at Manor Club (MMC non lockoff) in Williamsburg?