Summer I95 traffic - Anyone from the South East please help!

[disneymom1]

Going to Hilton Head this summer from NJ. I have drien to Williamsburg, VA so I am aware traffic from Maryland to Richmond can be horrible, especially on Fridays.

I have never been further south on I95. How bad is traffic in July/August on Saturdays?

Considering flying into Savannah or Myrtle Beach instead. (I have two small kids) SAV is 1 hour from Hilton Head. Myrtle Beach is 4 hours from Hilton Head. How bad is drive from Myrtle Beach to Hilton Head, especially on Saturday?

Thank you!

 

[pfrank4127]

We have driven from New Jersey to Hilton Head Island for the last 7 years. It's my wife, myself and 4 children under 10. It's not a bad drive.

We have left at various times and most recently around 9 on a Saturday morning. Traffic has not been bad. I would stay away from Friday nights and Sunday afternoons in the summer months.

The way we do it is the 1st stop is around 4 hours in after we pass Richmond Va. Exit #33 has a large gas station, very clean bathrooms, and a large convenience store. It also has a Burger King and a Denny's. The 2nd stop is not until after South of the Border, usually around exit #181 in South Carolina. After that stop we drive straight into HHI without any further breaks. It takes us about 10 hours.

Any other questions feel free to ask.

 

[ronparise]

I drive I 95 from Florida to Washington fairly often..unless its on a Sunday I take the Richmond bypass..Sundays Ill go straight through town on 95...

There is no option in the DC Baltimore area..day or night its busy, but rush hours are brutal..south of Richmond is always been easy unless there's a big accident

 

[Pat H]

Just did the drive last week on Sunday. No traffic but it's winter. Expect more construction during the summer. You can fly into SAV, HHI, CHS and JAX also. All would be a shorter and easier drive than Myrtle Beach. Note that there will be ongoing construction on 278 which is the road from I95 to HH. Expect Fri & Sat eastbound and Sat & Sun westbound to be extremely heavy. There is another route to bypass some of 278. After passing Sun City, make a right at the second light onto 170. Go to the first light and make a left on Bluffton Pkwy. Follow Bluffton Pkwy to the end and make a left which will bring you back to 278 near the bridge. 2 warnings - Bluffton Pkwy makes 2 turns so you have to watch the signs. The first is a right and the second a left. The second warning is watch out for the 2 exits from Sun City on 170. There are a lot of old people pulling out who don't know what a gas pedal is. That group of old people does not include Dave M, Janette, Ann-Marie or me. We're part of the young hip crowd.

 

[senorak]

We've been driving from PA to Hilton Head for the past 8 summers. We've made the drive down 95 (best time we made was when we left PA at 3 a.m.), and we also have taken 81 to 77.....and eventually catch 95 in South Carolina, (we have friends who live in Charlotte, NC, and we stop over there for the night). I prefer the longer route, with the stopover.....but DH loves to make the drive in one day. We always hit bumper to bumper traffic somewhere around DC/Richmond area (usually on the ride home). Our first trip, we hit terrible traffic getting onto the island, but since then, island traffic hasn't been a problem. Worst traffic is always Maryland/VA/DC area.

Deb

 

[Skittles1]

We drive from Philadelphia to HHI about every other summer, most recently this past summer. We have 3 small kids, and usually drive straight through both ways. Usually on the way down, we leave around 8-9 pm, and drive all night long. The quickest we've ever gotten there was around 11 hrs, the longest it's ever taken is around 14 hrs. We have family in Bluffton, so when we arrive early in the morning, we hang out there until we can check in. This past year we stayed in a hotel near Richmond. As everyone else has said, DC and Alexandria area is the worst. Usually no traffic in NC or SC, but beware of the troopers in Rocky Mountain, NC area, they are nasty, and will give you a ticket, that requires you to appear in court. Or hire a lawyer to represent you. It's such a scam! Overall, not usually a bad ride though.