When is best to drive to Dorset from London?

[HeleenaHandcart]

I’m off to see my Mum and Dad, Dorsey coast.
I plan to travel at the weekend, an sim worried traffic with half term plus a bank holiday could be nuts.
when would you risk it? Late Saturday evening? Very early Sunday morning?
They are near Weymouth and I’m North London 😬

Definitely not on the Friday night! Late Sat evening should be ok.

Oh, and 4 children 11-6 in the smallish car I have. I can’t do crazy late/ early realistically

I’m weighing up late Saturday vs early Sunday

I would probably do v early
aim to leave the house by 6am, so you’ll be through London before it gets bad, and on the m3 before it gets too busy

Are you travelling on your own OP? What is early to you?

I live in Dorset and would say early Sunday morning is best - 6am - at least it will be light

It’s me and 4 kids.

I'd avoid sunset any evening. I do the journey regularly and you end up with the sun directly in your eyes for miles (and miles) once you're off the motorway.

I do a similar journey fairly frequently. Fridays are definitely the worst, followed by Saturday mornings. Google maps is usually pretty good at noticing delays.

Good luck!

I think if you don't want to do a really late drive (like leave at 9pm or something), then getting on the road by 5 or 6am on the Sunday is the next best thing.

It's not that bad to drive to Dorset! But if you're doing it over this bank holiday ... personally I'd go at about 7.30pm

Put the kids in their pjs and drive on through you'll get there on 3 hours max as long as there are aren't any road accidents,

Ooo the sunset thing is a point, I hate it!

@ponkydonkey sometimes it’s fine to drive to Dorsey, but I think I’ve mentally blocked out the hell journeys 😂
Once after many hours after leaving on a Saturday I drove to Salisbury and stayed the day. It was just solid

Oh god no dont ever go down a303!!

Go down to to m27... stop off in new forest for a quick leg stretch!
And carry on to Dorchester and through to Weymouth

So I live in the town on the A31 where it’s currently being widened as the source of many a bottleneck across the New Forest. I can literally see the queues from my bedroom window.

Do not go Friday night unless you won’t come through here til 8ish!!!!

Saturday I think you’d be fine from early evening onwards- I’m often popping out to see friends at 4ish and there are no queues then.

Do NOT at any cost do Sunday morning if the weather is even slightly sunny; the queues to get to Bournemouth beach from Hampshire will start early.

I love the A303. Driving over the plain, looking at the rolling landscape, the chalky soils with the clusters of beech trees dotted on the rises. The light and sky feels connected to the ground in ways it is not in other places. Like driving through one of those small scenes captured in a glass dome. I can understand why they built Stonehenge there.

We go down regularly from SE London and leave at about 6.30/7pm. It means we get there quite late but miss the traffic.

Coming back, we often leave at about 8pm so the kids can sleep in the car. I’ve left at 10am ish on bank holidays before and it’s been a nightmare journey!

Often do similar journey and have tried many different times/days - of your options, I’d go for v early Sunday morning- good luck!

Not Friday unless late. Saturday morning would be ok if you got up early. I’ve found roads pretty clear before 8am on a weekend.

I live in Weymouth and either Saturday night or early Sunday morning would be fine.
Dorchester bypass can be a nightmare from mid morning onwards until late afternoon. It's usually worse at weekends and school holidays.
Definitely don't do Friday!

Dorchester bypass can be a nightmare from mid morning onwards until late afternoon.

Yeah, but you could always go up by Herringston/Came/Coombe Valley Road or something- it depends which of "near Weymouth" you want, and how happy you are ti go round the back lanes.

I need to go back home...

Thanks everyone. We’ve settled on Saturday evening as kids are bursting to see grandparents