Driving to Cornwall over night - tips needed

[WaffleDogg20]

We booked our yearly holiday to St Just/Cape Cornwall last year but unfortunately found out the Friday we go is also the day of my dds prom. We are going for a week.

im planning on driving down (6 hours) straight after prom as it finishes at 9.30.

DH wants to drive down in the day with dd7 and ds14 and dog but I feel sad that he will miss her prom. We would follow in my car after.

what would you do? I really don’t fancy driving on Saturday when it’s probably going to be super busy on the roads.

do I just drink loads of energy drinks to keep me awake?! 😩

Is the premise here that there is nothing of interest in Devon, Somerset, Dorset nor Wiltshire? Your interests must be very niche!

A 6 hour drive with no stops is truly horrible, and not a holiday to me. Each to their own, just try not to crash into others in your half asleep state please.

I think it's bonkers to take two cars all that way tbh, but if you're insistent on that I'd just let get on with it and go when he wants. It's not like you join in with the prom, you just take photos when they arrive which he will get to see.

As for driving at night - I don't see why that should be an issue in itself, if you're a night owl anyway. Just schedule in a few stops for a coffee and some fresh air (I couldn't do it as I'm dropping off by 10pm so I'd go to bed early and leave at 5am instead!)

When DC were at home, we'd leave about 4am to get to Boscastle for when the bakery opened at 9am and have a pasty for breakfast. Long walk all around the harbour and mooching about, then to Tintagel Castle. Little traffic and a straightforward drive.

I love that our little routine has stuck and now DC do exactly the same when they go, even down to the pasty!

How would you be in west Cornwall by 1am if you don't leave London til 9.45pm?That's just nonsense.

Even if you live somewhere in the W / SW of London which is convenient for the M4 or M3, it's almost 300 miles to drive. If you do that in three hours, you're going to pick up a lot of serious speeding tickets on the way!

I’ve driven to Cornwall loads of times from the Midlands and I just don’t get this. If I drove through the night, I’d be wasted all the next day. And the danger of an accident …

I’d get up about 5 and be there by 1030~11, rested and ready to go. Even if you hit bad traffic ( unlikely mid July and def not until you get much further down), you’re still there for lunch. And then you can start your holiday.

You do know that at the worst, you’re losing a couple of hours of one day but you’re arriving safe and awake!

You could at least set off at 9 amd then drive to a motorway inn at 1am for sleep- you'd get halfway there

I have done this a lot of times sharing with DH and it is tough, even with energy drinks and someone to switch with regularly. Honestly wouldn't do it.

Can DD get dropped home by another parent or a taxi?

If so I would go to bed early, then get up mega early and leave home at 3am. DD can nap in the car, and you will be there in time for breakfast 🍳

Travelling overnight is usually much quicker and less tiring and less stressful than during the day - especially to Cornwall

Lots of breaks where you leave the car for a moment
Kip during the day / early evening
Sugar and caffeine at the ready - if you need them stop somewhere for a short lip first

Ah, I am deeply sorry you have missed out on the fun of this. As a child in the 60s/70s, before the M25 and similar roads, it was pretty common to start early. Ham sandwiches and a thermos on the way, it was all part of the holiday 😁

if you drive after the Prom, realistically you won't leave London until 10pm at the earliest, and then you have at least 5.5 hours to drive and probably more once you encounter road works or stop for a coffee or a wee. West Cornwall is a LONG way, especially at 4am when you've not been to sleep for 20 hours, and the last bit of the A30 is single carriageway and requires more active concentration than motorway driving.

There are a lot of alternatives. Either suck up the Saturday drive (which might not be as awful as you think), or stop in a Premier Inn somewhere after Bristol and do the second chunk of the drive early on Saturday morning, or let the rest of the family go down on Friday as planned and you come on the train to Penzance with DD the following day (or let her do so on her own). Any of those would be preferable in my book.

I did plenty of road trips as a child, and all the ones I remember with fondness were full of stops to see things. That's why we do the same now.

The endless long stretches vomiting into a bowl going past every exciting looking brown sign, I do not remember with fondness.

Some of my best memories. Mum and dad would make sausage sarnies and we'd stop halfway and eat them. It was so exciting getting up when it was dark and that was what always signalled 'holiday' to me!

This will be such a good experience for the two of you together! Music, conversation. Build some memories.

Night driving is so much better, most of the idiots are in bed and it will be a much nicer drive.

I don't see why DH can't wait until after the prom too? But you're right DD shouldn't miss it.

Exactly 😁

We went to Cornwall a few years ago, we were there sat-sat and made the decision to leave Cornwall around 9.30pm on the Friday night to avoid travelling back on the Saturday.

I'm a night owl and thought it would be fine. It was a big mistake, 6 hour drive home and I really struggled 4 hours in. The last 2 hours were awful. I really underestimated how tiring it can be.

We are going again this year and there is no way I will be driving overnight again.

If you aren't planning on sleeping in the day, I think it's a bit dangerous and you would be better getting up really early and going.

Is the premise here that there is nothing of interest in Devon, Somerset, Dorset nor Wiltshire? Your interests must be very niche!

No, it's that if we want to go to Cornwall, we go to Cornwall.

When we want to go to Devon, Somerset, Dorset or Wiltshire, we go there.

Everyone is different I suppose but we've travelled extensively over the whole of the UK by car and 6 hours drive is nothing to us, or to the 3 dc. We talk, nap (excluding the driver), snack, listen to music, do quizzes, look at the scenery when there is any and dc spend some time on ipads watching a film with headphones or (in the case of teens) scrolling TikTok.

We don't feel any need to stretch a six hour trip over a whole day or more by doing several stops - what a faff! It flies by, we just get there.

Either, go from prom and you and she stop overnight at a Days inn on M3 or a Travel Lodge then set off by 7. Or you set off from home at 5.00 am on the Saturday. Can I recommend Cartgate Services - good breakfast there!

lol at all the posters getting upset at OP taking 2 cars. I think it sounds a fantastic idea and why havent I thought of this before. Very practical. Far far cheaper also in petrol terms than getting OP and the kids on a train, all the changes etc. Has anyone got any idea these days of train ticket costs??

And also lol at all the people that have clearly never done a drive to Cornwall before, it takes AGES, a leisurely drive it is not, so no, there isnt time for stopping off on the way.

I suspect what will happen in practice is you will wave off DD and then run around for the evening, cleaning the house up, packing up the car and doing all the pre holiday admin and not get any chance for a nap before you go. Are you travelling with the dog so do you have that added complication?

Personally I'd book into a cheap hotel and aim to get within 2-3 hours of your destination the night before. It's very different driving especially on the A30 if you are ahead of the main Saturday wave. You can arrive with fresh croissants or book in a supermarket delivery for first thing on the Sat am.

Alternatively ,arrange to stop at a big services and have a nap in the car. An hour will make a huge difference to your alertness levels.

But driving during the day will certainly take twice as long, due to the traffic.

OP, my trick for keeping myself awake is to have my iTunes Shuffle on and play lots of singalong music loudly, and likewise sing along with it very loudly. It's not something you can do with other people in the car (at least not if you have an appalling singing voice like me) but it does work, combined with regular stops and having the windows open at least a bit to keep the air fresh. Also try to keep the temperature in the car slightly cold.

Totally missing point of the thread but does anyone get a bit excited when they discover posters from their area? I'm Leicestershire too and straight away OP I thought "oooh wonder if your far from me?!"

I love driving overnight. It’s peaceful and beautiful. Would prefer 10 pm - 4am to 4 am - 10 am. Have never done the trip to Cornwall but used to have a work job that involved driving overnight.

Be as well rested as you can. I tend to agree with the fresh air and stopping to walk about advice more than the loud music and espresso (though a little caffeine and something to listen to are definitely good ideas). Also, pay attention to yourself, if you are getting too tired and a walk doesn’t shake it, be prepared to pull over and get a nap, it doesn’t have to be long. Around 3 am is the worst time for me - right when you’re likely to be nearly there. Don’t let that encourage you to be stupid if you aren’t awake enough. Better to end up arriving late than not at all.

Have a plan B for if the Friday goes badly and you’re really exhausted - maybe a Premier Inn part way or an agreement you’ll go down the next day. There aren’t many cars on the road at night which makes accidents less likely, but driving in the dark when your concentration is down a risk.

I'd leave early Saturday morning. My choice would be 4am (I get overruled and it ends up being 6am!) I don't mind driving at night either, especially in the summer.

I would do a couple of hours after the prom, stay overnight somewhere cheap and the rest in the morning