Drive or not ? 175 miles

[LadyGillingham]

I’m going up north to see a friend. My 9yr old wants to go with me. He gets along wit her 10yr old twins - so all good there. It’s a 2 night trip. I’m in Surrey. Train tickets are expensive so I booked tickets on FlixBus. £35 for the two of us, return :) Great, but I realise door to door this will be 6 hours!! I can drive in about 4hours incl breaks. By the time I get to London and board the bus, I’ll be half way there if I drive.

Shall I just drive? Or will I hate it half way through? It’s supposed to be very hot tomorrow - i cannot makeup my mind.

My friend doesn’t drive, so it’ll be handy to have to car to go on meals out etc. she gets by well without a car - buses and trams.

If you can get the money for the bus tickets back then surely you would drive, why not?

Drive

I'd do that without even thinking about it and frequently do but I know driving is one of those things that are a big deal for some. Take snacks, have a playlist and sone car games and stop whenever you feel like it.

I'd always drive.

DD and I have had some epic road trips, since she was very small.

Drive. It's much more convenient.

Drive as that way you will have full control over the car temperature.

We drive a similar distance to see the in laws with a 3.5year old. Tips would be to leave early as it’s less hot in the early morning and pick a half way spot to have a break from driving, some food and in our case we try and find some place with a playground. It is exhausting but completely doable! Make sure to load a movie onto a device for your kid to cut it down a bit. Benefit of the bus would be that you can snooze, watch a movie etc… but 6 hours is a long time on a bus.

Drive without a doubt. That trip on a coach sounds a nightmare!

I don't love driving but I can do 2 hour blocks with short breaks. Car sounds more comfortable and convenient.

That's about the same journey as I make to my parents. It's a fairly long drive but nothing crazy. No reason not to.

Drive. You're independent then. Leave early, air con on, snacks and drinks to hand, radio on, you'll be grand!

Why wouldn't you drive? Why was that not your initial instinct?

Drive.. Public transport would have me ill for days...

I’m driving to see my brother next week. It will take 7 hours….. if all goes well !. I leave early, stop for lunch.
of course you should drive

I do Yorkshire to Kent regularly, not stopping unless there's delays. Started doing it regularly when DDs were 8&9.

I'd a nice air conditioned car over a sweaty bus!

Drive. It's much easier. 175 miles is quite a short drive.

The M25 and M1 if you need either would be enough to put me off.

I don’t see how this is even a question. Just drive.

Came home to Cambridge on the M11 this evening — surprisingly quiet.
As long as your car AC is good, take cold drinks and plan for a coffee/snack or lunch break.

Definitely drive. That’s no distance (although I appreciate that it is for some). And as to it being really hot, put the aircon on, and play ‘car’ games with your son.

Four hours is nothing. You’ll have air con, whatever you want on the radio and be much more comfortable. No brainer!!

I am planning a 300 mile drive to the west country on Saturday with my small, non verbal 5 year old who is travelling in a wheelchair. We will be setting out early and stopping along the way so I can get him out of his chair for a stretch, I don't normally mind driving but I am nervous about this trip. I vote you drive, you have more control over your environment that way. Use Waze or similar to alert you early to any hold ups along the way so that you can re-route if necessary.

I vote coach! As youve already got tickets why not try experiencing your own mini ‘race across the world’ and take snacks, puzzles, download a film or two.

I could have -& have almost a couple of times - posted this myself OP.
Coach or drive? Drive 💯.
I have a 175 mile journey to do in a couple of months. We’ll be staying overnight and coming back the next day.
I regularly drive 2 hours south to see family but this will be 3h15m to a northern city, totally new to me and that bit further.
I ummed and ahhed for ages over whether to train or drive - but I’ve never been on a train alone for that amount of time and have been put off by horrible stories recently about lone female train passengers suffering negative experiences (from men) on train journeys.
I’ve decided to drive - but plans have also changed slightly and I’m meeting other friends who are driving halfway, to leave my car at a friend of a friend’s, and then we’ll all go in one car from there because there’s only parking for one car at our destination & it will cut down on costs for everyone.
If parking wasn’t an issue at destination, I would have driven the whole way.

Get a family rail card and go on the train