VA Beach - Labor Day Weekend - Driving - when to leave?

[Anonymous]

We are driving to VA beach for Labor day weekend to visit relatives. Would you leave Friday after work - 4-6PM? Late Friday evening 7-9PM? or crack of dawn saturday 5-7AM? We will be traveling with a 12 month old.

We're planning to return Monday mid morning.

Open to any and all advice...

[Anonymous]

We travel frequently to VA Beach on holiday weekends and have found that leaving late (8:30pm or later) really helps but it's even better to leave very early in the morning. We usually leave around 6:00am, but 5:00 would be great. Getting out of DC on 95 is a nightmare. You also want to the hit the tunnel (I think it's near Norfolk) early or late because you can have a lot of traffic backups there too.

Good luck, we'll be making the same trip this weekend.

[Anonymous]

If you can get on 395 HOV 3 (you, husband, baby) by 3 pm, you may be OK. You will hit traffic at the end of the HOV lanes, but it does clear up. I travel down there and find that it is really busy on Friday night, but to me, I would rather get there Friday than drive Saturday - 2 days with no driving!

[Anonymous]

I would leave the weekend after labor day weekend. It will take you 4-5 hours to get somewhere that normally takes 3. good luck

[Anonymous]

I have found leaving after 8pm is good with small children. They sleep and the traffic is minimal. I could never do it by myself since I get so sleepy after 10pm, but it works well with two drivers.