Scaredy Cat!!

This will probably sound silly, but I am afraid to drive from Pittsburgh to V.B%26gt;!!I have heard so many bad things about the beltway and is it rt 95??--i am not an agressive driver and it sounds like you have to be to get there-I have a place to stay free of charge--my brother has a place there--airline tics to the beach are too high-i even thought about taking a train or a bus to avoid the road--are thoughts unfounded???? I dont want to be stressed on vacation--maybe i ought to think of another place to go this summer--help!!!

Scaredy Cat!!

If you plan your route to be past DC and on the way to Richmond by 3 p.m. or so, you%26#39;ll miss most of the rush hour(s) in DC. if you%26#39;re traveling on a weekday. You%26#39;ll also run into heavy traffic on I-64 going to VB through the HRBT (Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel). No question, on a summer weekend, traffic will be heavy, maybe slow, but you should be OK. I wouldn%26#39;t skip a trip to VB from Pittsburgh just because of the drive, but that%26#39;s me, YMMV.

Scaredy Cat!!

thanks-now i feel a little better knowing you are from the area--what do you consider [heavy traffic]??--an hour longer -more??--i was planning--if i do this to leave on a sunday morning and leaving early on a wednesday morning--are the signs easy to miss??? how many lanes are on the beltway??-thanks OAKEY

From Pittsburgh, you can make that drive without even touching 95 or the beltway, in fact, IMHO, hitting the beltway would be going out of your way:

79 South to Morgantown WV, 68/70 East to Hagerstown MD where you pick up I-81 south to 64 at Staunton, and then 64 East all the way into the Norfolk/VB area.

You could also hit 66 in Front Royal, travel east from there and cut south on Rt.17 until you pick up 95 around Fredericksburg.

Yes, I think what you need is a map. AAA has them free with membership and we make great use of them. Or an atlas...even last year%26#39;s on sale.

There are several ways to get out of Pittsburgh and head over to VB, even roads enjoying countryside, mountains, riversides, quaint towns and historic plantations.

I like jwhiteree%26#39;s options. Additionally, if it is big roads that concern you, from Fredericksburg you might scoot out east Rt. 3 or Rt. 17.

Or from Richmond, if taking 64 east is a concern, enjoy going south of Richmond and taking 5 or 10; or continue further south of Richmond to Peterburg area and take 460 SE through small towns and peanut country and antique shops.

You can also go south of Pittsburgh all the way to Beckley and then go east on 64 all the way to VB. [fyi, 64 is the same color road as 79 to give you an idea of it%26#39;s size and speed:)]

I vote you go with the previous poster%26#39;s idea. We went to Pittsburgh following directions from mapquest. That put us on a suicide watch! The nice folks of PA showed us the route back home through Morgantown, WV and western Maryland -- it was a beautiful drive, and so much more relaxing. Well, until you hit the traffic on I-64 in Newport News. But as Zoey pointed out, you can time it to avoid the worst.

Come on Down! Va Beach is great and even better when you can stay for free. Follow the directions jwhiteree gave you, once you are on 64E just follow signs for Norfolk/Va Beach, from 64E take 264 to Va Beach. Get a map and/or mapquest directions but don%26#39;t take I95....Don%26#39;t worry be happy.

My mom%26#39;s side of the family is from Pgh, and we made the drive up there frequently from the D.C. area. Definitely take the route through Morgantown. The PA turnpike to Breezewood and down from there not as good.

I think those down in the Norfolk area will agree with me to try to time your journey through that area right as there can be rush hour traffic.

jwhiteree is absolutely correct. During the summer (if that%26#39;s when you are coming) our traffic, from Williamsburg (64E) all the way to Va Beach can be brutal esp during rush hours and weekends. Avoid travelling that area weekdays from 7am-10am and 3pm to 6pm, and anytime Friday %26amp; weekends if possible. If you cannot do that just be patient and you%26#39;ll get there. One of our biggest problems, other than too many car on the road, is tunnels...people seem to get weird around them. Enjoy your visit, the trip will be worth it.

Yes I agree that you should consider taking the I-79 to Morgantown, WVA and taking the I-68 east. Then consider getting off the 68 at Hancock, MD. and taking route 522 in to Virginia where you can hook up with the I-81 there; that will cut off some of 68 and 81. You should know that the I-81 is two lanes south (and two north) and there is considerable truck traffic but it is better than the D.C. Beltway and I-95 south. You can take I-81 south to I-64 and head east toward VB as suggested above. To throw in more confusion, if you want to avoid much of the I-81, get off it at I-66 east to route 17 south (at Marshall) and follow route 17 to Warrenton and get on route 29 south to Charlottesville and catch the I-64 east. It may sound confusing but once you get maps and chart the various routes out, there are good alternatives to I-95. Routes 522, 17 and 29 do go through some decent countryside.

Get a map, it will help you planning the trip, you can avoid 95 when driving there and back. I-76 to I-70 to 522 S to VA-37 S to I-81 South to I-64 E to I-95 S to I-64 E

I think is easier if you can visualize it go to Google maps and follow this instructions

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en%26amp;tab=wl

When the page loads and you are looking at the map, on the top middle of the page where the link reads ';get directions'; click the link

For the start address, copy and paste: I-579 S @40.442050, -79.992380

For the end address, copy and paste: I-81 S @38.432360, -78.872530 to:Hampton Roads Belt/I-64 E @36.811080, -76.194940

Hopefully, now you can see what I%26#39;m talking about, you can avoid I-95 almost entirely, the only drawback is the driving time increases by about one hour, but I would imagine is smother ride. Can some one local comment if this is a good idea.....thanks!