opinions on drive to/side trip(long)

[newtowdw1]

Ok, having never seen the ocean, I (the trip planner ) have added a short beach vacation to the front end of our trip. I'd like all of you to give me your opinions on our pre-disney plans.

Day 1: Everyone (DH41, me37, grandmother 84, DD8, DS4 and dog2) get in car and drive 4 hours south to parents' house and drop off dog. We will spend the day here and leave around midnight.

Day 2: Arrive in Columbia, SC (12 hours) to visit DH's brother/wife.
Day 3: Visit
Day 4: Leave early (6:00am) for New Smyrna Beach (7 hours). Check in.
Day 5: New Smyrna
Day 6: Checkout of hotel, play on the beach, drive to WDW (1hr) and check in.

Days 7-16:mess around at Fort Wilderness and the parks
Day 17: Check out and drive to DH's OTHER brother and wife's house (Northern GA).

I thought that this would get us to WDW with a lot of people with travel issues (small children, old woman, and a person with chronic pain from a bad back and mobility issues --me ) in a minimum amount of frustration and stress and exhaustion.

We're all used to car travel, will have a large van with lots of room, and don't get uptight about potty stops or "I just can't sit here another minute!! LET ME OUT!!!" issues.

I also thought that if I wait to do the ocean on the way home it might seem anticlimactic to the kids.
So, what do you think? Cool? Too much? DH is not concerned with the budget, as he was expecting WDW to cost more!! Imagine!!

 

[NotUrsula]

We usually do a few beach days while we are in Fl., but we prefer to do them after the parks. We tour parks at a pretty vigorous pace, and we find that the few days at the beach serve as a good "vacation to recover from the vacation" before heading back to work.

I don't know any kids who are not used to the beach who will find it anticlimactic after WDW. The beach is an endlessly fascinating place to most inland kids, especially if you pick one that has some wild areas nearby where they can putz around in tide pools and the like.