Driving from Chicago To Dallas (Spring, Texarkana: where to stay, airport, yard)

[Texan#1]

i stopped outside of st. louis the last time i went

[akaistha]

I think we can manage by making one overnight stop -we have a 3 year old and a 10 week old

Any suggestion on how to avoid St. Louis....they have a huge construction project going on...

Regards, Amit

[Alfredzio]

It has taken me 12 hours to drive form WI/IL border to Dallas. In a good weather it is a nice drive.

[tstone]

Originally Posted by akaistha

I think we can manage by making one overnight stop -we have a 3 year old and a 10 week old

Any suggestion on how to avoid St. Louis....they have a huge construction project going on...

Regards, Amit

from: dallas to: chicago - Google Maps

[MurphyPl1]

Originally Posted by DebinD

Do not speed while you are in OK - tons of speed traps and the like along 69 -of course you won't have TX plates -so it might not be that bad for you.

And honk when you cross the red river!

I cried when I saw the Texas Flag on the sign at the border. I was home!

[sonshinelife]

two days in my opinion is best

"Rolla" is where we use to stop when we went that direction

[rosscountry]

Originally Posted by CallMeLaura

Because Kansas City isn't remotely on the way?

When we drove from Milwaukee, we came down 39 and picked up 55, then 44 to 69/75. Directly from Chicago, you can avoid St. Louis (no real good way to get through/around there) by going though Arkansas, but I've never actually tried it.

Any of the places in Missouri are ok to stop in, but I would probably avoid St. Louis, personally. I have family in Springfield, so I always stop there. It was about 10 hours from Milwaukee, then another 8ish in to Dallas, so a good midway.

There aren't going to be as many places along 75, so you'd need to figure out how far you want to do, then pick the nearest town. We have relatives in Wagoner, so that's where we'd end up stopping. (And have to get Charlie's Chicken...)

You'll want to avoid arriving in Dallas during rush hour, especially going to Irving. The most direct route is to pick up the George Bush Tollway (the Bush) going west, but you'll have to stop quite a bit for tolls. (Unless you get a tolltag before you leave. You'll probably want one eventually, anyway.)

The other option is to take 75 to 635 (LBJ) and then either 35 or continue on 635, depending on where you're going. I don't recommend 635.

Quote:
When we drove from Milwaukee, we came down 39 and picked up 55, then 44 to 69/75. Directly from Chicago, you can avoid St. Louis (no real good way to get through/around there) by going though Arkansas, but I've never actually tried it.


---
That is the way I came down when I moved here from Chicago. It was a nice and scenic drive through arkansas. You could stop in Arkansas and site see..maybe go to the hotsprings area.

[lizziebeth]

I used to drive to Michigan for school. Driving home, if I were going via Chicago, I'd take 57 South to 55 which you catch just after you cross the Mississippi. That will take you to 40. Memphis is a good suggestion for a stopping point although I could usually make it to Little Rock. You'd go east to Memphis on 40 so you'd backtrack a little heading to Dallas.

Take 40 to Little Rock. You'll get on 440 to loop around Little Rock. That will connect you to 30 which takes you straight into Dallas.

I could generally get to Effingham IL in 12 hours from Dallas. Effingham is where 57 and 70 meet. That was my normal stopping point for the night going north. So add a few hours to that drive.

I've only gone through Oklahoma and St Louis once but prefer my route. The only big city you through is Little Rock but there are still a decent number of towns to stop in for breaks along the way.

[dizzy_chi_78]

Hey Amit,

I've made the drive at least 4-5 times and have always taken the route that Murphy outlined. In fact, I'll be driving back to Chicago in about 3 weeks ( hopefully for my last 9 months in chicago before returning to dallas full time).

I would suggest Springfield, MO as a good half-way point to stop (it may be a bit over halfway but less to drive the second day). There's a Marriott Courtyard just off the interstate by the Airport that I've stayed at before. There is also a new Baymont Inn across from the street that looks nice, although I've never stayed there. There are plenty of options in Springfield as far as hotels, but for some reason I like staying near the airport.

As an aside, congrats on the relacation to DFW. I'm originally from downstate Illinois and after college lived in Dallas for about 5 years. I thought I wanted to move back to the midwest so I decided to move to Chicago. In the end, at least for me, Chicago is a great place to visit but the DFW area is a better place to live.

Oh, and as far as avoiding St. Louis - not sure the best way to get through the city right now. In the past I've taken the by-pass to the south of the city to try and avoid the downtown traffic with relative success. I'm just not sure where the construction is in St. Louis right now.

[CallMeLaura]

We tried north and south of St. Louis and it's all slow and congested. Going south, we ended up on some back highway, which was very scenic, but had 20mph curves, so not the fastest. 270 is the major bypass, but it's well within the city, so you still need to hit it outside of rush hour.

The 55 to 44 connection is one lane through downtown. We did get creative on our last several trips, so it's been a few years since we went through there. That may be the constructions (well, SOME part of the drive is always under construction. I think it's a sport along 44, honestly.

IL and MO have nice rest stops. OK doesn't believe in them.

Rolla has a scale model of Stonehenge at the university (and a working reactor, if you're interested).