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I-4 runs through the middle of Orlando and into the downtown area so Orlando has regular rush hour traffic on a daily basis in addition to being a major tourist area. Also during peak time periods of visiting the parks, the number of people and autos swell too. Currently parking at any of the Disney Parks is $14 a day which is good for the whole day, even if you switch parks. Parking is parking--they have very organized parking and sometimes require that you park very far out. They do provide free tram rides to the ticket booth areas. If your Florida friends have a season pass and they go with you, then you don't have to pay for parking. A lot depends on where your friends live and their proximity to the parks on whether you will waste a lot of time on traffic. occasionally they have special deals for staying at one of hotels on property--then you can use Disney transportation to get around.

Driving through Orlando can be a pain depending on what part of the city you are in, there are quite a few different ways to get into Disney and the other parks. If you have a GPS I would bring it that will make it a little easier to get around this area. You could take I-4 (free) or 417 (has tolls) or just go through Orlando and Kissimmee.

All the parks have very large parking lots and they all charge to park (I think about $14.00 each park).

If you are only planning on going to Disney I would stay somewhere just outside of the park. There are a lot of nice hotels on Rt 192 in Kissimmee which is where the main entrance is and the traffic isn’t too bad. You will avoid all the major highways and traffic through downtown Orlando.

We just got back from our 1st trip to Disney. (It was awesome, by the way.) :) But my husband & I commented a couple of times that we were glad we weren't driving around & didn't have to figure out all of the roads. It was nice staying on property. And parking was like $15 maybe? I'm pretty sure you have to pay that if you leave for food. (And food was pretty expensive. We were very thankful we bought the dining plan!)

AVOID I4.

Personally, even with handicapped parking, it is a royal pain to drive and park. Staying on property is the only way to go and the $14 per day parking fees add up. Plus, we saved a ton of time staying on the monorail.