Florida Turnpike from Orlando to TV
 

I have not driven the Florida Turnpike from the Orlando airport to The Villages in over a year. In two weeks I will be driving a rental car on the Florida Turnpike from Orlando to The Villages. From looking at the website for the Florida Turnpike, it still looks like drivers of rental cars can still pay cash for the tolls between Orlando and The Villages -- is this correct? I don't want to pay the rental car company $7 a day for a Sun Pass when I only plan on driving on the Turnpike twice while visiting The Villages.

Yes you can pay cash at each toll plaza.

Last time I rented from Enterprise, they did NOT charge a $7 fee. They told me to just drive thru the Sunpass lane and they would photograph the licence plate and send the tolls to Enterprise. They then charge you the actual tolls in another charge....no penalties.

Make sure you verify, when you rent, just to make sure there hasn't been a change in policy.

Hope you have a nice visit....weather's a little better than Chicago.

Be careful of tolls when you drive a rental car in Florida. We drove to Key West in a rental in 2011 and paid cash for tolls all the way. We got a bill from the car rental company about two weeks later charging us for the same tolls. We were never told that the system automatically bills the rental companies. I tried begging out, but in the end I paid the duplicate tolls as the bureaucracy didn't want to hear me. Check with your rental company before you go. I think my lesson cost me $28.00.

Drove to Orlando Airport last week. Cash tolls round trip total $12.50

Skip the Toll road
 

You can drive from Orlando International to The Villages without driving the Toll road. It takes maybe 15 minutes longer. If you have a GPS you can program to "AVOID" toll roads.

I grew up in O-ville and have lived in Fla for 50+ years ... I would be really, really interested to know what non toll route can be taken from TV to MCO that only takes 15 more minutes??

45 ... maybe if you get lucky with some lights, during a non rush hour (which their is not many of in O-ville) .... but 15 minutes???

its worth it not to carry the change

Thanks all for the information. I'll will be seeing the frogs and the snowflakes in the squares and on the golf cart paths in 14 days. :pepper2:

I've done it by accidentally setting my GPS on no tolls. It takes you down 441 and through the city of Orlando and that's what takes the extra 15 minutes.

down 441 to orlando and then the airport will take a lot longer than 15 minutes. just going through Leesburg takes longer than that. Take the turnpike to Wildwood then straight up 301. Fastest trip possible!!!

According to GARMIN Nuvi 1450
 

AVOIDING Toll Road adds 3 miles and 21 minutes to trip.

Maybe according to Garmin...We have driven to Orlando via 441, and also saw that our GPS (both Garmin and Toyota in-car) said it was only a "few" minutes (don't remember the exact difference in times) longer when we started out. It deffinately took longer and both GPSs kept pushing back the arrival time as we progresssed. I don't think they can calculate the time stopped at the MANY traffic lights going that way. Since that time, we have only gone via the Turnpike. It's an easier drive and worth the tolls....and I am still trying to get my head around paying to drive on a road, being from AZ where all the roads are FREE.

This is what we do

That's been my, one and only, experience from here also. :oops:

Turnpike all the way.....baby!!!! :thumbup:

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You are exactly right.

Most GPS's do not do a good job of allowing for traffic....or any stops at traffic lights.

Google Maps does a much better job of giving you an accurate time.

Here is the difference, per Google, about 30 minutes ago.

Note the little green dot and the words.... "In current traffic."



By toll road.

http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/...pscdb4f6bc.jpg



Avoiding all toll roads.

http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/...psd3d3a542.jpg


Result?

By toll roads in current traffic = 1 HOUR 13 MINUTES.

Avoiding toll roads (by current fastest route) = 1 HOUR 56 MINUTES.

Difference = 43 MINUTES.


That should lay to rest......any misconceptions.


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There is a VAST difference between what you Garmin say's and the reality of Orlando traffic and horrid road "system"

Try is some time and report back.

Wait .... I could'a sworn that someone posted that it was a 45 minute (at best) difference.

I don't need no stink'en GPS to tell me which way the wind blows :icon_wink:

I will agree with you. I have driven both to and from TV to the Orlando Airport via 441 (just once each way), but it was pretty slow go in some spots (and this was not during morning or afternoon rush hours). I wish I could use my I-PASS from Illinois on the FL Turnpike but that would be way too easy.