With cats, it all seems to depend on the temperament. I moved with the mostly-mellow Cat (yes, I have a cat named Cat) around 700 miles for my M.A., and will be doing around twice that for my Ph.D. For both moves, I'll be stopping the first night at my parent's house, so I never had to put her in a hotel. For the first move, I put her in her chest harness and tied the leash to the passenger seat headrest. Then I gave her time to get used to the inside of the car (and to make sure she couldn't manage to hurt herself). She hates moving anywhere not under her own power (including being picked up), so I knew she'd hate the move no matter what. I also kept a freshly washed, clean litter box within reach, in case she wanted somewhere "safe" to crawl into.
She wasn't thrilled for the first hour or so, but after I'd been on the road for awhile she settled down and slept most of the way next to me. I did have her carrier and some treats on hand as well just in case, but I never needed them.