According to data from Triple-A, about 100 million families in America will decide to take a road trip.
If you’re one of the millions of families planning on taking one of these trips, you may be wondering how to plan for it if this is your first time.
Thankfully, we’ll break down some of the best cross country road trip tips to help you ensure your vacation is a success!
- Have a Mechanic Check Your Car Before You Leave
Before you set out on your great road trip, you should take your car in to get it checked. Even if there is nothing wrong with it now, it’s better to find out if there is something wrong with it now rather than on the road.
Depending on how old your car is and how many miles you have on it, you may need to get some routine maintenance done on it, especially if you’re bad at keeping up with it.
Even if nothing is majorly wrong, some more air in your tires and a simple oil change can’t hurt.
- Create the Perfect Playlist
Traveling without some good music or entertainment can make the trip feel longer than it really is.
With the perfect playlist, you can help pass the endless miles of the highway a little bit faster.
Try finding songs that everyone in the car knows and can sing along to. You may also want to create different playlists with different moods. There are also plenty of pre-made playlists out there that you can listen to.
- Clean Your Car
Since you’ll be spending most of your time in your car, you should take some time to clean it all out before leaving.
You’ll likely be adding more trash to it as the trip goes on, so get all of the trash out of there now while you can. This can help you stay more organized as well and ensure that you don’t lose anything in the clutter.
- Prepare for Any Emergency
You know never what will happen on a vacation, so you should prepare for any type of emergency that could happen.
This includes having a spare tire and other tools to help you if something happens to your car.
In the event that you get into a car accident or someone gets hurt, you should also have a first aid kit somewhere in the car.
If you do get into an accident while you’re on vacation, try reaching out to these auto accident attorneys to help you get compensation for your wrecked road trip.
- Pack Snacks
While you’re driving with a schedule in mind, you may not always have time to stop at a place and order a bunch of food. Everyone in the car may not even be able to agree on what restaurant to stop at.
This is where snacks come in handy.
Packing a bunch of snacks beforehand will save you money, but it will also help keep your passengers satisfied. While driving, it may also be easier to snack on some food rather than trying to drive and eat a full meal at the same time.
- Take Breaks
Speaking of being tired and hungry, it’s also important to take breaks while you can.
Sitting in a driver’s seat for so long can really take a toll on your body, and you can start to feel tired and cramped. Your body can start to really stiff after only a little bit of time, so it’s important to take breaks every couple of hours.
You also should try and get rest when you can so that you don’t get overly tired and get into a car accident.
- Tell People What Your Plan Is
Before you leave for your road trip, try and tell people what your plan is. Tell them every place you plan on stopping and where you’re going.
In addition to that, give a family member or trusted friend as much information as possible. Give them addresses and phone numbers so they know where to start looking if something happens.
The best way to do this is create a Google document and share it with everyone, including the people on your road trip. That way if anyone gets separated or removed from the trip, they know where to go or what they’re supposed to be doing.
- Plan for Traffic and Rush Hour
You may have a set schedule of when you need to be somewhere, and if that’s the case, you’ll have to plan accordingly.
Creating a strict itinerary with bathroom, stretch, and food breaks incorporated can be really helpful in making sure you stay on time.
However, when you create your itinerary, you’ll also have to plan accordingly for rush hour and traffic. There may also be random car accidents that you get stuck in.
Always leave an hour or two as a cushion or buffer room when you plan your trip so that way you aren’t stressed and panicking on your road trip. When you’re stressed and rushing, you’re more likely to drive recklessly and cause an accident yourself.
- Make Stops Along the Way
As we said before, some breaks are helpful.
Depending on where you’re going to be driving and how long you’ll be there for, there may be some great places that you’ll want to make a stop at.
Even if you’re not taking time to stay in that spot, you can take some time to go see famous landmarks or touristy locations.
You may not know when you’ll be back in that area again!
Discover More of the Best Cross Country Road Trip Tips
These are only a few of the best cross country road trip tips, but there are so many more.
No family vacation is going to be perfect, so try not to expect it to be. Some things will always go wrong, but it’s how you react to them that makes a difference. You can read more about it on our blog!
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