Travel Tips
Smaller bags go a long way toward saving trunk space. (Photo: Jupiterimages/ Images )
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One of the many benefits of driving over modes of public transportation is that you can pack as much as your car can hold. Overdoing it, however, can result in poor gas mileage and a lot of frustration if you need to access your things in a hurry. Packing light and smart can ensure a smooth, enjoyable road trip.
Step 1
Start by packing emergency items so they don’t fall by the wayside during the packing process. Use the glove box and the areas under the car seats for these items so they don’t get in the way, but are easily accessible. Emergency road and first aid kits can be bought in auto supply stores. Or, you can assemble your own. The basics include a working flashlight with extra batteries, 12-foot jumper cables, two quarts of motor oil, tire pressure gauge, duct tape, pliers, Phillips and flathead screwdrivers, fuses, rags, a funnel and work gloves. First aid kits should include bandages, gauze, scissors, tweezers, pain relievers, antiseptic ointment, hydrocortisone cream and hand sanitizer.
Step 2
Pack clothes in several small duffel bags with soft corners. Use one duffel as an overnight bag with essential toiletries and keep it close to the trunk opening or in the backseat so it’s easily accessible.
Step 3
Keep the inside of the car as clutter-free as possible. Mount bikes and sporting equipment to the back of the car, but make sure this doesn’t impede getting to important items. A car-top luggage rack can free up a lot of space.
Step 4
Pack for life on the road. Spills and accidents are inevitable on a road trip. A can of moistened wipes, several plastic bags for trash, a roll of paper towels and a few full-length towels will come in handy for car messes. Make a clean-up bag with such sundries and keep it close to the front. Pack cell phone chargers and GPS machines in the glove compartment.
Step 5
Bring more audio books, music and toys for the kids than you think you’ll need. This is one area where you can’t overpack. Bring a cooler for on-the-road snacks. Roadside restaurant offerings are usually of the fast-food variety, so pack healthier food that you won’t be able to get at the interstate gas station. Fill the cooler with ice packs, which can also be used for first aid emergencies.
Disclosure
Leaf Group is a USA TODAY content partner providing general travel information. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY.
Updated August 18, 2019
Knowing how to drive a car will enable you to enjoy one of the most memorable vacation experiences, the road trip. The road trip is a general phrase that describes a long trek made in a vehicle for pleasure. Road trips take a little planning. Here are a few tips that will help make your first road trip a success.
6 Tips to Plan Your First Road Trip
Decide on a destination. It is a good idea to choose a destination that is not too far away for your first road trip. A road trip can span only one day. For example, choose a city a couple of hours away for your first road trip. You will enjoy a nice drive to your destination, spend some time in a new place, and drive back home all in one day.
Choose a route. Many people who take road trips like to take the scenic route to their chosen destination. You can use a map or the internet to plan a route. Some drivers prefer to take a back roads rather than interstate highways when they go on road trips. Although it may take longer to reach your destination on these roads, the views will be much more interesting.
The Turquoise Trail in New Mexico is one of thousands scenic roads you can take in the U.S.
Consider your vehicle. Some vehicles simply are not made for long trips. Cars that are especially suited to road trips are convertibles, sports cars, cars that get great gas mileage, and small crossover SUVs. SUVs and minivans are also good road trip vehicles if you are traveling with several people or your family. Vehicles that might not be great choices for road trips are large trucks, large SUVs, and vans. Make sure that you will have plenty of room for your passengers since you will be spending several hours inside the vehicle. Also try to choose a vehicle that gets great gas mileage to reduce the cost of your trip.
Get a tune up. If you are planning on driving your car over a long distance for several days, it is a great idea to let a mechanic check for problems before you depart. Get your oil changed, refill your windshield wiper fluid, and make sure all lights are in working order. These steps will reduce the chance of becoming stranded or experiencing mechanical issues during your road trip.
Working car lights ensure that other drivers see you, even in reduced visibility. This is crucial to avoid accidents
Plan for stops. It is reasonable to estimate that you will need to take a break from travelling every two or three hours. If there is an interesting city, park, store, or restaurant that you would like to see on your road trip, schedule stops accordingly. It is all part of the road trip experience.
To enjoy the stop, make sure you lock your car and don’t leave valuables in visibility
Bring entertainment. Of course, the driver needs to focus his or her attention on the road. The passengers, however, might want some entertainment along the way. Portable DVD players with headphones, MP3 players, books, crossword puzzles, magazines, and travel journals are some excellent ideas for passing the time on a road trip.
It is important to remember that the drive is the most important part of a road trip.
Don’t be in a rush. If there is something interesting you would like to stop and see, do so. It is all part of the experience. The next time that you plan a vacation for you and your family or a quick getaway for your friends, consider driving instead of flying. You might find that hitting the open road is your preferred means of transportation.
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“Road trip!” The words evoke visions of the open highway, vistas rolling out before the driver, adventure, freedom. The reality is that, while a road trip is much more flexible than catching a plane to the same destination, a certain amount of planning is required for everything to work out.
Be sure to include a roll of paper towels in the emergency kit.
A road trip usually involves driving several hours — or days! — to a destination, then driving back. The advantage is that the travelers are able to stop along the way to see various attractions and soak in some local flavor before moving on. It’s certainly a leisurely way to travel.
There are two basic ways to plan a road trip. The first is the organized trip, in which the travelers plot out their route in advance, plan stopping points along the way, look for hotels in particular towns, and make reservations in advance. One advantage to this method is that the travelers know where they will be staying and do not have to worry about being able to get a room. Some travelers may find pre-planned stops a bit too confining. For these folks, the open-ended method of planning a road trip may be preferable.
Being ready for roadside emergencies is one aspect of trip preparation.
For this kind of road trip, the travelers will usually plot their route, but instead of planning stops, they stop at will, staying overnight wherever they are when they are too tired to drive any further. The obvious disadvantage of this method is finding a decent place to stay on short notice. Some travelers swear by this method, however. And, if the travelers do not insist on staying in chain motels, they may be able to find a local place with a good price.
Some people have a specific location in mind, others just travel the open road.
Travelers should always prepare for emergencies on a road trip. This includes taking the car to a mechanic beforehand and having the oil changed and the fluids checked and topped off. The mechanic should also check the tires, balance and/or rotate them if necessary, check the spare tire and jack, and look at all the belts and hoses, replacing them if needed. The traveler should also ask the mechanic to check the radiator cap for proper pressure when he checks the coolant levels.
Bringing small snacks to eat along the road can prevent having to stop for food.
A good emergency road trip kit for the car will include: two gallons of plain water, four quarts of oil, a quart each of transmission and power steering fluid, a can of brake fluid, washer fluid, paper towels, and a couple of rags. The traveler should also either have a set of jumper cables or a jump start power pack in the trunk.
Rotate and balance tires before leaving on a long road trip.
Travelers should also carry a standard first-aid kit, available in discount stores and drugstores. They should also take all prescription drugs they will need for the duration of the trip, as well as a list of all prescription drugs they take. If they have to make a trip to the emergency room, this information will be critical. Travelers should also make sure to have their auto and health insurance cards, as well as a car charger for the cell phone.
Packing tubes of your favorites shampoos or lotions is a good idea before leaving on a road trip.
Comfort is crucial on a road trip, so travelers may want to bring their favorite snacks, as well as a pillow for naptime and hotel use. Small soft-sided coolers are readily available, and a “blue ice” block will fit inside nicely to keep drinks cool. Finally, a traveler should always take along an atlas or road map and extra cash, along with a couple of dollars in change. Following these guidelines should help ensure a trouble-free road trip.
Packing sandwiches to eat on the road is a good idea for long road trips.
A road trip may include camping.
A GPS can be used to plot out a route in advance or it can allow for a spontaneous route.
Travel chargers are designed to charge cellphones and other devices during a long road trip.
It’s important to check the oil level of a car before taking a long road trip.
A backup gas can might come in handy during a long road trip.
Bringing an extra bottle of coolant is a good idea when going on a long road trip.
A car jack may come in handy on a road trip.
Travelers should pack a car charger for the cell phone.
Fruit is a good snack option for long road trips.
RV Camper Road Trip at Monument Valley Tribal Park Landscape
The Covid-19 pandemic has led to a surging increase of road trips in America. Back in June, AAA predicted that during the summer of 2020, Americans would take 700 million trips, 97% of which would be road trips. This isn’t so surprising, even though the total number of trips is down 15% since 2019. International travel is not an option for many, and flying in planes or staying at hotels introduces more fears of catching or spreading the virus, as neither allows for much social distancing. Not to mention that cruises and other common travel scenarios are also likely less safe or not even possible this year.
People still want to get out of their houses, and families still yearn for adventure, so in America this quickly became the year of the road trip, and 2021 may look similar. Some may opt for driving a car and renting a house or a cabin, or staying at an Airbnb or a tent or whatever they prefer. That said, many have been gravitating toward driving in RVs, as they are self-contained and allow for social distancing while still sightseeing. According to the RV Industry Association, 46 million Americans plan to go RVing sometime in the next year.
In October of 2019, I took a road trip with my dog in an RV across the Pacific Northwest for three and a half weeks. In taking this trip, I researched many different ways to rent motorhomes and also tried a number of different apps and websites that can help with everything from planning your route, to finding campsites and attractions and calculating fuel costs. They’re just as relevant during this pandemic when so many people will opt for road trips. While not every single thing in your life needs an app to take up more space on your phone and more time out of your day, the sites below are some of the tools that I found useful during my own journey.
Best Options For RV Rentals
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I rented an RV for my road trip, so I have no advice on the topic of buying one outright. I have seen used RVs listed on sites like RVTrader and Cruise America, as they seem to be two of the biggest sites for that. Cruise America is a big company that has sales and rental lots in many cities as well, but I personally found their style too generic and wanted to rent a rig that was owned by an individual and had some character. From what I’ve seen, the two best options for rentals are RVShare and Outdoorsy. Both sites allow people to list their own RVs on the site and rent them directly to you, while the website simply facilitates and takes a commission.
Both Outdoorsy and RVShare also have easy-to-navigate search parameters on their websites that let you search by location, dates of the trip, price and so forth. I ended up finding my rental on Outdoorsy, and booked it a couple of weeks before my pick-up date to ensure that I had the RV locked in before finalizing my route and plan for the trip. Some rentals may charge for mileage while others will include mileage in a set fee. Mine included a certain amount of miles per day, and then an additional fee for anything over that. There were also fees for insurance, hours of generator usage and cleaning of the vehicle for which you’ll need to be prepared.
Planning Your Road Trip Route
There are a number of apps that you can use to plan your route, but I ended up using one called Roadtrippers for a number of reasons. They have a free version of the app as well as a paid version that offers additional features. I highly recommend this app, as you can build your route from scratch by entering your locations and dates. The app then offers different search options along the way, such as attractions for sightseeing and camping, gas stations, entertainment, food and nightlife. I mostly used the app to pick the roads and highways I travelled, and also found a handful of scenic stops that I had never heard of before that helped add to the experience, such as Ewam’s Garden of One Thousand Buddhas in Montana.
Another feature of the Roadtrippers app that is useful is that you can actually enter the year and model of your vehicle with the gas mileage and it will tell you how much gas should cost you during the course of your trip, which was helpful in planning my costs for my own trip. There is another travel app I like a lot called Tripit, which was less relevant on my RV trip, but may be useful to you in general for compiling all of your booking confirmations. I’ve used Tripit for most of my trips in the past few years, since it can organize everything from hotel bookings, flight bookings, rental car bookings, or even concert and event tickets into one place for each trip you take.
Booking RV Campsites & Boondocking
Personally, I’m not a big fan of big KOA or RV park type places where you’re parking right next to dozens of other RVs, but sometimes it is convenient to be able to plug into electricity and refill on water and propane and empty the rig’s sewage tanks. The Roadtrippers app I’d mentioned above has a search filter for campsites that was pretty useful for me, and there were other apps I downloaded and tried out (like HipCamp) that I did not find as useful. Most campsites I stayed at ranged from a price of $30 to $45 per night, though some were cheaper or more expensive, and some campsites were free.
Campendium was also fairly useful in finding campgrounds, and near the end of my trip I found another app called Harvest Hosts that offers free camping at sites like wineries, breweries and farms. I booked a spot on a hunting app called LandTrust and stayed one night on a 17,000 acre ranch. Though I didn’t get a chance to stay at one of the Harvest Hosts locations, I would like to try it sometime and am recommending it here because I like their concept and think it sounds like a cool way to find unique places to camp out.
My favorite places I stayed at during my road trip were all off the grid while boondocking, and not plugged into anything. Boondocking allows you to really be out on your own in nature, and there are a handful of apps to help you find places for this. Bureau of Land Management land (or BLM land) allows anyone to camp out on any single site for 14 days at a time, meaning that if you bring enough food, water and propane, you could camp out for free on beautiful public land and just move every two weeks. To give you a sense of scope, there are 245 million acres of BLM land in the United States.
There is a free app called FreeRoam that aggregates all public and BLM land and shows you where you could stay for free. I used FreeRoam to find places to park and sleep at more than I used any other app during my trip. If you’re trying to decide between camping out at RV parks or boondocking on BLM land, I have to suggest that boondocking will likely show you a much more free and open space and give you a more memorable camping experience.
Lastly, you’ll obviously need your entertainment apps so you can listen to audiobooks, podcasts, news or music while you drive. Start working on your road trip playlist and it may just inspire you to take a trip sooner than later.
However you feel about road trips—w hether you rack up the mileage on the regular or are still working through the trauma of family vacations that forced you to pack into a station wagon for hours on end— they are the new normal d uring the COVID-19 pandemic .
Th e number of Americas traveling by air is way down, and that’s not likely to change any time soon: The American Automobile Association (aka AAA) predicts that 80% of fall travel will be road trips, and the upcoming holiday season will likely bring even more traffic.
While it’s great that so many people have that option, we also can’t forget that we’re still in the midst of a global pandemic. No matter how tired we are of all the extra precautions, this is absolutely not the time to let y our guard down. Road trips are no exception.
Pandemic or not, we should always to head into a road trip willing to be flexible, but also highly prepared. (It’s a fine line.) This travel mentality has never been more important or relevant than it is now. We’ve previously covered how to plan a (before-times) road trip , so if you’re looking for general information and tips for maps, apps and other tools, start there. Here, we’re going to focus on how to plan and take a socially distant pandemic road trip. Squirt on some hand sanitizer and buckle up.
How to Plan the Perfect Road Trip
It’s that time of the year again: time to pack your friends or family in the car and hit the open…
The basics
At this point, we shouldn’t have to tell you to keep up with all your usual COVID public health strategies —like mask-wearing, social distancing and frequent hand-washing/sanitizing—while on the road . Please, be a decent person and do what you need to do to keep yourself and others safe.
What to bring
At the very least, you’re going to want to pack a few face masks, some hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes (or another way of cleaning surfaces) and a decent supply of food and beverages (to minimize the number of times you have to stop).
So far, I’ve taken one road trip during COVID, and put together my own ultra deluxe travel kit featuring all of the above, plus: a small container of liquid hand soap (if a rest stop doesn’t have any and I want to wash my hands with actual soap and water), a roll of toilet paper (always a good idea, but also prevents you from having to ask your stall neighbor if they could spare a square, and useful if you’re passing through an area with no indoor bathroom options), a keychain stylus/door opener (if there’s an opportunity not to touch door handles and buttons, I’m going for it) and a fanny pack (so I wouldn’t have to hang a bag—or worse, put it on the floor—at a rest stop).
Do you really need all of these things? Probably not. But with the exception of the extra toilet paper, I used all of them.
Plan your stops
One of the best parts of a pre-pandemic road trip was pulling off the highway without a plan and seeing what type of food options and attractions you could find . Now, that’s not the best idea. First of all, as the CDC explains : “Making stops along the way for gas, food, or bathroom breaks can put you and your traveling companions in close contact with other people and frequently-touched surfaces.”
As fun as it is to wing it, you should plan at least some of your stops ahead of time, and fortunately, there are plenty of new and existing apps to make this easier. First, there’s a map from AAA that provides updated information on state and regional travel restrictions . We’re also fans of this interactive map of rest stops —especially since several have closed during the pandemic.
And you’re going to want to download Nexit, if you haven’t already; it will guide you towards the best exits along your route , with additional information on specifics like where to find vegan food and the local hotels and motels that are pet-friendly.
Find the Best Exits Along Your Road Trip Route With This App
I’m a tremendous fan of a good road trip. I’ve driven across the country on three separate…
Gas stations
Stopping for gas is an unavoidable part of road trips, even now . You may not love the idea of coming in contact with all those high-touch surfaces, but it’s all part of it (unless you’re traveling through New Jersey ). Anyway, the CDC’s gas station COVID safety tips aren’t surprising, but bear mentioning:
- Use disinfecting wipes on handles and buttons at the gas pumps before you touch them (if available).
- After fueling, use a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. When you get to your destination, wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
Bathrooms and rest stops
Again, the usual COVID rules apply here. Per the CDC :
- Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds after using the bathroom and after you have been in a public place.
- If soap and water are not available, use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. Cover all surfaces of your hands and rub them together until they feel dry.
For what it’s worth, every time I stopped somewhere to use the restroom during my road trip, I was always the only person in there and everything looked—and smelled—as though it had recently been sanitized.
What to Know Before You Travel Across State Lines
As the coronavirus pandemic grips the country, travel restrictions are increasingly going into…
Taking a road trip across the United States offers an alternative to flying that can be more fun and, sometimes, less expensive. If your point of origin and destination are not located near major airports that offer an abundance of cheap flights, then the price of an airline ticket can be steep. Although oil prices affect both flying and driving costs, their correlation with the price of filling up your vehicle is much more pronounced. With the price of oil low, it might be a good time to get behind the wheel and explore the United States.
The following analysis compares the cost of a road trip from New York City to Los Angeles five years ago, in 2015, to the cost of making the same trip in 2020. Expenses considered include gas, food, and lodging.
Key Takeaways
- When gas prices are low, it’s an especially good time to take a driving trip.
- The cost of a hypothetical road trip from New York to Los Angeles did not change materially from 2015 to 2020—because the decrease in gas prices compensated for increases in food and lodging.
Gas Prices
New York to Los Angeles covers 2,800 miles. Even if you’re driving a hybrid, the trip requires many stops at gas stations to fill up. To make things simple, assume that you are driving a Toyota Camry, which gets about 35 miles per gallon on the highway and 25 in the city. Since the trip is almost all on the highway, also assume that you’ll get 35 miles per gallon. In this case, the trip requires 80 gallons of gas.
The price of gas varies in different parts of the country, so national averages must suffice to estimate fuel costs for a cross-country trip. In March 2015, the average cost for a gallon of regular-grade gasoline was $2.79. As of March 2020, its average cost was $2.17. Therefore, the cost of gas to drive from New York to Los Angeles in a Camry had dropped from $223.20 to $173.60.
Food Prices
The cost of food can vary greatly on a cross-country trip. Stopping for meals at expensive steakhouses, for instance, imposes much steeper costs than packing coolers full of sandwiches and making an occasional splurge at McDonald’s.
Regardless of whether you are fine dining or filling your belly on a budget, food costs in the United States are 5.76% higher in 2020 versus 2015, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Assuming a seven-day drive—easily enough time to get from New York to Los Angeles and make some stops along the way—and three meals per day at a base price of $10 per meal, your food costs for the trip rose from $210 in 2015 to $222.09 in 2020.
Lodging Prices
The biggest determinant of lodging prices is how you pace the trip. Putting the pedal to the metal and rotating drivers so that you make progress around the clock and arrive in two days without stopping yields lower lodging costs than stopping at landmarks every day and turning in for a good night’s sleep.
For an apples-to-apples comparison from 2015 to 2020, again consider a seven-day trip in which you spend six nights at hotels. The average hotel room cost 120 per night in March 2015 and $126 per night in March 2020. Your lodging costs, then, increased from $720 to $756.
Frugal cross-country road-trippers can mitigate lodging costs by staying at discount motel chains, such as Motel 6, or camping along the way. You can control what you pay for lodging to a large degree by choosing your accommodations carefully.
Total Trip Costs
Adding up the cost of gas, food, and lodging, a typical road trip from New York to Los Angeles actually has decreased slightly in price, from $1,159.20 to $1,151.69 between 2015 and 2020. A moderate decrease in gas prices more than canceled out slight increases in food and lodging costs.
Again, dozens of variables exist that determine the cost of a road trip across the United States, and they change every year. The analysis above considers a hypothetical trip with a familiar starting and ending point and uses broad averages for common costs incurred along the way. The most important takeaway is that the cost of a road trip did not change materially from 2015 to 2020. When gas prices are low, it is a good time to drive or ride, around the United States.
MECKY / Getty Images
Road trips are an ever-popular way for American families to take vacations. In fact, a 2019 study by OnePoll on behalf of Ford found that 73 percent of Americans prefer road tripping to flying. It’s oftentimes cheaper to drive, not to mention easier than navigating chaotic airports, especially when traveling with kids.
However, although a long summer road trip can be a great bonding experience, too much time cooped up in a car together definitely has its challenges. Younger children can get bored and restless sitting through long stretches of dull scenery and eating a snack-filled diet for too long can make anyone feel lethargic and cranky. Here are several tried-and-tested tips parents swear by to make their road trips less stressful and more fun for the whole family.
Use Mobile Apps for Planning and Entertainment
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Klaus Vedfelt / Getty Images
Having the right apps on hand can take a family vacation from “meh” to marvelous. For parents, there’s DealNews for coupons and Foodspotting to help you find new restaurants that local guidebooks and “top 10” lists might not have picked up yet (think: fewer crowds). Hotels.com is essential for sifting through accommodation options with attractions for kids. You can reserve your stays easily right through the free app. For music, Spotify and YouTube offer thousands of songs and playlists for kids.
The backseat crew can be kept busy with mobile games like the familiar favorites: Minecraft, Animal Crossing, Super Mario Run, and more. Road trip-specific mobile games include Smule, a karaoke app, Road Trip Bingo, Geo Touch (a fun-but-educational app centered around geography), and Road Trip Travel Games, a collection of kid-friendly road trip classics like Slug a Bug and Cloud Shapes.
Play Offline Car Games
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Anna Peisl / Getty Images
People were taking road trips long before the advent of cell phones or iPads and you can bet that parents were minimizing backseat squabbling with variations of the same classic car games still being played today.
I Spy is a road trip staple. The first player says “I spy with my little eye something. ” then gives a clue to something they can see that other participants must look for. Another popular pastime is the Alphabet Game, where players must find objects that begin with each letter of the alphabet. For cross-country trips, playing the State License Plate Game is a great way to pass the time and help school-aged kids learn the names of states. To play, make a list of all 50 states, then have your kids try to spot a car with a license plate from each state, like a backseat version of a scavenger hunt.
Gather Toys and Tools for Kid-Friendly Travel
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Sue Barr / Getty Images
Although fighting off backseat boredom can be a big issue when road tripping with children, finding ways to avoid messes and excessive noise can also be challenging. Fortunately, there are a few car toys and organizational gadgets that can make it a little more manageable.
For little artists on board, Crayola’s Color Wonder Art Kit is a mess-free alternative to standard markers and crayons. Its coloring pages come with stampers and special markers that will only show up on actual paper—not skin, clothes, or your car. Travel Bingo boards feature slide-able squares for trains, police cars, and airplanes. No stamps or chips are needed. There are road trip-specific Mad Libs and magnetic checkers on the market, too.
In terms of organization, you can get seat-back bags, trash bins, and collapsible dishes at Target to help keep things tidy. Otherwise, some resort to using shower caddies for meals on the go, or putting cupcake liners in cup holders to keep them clean.
Manage Car Sickness
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VOISIN / Getty Images
Speaking of messes: Many kids are prone to car sickness, which can pose yet another challenge. If you anticipate that someone in the vehicle will be motion sick, then it’s a good idea to travel with some disposable bags (medical-grade, if possible). But before resorting to using them, try to keep sickness at bay with ginger or peppermint food products, clinically proven to help prevent nausea, and by putting the queasy passenger in the front seat in order to see the horizon. The reason drivers don’t get motion sick as easily is because the act of driving itself engages motor skills. The front seat also has less movement than the back of the car. Although some foods may help with nausea, consuming less, in general, helps to prevent getting sick. Spicy foods, for instance, can irritate the feeling even further.
Find Alternatives to Fast Food
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Jupiterimages / Getty Images
Quick-casual restaurant chains are relatively cheap and abundant, so it’s easy to fall into a fast-food rut when you’re away on vacation. However, with just a little planning, you can track down healthier, just-as-inexpensive options that are sure to please kids all the same. When your family is on the go, look for supermarkets that might have deli counters or salad bars (like Whole Foods and Kroger stores), local farmers markets, or food trucks, which you can find on the TruxMap app.
Alternatively, keep a cooler packed with picnic provisions, healthy snacks, and low-sugar beverages so that you won’t always be at the mercy of roadside food stops. Pick a great scenic pull-off at which to stop and enjoy a pick-me-up while stretching your legs.
Stop to Cool Off
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kali9 / Getty Images
Remember that it isn’t just about the destination. Stop off regularly at the quirky roadside attractions, whether it be Amarillo’s Cadillac Ranch, Utah’s dinosaur footprints, or the alien artifacts in Roswell, New Mexico. These little breaks may add time to the trip, but they’re always memorable and offer opportunities for bouts of exercise, which is essential for kids.
You could even take it a step further and seek out theme parks along your route. Maine is home to Wild Blueberry Land, Virginia to Dinosaur Land, and Minnesota to Paul Bunyan Land, for example. Pack your swim gear and cool off at a water park along the way—there’s one in almost every state.
Visit National Parks
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Whether traveling with your relatives, a group of friends, or your significant other, road trips are a treasured American pastime. In fact, it’s a tradition that even more people embrace each year! According to a recent AAA survey, 79% of families planned to take a summer road trip in 2017 (a 10% increase from the year prior). Best of all, you can take a road trip in just about any car – yes, even in an electric vehicle. You might assume that the need for electric car charging stations could derail your travel plans, but that idea couldn’t be further from the truth. If you’re planning a Spring Break road trip, or looking forward to the summer, here are a few tips for traveling in your electric vehicle.
Are Electric Vehicles Suitable For Long Trips?
Absolutely. Electric cars continue to grow in popularity and battery range — to the point where we soon won’t even need to question whether they’re an appropriate choice for longer trips. Since fueling a car with electricity costs approximately the same as fueling with gasoline (at about $1 per gallon), it’s never been more practical to take a road trip in your EV. The Tesla Model 3 has a battery range around 300 miles, while some of the other new 2019 EV models such as the I-Pace can go 230 miles before needing a charge. EV charging stations are becoming more and more prevalent across the nation, which will make it even easier for you to charge your electric car as needed during your trip.
Before you head out on the open road in your EV, however, you’ll want to properly prepare. An EV road trip is certainly possible, but it will require you to be proactive and a bit more methodical about where you’ll be going and what needs to happen prior to embarking on your adventure.
Tips to Prepare For a Road Trip in Your Electric Car
- Carefully Plan Your Route: Vacations in gas cars are usually pretty easy to plan. You choose a destination, plug it into your favorite navigation service, and jump in your car, knowing that you probably won’t need to worry about getting stranded. After all, you can usually find a gas station every few miles. When driving an electric vehicle, however, you do have to be meticulous about the route you take to ensure you’ll be able to find charging stations during your trip. Mapping tools like Google Maps, PlugShare, and the SemaConnect station locator can help you find stations along your route. Check to see if your hotel has charging stations, or if you can charge while visiting a mall or National Park! With the right planning, you can make your charging sessions into the best part of your vacation.
- Head to a Major Metropolis: Electric car charging stations are popping up even in small towns and rural areas these days. Still, the highest concentration of EV stations can still be found in highly populated areas. For a worry-free vacation, that means that it’s easiest to take a road trip to a large city without too many back roads. Although some might see this as a limitation of destinations or a longer trip overall, it’s a good way to ensure you don’t miss an opportunity to charge and can allow you to visit a place with a lot to see and experience.
- Switch Up Driving Habits: The way you drive can have a significant impact on your car battery life. You’ll probably want to limit your use of battery-draining activities in the car, such as excessive technology use and hard braking. Driving more slowly and parking in the shade at rest stops can keep your battery from depleting prematurely, too. As long as you’re methodical about your driving behaviors, you shouldn’t have to charge your EV more than usual.
With EV stations becoming more plentiful across the US, your energy efficient vehicle doesn’t have to stop you from taking a road trip. If you follow the tips outlined above, you should be in a great position to plan an amazing vacation.
Thinking about making your property a charging hub for tenants and guests? Learn more about SemaConnect EV charging stations.
This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit this page.
Editor’s note: At TPG, our top priority is providing our readers with the information needed to make educated decisions about travel and rewards-earning strategy. This is not the best time to travel, domestically or internationally. But we are sharing this information to provide value for essential travel plans you may have.
I regularly work from home in Towson, Md., a suburb north of Baltimore. I live in a nice two-bedroom, 1.5 bath apartment with a large living room, a dining room, an office, a full-size stacking washer and dryer and a balcony. Before the coronavirus pandemic, I thought my 1,300 square-foot apartment was pretty spacious — until I had to shelter-in-place with a wonderful, but moody teen who missed school and her friends.
My family lives in San Antonio, Texas. So when my sister called last Saturday and asked me and the kid to come home, I jumped at the chance. Flying was out, so I decided to rent a minivan, pack it up and make the 1,700-mile drive on April 30. Here are some of my observations from that road trip.
(Map courtesy of Google)
In This Post
Car rentals are pretty cheap
Since I didn’t need a car in San Antonio, I decided to leave mine at home and rent one to drive. I chose a 2019 hybrid Chrysler Pacifica minivan, which I rented from Alamo for a total of $132.14, including tax and fees, for an April 30 pickup at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) and a drop-off at San Antonio International Airport (SAT). I used The Platinum Card® from American Express primarily for the car rental coverage. When I did my search, almost all the cars were well under $200 total for the time I chose to book.
Gas is also cheap
I spent a total of $77 on gas for the entire trip. Prices ranged from a high of $1.41 to a low of $1.09 for a gallon of regular gas.
Bathrooms are cleaner
I admit it — I’m a germaphobe and I can’t tolerate public restrooms. While I’m not at the level of supermodel Naomi Campbell, I do carry Clorox wipes and hand sanitizer whenever I fly. I knew I’d have to use a bathroom during the trip, so I came prepared with my spray bottle of Clorox cleanser and a roll of paper towels. I was pleasantly surprised at how clean most of the restrooms were on my trip (but I still gave them a Clorox wipe-down).
Fast-food outlets practice social distancing
The ones we visited all had workers wearing masks and gloves. However, Chick-fil-A was by far the most thorough. A worker came to your car, took your order and asked you to swipe your card. Instead of being handed your food through the drive-up window, a gloved and masked worker had your food in a gray bin for you to pick up.
Bargains abound at hotels
Because I wanted to get my 5x points per dollar spent on my Amex Platinum, I pre-booked a deluxe room with two queen beds at the Kimpton Aertson in downtown Nashville. The room came to $209.42. That same room will cost $272.84 a night in November.
Traffic was very light
We departed Towson on Thursday at 7 a.m., knowing that we would need to be on the Baltimore Beltway going toward I70 West at the beginning of our trip. At that time of day, traffic is at full swing, and pretty slow — but not on that day. The roads were practically empty, dominated more by 18-wheeler trucks than cars.
Electronic traffic signs look much different
There was not one warning sign, speeding sign or traffic sign. Instead, they were mostly about practicing social distancing to cut back on COVID-19. In Texas, the sign read “Thank You Frontline Workers. That’s It. That’s The Sign.”
Speeding abounds
Although speed limits on the trip ranged from 55 in Baltimore up to 75 in Texas, no one paid any mind to them. The interesting thing was there were plenty of highway patrol officers on the road, but I only saw two cars (at once) pulled over during the entire trip. Plus there was no reckless driving or instances of road rage.
Road construction is in full swing
States were taking full advantage of the traffic lull to work on road projects, including painting road lines, repaving existing roads and building new ones.
Cities and towns are quiet
I’m of an age when I remember when everything was closed on Christmas and Thanksgiving. I always enjoyed seeing how quiet things were when one of my parents would take me on that holiday drive every year. Now it’s like those holidays every day. I saw way too many empty parking lots and closed businesses. You know things are interesting when even Waffle House is closed.
Bottom line
I chose to go home because with no end in sight for sheltering-in-place, I’d rather spend that time here at our large family home with my sister and niece than in my cramped apartment. There’s plenty of land and we’re pretty isolated out here in the San Antonio Hill Country. My kid and I practiced social distancing and wore masks whenever we were in public. Some have questioned the trip, but I’m glad we did it and arrived safe and sound.
Featured photo by Daniel A. Leifheit / Getty Images
Road trips are often taken in pairs or big groups, but going for long drives alone can end up being even more fun. When you’re on a solo adventure, you don’t have to conform to anyone else’s agenda or expectations. You’re the driver, the navigator, the DJ, and the only one eating all those road trip snacks. And while it may get lonely at times, traveling alone has a way of pushing people out of their comfort zones. However, it can also be dangerous. Anyone planning a solo road trip should take extra steps to prepare and keep safety top of mind.
Talk to the People Around You
It would be easy for a solo traveler to go days without talking to anyone but drive-through workers and gas station clerks, but the lack of human contact can start to take a toll on your psyche. Make sure you keep communicating with others, whether it be regular check-ins with your family and friends or, better yet, meeting fellow travelers on the road. Ask whether you can join a group on a hike, sit next to another solo traveler at a coffeeshop, or strike up a conversation with your camping neighbor. You may even end up with a temporary travel partner, if that’s what you want.
Tell Someone Your Plans
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Image Source / DigitalVision / Getty Images
The number one safety rule is to always tell someone where you’re going. Call a parent, friend, or spouse before embarking on a hike, spending a day at the beach, or settling into a campsite at night, then check in with your point-of-contact when you reach your destination so they know you’ve made it safely. Better yet, share your location with someone on your phone or purchase a wearable tracker, such as a Fitbit or a more budget-friendly alternative.
Try to anticipate when you might lose phone service and call beforehand, but in scenarios when you can’t, at least leave a note on your car that says where you are. This is important in the event of an emergency that would require law enforcement to look for you.
Bring Your Four-Legged Friend
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Evgeny Vasenev / Aurora Photos / Getty Images
Does it count as solo travel if you bring a pet along with you? Dogs and cats have been scientifically proven to relieve loneliness and depression in humans which must mean that they’d make great travel partners. You may run into limitations when traveling with a pet—there might be areas you want to explore that aren’t dog-friendly—but on the flip side, you’ll always have someone to talk to and to potentially protect you. Always talk to your vet and get a clean bill of health before embarking on a road trip with your pet.
Prepare Backup Resources
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Hero Images / Getty Images
Your cell phone will act as a lifeline during your solo adventure, but it won’t do much good if it’s dead and you’re in no position to charge it. It’s a good idea to bring backups for your vital electronics like cell phone batteries and chargers. Put a charged-up old cell phone in your glove box for emergencies. Even if the cell phone isn’t connected to a network, dialing 911 will activate the emergency mode and allow you to communicate with first responders.
This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit this page.
Editor’s note: At TPG, our top priority is providing our readers with the information needed to make educated decisions about travel and rewards-earning strategy. This is not the best time to travel, domestically or internationally. But we are sharing this information to provide value for essential travel plans you may have.
I regularly work from home in Towson, Md., a suburb north of Baltimore. I live in a nice two-bedroom, 1.5 bath apartment with a large living room, a dining room, an office, a full-size stacking washer and dryer and a balcony. Before the coronavirus pandemic, I thought my 1,300 square-foot apartment was pretty spacious — until I had to shelter-in-place with a wonderful, but moody teen who missed school and her friends.
My family lives in San Antonio, Texas. So when my sister called last Saturday and asked me and the kid to come home, I jumped at the chance. Flying was out, so I decided to rent a minivan, pack it up and make the 1,700-mile drive on April 30. Here are some of my observations from that road trip.
(Map courtesy of Google)
In This Post
Car rentals are pretty cheap
Since I didn’t need a car in San Antonio, I decided to leave mine at home and rent one to drive. I chose a 2019 hybrid Chrysler Pacifica minivan, which I rented from Alamo for a total of $132.14, including tax and fees, for an April 30 pickup at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) and a drop-off at San Antonio International Airport (SAT). I used The Platinum Card® from American Express primarily for the car rental coverage. When I did my search, almost all the cars were well under $200 total for the time I chose to book.
Gas is also cheap
I spent a total of $77 on gas for the entire trip. Prices ranged from a high of $1.41 to a low of $1.09 for a gallon of regular gas.
Bathrooms are cleaner
I admit it — I’m a germaphobe and I can’t tolerate public restrooms. While I’m not at the level of supermodel Naomi Campbell, I do carry Clorox wipes and hand sanitizer whenever I fly. I knew I’d have to use a bathroom during the trip, so I came prepared with my spray bottle of Clorox cleanser and a roll of paper towels. I was pleasantly surprised at how clean most of the restrooms were on my trip (but I still gave them a Clorox wipe-down).
Fast-food outlets practice social distancing
The ones we visited all had workers wearing masks and gloves. However, Chick-fil-A was by far the most thorough. A worker came to your car, took your order and asked you to swipe your card. Instead of being handed your food through the drive-up window, a gloved and masked worker had your food in a gray bin for you to pick up.
Bargains abound at hotels
Because I wanted to get my 5x points per dollar spent on my Amex Platinum, I pre-booked a deluxe room with two queen beds at the Kimpton Aertson in downtown Nashville. The room came to $209.42. That same room will cost $272.84 a night in November.
Traffic was very light
We departed Towson on Thursday at 7 a.m., knowing that we would need to be on the Baltimore Beltway going toward I70 West at the beginning of our trip. At that time of day, traffic is at full swing, and pretty slow — but not on that day. The roads were practically empty, dominated more by 18-wheeler trucks than cars.
Electronic traffic signs look much different
There was not one warning sign, speeding sign or traffic sign. Instead, they were mostly about practicing social distancing to cut back on COVID-19. In Texas, the sign read “Thank You Frontline Workers. That’s It. That’s The Sign.”
Speeding abounds
Although speed limits on the trip ranged from 55 in Baltimore up to 75 in Texas, no one paid any mind to them. The interesting thing was there were plenty of highway patrol officers on the road, but I only saw two cars (at once) pulled over during the entire trip. Plus there was no reckless driving or instances of road rage.
Road construction is in full swing
States were taking full advantage of the traffic lull to work on road projects, including painting road lines, repaving existing roads and building new ones.
Cities and towns are quiet
I’m of an age when I remember when everything was closed on Christmas and Thanksgiving. I always enjoyed seeing how quiet things were when one of my parents would take me on that holiday drive every year. Now it’s like those holidays every day. I saw way too many empty parking lots and closed businesses. You know things are interesting when even Waffle House is closed.
Bottom line
I chose to go home because with no end in sight for sheltering-in-place, I’d rather spend that time here at our large family home with my sister and niece than in my cramped apartment. There’s plenty of land and we’re pretty isolated out here in the San Antonio Hill Country. My kid and I practiced social distancing and wore masks whenever we were in public. Some have questioned the trip, but I’m glad we did it and arrived safe and sound.
Featured photo by Daniel A. Leifheit / Getty Images
