Top Tips to have an Epic Road Trip!
You’ve been seeing somewhere you want to go, feeling the open road, the freedom, the attractions.. And you are getting ready to take the leap.
..now what?
My partner and I plan about one (at least) bigger road trip a year. We often also do smaller ones though, and these tips can be applicable to either scale.
TIP 1 : PICK YOUR SITES
This sounds obvious, HOWEVER. With a road trip there needs to be a balance of planning and spontaneity. Once you have your general city / cities / area in mind - WHAT do you want to see?
What are the non negotiables?
What would you be okay with not seeing?
The non negotiables need to be sorted so that you can sort of plan your trip around them. For example, we just drove around Norway and had 3 non negotiable hikes - this meant the driving and our spontaneity had to fit within the parameters of making those hikes. Not to mention, certain things you want to do may require bookings (like a glacier hike) so plot that down!! It forces the balance without overthinking it.. Which defeats the purpose of an epic road trip!
TIP 2: PLOT AWAY
Once you have the non negotiables, plug them on a map. I am a visual person (gee really?) so I will print out a google map of where we are going and plot the essential places. Plus it gives you distances as well. This way you can look up what is around these places too map wise, or gives you a better range to google from.
TIP 3: ONLY PACK ESSENTIALS
Heavier the car/plane - heavier the gas bill. This is a good thing to plan ahead on to always be prepared.. Not only with snacks but with emergency gear as well. (I can do a seperate post on this)
TIP 4 : VEHICLE
This is also an important one to plan. If you already own a vehicle- is it in good shape and ready to go? If you are renting - know where you can/cannot go with the vehicle, if its big enough to sleep in, too big, etc.
TIP 5 : MUSIC
This makes a roadtrip fun! Or you can play some fun road games. If someone is doing most of the driving it’s nice to keep them awake and entertained.
TIP 6 : KNOW THE RULES
Are you going somewhere where you can free-camp? Do camping places take cash only? Do you have hotels in mind? Don’t forget about sleeping..eating.. The essentials. If you are not near grocery stores or don’t think you will be don’t forget that food either!
TIP 7 : PLAN FOR THE SLOWER / CONTINGENCY
Always give yourself 1-2 or more days of contingency time. Maybe you will hit bad weather, maybe the road will be CLOSED (ahem..fun times) maybe you will get sick and need to stay in a hotel for a day.. ANYTHING. Anything can happen and its always good to plan the driving and your adventuring slower than you think. Add a few hours here and there.. Add time for hikes /sightseeing. Worse comes to worse some things go faster and you have more time (This often happens to us as we are super fast hikers). Regardless - It’s for your safety. And enjoyment .. why rush? Its a roadtrip.
Anyone have any epic road trip stories? Share below!
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