6 Road Trip Tips that Will Make your Trip Unforgettable

No vacation or trip says adventure quite like the way a road trip does. Road trips are an amazing and a super fun vacation that has a lot of advantages. Firstly they save you the expensive costs of flights, and the time you spend with your friends and loved ones is priceless.

Road trips may seem like a great time on paper, but that is only possible if you are properly prepared. You need to have the right plan and ideas for a road trip to make it amazing and unforgettable. Here is a list of some simple ideas that can make your road trip legendary and unforgettable for the rest of your life.

Have a well-oiled and reliable car

One of the most influential factors that will impact the outcome of your road trip is, of course, your car. For a road trip that goes smoothly and flawlessly, you will need to have a car that is reliable and gets you to your destination and back home without any problems.

If you don't want your car to give out in the middle of the highway, then you will need to get it well maintained. So, before you embark on your journey on the long road set aside a day for the car's maintenance and preparation, start by checking the fluids of your car like the engine oil, coolant and brake fluid. Replace or add any fluids that are required. If your oil doesn't have to changes right away, but it has been some time since your last oil change, consider getting a fresh fill of engine oil because you know that your car will be working overdrive for the next week or so.

You should remember to check on the parts of your car that are more likely to cause a problem on the road. Some of the most common and dangerous parts that break down on the road are tires and breaks. Break failures and tire blowouts are among the most common causes of accidents on the road. So, firstly, you should make sure that your tires have the proper amount of traction. If you have had the same tires for a while now, you should consider changing them before starting a long trip. You should replace your tires after every 15000 to 20000 miles on average. You should also make sure that your tires are properly inflated for a safe and secure ride

You should also have a look at the electronics of the car before a long trip. You should check the batteries and wiring and make sure everything is in order, have a look at the electronic components of the car like the AC, headlights and the cooling fans. Make sure that any filters don't need to be replaced. You should also consider changing your headlight bulbs if it has been a while. Go for some LED headlights because they can last longer, and they also provide better visibility. Just write LED headlights 2019 on your search tab to learn about the best models this year. 

Make a detailed plan for the trip

You may feel tempted to be a little spontaneous and let the trip go with the flow, but for the best and most unforgettable experience, you should make sure that you have a plan. The plan doesn't have to be super rigid, but having an idea of where you want to go and which destinations you want to touch can help you stay on track and save time on the road. First of all, everyone on the trip should be consulted when it comes to planning the trip. If you are going on a road trip with your family, you should also consider the opinion of the kids in the planning.

Start by choosing a route for your road trip. You should choose a route that has a lot of smaller destinations on the way, and it has a lot of beautiful scenery. If you want your trip to be exciting, then you shouldn't stay on the highways all the time, ride on the roads less traveled. Some of the best road trip routes in the US are the Pacific coast highway, Route 66 and the overseas highway.

You should also plan some amazing stops along the route of your trip so that your trip can stay exciting, look for small tourist attractions on and near the route you are traveling and visit them for a while as well on your way to your main destination.

As far as planning is concerned, you should also plant refueling and maintenance stops along the way. Look at the maps of the router you will be traveling on and make your preferred gas stations so that you can get good quality gas on your trip as well.

Snacks and food

We all can agree that a road trip can be complete until you have some epic and amazing snacks. Snacks are essential, and you should make sure to get some amazing snacks for the road. Of course, you can't forget the classic snacks such as potato chips, beef jerky, and soda.

You should also get some snacks according to the weather, for example, if you are out on a summer road trip, put some icy popsicles, and soda cans in a cooler and bring it along for some epic snacks.

Snacks are important, but you can't really fill up on them the whole way. Can you? So you will also need to get some food along the way, you should make sure to check out some of the local dishes of the areas you are traveling through. If you pass through Philly, you should check out and authentic Philly cheesesteak, you have to try out a Cubano sandwich if you pass through Miami and you can leave Chicago without some authentic deep dish pizza. And what about a classic Texas BBQ, there are tons of options on the road, and almost every other place has something new to offer. Check out the local foods to get the authentic traveling experience.

Remember to drink a lot of water as well and use the bathroom when you have made a stop for refueling or some other reason so that you don't have to get off the road the often

Combine your road trip with a camping trip

The main objective of a road trip is to experience the more adventurous way of traveling. And nothing will add adventure to your trip like some good old camping. Instead of staying at some expensive hotels, you should make a camp in a nice location to make your road trip super exciting and adventurous. So, you should also pack some amazing camping equipment for your road trip and get some tools and equipment that you may need. Pack some tents and sleeping bags as well for a comfortable camping experience.

Camping is a great way to add a whole new level of fun and excitement to your trip. And you should definitely give it a try. Not only does camping make your road trip more adventurous, but it is also a great way to save some money and make your road trip more budget-friendly. If you are planning to do some camping, you should also look into getting a national park pass. These passes contribute only 80 dollars, and they will allow you access to all the national parks all over the country. A national park pass can be great for both camping and traveling as well. There are 12 major national parks in the United States which cover more than a million acres of land combined. Apart from these national parks, a national park pass will also give you access to over 2000 federal recreation sites. So, getting a national park pass is a great investment if you are into traveling and camping. Camping at night is also considerably safer than driving at night. According to statistics by the AAA Foundation for traffic safety, the chances of an accident on the road are increased four times at night.

So, find an amazing camping location for the night and bring some basic equipment along with you to have one of the most memorable camping experiences of your life.

Choose your travel companions carefully

Another very significant and important thing that affects the experience of your road trip is the people you are traveling with. You could plan the best road trip on the most amazing routes and roads, but if you don't have the right travel companions, your trip will be awful. Getting stuck in a car with the wrong people for hours and hours on a long trip can be a complete nightmare, and it will ruin the whole experience of the road trip.

So before you embark on the road trip, consider the people that are going with you carefully. Invite people that you are compatible with and enjoy the company of. If you are taking a road trip with friends, then you should invite only your closest friends that you have known for a long time. Otherwise, the trip can be somewhat awkward and boring.

Ask yourself if the person on the passenger seat is uptight. Do you guys share the same interests and Are you guys compatible?

This is an important factor, but sometimes the best and longest-lasting friendships start on the road. So if you don't get along with someone that much, maybe you'll find them to be a totally different and amazing person when you spend time with them on the road.

As far as your travel companions are concerned, everything should be fun and light-hearted with them. If there are any arguments, then the whole trip can be affected. So stay away from conversations that are bound to start arguments. And discuss the plan and the details of the road trip with everyone before you leave so that everyone is on the same page.

Be ready for emergency situations

If you run into some car problems or any other emergency and you don't have the proper skills or tools required to get back on the road, then your trip may be canceled in the middle. This will make your trip memorable but not in a good way at all. If you want an amazing and exciting road trip that you remember fondly and happily then you should be ready for any emergencies and problems that you may face along the way.

We hope that you never need to use it, but for your safety, you should pack an emergency kit and keep it in your car. You should have some basic car repair tools in your car and some other items that can help you in case of an emergency. You should have a spare tire and a tire changing kit. You should have a manual tire pump and a car jumping kit as well. You should also get a standard tool kit with all the wrenches and screwdrivers you may need to fix the car. Also, get some spare electrical fuses and headlight bulbs in case they break down on the road.

Remember to pack a color-match touch-up car paint. Accidental scratches can happen, and paint scuffs definitely do not look good. The most practical and fastest solution to remove paint spots from your car is to apply touch-up paint on the scratched area.

In your emergency kit, you should have a first aid kit with some basic medical supplies. You should have some food items like protein bars, some flashlight and extra batteries, and some other basic survival gear.

To make sure that your drive is even safer and you always have some backup no matter where you are, you should consider joining a roadside assistance program. These roadside assistance programs can come to your help and get your car fixed no matter where you are. For a small fee, you can become a member and have a peace of mind on your road trip. AAA, AARP and AllState are some of the most common and reliable roadside assistance programs in the United States.

These are some basic ideas that can make your trip amazing, also remember to take tons of amazing and memorable photos and pictures to remember the experience.

Further reading:

- What are this year's most popular cars for a traditional road trip?

- Would you know what to do if you were involved in a car accident on your road trip?

- Make the most of your adventure with some useful gadgets for the road

Author Bio:

This post is written by Mark Hilton. He is a digital nomad who is obsessed with automobiles and loves road traveling. He has worked in several automobile companies and has been covering technology online for over five years. In order to know more about his site, you can visit Carifex.com.