Road Trip Travel Tips

I have lived in both California and Colorado, two beautiful states which lend themselves to a wide variety of road trip opportunities. I have driven alone on business trips from San Francisco to British Columbia, with my spouse on romantic getaways to Lake Tahoe, and with my children on family vacations to Disneyland & Mesa Verde National Park. Over the years and over the miles I have learned some very useful practices to make road trips less stressful and more and enjoyable.

1) Each and every person going on the road trip should be in agreement on the proposed destinations.
If you wish to go somewhere to look at abandoned pueblos and your kids think that is boring, none of you will enjoy the trip. Either leave the kids at home with a trusted friend or relative or make compromises on what additional sites you will visit. Something for everyone means you can blackmail the kids into being good at the Native American ruins with the promise of doing whatever desirable activity they have in mind the next day.

2) Leave home before first light in the morning.
This allows you to be out of the metropolitan area before commute traffic begins. Leaving early also allows you to arrive at that day's destination early enough to enjoy local sites in the afternoon.

3) Plan on driving no more than 5 or 6 hours each day.
If you average 50 miles an hour you can cover 300 miles in a 6 hour drive. If driving alone or with a spouse who falls asleep within ten minutes of beginning a journey, plan on listening to an audio book in the car. On one of my solo trips to Canada I took along The Thornbirds, 15 hours of audio. Stop at least once each hour for 10 or 15 minutes. Everyone should get out of the car at every stop to stretch, visit the restroom, change drivers, put on or take off outerwear, get a snack and a drink.

4) Carry plenty of water and appropriate snacks.
Messy drippy fruit is not as appropriate in a car as a bag of dry cereal. Avoid caffeinated soft drinks for kids unless you like them bouncing off the walls. Also avoid excessively salty items. The salt causes travelers to drink more fluids and therefore require more frequent restroom stops. It also raises blood pressure.

5) On the subject of rest stops
I have the following suggestions if State maintained highway stops are not available: Chain stores (both grocery chains and the Target and K-mart type chain stores) always have restroom facilities. Shopping malls - not strip malls - but true shopping malls have mall facilities as well as those to be found in large department stores. Hotels with meeting facilities also have restrooms available either at the lobby level or at the mezzanine level. And, of course, if you are willing to purchase food or drink items, fast food chains also work. Candidly, I try to avoid gas station restrooms. They are frequently filthy or require announcing to the world that you require the key to the restroom.

6) Always carry an emergency stash of cash.
There are still places that don't accept credit or debit cards, so you may need cash in an emergency. Keep your cash out of sight and on your person. Don't flash it around. Nothing can spoil your road trip faster than being mugged.

7) Reserve every night's lodging before leaving home.
If you are following a planned itinerary this relieves you of concern about arriving at a destination and being unable to find lodging. If you are taking a follow-your-nose type adventure (only do this without children) and don't want to reserve lodging because you don't know where you are going or when you will get there, then each morning before you leave the previous night's lodging make reservations for the current day's overnight stop.

8) Consider staying at a base location and making day trips to nearby sites.
This is especially convenient when traveling with kids. You need not pack and unpack every day. If you are staying somewhere with amenities then you know what you can look forward to after each day's adventure. The kids have the security of knowing where they will spend the night and what they can look forward to.

9) Make certain all electronics are fully charged before hitting the road
Depending on the circumstances and purpose of the trip you will probably carry with you an assortment of electronic items. Make certain that all items are fully charged before you leave home. Also make absolutely certain you carry power cords and chargers for each item you bring. And, equally important, bring a power strip with you. Frequently lodgings will have only one accessible outlet. If this is the case you can still charge your cell phone, iPod, video camera, and notebook computer all at the same time from just one source. For items that do not run on rechargeable batteries, like flashlights and still cameras, bring spare batteries.

10) Be prepared for the unexpected.
Carry first aid supplies, emergency rations, a strong flash light and at least one spare blanket. Have a working GPS and road maps of the area where you are traveling. Pre-program your cell phone with an ICE (in case of emergency) number. Emergency personnel will look for ICE on your cell to contact the person you would wish to have notified if something serious happens.

None of these ideas are rocket science. But a little bit of planning and forethought can make a road trip more enjoyable. And, if you are like me, you get as much pleasure out of planning the trip as making it.