Tuning out of the world for two weeks as you take to the tarmac in your beloved stallion is as good as it gets. It’s why we call it the Great American Roadtrip and the reason why one in four people make this an annual pilgrimage of theirs. Adventure, peace and quietness, self-discovery, and nostalgia; these are just a few reasons why we love it so.
However, that doesn’t mean every road trip is destined to be great. It takes more than just stepping into the driver’s seat of a car, pulling out a map and screeching off toward the horizon with a smile etched deep into your face. The greatest road trips require a dollop of planning.
Read on for a list of things you might want to consider when planning a road trip.
1. Pick Your Pals Wisely
Trust us; there is nothing worse than being locked into a road trip with someone you’re not compatible with. Having someone who wants to see totally different things, won’t drink cheap coffee, not willing to spend at all, a loud singer, backseat driver or anything else that might fall within this bell curve will certainly drive you bonkers.
2. Budget & Budget Well
The secret to budgeting is to be realistic about what you have to spend and how you want to spend it. Having a budget of $10 a day and an expectation to stay in five-star hotels isn’t going to go down well. So, do a bit of planning, look at where you can save and what you are willing to splurge on so that you will have an idea how much you can spend on a day-to-day basis.
3. Good Cars Only
There is something totally charming and film-like about driving down the west coast in a beat-up rust-bucket. However, do this and you are rolling the dice in the worst way ever. And it’s not just rust-buckets that qualify either; it’s cars that fall short on fuel economy, passenger comfort, trunk space, lack of cruise control and off-road ability. These are all the marks of non-road-trip-worthy cars.
4. Ride With Sense, Okay
The greatest road trips are the ones you walk away from. It’s as simple as that. To give you some advice on what constitutes as riding with sense, it’s things like; don’t have your feet on the dash because airbags deploy at 220mph, don’t drive when you are tired because fatigue is one of the most common causes of road accidents, don’t hover in a truck’s blind spot because, well, visit www.DaveAbels.com to find out why and don’t drink and or anything like that. That sort of common sense stuff.
5. Get Off The Highway
Road trips are not meant to be a straight line between A and B, or you getting from A to B in the fastest time possible. They are meant to be an adventure into the great outdoors and that means leaving the highway and taking the good old scenic route. Chances are, the back streets will become the highlight of your trip.
