Prep for a Road Trip in 10 Easy Steps
This past summer, my husband and I took our two kids (ages 3 and 1) on a road trip from Milwaukee, WI to Albuquerque, NM. I swear we’re not entirely crazy, only a little.
Luckily for you, our little crazy gives you a massive opportunity to easily prep for your own road trip! Here’s what I learned and how I would break down the planning of a road trip in 10 easy-to-digest steps!
Research, research, research
The first step in my road trip process involved research. What stops did we want to make? How far were we willing to drive in one day? What big cities or attractions did we want to hit along the way? What was our timeline and how many stops could we make to make sure we made it to our prime destination on time? I began by using Google Maps to figure out what cities were between my two stops and whether or not I wanted to take the time to stop at them.
Organize your cities and stops
Next, I organized my thoughts in the Notes App. This was the easiest for Eric and I because we could share it and easily add/adjust anything we wanted too! I mapped out which cities we wanted to stop in, how many nights/days we planned to stay, the basic itinerary I wanted to hit while in each city, and the best areas to find accommodations. This also helped me see how long of a time we would be gone for and I could adjust accordingly if we wanted more or less time in any one spot.
Check your vehicle/bring it in for maintenance
This was one of Eric’s main tasks. As we were taking his vehicle, he made sure that we were up-to-date on our oil change, that our tires looked good, and that any other necessary maintenance was taken care of. I also took the time to wash and vacuum out the car as we knew we would basically be living in it for 2 weeks.
Create a packing list
We organized our packing list in the Notes App as well and this was super helpful! We created separate packing lists for ourselves, our kids, snacks, food, utensils, plates, etc. Starting this list way in advance was helpful as we had time to add to the list before we left. This helped ensure that we didn’t forget anything essential!
Put together an emergency first-aid kit
I had been meaning to put together a car first aid kit for a long time and this finally helped me do it! I grabbed a bag that would hold all of the items and stocked up on bandaids, Neosporin, tweezers, a thermometer, gauze - really anything I thought would be useful in case someone got injured. It gave us a peace of mind while we were on the road to have this handy!
Book Accommodations
We did a lot of research on Airbnb vs. Hotels. Ultimately, we found that price-wise both were pretty comparable. It then came down to what area we wanted to be in within the city. For the most part, if we chose an AirBnb, we knew we were not going to be staying downtown. As we had a car, we were fine with this as we could easily get to wherever we needed without worrying about transportation! The few times we did book at a hotel we chose Residence Inns or Springfield Suites in order to have extra rooms to accommodate our kids. These hotels were nice because they offered free breakfast and gave us one less thing to worry about in the morning!
Bring food/beverages/snacks
….Which brings me to my next point - food! We made sure to pack both breakfast and lunch foods so that we didn’t have to waste time or money in restaurants. We brought a cooler for some lunch meats, cheeses, fruits, milk, etc. and packed a large tupperware bin with non-perishables as well as plates, silverware, tupperware containers, coffee, coffee filters, etc. This was a great way for us to organize things and cut back on our expenses while away. We also made sure to have snacks handy for the car rides and packed water bottles and milk cups for our kids! We rarely had issues with food on this trip and I think it was because of our organization in this area with it.
Entertainment
Bring things to entertain your kids and you. If you believe in iPads for a kid, use it. If you don’t have wifi in your car or a hotspot on your phone (or even if you do because internet was shotty at best in a lot of spots!), make sure to download some shows or movies for offline viewing. The iPad saved us with our 3 year old. I also bought new toys and books from the Target dollar section to give to them on the trip. The novelty of these items were incredible and they really did keep both of my kids entertained much longer than they should have! For yourself, download a playlist or grab some podcasts to listen too! The days in the car got very long at times.
Alert neighbors/family to your itinerary
We printed off our itinerary and gave copies to our families so that they had some idea of where we would be. We also made sure to text our families every day letting them know where we were and what destination we had made it too. We also let a few of our trusted neighbors know that we would be gone for 2 weeks and asked them to kindly keep an eye on our house.
Go with the flow
Even the best laid plans can go awry. In both the planning and execution stages of a road trip, remember to pivot if you need too! If one accommodation doesn’t work, there is probably a better one waiting for you. Some sites may close unexpectedly; be prepared to be unprepared at times. Make sure you bring extra cash with you, just in case. Above all, enjoy your trip!
Until next time,
