Road Trip Planning
The best road trips
There is nothing I look forward to more than packing up my car and driving off into the sunset. My boyfriend and I religiously make time for a yearly road trip. This year, we set off for my brother's wedding in Seattle. Departing from LA, we were equipped with AAA tour books in hand, maps, snacks, and enough "driving mixes" to entertain us on the miles ahead.
Make it the Trip of a Lifetime
The key to a good road trip is planning, but not losing spontaneity. The wonderful thing about driving is you don't have deadlines, flights; check ins, or luggage to worry about. If something is of interest you can veer off in new directions.
My idea of planning entails making sure you are financially covered for gas, food, and lodging, getting the necessary check ups and oil changes on your car, and having general knowledge of what is of interest to you. Travel clubs like AAA will actually do a free full car inspection for you before you hit the road. Making sure your tires are inflated, you have a spare in the trunk and necessary tools like jumper cables and flares will help you if something happens out of cell range.
Pre-planning
Before we set out, I went through my tour guides and highlighted all the hotels in our price range; dog eared pages with historical or funny land marks, and put big circles around restaurants I knew we'd love.
I'm a nature buff, so driving through the mountains in Oregon was stunning. Had it not been for a torrential rainfall, we would have pulled over to hike. Luckily, with a break in the clouds, we pulled into a rest stop and had a picnic lunch and a little nap in the sunshine.
One of the things I love most about road trips is the sense of anonymity that surrounds you. Aside from the two of us, no one knew exactly where we were. We pulled off one night, found a little hotel and stopped into a family owned pizza parlor. The pizza was so good we joked about driving the 16 hrs to grab a slice the week after we got home.
Another night, we pulled into a college town to get some rest and relaxation and ended up taking a stroll in the wee hours of the morning. We grabbed burritos at an all night joint and snuggled in to watch old TV reruns and enjoy complimentary hot cocoa.
The most amazing thing about road trips is the memories you form. Traveling alone, or with a loved one, you will most assuredly experience new things and find new and remarkable places you would have never known about.
I recommend road trips whenever I hear a friend talking about an upcoming vacation. With a little planning and foresight, you will have an incredible experience you will never forget.
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