When you are planning a road trip, snacks are a pillar in the planning. I asked a group of road trip lovers what their favorite snacks are and the results were amazing.
769 votes for 222 individual snack choices, some of the choices were way out there and some overall favorites emerged.
Most Popular Road Trip Snacks
The absolute favorite, time honored road trip snacks are:
Beef Jerky
Trail Mix
Twizzlers
Nuts
Apples
These snacks are great because they don’t leave crumbs, keep you full and keep you awake!
These snacks got almost a quarter of all the votes for snacks!
Other Popular Snacks:
These snacks also got quite a few votes:
| 6. Fruit | 10. Popcorn | 14. Chips |
| 7. Sunflower Seeds | 11. Water | 15. Peanuts |
| 8. String Cheese | 12. Cheese and Crackers | 16.Pringles |
| 9. Grapes | 13. Coffee |
Sometimes you just need some snack inspiration, so here is a monster list of snacks for your next trip.
Once you have shopped all the snacks, time to organize it all for the trip.
How to Organize Road Trip Snacks
The van can get messy so fast on a road trip, but there are a few tips that work for me to keep the snacks organized and the car a bit cleaner.
Buy Enough
Plan to have two stocks of road trip snacks, one for the trip there and one for the way back.
I usually just buy doubles of our snacks and pack one away in a paper grocery bag. I try to keep it out of sight of everyone so it does not get opened before we need it.
Use a Cooler
A traditional cooler is great for keeping some drinks cold and allow you to pack things like lunch meat and cheese.
We have this Igloo cooler, it fits in our van well, has wheels and keeps things cold for quite a long time. This is an affiliate link, if you choose to purchase after you click the link I will receive a commission at no cost to you.
I keep the cooler organized by adding drinks on one side and food on the other, I keep a shoebox sized tupperware in the cooler to help ensure that my lunchmeat and cheese do not get wet.
This works well for us and makes it easy to grab out exactly what we need when it is time to make sandwiches.
Plan Your Meals
I know, its vacation and you just want to relax, but having a plan will make it simple to put together meals.
Planning meals does not mean you cannot eat out or stop at cool local stops, but you can have some options planned.
You can use this printable road trip meal planner if you want to make sure you have all the bases covered.
I think it is important to plan some fun meals as well, those can be planned and packed or purchased on the road. We have a large family, so sometimes we buy a main like a big box of chicken nuggets, then eat chips on the side to save money.
You can read a few more large family fast food hacks in the linked post.
Backseat Trash
When you pass back snacks to your kids, do not pass back anything that can turn into little pieces. Styrofoam is banned from the backseat in my car. We get the kids milks or juice boxes because it is just going to be picked into tiny pieces.
Be careful not to pass back any trash unless you have a trash can in the back seat. Consider getting food baskets, like these on Amazon (affiliate link), and line them with a napkin to pass back food.
We put a basket between the car seats and line it with a grocery bag so that there is a place to put the trash.
Types of Road Trip Snacks
Remember the golden rule of road trip snacks:
No matter how old you get, buying snacks for a road trip should look like an unsupervised 9 year old was given $100.
In my survey 97 votes went to candy, and over 50% of the road trip favorites included gas station snacks.
Well, you may be a crazed 9 year old snacker, or a high protein low carb, unprocessed, vegan or gluten free road trip snacker and if you are you will find inspiration in the list that came from the survey.
Here is the oddly specific list of snacks recommended by real road trip fans. (You can find the printable version here.)
Sweet
Fudge Rounds
Lemon Drops
Cinnamon Raisin Bagels
Dried Mango
Raisins
Cereal Bars
Applesauce Pouches
Purines
Dried Cherries
Chocolate Covered Almonds
Mint Extra Gum
Jelly Bellys
Craisins
Golden Oreos
Watermelon Sour Patch Kids
Strawberry Lifesavers
Charleston Chew
Muddy Buddies
Sour Patch Kids
Mounds
Rice Krispy Treats
Black Licorice
FIreballs
Strawberry Licorice
Swedish Fish
Nilla Wafers
Red Hots
Watermelon
Brownie Brittle
Reeses PB Cups
Yogurt Covered Raisins
PB and Fluff Sandwich
Runts
Snickers
Kettle Corn
Teddy Grahams
Pecan Log Roll
Mini Cupcakes
Pop Tarts
Sour Gummy Worms
Starbursts
Cookies
Fig Newtons
Dry Honey Nut Cheerios
Kind Bars
Tootsie Pops
Strawberries
Mixed Berry Skittles
Mandarins
Nutter Butters
Little Debbie Cakes
Bananas
Chocolate
M&Ms
Grapes
Twizzlers
Apples
Peanut M&Ms
Salty
Peanuts
Cherry Turkey Jerky
Pumpkin Seeds
Olives
Cheese Curds
Beef and Cheese Sticks
Lime and Jalapeno Chips
Sun Chips
Pea Crisps
Costco Korean Pork Jerky
Pepperoni
Road Trip Charcuterie Box
Roasted Vegetables
Fritos
PB Crackers
Rolled Lunchmeat
Cheese Whisps
Pimento Cheese with Celery
Avocado
Sour Cream and Onion Chips
Stuffed Grape Leaves
Rotisserie Chicken
Summer Sausage
Tuna in Oil
Chicharones
Hot Dogs
Chili Cheese Fritos with Bean Dip
Pizza
Fried Chicken
Smoked Almond
Cool Ranch Doritos
Pizza Combos
Dot Pretzels
Sesame Sticks
Trail Mix
Cheeto Puffs
PB Filled Pretzels
Cheese Crackers
Cheez Wiz
Pepitas
Chicken N Biscuit Crackers
Corn Nuts
Goldfish
Nacho Cheese Doritos
PB Cheese Crackers
Hummus and Carrot Chips
Funyuns
Chex Mix
Slim Jims
Salami
Cheese
Celery and Peanut Butter
Almonds
Pistachios
Cheez-its
Veggies and Ranch Dip
Pringles
Popcorn
Sunflower Seeds
Mixed Nuts
Beef Jerky
Spicey
Firecrackers (Sardines in Oil with Crushed Red Pepper)
Flaming Hot Cheetos
Lime and Jalapeno Chips
Wasabi Peas
Takis
Hot Tamales
Hot and Spicy Pork Rinds
Drinks
Water
Coffee
Dr. Pepper
Red Bull
Bang Energy
Monster Energy
Iced Tea
Coke
Zevia
Diet Coke
Iced Coffee
Body Armor
Diet Sprite
Mt Dew
Green Tea
Gatorade
Sparkling Water
Cherry Coke
Peace Tea
Low Carb
Firecrackers (Sardines in oil with red pepper flakes)
Cherry Turkey Jerky
Mint Extra Gum
Carrot Chips
Cheese Curds
Beef and Cheese Sticks
Pepperoni
Iced Coffee
Road Trip Charcuterie
Roasted Veg
Rolled Lunchmeat and Cheese
Chicharones
Cheese Whisps
Pimento Cheese with Celery
Avocado with Everything Seasoning
Rotisserie Chicken
Pecans
Summer Sausage
Breakfast Sausage
Tuna in Oil
Hot Dogs
Low Carb Protein Shake
Smoked Almonds
Boiled Peanuts
Pork Rinds
Bell Pepper Strips
Macadamia Nuts
Pepitas
Peanuts
Cucumbers
Beef Sticks
Salami
Boiled Eggs
Pistachios
Cashews
String Cheese
Sunflower Seeds
Beef Jerky
Homemade
Rice Krispy Treats
Pimento Cheese
Stuffed Grape Leaves
Granola
Muddy Buddies
Banana Bread
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chex Mix
Trail Mix
Pumpkin Bread
Fresh
Berries
Raspberries
Strawberries
Mixed Berries
Vegetables
Carrots
Celery
Olives
Bell Pepper
Snap Peas
Avocado
Fruit
Bananas
Apples
Mandarin
Grapes
Watermelon
Dried Fruit
Dried Mango
Dried Apples
Purines
Raisins
Dried Cherries
Craisins
On the Road
Pecan Roll
Buc Ee’s Nuggets
McDonald’s Sausage Egg and Cheese
Local Pizza
Local Jerky
BucEe’s
Golden Ribs
Kolache
Rotisserie Chicken
Candy
Lemon Drops
Fruit Snacks
Chocolate Covered Almonds
Mint Extra Gum
Jelly Belly
Sour Candy
Watermelon Sour Patch Kids
Strawberry Lifesavers
Charleston Chew
Sour Punch
Mounds
Sour Gummy Worms
Starbursts
Gummy Worms
Tootsie Pops
Gummy Bears
Rum Butter Life Savers
Mixed Berry Skittles
Black Licorice
M&Ms
Twizzlers
Sour Patch Kids
Peanut M&Ms
Fireballs
Strawberry Licorice
Swedish Fish
Red Hots
Reeses Cups
Runts
Snickers
Sour Patch Kids
Protein
Rolled Lunchmeat and Cheese
Cheese Whisps
Pimento Cheese and Celery
Rotisserie Chicken
Pecands
Sausage
Tuna in Oil
Meat and Cheese with Crackers
Slim Jims
Protein Bars
String Cheese
Trail Mix
Protein Shakes
Beef Jerky
Boiled Eggs
Bell Pepper Strips and Hummus
Kind Bars
Cheese Curds
Almond Butter
Pepperoni
Yogurt
Pepitas
Crunchy
Kind Bars
Lay’s Honey BBQ Chips
Dots Pretzels
Trail Mix Bars
Fritos
Carrot Chips
Lime Jalapeno Chips
Sun Chips
Pea Crisps
Rice Krispy Treats
Pizza Combos
Sesame Sticks
Pretzel Rods
Chicken N Biscuit Crackers
Crackers
Cheeto Puffs
Takis
Dry Cereal
Honey Nut Cheerios
Cinnamon Toast Crunch
Shredded Wheat
Life
Corn Nuts
Baby Carrots
Doritos
Funyuns
Chex Mix
Flamin Hot Fritos
Chocolate Covered Almonds
Brownie Brittle
No Crumbs
Twizzlers
Beef Jerky
Apples
String Cheese
Boiled Eggs
Almonds
Beef Sticks
Bell Pepper Strips
Pepitas
Baby Carrots
Mandarins
Fruit Leather
Dried Apples
Shelf Stable (No Cooler)
Rice Krispies
Candy
Avocado
Banana Bread
Granola
Nuts
Protein Shakes (powder)
Tuna Snack Packs
Smoked Almonds
Cupcakes
Boiled Peanuts
Wasabi Peas
Fruit Leather
Sardines
Tuna in Oil
Pumpkin Seeds
Applesauce Pouches
Purines
Dried Cherries
Lay’s Honey BBQ Chips
Strawberry Lifesavers
Pizza Combos
Pretzels
Pop Tarts
Sour Gummy Worms
Cookies
Bugles
Corn Nuts
Peanut Butter
Bread
Beef Sticks
Protein Bars
M&Ms
Cheez-its
Pringles
Twizzlers
Beef Jerky
Trail Mix
Toddler Snacks
Goldfish
Snap Peas
PB Crackers
Nilla wafers
Watermelon
Avocado
Banana Bread
Teddy Grahams
Yogurt Covered Raisins
Raisins
Chips
Fruit Leather
Dried Apples
Dried Mango
M&Ms (Or Peanut)
Raspberries
Cereal Bars
Applesauce Pouches
Dried Cherries
Carrot Chips
Olives
Bagels
Sandwiches
Rolled Lunch Meat and Cheese
Pretzels
Cookies
Bell Pepper Strips
Fig Newtons
Bananas
Cheese
Chocolate Chips
Boiled Eggs
Cheez-its
Pringles
String Cheese
Apple Slices
Orange Slices
Mandarins
Grapes (Cut in Half)
