ROAD TRIP!
If you find yourself with some vacation days a road trip is a great, affordable vacation idea. If, like us, you have a lot of young kids, road trips are the ideal vacation. Traveling with your own car can be the most comfortable and convenient way to travel with kids because it is like your house on wheels.
It can also be a really low stress vacation. I have a great resource to help ensure that your trip is as low stress as possible.
If you want to plan an epic trip, I got you covered.
I have a great Road Trip Planner for you to download and print. This planner will give you great pages to organize the whole thing and make sure you are not feeling overwhelmed or disorganized as you embark on your adventure!
So download that thing and let’s get started!
Plan a Destination
Chances are you have an idea about where you want to go. It might be a vague idea, like the beach, the mountains or an educational destination. Even if you want to have multiple stops on your road trip, start with the main destination, then we can fill in the rest. Choosing the big destination will help you figure out your timeline and narrow down your route choices.
If you are looking for some inspiration on a destination, I love OnlyInYourState.com, they have some really cool lists of places you might not know about in your own backyard. You could also use this tool to explore great sights in neighboring states.
Growing up, we were always going on a road trip to visit family in another state, so there was really no discussion about the destination. This might be your objective too, but don’t stop there!
The first step is to get an exact destination in mind, but with a road trip, the journey is just as important. Let’s plan to have a great trip, not just a great destination.
Add Some Points of Interest
Once you have your main destination, look at the route on Google Maps and see if anything stands out. Are you passing close to Atlanta? The redwoods? A friend from College? If nothing stands out try using RoadTrippers to explore some points of interest along your route.
Road Trippers has some limitations using their free version, but it is a great discovery tool. Once you plug in your main destination, it will show you restaurants, points of interest, landmarks, nightlife, and camping/RV parks along your route. They only allow 5 stops when planning a trip. If you are planning a longer, more detailed trip, use the tool for each leg of the drive individually.
It would be good to include something for everyone. A great BBQ place that Dad will love, a museum for your art lover and a bookstore for the kids. Change it up, keep it interesting.
You can download my road trip planning workbook here, it has some great inspiration for choosing the points of interest.
Planning a Timeline
Once you have added a few stops it’s time to split the distance up into smaller chunks. I would recommend dividing drive time into about 5-6 hour legs with stops every 2 hours.
If all the passengers are adults the stops are less important, and you might want to stretch it out to every 3 hours.
If you have a newborn or very young child you want to stick to that 2 hour schedule. This is a safety issue for the very young, if they are allowed to stay in one position for too long they can slump into a position that restricts their breathing. Make sure you monitor your kids in the car to make sure they are staying appropriately strapped into their seats and breathing.
WHAT?! EvErY tWo HoUrS?!?! Ok, Dad, I know, it seems like a lot. My family drove 12 hours each way to visit family twice a year for my entire childhood. We stopped once, at the same half way gas station every year, for over a decade. There were a lot of complaints as we grew up that we never took a vacation. Making these stops will make the trip a vacation. Spending the night somewhere, stopping at a museum, it’s worth it. I promise.
For Example
Two plans, one prioritizes speed, one prioritizes enjoying the trip.
Dallas to DC Family Road Trip
Total Drive Time: 19 Hours 27 Minutes
| Drive Time | Point of Interest | Sleep Plan | Timeline | ||
| Day 1 | Dallas to Little Rock, Ak | 4h 40m | AirBnB in the City | Leave Friday | |
| Day 2 | Little Rock to Nashville, TN | 5h 9m | Campground Outside the City | Saturday | |
| Day 3 | Nashville to Roanoke, VA | 6h 33m2 | Shirley’s Bed and Breakfast | Sunday | |
| Day 4 | Roanoke to Washington DC | 3h 46m | Arrive Monday Afternoon |
| Drive Time | Sleep | Timeline | ||
| Day 1 | Dallas to Nashville | 9h 43m | Off Highway Hotel | Leave Saturday Before Dawn |
| Day 2 | Nashville to DC | 9h 58m | Arrive Sunday Evening |
Why Slowing Down Will Save You Time
As you can see, prioritizing speed on the drive you are not really gaining that much time at the location. In example 1 you arrive on Monday early afternoon, while in the second example you arrive Sunday evening. Consider organizing your time differently and enjoy the trip.
If you are only driving 4 to 6 hours a day, you can leave Friday after work. This is a great option if your vacation time is short.
Driving less each day makes the overnight more enjoyable. If you only have 4 hours to drive that day, it’s easier to say yes to stopping to see the world’s largest ball of yarn.
Having a plan to stop will make it smoother and quicker than just pulling off the highway to find a clean bathroom for your 10 year old every 6 hours.
Budget
Once you have decided where you are going, and how long you will be gone, let’s talk money.
Gas
Road trips have a few set costs; gas, food, lodging, and entertainment. You can spend as much or as little as you want in all these categories except gas. If you have already chosen your destination, you have a set gas cost, so let’s start with that.
Gas cost = Miles to drive divided by your car’s Miles Per Gallon x cost of gas per gallon.
Let’s look at the Texas to DC trip again for an example
Miles: 1,330
Car’s MPG: 19
Current Gas Prices In My Area: 2.46
1330÷ 19 × 2.46 = $172.2
I’ll round that up and add it to the budget worksheet.
| Category | Cost | Notes | Remaining |
| Gas | $200 | 3 tanks of gas | $700 |
| Food | |||
| Lodging | |||
| Fun |
I like having that final column to keep a running total of money I have left after an expense. This makes the most sense for me.
Tolls
Dont forget that may states have toll roads, there are toll roads internationally as well. The fine for missing a toll payment in Puerto Rico is $100.
Tolls are so complex that I wrote a whole separate guide to make sure you have all the information that you need about which toll transponder you may want to use, if you should rent one in a rental car, and how to save money on tolls.
Be sure to check it out so you aren’t surprised by a toll, you can even find out which state charges up to $250 per missed toll! Yikes.
Food
This will include all the food you are packing, and any food you plan to buy on the road. I like to start with my normal weekly food budget, $125. It is helpful to divide that by the number of days you will be on the road and see if that is a reasonable amount to feed everyone. For this imaginary trip, that is 125/7 days is only $17 a day. I start here then add more to accommodate for the convenience food and restaurant trips.
I recommend creating a separate budget like this for your road days so that you will have a good idea about how much money you have for food at your destination.
Sample Plan:
| Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | |
| Breakfast | Rolls with Cheese | Oatmeal Packets | Included with Hotel |
| Lunch | PB&J with Chips | Lunchmeat Sandwich | Fast Food |
| Dinner | Canned Soup with Crackers | Dinner with Millers | Nachos in Hot Logic |
| Approx Cost | $15 | $17 | $35 |
There are many different ways to plan your food on the road. I think a Hot Logic is an invaluable tool to keep costs down and satisfaction high. It can warm food, or cook food that you buy at a grocery store. Im a Hot Logic superfan, unapologetically. You can see me raving about it on my YouTube chanel.
Research noteworthy restaurants in your destination city and try them out!
| Category | Cost | Notes | Remaining |
| Gas | $200 | 3 tanks of gas | $700 |
| Food | $225 | Fast Food ($35/trip) | $475 |
| Lodging | |||
| Fun |
Find Places to Sleep
I recently found this YouTube video that introduced me to a bunch of great websites to find cool accommodations! If I have convinced you to slow down and enjoy the trip, this is your next step. Reserve your sleeping spots!
Hip Camp is a collection of campsites, cabins and RV parks. Their tagline “Find yourself outside” is inspiring. This was a really great experience booking. They start by giving you a really simple survey so they can recommend properties that might interest you. This is a great option if you are planning to camp, glamp or car camp with your family. You can filter by amenities that are important to you, such as RV hookups, toilets or picnic tables.
If you are new to my site, you might have already guessed that I am obsessed with my van. We have spent the night in our van quite a few times. I think this is a really great option for your family on a road trip. If you are hesitant to stop because of cost, this is such an affordable way to jazz up your road trip. A lake, swimming pool or even just a playground is going to make a memorable day for the kids. You can find a great affordable spot to park on Hip Camp.
This is a very impressive collection of more rustic places to sleep. Great for finding farms, treehouses, cabins and retreat center types of locations. We have a treehouse getaway in our future!
On the other hand, Tablet Hotels is a collection of boutique and luxury hotels. This is why you want to slow down and soak in the luxury. This might seem excessive for a road trip, and for some it is, but this is a good gift for your family. Let everyone experience a really beautiful hotel.
My family has used AirBnB often. We have used it for last minute stays when we were just having a great time and did not want to go home. I love that you can message with a host and that their selection is HUGE. It can take some getting used to, but staying with regular people is awesome. There are options for every level of comfort. You can stay in someone’s guest room or a complete rental home to yourself, and since the selection is so big there is almost always something available. If you have not tried AirBnB I can not recommend it highly enough. This is a really great option if you decided last minute to stop and sleep. They have an instant booking filter which will show you what is available immediately.
| Category | Cost | Notes | Remaining |
| Gas | $200 | 3 tanks of gas | $700 |
| Food | $225 | Fast Food ($35/trip) | $475 |
| Lodging | $300 | 3 Overnights | $175 |
| Fun | $175 |
Find Places to Eat
I like starting with Road Trippers for discovering neat places along your route. They will help you find interesting and unique places that you would not find close to home. Search the menus and read reviews and add one of these local gems to your itinerary.
You do not need to plan every meal, and food is a big part of entertainment on a vacation, but having a few cool places chosen ahead of time is a good idea.
You can spice things up by putting a few choices in a hat and have someone pick the place you’ll eat. You could also choose a theme for the day, like mexican, foods that start with C, round food or only new places. Helps make the decisions more fun.
Create a Master Plan
Get it all on one page.
Having all the plans written down on a really simple chart is going to make it easier to keep everyone on the same page. It will also make packing easier. Having everything accessible at the right time will keep the kids comfortable and mom sane.
Write this down before you start packing and keep it out for yourself to add notes as you tie up loose ends and communicate with anyone else connected to the trip.
I love being able to share this with the people who will be house sitting for us, and the friends and family we will be visiting on the road.
Here is my imaginary TX to DC Itinerary:
| Breakfast | Morning | Lunch | Afternoon | Dinner | Evening | Bags | |
| Day 1 | At Home | Drive to Little Rock Sleep in AirBNB | Black SuitcaseToiletry Bag | ||||
| Day 2 | Included | Visit Playground | Sandwiches in Car | Drive | Fast Food | Drive to Nashville Campground | Black ToteSleeping Bags |
| Day 3 | Oatmeal Packets | Playground | Fat Mos Burgers | Drive | Sandwiches in Car | Drive and Arrive in Roanoke Wall Tents | |
| Day 4 | Included | Drive | Lunch in DC Chick-Fil-A | Monument Walk | Packed Food | Sleep at the Miller’s House | |
| Day 5 | Doughnuts | Hang Out with Miller | Lunch together | Smithsonian | Packed Food | Millers | |
Create Detailed Packing Lists
Now that you have the whole trip planned out, make a packing plan.
When you are traveling as a family, pack as a family. Each destination should be packed together. This is going to make it much easier to get out of the car at each stop. You will just grab what you need.
Even if you are traveling alone, I recommend that you pack a separate bag for each location. Once you have used it, you can just put the dirty laundry back in the bag and then it is all contained and stays well organized throughout the trip.
My lists might looks like this
| Little Rock5 Outfits5 PjsFlip FlopsSocksWall Chargers | Nashville5 Outfits5 PjsSocksWool Base LayersMarshmallows | ToiletriesToothbrushesToothpasteRazorsTweezers | Baby BagDiapersWipesSnacksToy Bag | Kid Backpacks2 Look and Find BooksColored PencilsBlank Notebooks |
Pack
Put the bags together. Packing cubes like these are a very popular option and I have used them. Many moms use ziplocs for this as well. When I am planning a longer trip for my family I have sewed up a bunch of drawstring bags use as packing cubes to save on plastic use.
In my van I use totes instead of suitcases for some stops. We are camping on the way to one stop, the things we need for that night are in a tote. It works better to organize the car like your house when you will be sleeping in it. (We have built out our van a little so that we can sleep in it).
There are a lot of ways you can choose to pack, just make sure that you can easily grab what you need for each stop on the trip without unpacking everything every time.
Whatever you use, keep it organized and make sure to pack a large bag or trash bag for dirty laundry and when possible, do a load of laundry. Stinky dirty clothes make the car smell and a big pile of laundry is not the best souvenir.
Get the Car Checked Out
No matter how new your car is, ask a mechanic to check it out. A roadside emergency will be memorable, but probably not in the best way.
I like to use this checklist from a Girl’s Guide to Cars and I tell our mechanic that we are going on a long trip and they should be able to tell you if there are any concerning issues. You might want to consider signing up for a roadside assistance program, like AAA. They can offer help if your battery dies, a tire pops or you need a tow.
Arrange the Car Seats and Luggage
I wrote a post about how to arrange the car seats in a 12 or 15 passenger van. That was very eye opening. Make sure you choose the safest position in your car for any car seats (the middle of the second row in most cars). Once everyone has a seat, it’s time to pack it in!
Pack in the order of the trip. So start by packing the last things you will need and put the things for the first night on top! This is easy to overlook. When there are so many moving parts, by the time you get to packing you might have a lot of helpers and chaos may have set in.
If you do nothing else, know where the toiletry bag is and have one outfit per person in an easily accessible bag. Your future exhausted self will thank you.
Document the Trip
Get the most bang for your buck by making sure you have a plan to document the trip. You can take the pictures and videos and work on them when you get home, or you can build a family journal on the road while you are still on the trip.
I have a bunch of ideas for creatively documenting your trip, you can read about them here.
Whatever you do, make sure you document the awesomeness of the trip. Its gonna be great.
Plan the Next One
Make sure you put the next trip on the calendar! Make it something you do on the ride home.
The irony of vacation is that, when you get home you are ready for a vacation. Make sure you have something to look forward to when this one is over.
If you are like us, and you get 1-2 weeks of vacation every 12 months, plan a weekend. Do not let it be a year until the next trip.
Hey Momma,
Ok, this was undoubtedly a lot of work, I hope it was fun work, but work. You are amazing and this is a great gift you are giving your family. Thank you for investing in your family. Time to treat yourself. Its ok to feed them frozen pizza and some takeout for the next few days while you recoup.
I’m so glad we did this.
Are y’all doing a road trip this year?
