When planning a road trip we usually think of summer, when the kids are off of school and you have more freedom. The problem with taking a road trip in the summer is the crowds! Is there a best time to take a road trip?
The best time to take a road trip is when you have 8 days to spend traveling. This is the ideal length of a road trip. Road trips are possible any time of year, and there are wonderful destinations to visit year round. Plan to drive no more than 2-300 miles a day and be sure to check to see that things are open when you plan to visit.
The Grand Canyon is on our family bucket list and we love to travel off-season, but the North Rim of the Grand Canyon is closed December to May.
If you limit road trips to the summer you will miss amazing destinations like the fall leaves in New England or snowbirding in Florida.
I think there are great reasons to take a road trip at any time of year.
Winter
Snowbird to somewhere warm! Or drive out to the mountains and learn to ski!
If you are not accustomed to driving in the snow, be sure to take every precaution and check to be sure that the tires are ready for snow.
Spring
Spring is a great time to travel because the weather is mild. This is a great time to visit some of those outdoor attractions like monuments and waterfalls.
Spring hikes are very memorable.
Summer
Summer is the peak time to take a road trip and there are pros and cons to traveling in the peak season.
The best thing about road tripping in the summer is that there is so much to do! Lots of festivals, events, fairs and concert.
The drawback is the crowds, at events and on the highway. Traffic and congestion in popular destinations is something to consider when traveling in the summer.
Fall
Fall road trips are all about the foliage, unless these are college visit trips with your new Junior or Senior.
Either way, plan to spend some time in the North East. The best foliage in the US is found in New Hampshire and Vermont, but Colorado and New Mexico also have some amazing fall destinations.
Fall road trips are magical.
I am a planner and I love to lay out a year of vacations. If you hope to do some big road trips this year I think you should plan a few.
When you have kids in school it is important to plan with their schools for any missed time. This is a super hot topic among families that love to travel. If you feel comfortable taking your kids out of school, and your school policies allow it, then go for it.
If you are an aspiring family, but you are not able to or not comfortable pulling the kids out of school, plan lots of three day weekends. These are often less busy than summer months for popular tourist locations.
Best Time for a Cross Country Road Trip
When planning a road trip, consider the destinations that are most important to you. Plan to spread them out over the course of your trip.
As a general rule, you should plan to cover no more than 300 miles in a single day. If you plan to do a cross country road trip, you are looking at 2500-3500 miles. This is about 10 driving days. Plan to spend at least 2 nights in each location and that is about 3 weeks for a cross country trip.
Fall and Spring are the best times for a cross country road trip. The weather is more mild and you can enjoy your time in all areas of the US. I recommend May or October for your trip.
I am so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.
There are four main routes for a cross country road trip, Interstate 40, Interstate 80, Interstate 90 and Interstate 10.
Depending on your start dates you may consider taking one there and one back.
Interstate 40 is a central route that goes from coast to coast right through St. Louis, the Gateway to the West.
Interstate 10 is the southernmost of the options while Interstate 90 is the northernmost. You can read a bit more about the routes and long trips in this post. I surveyed over 200 people who take road trips and made some really interesting observations.
When you have a month to travel, crossing the US is a great plan. You can see lots of the country in a very short time.
Most Americans have only visited 12 states, you can be above average in one, well planned road trip!
Can I take my kids out of school for a road trip?
If you have kids, you may wonder if your travel days are over.
We love to adventure as a family and I find that road trips are great vacations for the kids.
I work as a teacher in grades 6-12. Every year I hear a few stories of families taking their kids out of school for a week or two for a family vacation.
There are various opinions on if this is reasonable.
As a teacher, I recommend that if you choose to pull your child from school for a road trip, that you give the teachers as much advance notice as possible.
Taking your children out of school for a family vacation is a personal choice. There are clear benefits of travel for children, but absences from school have clear negative consequences. If you are considering taking a vacation during school hours, call and talk to your school. In some states too many missed days can result in legal action against the parents.
This is referred to as truancy. If you are unsure of your state’s truancy laws, that would be a good place to start when considering planning vacations.
In my state if a child is absent from school for 21 consecutive days, they are dropped from registration. This would result in legal action against the parents.
If you have the ability, take a year to homeschool! Make the most of the year that you have to travel the country. I have this list of alternatives to public school. There are some very non-traditional options on the list.
You may find something that could work for your family.
You can start by learning the homeschool laws in your state at HSLDA.
If you are considering a cross country trip, you can do a very exciting cross country trip in just 21 days. An epic summer road trip with your school aged kids.
