Traveling is an excellent opportunity to explore the world. The opportunity comes in the form of vacation or work travel. If you are traveling to a place that can be accessed by road, then you should prepare to have fun because you will get to see amazing places. However, the fun can be cut short if you don’t prepare.
You should pack all the essentials that will allow you to have an adventurous trip. Therefore, adequate packing and planning help you stay on track. If you want to have a stress free trip, here is the ultimate travel gear you should have.
An Atlas
An atlas is your guide on a road trip because you are probably not familiar with any particular road. If you are going on vacation, purchase a map that has listed all the adventurous areas on that route. This helps you enjoy your itinerary before reaching your destination. If you are traveling with kids, purchase one that includes all the kids’ friendly places along the route,
An atlas or a map helps you travel safely without getting lost. Nothing is as frustrating as taking the wrong route and then being redirected back to the main road. This costs you fuel, time, and stresses you. A map also helps you discover highly rated restaurants and lodges if your trip takes more than one day.
Therefore, ensure you have either a hardcopy or softcopy atlas to make your road trip enjoyable. The GPS device in your car should be on the whole time for extra support. An atlas will come in handy when the GPS jams.
Cleaning Essentials
Driving in a dirty car is a nightmare when you are on a road trip. Therefore, it is important to have cleaning essentials in your car to avoid the stress of dealing with spills. Paper towels help you wipe any spills made by you or the kids because you will be drinking water, smoothies, or juices.
Toilet paper should not miss in your cleaning essentials because you may need to make an emergency stop on the way. You cannot fully count on the toilet paper in public toilets.
Another cleaning essential is a hand sanitizer as it will help clean your hands after eating sticky, sugary snacks. Sticky hands are uncomfortable when you are driving. Therefore, having a hand sanitizer is a plus, and it helps you stay fresh. Wet wipes also help clean sticky hands.
Your handkerchief should be in your front pocket because it is stressful to drive with a running nose when you don’t have it. The breeze on the road can make you have a runny nose for a few minutes, so carry your handkerchief. Odor eliminator is also a vital cleaning essential as it helps get rid of the smell of spilled ice cream, dirty shoes, or wet clothes.
Driving with dry lips is not fun because you will feel uncomfortable throughout the journey. Pack your favorite lip balm, which can serve everyone in the car. After using a hand sanitizer or wet wipes, your hands feel dry. Carry lotion to keep them moistened to avoid the stress of dry hands when driving. All these cleaning essentials are found in your house, meaning that this guide also saves you from buying things you already own.
Entertainment Gadgets
It can get boring to drive for hours in a silent car. Pack your favorite CDs or tapes to listen to your favorite music, podcasts, and books. If you are traveling with kids, make sure that the backseats have been mounted with tablets so that they can watch their favorite movies or music. Nothing is more stressful than having a crying baby in a car during a road trip. Avoid this by keeping them entertained.
If you have more than one kid, bring more headphones for each. Do not forget to carry phone and tablet chargers. Games are also part of the entertainment, which can make your road trip exciting.
Also, if you have kids, you can play the spot the license plate, which involves reading the plate of the car in front of you and finding which state it belongs to and then keeping scores. The first one who gets the state earns points. The family car songbook plays a major role in keeping you entertained as you can sing all your best songs when driving.
Another good game is the state capitals where you name a state, and your kids respond with the capital cities. The calculator game is also a good game whereby you give your kids the calculator and ask them questions. For example, how long will it take to get to point B if you drive using a particular speed? How much will you spend on dinner if each person spends $10? You can ask them hundreds of questions, and they will not get bored. Time flies quickly when you play these games, and you can invent new ones en route.
Resting Essentials
You need to rest during a road trip whether you are driving or on the passenger’s seat. A neck pillow gives you chin support and has side boosters that help your neck to stay comfortable throughout the journey. Neck pillows come in multiple sizes meaning that your kids can also have them.
Also, sleeping is part of resting, which means that you need to have a better sleep. Carrying an eye mask helps get better sleep as it provides you with darkness. Humans are wired to sleep in the dark. Therefore, it is hard to sleep with all the light during the day. Thus, an eye mask is essential when you are traveling. Sunglasses also help protect your eyes from the sun’s exposure allowing you to rest.
Enough Food
Being hungry during a road trip without knowing the next stop is frustrating. Avoid this stress by carrying snacks, drinks, and water. Carry healthy snacks, including fruits, and refill them when you get to your next stop. Have more than one bottle of water because the chance of being dehydrated during a road trip is high.
Traveling by road is a fantastic experience that everyone would like to have. However, do not spoil the fun by going on that trip without planning and packing all the essentials. This guide helps you carry all the travel essentials enabling you to have a stress free road trip.
Resources – Parenting, Travel and Hike, Stuffed Suitcase