I recently traveled from Kansas to Los Angeles with my wife, my son and 3 dogs. While the trip was absolutely amazing, there were a few things that I wished I would have done differently! There were also things that I wished I would have known before hand I started driving. If you are doing any kind of long distance driving on your next vacation, you can use the lessons learned to help you plan your road trip.
Here are 10 lessons that I learned on my way to LA and back!
- Travel with a destination or a stopping point in mind! The first day of the trip I started driving with the end destination in mind. I planned on stopping somewhere in New Mexico for a nights sleep. But, I did not think to make reservations at a hotel in New Mexico. By the time I realized it, all hotels in the area were booked. That was the first and only time we started driving with no destination in mind. At breakfast, we planned and made reservations for the next leg of our trip.
- Check and verify! We ended up staying an extra day in Arizona because I didn’t double check the distance between our current location New Mexico) and our destination (The Grand Canyon). If we had hard time constraint this extra day would have limited the rest of the trip.
- Look for hotels with inside doors! I didn’t write this in the original post, but the original hotel we were scheduled to stay at near the Grand Canyon did not appeal to us at all. Later we found out that many people book at that hotel and change reservations at the sight of it. The Customer representative at the second hotel said “Hotels with room access on the inside of the building tend represent a more quality in appearance and in feel.”
Don’t forget the Kennel! Even though they will find a place to sleep, you don’t want your pets to create a bed out of your suitcase. We travel with our dogs almost everywhere we go and usually stay at LaQuinta Inns and Suites along the way. This was Bailey’s first hotel trip. While the older dogs are not as anxious about the outside sounds and everyone that passes by the room, Bailey wanted to huff and bark at everything that moved. She, like most puppy, was so curious about her surroundings, wich made it difficult for anyone to sleep some nights. Had we remembered to bring her kennel she would have had something familiar to return to.- Keep costs down by cooking in your room! We called ahead to confirm that the hotels would allow us to cook in our room. Two of the things we packed to bring with us were our electric skillet
and a rice cooker
. We limited our dining out and ate as if we were home. Note: when cooking in your hotel room, open the door or the window!
- If you have done any type of Interstate driving, you know that once you leave an area your beloved radio station will be gone! Even if you have Pandora
, Spotify
, Amazon Prime Music
or any other streaming service chances are, if there is no cellular signal on the road, there will be no radio. In my wife’s vehicle, the CD deck is not working so playing a CD was not an option. Even if you have a hot spot, limited cellular service will hinder your ability to stream. Plan ahead, download a playlist long enough to last the entire drive just in case. If you are like me and like to listen to audio-books during long drives, download them ahead of time. Also, make sure your copilot will enjoy the book you choose as well. Oh yeah! Did I mention, Download it before you leave!
- Don’t forget the entertainment for the kids! We normally travel with a movie player in the car, but this time, we chose to use a wireless hotspot. My son has an old phone that he is using over WiFi and we thought that would work for him. Unfortunately, that was the only thing that he had for entertainment. Once we hit New Mexico and the cellular signal disappeared, so did his entertainment. If you have a removable media player for your car, make sure it stays in the car! There is bound to be a red box when you stop by Walmart for your bathroom break. Or, download extra content from your app store if your device will allow it.
- Remember the doggy breath mints or pet treats and toys! I don’t know about your pets, but mine love being right in my ear looking out the window as I drive. Even if you are on top of your pet’s dental hygiene, pet breath has a strong smell.Your pets need something to do while they are in the car as well. Just remember if you are going to go the route of treats… What goes in must come out.
Corey Stokes 