How To Plan The Perfect Road Trip
Road trips are the way we travel this summer. Now that states are opening up, getting in our car and driving to a “near to me” destination is a safer way to enjoy the late summer and early fall. These tips on how to plan the perfect road trip will get you started on the right foot.
Travel With Sandi is a participant in an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees. Here is what I know about travel. Everyone’s taste is different. The opinions expressed here are mine alone.
Before You Go
Jumping in the car and just driving can be fun and adventurous. However, with state-by-state restrictions a little planning before hand will be helpful.
Decide where you want to visit, is it just one state or more. Campground and hotel reservations are required due to the limited number of guests they can accommodate – unless you don’t mind sleeping in your car. Ah – no thank you.
It is imperative you check the restrictions for the state(s) you will be traveling through. Each state has their own set of travel guidelines which are fluid and fluctuate as the local statistic change. Start here for New England travel restrictions.
Now for the fun part. Planning the drive. Check travel destination sites like TravelAwaits.com and AAA.com for road trip ideas.
Where To Stay
The large chain hotels are typically going above and beyond the CDC cleaning requirements and the smaller inns are required to follow the cleaning guidelines also. You should feel free to call them and question them on their cleaning protocol.
We have stayed in several small inns and also large resorts around New England for the last two months. I only found one incident were I was not happy with room, but I also didn’t call ahead of time.
Where To Eat
As a travel writer, food is a large part of my articles. I always plan where we eat before we start our trip.
Most places now offer outdoor dining – my preference. Some offer limited indoor dining. Unless it’s raining, when I’m on vacation I want to eat outside.
Planning your meals and making lunch and dinner reservations does tend to hem in your day. However, without a reservation, you may find yourself at the grocery store buying a picnic dinner. Which can also be fun.
National Parks can be a good choice
We have spent a lot of time hiking in the state and national parks. Which, by the way, may also require advanced registrations as many have limited their parking or closed the beaches.
States that do no require masks can make popular trail heads that are crowded feel risky. Less traveled trails will bring you close to Mother Nature’s soothing effect and offer less social interaction.
What I Love About Road Trips
Americans are getting to know there local area again. They are discovering there is so much to see and do right here in this great country we call home.
With a road trip that is less than a day’s drive from home, if you feel uncomfortable, you can pivot or just go home. In this time of uncertainty, feeling grounded in our roots, experiencing our neighboring towns, interacting with lovely people, and enjoying our freedoms unites us as Americans.
Road trips are the way we travel this summer. How to plan the perfect road trip and getting out there, when you are ready, will let you experience what’s in your own back yard. Here in New England you could start with Plymouth MA for some early American history and amazing seafood.
Safe Travels,
Sandi
I love a good road trip. I need to put one together as I am missing the drive. I love the drive out of town – you can just feel the stress melt away. I had to chuckle when I read your suggestion though – it made me remember “Trip Tiks” from Triple A….does anyone remember those? I think I still have one tucked away in a memory box. Thanks for your information. Very helpfu.
I love a fun roadtrip, but as you said there is a ton of restrictions right now. Great tips and advice for making a roadtrip more enjoyable.. we all can use some fun and time to get away!
This is definitely the year for road trips. We always try to hit a national park or monument when we take road trips. Last year we drove from Virginia Beach to Seattle and hit so many sites along the way…would love to have an experience like that again.
Great tips for traveling during the pandemic. We definitely have to put a little more planning into a trip right now.
We feel the same way. We have been able to go on a few road trips and it has been so fun!
I’ve discovered that road tripping during a pandemic means bringing along plenty of snacks especially if you’re not on an interstate. Thank you for this wonderful road trip post for these current days!
I think so many are embracing this idea. It is great to see families getting on the road and discovering more of the USA!
Road trips are definitely the way to go this year! We’re hoping to get an RV sometime soon, so we can do a lot more road-tripping while staying safe in our own space.
Road trips and National Parks are often underrated but those are some of my favorite things to do on vacation. You get to see so much when you’re in control of the drive. And take as long as you need to get there. But our best ones were ones we had a well laid out plan before we left!
We just got back from a road trip and are leaving later today to go on another one. The thing that we’ve found to be kind of stressful is never knowing what the mask policy is in each place. Some hotels we’ve walked into the staff aren’t even wearing masks. It’s been hard on our kids because some attractions have been requiring masks for ages 10 and up, so 2 kids have to wear a mask and 2 don’t. None of this has put a damper on our travels though, they’re just minor things we have to deal with for now.
Thank you for the great tips. It is nice to hop in the car and have a change of scenery.
We have been loving our road trips but I have been calling hotels to see what their occupancy levels are during this time before we arrive. Most hotels are not booking at max capacity because they can’t sustain their covid protocols with that many people. I won’t stay at hotels that do decide to book at max.
We plan to go to some national parks soon! Thanks!
Good advice and I’m looking forward to spending lots of time on the road all over America!!
Great & informative post. I wondered about the safety of the hotels and I’m glad to see you report about their efforts. I miss road trips and can’t wait to get back on the road again.
Great advice. Loving the road trip planning now as I think we need to find creative ways to travel now more than ever before.
We have done more local exploring this summer. We did two weeks on Cape Cod (about an 1.5 from our home), exploring state parks and headed to NH in September.
We love the Cape. We were in Franconia, they were a little more relaxed about mask wearing than I was comfortable with.
I agree, if there is a silver lining to all this, it’s that many are “bringing it home” and that includes travel. Thanks for sharing your tips!
Thanks for the tips! I love road trips because we can see more attractions along the way which makes it feel like a longer vacation.
I love road trips so much! Lots more to consider nowadays, so thanks for the tips!
Love road trips. One thing I’m missing a lot this summer, what with all the restrictions. Reading your lines and the lovely tips you shared here, I actually took a virtual one 😉 😀 Will get out more once things settle a bit. Thank you, for sharing
Great tips for planning a road trip!
The pandemic definitely brings a different element to the spontaneous road trip! It’s smart to do some research beforehand.
I love going on road trips. Thanks for the tips!
I’ve been doing at least one road trip a month and loving them! It soothes my urge to travel and I’m discovering fun places to explore close to home.
What a great post! I’m such a planner, so there’s no way I’m just jumping in a car and heading out!