5 Things You MUST Do Before a Road-trip | Road-trip Checklist

I have a confession to make. I'm a last-minute packer. My wife starts packing for a trip an

entire week before we're supposed to leave with a thorough system to make sure nothing gets

overlooked. I wait until the night before. So far I haven't had any major problems but

my lack of a system is starting to show some cracks. Cracks? Over the last six months we've

driven over 8,600 miles on road trips covering everything from Illinois to Texas and Utah to

Tennessee. And since we've been taking more road trips this year, I've started making different

packing checklists. So today I'm going to share our specific pre-road trip checklist. I have five

areas that I'm going to cover today. Auto care, navigation, safety, supplies, and play. I wish we

had a cool acronym we could use to remember this. NAPS, PANS, SPANS, SNAPS, SNAPS. The official

Bright Trip Pre-Road Trip checklist as easy as snaps. Before we begin I want to

mention that these aren't rules that you have to follow but guidelines and tips

to help you get started with your checklist. I know when I have a safety plan in place it allows me to let go of some of

my worries and truly enjoy my trip. First up a first aid kit. You can build your

own first aid kit from scratch or buy a pre-made all-purpose pack. Some of the

The key items I look for in a first aid kit are adhesive bandages in multiple sizes, alcohol

wipes, antibiotic ointment, and Advil or aspirin tablets. For me it's not about planning for every emergency scenario, but having the basics

to cover any minor scrapes without derailing the trip. As someone who grew up in a warm climate, a car safety item I often overlook is a blanket

for travel in cold weather. For most of my life I didn't have to worry about snow drifts or ice on the road, but

But if you're doing any driving in winter weather, a blanket is a must-have for emergency situations

As a millennial, I almost never carry cash. But on a road trip, you never know when you'll be in a situation where that's all someone

can take. Make sure you have a little bit of cash on you for those times when you have to have it

We've also decided on having coin change and individual dollar bills for any toll roads

we may come across. One last note about safety. This time at home

We like to let a trusted neighbor or friend know how long we'll be traveling

They can check the mail or turn your lights on and off while you're gone

It's reassuring to know there's someone you trust keeping an eye on things while you're away

My first recommendation with maps is to download map areas to your phone before you start your trip There have been many times where we unexpectedly lost service while on the road so having your maps ready before your trip is a big help Google Maps has an option to do this on both Android and iOS so don wait until it too late

Speaking of saving directions ahead of time, we also like to save written directions in the Notes

app on our phone as well. We frequently stay in Airbnbs, and a lot of times the physical address

they give you doesn't actually get you to the place you need to be, but they do offer written

instructions such as directions to the house, check-in times, key locations, or codes to enter

the house. If you're in a remote location, you may not have the cell service available to get that

information when you need it. Save these in your notes app ahead of time and be sure to share that

note with anyone else that's traveling with you so everyone can have access. And if all of this

sounds like boring logistical hurdles, one piece of navigation fun that we like to do is purchasing

a paper map, especially if it's for a destination that we've never been to. Maps are kind of a big

deal here at Bright Trip. It's a great way to orient yourself before a trip. It's super handy

if you lose service or your phone dies, and it's fun to hold it in your hands and mark it up. You

can highlight where you're staying or roads you're taking and really get a sense of how everything

connects together. The maps and directions are really only one part of navigation. You also have

to decide where you're going. Sure, Google Maps can tell you how to get from point A to point B

but it doesn't tell you about all the interesting places you can find in between. So before you start, make a list of fun stops for your trip along the way

You can find the basics on Yelp or Foursquare, but there are a lot of options that go more in-depth

Here are some of my favorites for when traveling in the U.S. One of the best parts about traveling is getting to eat local foods in new places

Websites like Eater are a great resource for finding different food options and what to eat in cities on the road

I also like to check out different shows like diners, drive-ins, and dives for something that might be on my route

If it's more about the journey than the destination, then check out RoadTripUSA.com, where they

have famous road trip recommendations, like places to visit on Route 66 or the Pacific

Coast Highway. And if you're looking for more quirky oddball stops, visit RoadTrippers.com or RoadSideAmerica.com

Both websites offer a huge number of roadside attractions that you can add to your plan

We recommend saving any locations that you'd like to visit in Google Maps so they're ready

for you when you need directions. It's always a good idea to do a mechanical check on your car prior to jumping in and

hitting the road. Some of the key things that we check are the oil level and when was our last oil change

How does our wiper fluid look Is the air pressure on our tires good And is the tire tread in good shape These are all basic car maintenance tasks but it important to check these because running into an issue a thousand miles from home is a lot different than having a problem

pop up in your everyday routine. If in the unfortunate circumstance we do have an auto issue pop up, here are a few things

we keep in the car for emergencies. Jumper cables, our car manual for unusual codes and alerts, a physical copy of proof

of insurance, and a phone number to contact roadside assistance. Even if you don't pay for a service like AAA, most insurance companies offer some form of roadside assistance

So it's a good idea to save that number in your phone in advance. When setting off on a multi-day road trip, what you do to occupy your time in the car can be just as important as what you're doing at your destination

I know everyone has a phone charging cable in their car these days, but do you have a backup

Most cars have a place to plug in, but if yours doesn't, you'll want to bring an external battery as well

Vacations are a great time to unplug and get away from everything, but I prefer to wait and do that after I've safely arrived at my destination

Speaking of phones, if your car isn't CarPlay or Android Auto compatible and you use your phone for navigation

A phone holder is a must-have for safety Being able to see your route and the road at the same time will help you get there safely

For entertainment on the trip, be sure to pre-download any music playlists or podcasts on your Wi-Fi network before you leave

One of our family's favorite activities is making a new playlist for each big trip

It's a great way to introduce new music you've been wanting to listen to, or learn about regional music

For example, on our trip to the Great Smoky Mountains, we loaded up on Dolly Parton

And when we drove to Amarillo, we had a playlist featuring Buddy Holly. These playlists help us build stronger memories of different trips

Now, every time we hear a certain song, we think about a specific trip because of the playlist

And of course, sometimes you need a little alone time in the car, so pack your headphones as well

Another form of entertainment is the American classic road trip car games

There are a ton of options to choose from, but these are some of our favorites. Top five in the spirit of high fidelity

Top five most memorable breakups. Top five side ones. Track ones. Top five things I miss about Laura

It's pretty straightforward, but you pick a category and everyone in the car picks their top five versions of that thing

It can be vague, top five ice cream flavors, or specific. Top five movies about space

Or, if you're on your way home, even more specific, top 5 favorite things that happened

on this trip? Another game we play on occasion is the License Plate game, where you keep a running tally

on every different state license plate you see on your trip. This is especially fun on longer, multi-day road trips, where you can try to check off

all 50 On a recent long road trip we were able to tally up 42 US state license plates three Canadian provinces and one Mexican state plate

We view this list as things that we want within reach while we're in the car, not

things that we're packing in our suitcase. And as with most things in life, I'll start again with food. For us, it's important to have food that makes us feel

good on hand. I love eating fast food and gas station snacks as much as anyone, and

and when on the road, they can be enticing, but a lot of times I don't feel my best after eating it

So while those are fun every now and then, for longer road trips, we like to keep additional

options in the car to offset the urge to stop at every drive-thru burger joint. We have a cooler

with hearty fruits and veggies like apples, oranges, bananas, and carrots, as well as granola

bars and trail mix to kick those sweet and salty cravings. It's also important to have water with

you at all times. I'm already not the best about drinking the amount of water I'm supposed to on a

daily basis, but in the car on a road trip, it can be even more difficult to get what you need

I recommend taking gallons or refillable water bladders and transferring that to reusable water

bottles. Depending on where you're driving, you may even want a personal water bottle filter

to refill your water wherever you're staying. Some other extra supplies to make sure you have are

toilet paper for runny noses or when nature calls, paper towels, especially for lunch on the road

silverware, it's never a bad time to have a fork, hand wipes or hand sanitizer, and trash bags

It's a good idea to clean your car before the trip, but having a couple of trash bags while on the road will help keep things tidy

So if you're watching this video and thinking, this sounds like too much work, I just want to jump in the car and go

My piece of advice is to just plan as much as you want, but still leave room for spontaneity

Once you have your basics covered, when there's an opportunity for some unplanned adventure, you can take it

The checklist isn't meant to box you in, but to give you the freedom to make changes while on the road without stressing out

So take this list and make it your own and let us know in the comments below where you

want to go on your next road trip. If you enjoyed this video, you'll love our online courses at brighttrip.com

Bright Trip makes courses to help you travel smarter. If you're looking for an international road trip, there's a great course for how to road

trip southern Iceland or I recommend how to document your trip. This is a must watch course teaching you how to save memories from your trip to share with others

Before you go, if you liked this video, please give us a thumbs up and subscribe so you can check out any future videos that we release