How to Plan the Ultimate Road Trip Adventure

July 31, 2024

If you hate car rides, this article is not for you.

If you’re someone who cherishes the freedom of the open road and wants to explore every corner of this planet, this guide will show you how to create your own Ultimate Road Trip Adventure, liberating you from the constraints of boring travels.

Many variables are involved when road-tripping, including drive time, distance, adventure, food, sleep, etc. Knowing how to plan a specific route and detail the time allotments for each day is crucial for a successful adventure and we’re going to teach you how to do it.

BENEFITS OF IMPLEMENTING THIS STRATEGY:

Know where you gotta be and when
Not anxious about the final destination, just looking forward to the next stop
One place for all of your important travel info:
- Airline / Rental Itinerary
- Direct links to destinations
- Address and Contact Info
- Financial Information
- Advanced Ticketing
Gas easily calculated and accounted for
Distance and time between destinations already determined
Experience the adventure of a lifetime
Budget figured out ahead of time

1. CREATE YOUR ROAD TRIP ADVENTURE

POINT A – POINT B Route:

If your destination is different than your departure, you’re building an adventure between 2 points.

Round Trip Route

When you’re making a round trip, you’re planning 2 trips between the way there and the way back.

HOW DO YOU PLAN TO PLAN?

The No Plan Plan (not suggested)
A Detailed Strategy (highly suggested)

WHERE ARE YOU TRAVELING?

Local: Within a radius of your home location
Non-Local: Renting a vehicle in a different city

WHO ARE YOU TRAVELING WITH?

Solo
Partner(s)

HOW TO PLAN THE ROUTE:

Everything begins with the RoadTrippers app. When you know where you’re going, the RoadTrippers app will give you routing options between you and that destination with both a list and map view.

2. WHICH APPS TO USE AND WHY

We have formulated a plan for the road ahead which considers easy accessibility, intuitive user experience, and overall ease of use. All you need to do is dedicate the time it takes to planning, this is your toolbox:

Roadtrippers (planning)

This is a Road Trip app that easily allows you to discover unique stops and will build your route for you.

Social (research)

These algorithms (YouTube, Tik Tok, Instagram, Facebook, etc.) can be used as a tool to search the destinations you are interested in visiting; not only will you find out all the information you need, you can connect with others and view content about their experiences. After some research into these topics, your daily feed will begin to introduce you to new travel destinations.

Books (research)

Books provide the ability to go extremely deep and specific on travel spots especially when visiting National Parks and various land features.

Dropbox Paper (organization)

Works like a Word Document but with so many more capabilities. This is a user-friendly app allowing you to build your itinerary, complete with links, photos and more which is all accessible by phone, tablet, and computer, putting all necessary travel inforamtion in one place!

AtlasObscura (research)

A global community of explorers, who have together created a comprehensive database of the world’s most wondrous places and foods.

Allstays (lodging)

Legal Overnight Stays are necessary at points. Not all Walmarts will let you use their parking lot. Luckily theres an app with thousands of RV parking reports from users help you find the best possible place to park.

Google Maps (verification)

Cannot rely entirely on Roadtrippers data; verification of address and street view allows you to miss the mistake of showing up to nothing

AirBNB / VRBO (lodging)

Great deals and unique stays for single or multiple travelers.

Costco Membership (deals)

Supplies and Car Rental Deals

Navigation (navigation)

Waze, Google Maps, or Apple Maps, whichever you prefer, (we prefer Waze)

3. HOW TO BUILD YOUR ROAD TRIP ITINERARY

This itinerary not only shows you where you gotta be and when, it serves as your single point of access for every detail about your adventure including schedule, vital links, verified Google Maps links and more.

All routes must focus on these important considerations for time:

Drive – 25%

Generally, you do not want to drive more than 8 hours daily. These 8 hours are broken into micro journeys from one stop to the next.

Adventure – 25%

Our goal is to see things and have adventures. The plan allows you to account for the time needed for each aspect of your journey.

Eat – 5%

Food while traveling should be treated like fuel, only eat what fuels the adventure. Unless the adventure stop is also a food location (that type of eating falls within the Adventure category)

Buffer – 15%

Gas, missed exits, traffic, bad weather, construction, random unplanned stops, continued experience

Chill / Relax / Recover / Sleep – 30%

We cannot continue the adventure if we are too tired, and this becomes dangerous while driving

These percentages matter as there are dangers with this type of travel, especially when solo. You have to be on your A-Game when exploring out the unknown because you never know what you may face, unless you prepare properly.

1. Use RoadTrippers to Explore and Build Your Route

Your destination (or halfway point) gives your road trip adventure a direction to follow (North, South, East, West) and the path between Point A and Point B is where you find your adventure. You have the option to only search places within a certain mile radius of your route which you set.

LOCATION OPTIONS:

- - - Places to Camp
    - Sights & Attractions
    - The Great Outdoors
    - Overnight RV Parking
    - Bars & Restaurants
    - Hotels & Unique Stays
    - Activities and Experiences
    - Fuel & Rest Stops
    - Shopping
    - Sports & Wellness
    - Transportation Services

Get on the app and play with the options, they offer a Free Trail with limited stops so you can learn how to build a route. It is amazing the places you can find by understanding how to filter the content to show you specifically what matters. Use its sorting features to really dig in and find unique locations.

Once you have a route built, RoadTrippers provides a built in itinerary showing you your stops, the info for each stop, reviews, distance and driving times and much more.

2. Study Your Potential Stops

You cannot simply trust all of the RoadTrippers listings (as they are tied to Yelp) and you can’t assume that you’ve found everything possible along your route within the RoadTrippers app. This is where you can do deeper research using Social tools, books, shows and well-traveled people.

3. Build Your Itinerary

Roadtrippers provides you with data for your trip allowing you to easily see gas, distance and travel time. With this information, you can easily map out each day’s itinerary on one page as you begin to layout your day of travel. We recommend Dropbox Paper but you can use your notes app, a Word Doc or whichever you prefer.

4. Research Actual Locations

Since you cannot trust that some of these locations still exist or that the listing is even correct, it’s advised to plan ahead and check Google. Using Google Maps, you’re able to take a look at the Street View and see if there is any up-to-date information for you to obtain.

4. HOW TO PREPARE

Think about it, you’re stranded in unfamiliar terrain, what will you wish you had?

Every scenario presents a new set of variables to consider which is why we take the time to think through every possible thing which could potentially go wrong and determine how to build a road trip strategy to overcome the obstacle.

When traversing different terrains, the season and / or elevation can present dangers you’re not used to or prepared for. A simple mistake can turn deadly which is why proper preparation is a must.

Our strategy is to think through what you will need on you as a human, what you are traveling with for the long term, what is needed in your vehicle and how you’re prepared to leave your vehicle when adventuring. (Below is not an exact list, mostly general considerations)

PERSON

Tactical Gear for the environment
- Sun Shade in the Heat
- Winter Gear for the Cold
Proper Footwear
Baggage
Sunglasses
Hats
Knife
Multi-Tool

TRAVEL BAG(s)

Clothing for the whole trip
Toiletries

VEHICLE

Excessive water
Cooler
Food / Snacks
Portable battery pack
Emergency Gear

ADVENTURE BAG

The bag which travels with you when leaving your vehicle at all adventure stops containing:
- Emergency Bag
  - Boo Boo Kit (First Aid)
  - iFak
  - Whistle
  - Signaling mirror
  - Flashlight
  - Dark Energy Power Bank + Cord
- Water Bag
  - LifeStraw
  - Water Filter
  - Water Key
  - “Dirty” Water bottle
  - Hydration Packets
- Fire Bag
  - Ferro Rod
  - Lighters
  - Matches
- Food Bag
  - Peak Refuel Cookie Bites
- Shelter Bag
  - Emergency Blanket(s)
  - Paracord
  - Duct Tape
- Tech
  - Charger
  - Solar
  - GPS

5. ENJOY THE RIDE

This is seriously Step 5, enjoy the ride because everything is already figured out for your road trip. The magic of developing this Ultimate Road Trip Adventurer is everything is already figured out, so when you’re out there exploring, it is purely play because you know exactly what you need to do.

GENERAL TIPS FOR THE ROAD AHEAD

Drive and Adventure during Day Time

Catch the sunrise when you can, especially when visiting any landmark. (beat the crowds and enjoy some solitude) Driving at night is excellent for long trips when you need to cover ground and have a co-pilot. Unfortunately, you miss out on most of the views when it is dark out.

Always Interact with the Locals

Ask questions, find unique spots, gain insight, learn something new from their perspective

Always drive an all-terrain vehicle

Nothing within reason should be out of reach; weather circumstances should not become catastrophic.

Be strategic with your Gas Purchases

Research the areas you plan to travel to and ensure you can take advantage of different rewards packages and discounted gas.

300 Mile Rule

Most All Terrain vehicles have plenty more than 300 miles in the tank but you never want to find yourself lost + running low on gas. Consider refueling stops before 300 miles on every trip.

Utilize your Allies on the Road as needed

These roads were made to be traveled on, and businesses along the way made it more accessible. Take advantage of places such as Cracker Barrel, Pilot / Flying J, Buc-ee”s, Sheetz, Wawa, Wal-Mart, Sinclair, etc.

If you get lost

When cell service and GPS begins to not work, simply travel in the cardinal direction you’re head’d and eventually you’ll get back on track.

Be Aware of Time Zones

It is easy to not account for time zone changes and severely mess up your itinerary times. Make sure you account for this potential when traveling across the country.