Planning A Great Road Trip

January 2020

Sometimes, a cold snap keeps us indoors and leads us to dream of spring and summer travels. Alternately, winter wonders may inspire us to drive. How do you arrange a road trip (a long weekend or a week) that recharges you instead of rushing you?

First, resist the temptation to do too much (and drive too much). If a 3-day weekend is what you have in mind, think about driving a maximum of 4-5 hours per day (more than that, and you risk spending more time at the wheel than you do enjoying the outdoors). Study maps, especially online maps, as they may reveal some places to explore or see that you did not yet know about. Think about spending both your nights in the same lodging and planning an activity on the morning of the third day instead of just getting up early to drive back home. Do you have a week or a bit longer? Think about a place you’ve always wanted to visit and try to structure the road trip so that you can get there in fewer than two days and return in fewer than two days. You can make the journey one to rival the destination by planning the route in such a way that you can sample some of the natural and cultural “gems” between here and there.⁴