Car travel: how to prepare for a successful vacation

The car travel season will begin with the onset of warm weather, so you need to prepare for it now. Lifehacker will tell you how to properly organize a car trip.

Preparing the car

Common sense dictates that a modern car will cause fewer problems, will be more comfortable and will not break down on the road. If you have a choice, it is worth going on a less worn car, but if there is no choice, no problem. The problem with old cars is exaggerated by those who do not drive them.

The vehicle must go through the following stages of preparation:

engine and chassis maintenance, troubleshooting;

checking fluid levels and adding them, changing engine and gearbox oil if necessary;

checking the spare wheel;

equipping with a set of tools, spare oil, brake and coolant fluids, timing and alternator belts, a first aid kit, a towing rope, a jack, a flashlight, a pump or compressor, a fire extinguisher, a reflective vest and an emergency stop sign.

Household rider

It may seem that there is enough space in the car for all the things you want to take with you. This is an illusion: with a lot of junk, it will be more difficult to find the right thing and there is always a risk that you will want to buy a large item on the trip, but will not fit it in the trunk.

Each traveler will need one set of outerwear and three sets of underwear. In addition to the car first aid kit, you should have a personal one with aspirin, paracetamol, smecta or another remedy for digestive problems, allergy medications and medicine against blood-sucking insects. In the cosmetic bag, put the usual products that you cannot do without for a single day, in most cases they do not take up much space.

For spending the night outdoors, you will need a sleeping bag, a camping mat and a tent, for self-cooking – a gas stove with one burner. These are optional attributes, but they will insure you if something goes wrong.

Route planning

Let’s assume that a typical car trip is not a forced march, not a marathon, or a trophy expedition, but a comfortable car trip during an average vacation, which can take from four days to two weeks.

Assess your capabilities soberly. A driver with experience in long-distance driving will cover 1,000 kilometers or more in a day if driving on a two-lane highway in one direction. But such a pace is tiring and requires a rest day or a second driver.

To determine how much you need to drive per day, mark the reference points of the route on the map – cities, historical sites, or natural objects where you plan to stop overnight. Then determine the distance and route between these points.

Financial issue

The more travelers in one car, the cheaper the trip is for each person. True, it becomes more difficult to plan the route, but if you agree before the start, there will be no omissions or surprises.

Calculate how much money you will need for gas, and take a third more. When calculating, rely on your own experience, not technical consumption indicators. Online calculators simplify this process, but do not take into account wrong turns and subsequent wanderings, and a deposit in case of excess fuel consumption will take this into account.

Psychological aspect

It’s great if each traveler knows what to expect from their fellow traveler. Sharing a life together on a trip requires trust, mutual understanding and finding compromises.

There may be several organizers, but one person should coordinate the actions – an experienced traveler, to whom the others listen in matters of technology and tactics. Even if the driver takes everyone in his own car, he will have to accept that someone else will probably manage the process.

There should not be a weak link in the company who suddenly wants to go home or rest contrary to the plans made in advance. If the trip is spontaneous, this is also not a reason to relax, lying on the couch in the hostel or playing volleyball after breakfast in the campsite, when it is time to leave.