What To Pack On A Cross Country Trip By Car

The most stressful part of a long road trip for many people is knowing what to pack on a cross country trip by car. This is understandable especially if this is your very first road trip and you are not sure what to expect. It is only natural for most people to agonize over everything from how many and what clothes to pack to what extras to take along to keep occupied for those long periods of boredom that are part of a cross country trip by car.

The truth is what you pack for these trips is dependent on many things such as just how many weeks or months you will be traveling, whether the trip will be all adults or whether you are traveling with children, and how often and where you plan to make stops along the way including overnight stops.

That being said here are some basic rules on what to pack on a cross country trip by car.

Keep clothing at a minimum and plan on stops where you can use a laundromat to wash clothes at least once a week. Packing two or three pair of pants or shorts, seven or eight shirts and a week worth of underwear should be the basics. If you are planning on stopping at a swank place overnight for a nice dinner then pack one outfit that won't wrinkle, but will be suitable for dining out anywhere. Take along a jacket for those chilly nights.

Of course you are going to want to take along a cooler and some snacks and drinks as well. Make sure that all drink bottles have twist off tops so you don't have to drink the entire contents at one sitting and make sure your snacks are travel friendly like breakfast bars, and small packets of chips and nuts and dried fruit.

You will also want an emergency kit that contains medical supplies, a flashlight, and perhaps even a few flares if you will be doing a lot of night driving off the main roads. Include in your emergency kit a list of emergency numbers as well. At least one cell phone should be part of your emergency provisions.

Along with your emergency kit you are going to want to take along maps or a trustworthy GPS so that you can stay on route during your trip. And if traveling with children you may want to take along some books, magazines, toys, and that portable car DVD player. Adults may want to take along a couple of books and a CD player with earphones. And of Course you don't want to forget that digital camera to capture all those incredible views and fun moments.

Just remember that the more people you are traveling cross country with the less each person can pack. In some cases you might decide to share resources to save a bit of space. For example, you might opt for a smaller cooler and restock drinks at various stops along the way. Or limit the size of travel bags for clothing. The key is to pack just enough to keep the trip from being boring or a hardship but, don't try to take everything along. Here, on our site boston2portland.com you can find a lot of helpful suggestions that will make planning and packing for your cross country trip much easier so take the time to browse through the site and take advantage of any tips you can use.