There’s something about summer that brings out the longing in all of us to travel, explore, and find adventure. In recent years, I have found that my once larger trips filled with airplanes and hotels, have been replaced by more common road trips. With a few friends in the car, bottles of water, packs in the trunk, and some music, we hit the open road, with great expectation and only a final destination in mind. Around here adventure is pretty easy to come by with Oregon, the coast, and the mountains only 1-3 hours away. Weekend adventures are commonplace and can be done with great spontaneity.
On this road trip I was spending loads of time in the car, but longing to make the most of early mornings and car time enjoyable. Keep reading for a few of my tips to have the best road trip of your life.
Travel with people you like.
This seems like a given, but you would be surprised by some of the less than fun road trip experiences I’ve been on. Make sure those who are in the car with you are up for anything, flexible, and are people you truly enjoy being with. There’s nothing quite like 12 hours in a cramped car to remind you whether or not you want to hang out with the same people the next day.
Eat where the locals do.
While days on the road can be long and tiring, reenergize by breaking for meals at some great local spots. With my Yelp app, I can find some well reviewed places, view hours, and find locations close to the highway. On this morning we stopped at a local creperie. It was 8 AM and we were pretty excited for breakfast after 3 hours on the road.
Take in the scenery.
As you travel on the road, make sure to periodically pull over and take it all in. Whether it’s the sunset over the grass plains, the high desert, or the mountains, pull over to the shoulder, sit on the hood of your car and enjoy it. Sometimes memories come in photos and other times they are snapshots ingrained in our memory. Add a few more snapshots to your memories. You won’t regret it.
Ask for recommendations.
Before I leave on any trip, I always post a little blurb about where I’m headed and ask for recommendations. Usually on Instagram, people comment on their favorite places, coffee shops, and things to do. This gives me new ideas of places, restaurants, and districts to explore in places I have already been.
Put together some great music.
No road trip would be complete without some excellent tuneage to keep you going. Not to worry, I’ve put together a Spotify playlist for all your summer adventures below.
What are some of your favorite road trip destinations? Do you have any road trips planned this summer? Any tips or tricks you’ve learned on the open road?