Road Trip Essentials | 58 + Things needed for the Perfect Road Trip
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Packing for the ultimate road trip can be quite a daunting task. There are so many things to plan out and depending on the circumstances, you may need to pack everything last minute. That’s where this post comes in handy. I’ve made this easy for you so that you can just download my printable road trip packing list or refer back to this post for the best and fun road trip essentials.
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Road Trip Essentials – 58 + Things needed for the Perfect Road Trip
Whether you are looking for road trip essentials for adults, road trip essentials for couples, road trip essentials for families, or the best gadgets to keep your family entertained, I’ve got you covered. I’ve listed over 50 road trip essentials for what to pack for a road trip.
What to pack on a road trip? Essential Road Trip Necessities
These are pretty much everything you should have in your car on a daily basis. I would say these essentials for road trips are crucial for many reasons whether it’s because you broke down on the side of the road or because you need to access your insurance information. These should always be in your car for an effective and safe drive anywhere.
- License and Registration – I feel like this shouldn’t need to be said, but just in case you don’t have the updated paperwork, make sure you have those on hand.
- Car Insurance – A necessary item needed in order to drive, make sure you have the most updated version of your car insurance for just in case situations.
- Car Manual – I always leave this in my car and it’s important to keep this on hand in case of an emergency. It will inform you of some necessary steps to take if you have a flat tire, need to get an oil change, when to check the maintenance of your car, what your tire pressure should be at, and so much more. Just leave it in the glove box for safekeeping.
- Spare Tire and Jack – A spare tire will always be a lifesaver, just make sure you have a jack and a Lug wrench.
- Car Safety Kit – This care safety kit has the most important necessities you may need in case of a roadside emergency. I highly recommend it and you can purchase it here on Amazon.
- Thomas Guide or Map – I know we rely so much on GPS these days, however, if your GPS signal happens to be bad or the phone dies and you need to travel by foot, having a Thomas Guide or map will be extremely helpful for these emergency situations. Purchase your Thomas Guide here.
- Hand Sanitizer – With COVID and without COVID, this always sat in my car for various reasons. It’s a good habit to sanitize your hands when entering your car to avoid a dirty steering wheel and prevent yourself from getting sick.
- Tissues – I think it’s a good habit to keep some tissues in the car for a variety of reasons. These are the perfect Kleenex tissues that fit into your cup holder.
- Baby Wipes – With road trips, there are always snacks and drinks that spill and make a mess. It’s a great idea to keep baby wipes or cleansing wipes in the car to clean up those spills. These are honestly my go to road trip essentials.
- Toilet Paper – I like to keep a roll of toilet paper in the car in case I need to pull over to the side to use the bathroom where a rest stop is nowhere to be found or bathrooms that do not have toilet paper.
- Water – It’s good to have water on hand in case your end up stranded for a long time. Water is crucial to your road trip essentials and can be used for a variety of emergency situations.
- Ice Scraper – If you park outside or live in cold winter conditions, it’s great to have an ice scraper on hand to help clear up the ice on your windows. Even where I’m from in California, it was necessary to have one for those cold winter mornings. This one is perfect for short people like me.
- Umbrella or Poncho – In case of unpredictable weather conditions, I always have an umbrella on hand. Ponchos are a great alternative if you want something a bit more compact. Whichever one you choose to do, it’s a good idea to have something to protect you.
- Reusable Shopping Bags – Coming from California where they charge for plastic bags, I’ve been mindful to keep reusable shopping bags in my car. I’ll grab them before going into the store and make sure to bring them back into the car after I’ve finished my shopping.
- Small Trash Bags – Honestly these have been essential for all of my trips and I’ve kept a small box in my car multiple times. They come in handy when trying to either get rid of the trash, use them when a passenger gets car sick and needs something to puke in, put in dirty clothes and shoes, or even pick up dog poop.
- Swiss Army Knife
- Flashlight – I hate to be one of those people who says I told you so, but seriously a flashlight during the night is essential. Imagine trying to change out your tire in the middle of the night. This one include a seatbelt cutter and a tool to break windows.
READ: One Week Road Trip Itinerary in New Zealand
Electronics for your Road Trip Essentials
These are the things to bring on a road trip needed to stay entertained. Whether this is for you, the kids, or your friends, it’s important to have these offline, especially for long road trip essentials in case you run out of data or have no signal.
- Downloaded Music, CDs, or Cassette Tapes – I say downloaded music because there may be times during your road trip that you may not have access to data. Having a downloaded playlist will make your drive all that smoother. Create a Playlist! This will be your saving grace. How many times have you become sleepy because of a boring playlist? Music will help keep you stimulated in the drive and make the trip go by faster. Be sure to prep all your music before leaving for your trip. Check out this Spotify Playlist here.
- Downloaded Movies or TV Shows or DVDs for the Kids or Passengers – Well like I said above, it’s best to avoid streaming data and in case your lose connection you still have movies that can be played offline.
- GPS – If your car doesn’t already come with a GPS navigation, you can always purchase a Garmin or TomTom so that you have extra coverage and aren’t using your data on your phone.
- Car Charger – Having a car charger will be necessary for the trip. I suggest having more than one port so that more than one phone can charge as the same time.
- Portable Power Bank – Don’t you hate when your devices run out of juice and you lose out on entertainment? Be sure to pack your car charger and also a portable power bank. The power bank will be good if you are hiking or somewhere that’s not near the car.
- Camera and Batteries – What road trip or adventure doesn’t require a camera? Road trips are perfect times to take detours prior to arriving at your final destinations. There is plenty to see along the way and a perfect opportunity to take some creativity to record your memories of your trip.
- Wifi Hotspot or Portable Device
- Bluetooth Speaker – These are honestly perfect for a last minute stop at the beach or a stop to have a picnic in a park somewhere. I love to have one on hand for those what if and impromtu stops along the side of the road.
- Power Inverter – This is perfect if you need to plug in a laptop or anything else that need a wall port.
Food, Snacks, Drinks, and More
- Reusable Water bottle – This is honestly my go-to water bottle and it keeps things ice cold for hours making it the perfect water bottle companion. Also, it’s non-toxic meaning it’s completely safe to use compared to many of those plastic water bottles out there.
- Snacks – These are road trip must haves, every road trip consists of great snacks from healthy to unhealthy snacks, it’s important to have a variety on hand.
- Ice Chest and Ice – I think it’s pretty standard in order to keep drinks or even small snacks cold.
- Reusable Utensils – These are perfect if you don’t want to waste plastic utensils or even attempt to find some. I love having these on hand to save money and save the environment. It’s a great way to be more concious of your product waste.
Comfort Road Trip Items
If you are unsure of what to pack on a road trip, these are probably many of the items you may have not thought of. These are cross-country road trip essentials.
- Towels – Having towels on hand are super important if you plan on hiking or traveling to the beach or just in case the place you are staying at does not have towels. I always keep these compact towels on hand – even when traveling abroad.
- Blankets – It’s great to keep a blanket or two in the car especially during cold weather.
- Pillows – I highly suggest this as a comfort item, some accomodations, the pillows may not be to your liking and having your own personal one is good practice. If you are looking for a travel pillow, you may like this one.
- Clothes and Suitcase
- Sweatshirt, Hoodie, or Jacket – I think it’s super important to have a hoodie or jacket on hand, weather can change quite dramatically from day to night and it’s a great protective layer from the elements.
- Toiletries
- Sunblock – I like to always keep this in my car. Being from California, I almost always forget to put on sunblock or sun screen but I know if I forget it’s okay because I’ll have one in the car. This one smells amazing.
- Hand Cream – As I get older, I notice that my hands are getting drier especially during cold climates. It’s great to have some hand cream with you.
- Comb or Hair Brush – A great way to stay groomed after a long hike or swim in the ocean.
- Toothbrush and Toothpaste
- Comfy Shoes including Flip Flops – I love to pack a pair of flip flops or sandals for my car rides. This is just my preference, but I love being barefoot and you never know when you might make a pit stop somewhere near the beach! Definitely pack a pair of tennis shoes and good walking shoes as well.
- Portable Clothing Dry Line – This is honestly a saving grace for many reasons. If you are traveling light or going to the beach, it’s a great way to hang up some items to dry. You many need to hand wash items during your trip and this clothing line is perfect and even comes with it’s own clips.
Road Trip First Aid Kit
I actually believe in building your own person First Aid Kit, mostly because not all first aid kits work for everyone. I think it’s important to check out all the items or you can also grab the easy and ready to go First Aid Kit I list below.
- First Aid Emergency Kit – This first aid kit is the perfect road trip essentials kit and has a bunch of great items needed in case of an emergency. It’s already put together for you and you can add some of the small things below if you want.
- Motion Sickness Medication – Dramamine is my go to when it comes to motion sickness. I get car sick and sick during boat rides. It’s important for me to have it with me for just in case. This is one of my absolute road trip essentials.
- Glucose Tablets – If you are diabetic or traveling with someone who is diabetic, it would be good to keep these on hand.
- Bandaids and Bandages
- EPI Pen – For those who have major allergic reactions.
- Allergy Medication – It’s good to have these in case of allergies to animals or seasonal allergies.
- Migraine and Headache Medication
- Emergency Heat Packs – These are great! In Korea, you kind of need heat packs but they only have single use packs. I love these because they are reusable and perfect for pocket warmers and just to warm you up a bit if you need it.
- Vitamins
- Pepto Bismal – Not completely necessary, but if you have a sensitive stomach it’s good to have on hand.
- Imodium – I usually have this on hand for international travels and no so much for domestic travel. However, if you end up getting food poisoning, what’s worst than traveling with diarrhea.
- Antibiotic Cream
- Antibiotic Wipes
- Scissors – I like to have these on hand. You never know when you’ll need a pair of scissors.
- Safety Pins
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