Great Planning Tips for the Perfect Couples’ Road Trip

This article was written by Cheryl Conklin,

guest blogger for Integral Travel and founder of Wellness Central. 

A road trip is the perfect romantic vacation with your significant other. It gives a lot of time to talk and enjoy the open road together while being able to have fun with multiple stops along the way. Before you take off on your wonderful vacation, however, check out these tips from Integral Travel for making your road trip easy with some ahead-of-time planning.

Communicate and Plan Together

In order to make sure both of you will enjoy your romantic road trip as a couple, it’s best to communicate and plan your vacation together as well. This is the best way to ensure you both can check sights off your bucket lists. The best way to start, according to TripIt.com, is to make a list of your go-to destinations and decide on a budget together. On your trip, encourage downtime from your phones and let the concierge take charge so you don’t have to worry about every single detail. When plans don’t go your way, don’t worry, as you are still able to spend some wonderful quality time with your significant other and find a fun backup plan to ensure you are enjoying the most out of your road trip.

Get Your Car’s Oil Changed

Road trips can be rough on your car, so it’s best to prepare your car before you take off heading towards fun. Check your oil levels and if you are close to the 3,000-mile range — or know you plan on driving a good chunk of it — it would be best to get your oil changed before you leave home. Then, you won’t have to stop your exciting road trip for a boring oil change.

According to Popular Mechanics, other important and helpful checklist points you should take note of before your trip is your radiator fluid to ensure your radiator can handle the journey, brake fluid so you can stop easily, power steering fluid so your steering is maneuverable, transmission fluid to ensure you can shift simply, and windshield wiper fluid to prepare for dusty endeavors. You should also look into items, such as a car cover, that will protect your vehicle while you’re on the road, and be sure to bring along a car survival kit with pliers, a flashlight, and bungee cords just in case.

While we can prepare our cars for the worst, it’s best to also make sure your insurance is ready for your trip as well. Cross country trips can be exciting, but as you put some hard miles on your car, you may want to review your policy and make sure you have enough of the right coverage. If you’re in a situation where you might want to switch to ensure your car is covered properly for your romantic getaway, go ahead and try a different insurance company. Going with a highly rated company — Nationwide and Progressive both have A+ AM Best ratings — can ensure you’re getting quality coverage for your money.

Make Sure Your Phone Is Up-to-date

Vacations and road trips are the perfect time to disconnect from the world. After all, you want to spend the most time with your significant other. However, it is important to keep your cell phone on you just in case you need your GPS to find the nearest gas station or call a tow truck if you end up on the side of the road. According to Outside.com, there are plenty of apps that can help you on your road trip including Roadtrippers which you can put all of your destinations in and it tells you information like how much it will cost to get there and HotelTonight which can help you find last-minute hotel rooms with good deals. Other apps that can help you save money include GasBuddy to find the cheapest gas around that’s available and TollGuru which can find you the quickest and least expensive toll routes.

Before you take off, make sure your phone plan is satisfactory for your trip. It’s better to have enough data to use your money-saving apps instead of spending more every time you go past your monthly limit. Make sure you also won’t obtain roaming fees if you’re traveling into a foreign country, as it can get expensive fast. So, if you plan to watch movies, television shows, or YouTube videos during your downtime, make sure you get a data plan that’s designed for people who love streaming content on a regular basis.

Hitting the road for a couple’s trip can be exciting and extremely fun. However, before you hop in the car and head out on the highway, it’s important to make sure you have a plan in place. That way, you can decrease the stress and increase the fun.