How to Plan a Road Trip: a Step by Step Guide

Planning a road trip sounds simple—until you actually sit down to map it out. Routes, timing, stops, where to sleep—it can be overwhelming.

After more than 100,000 miles of road trips across the U.S., I’ve figured out a system that makes the process easier (and a lot more enjoyable).

In this guide, I’ll walk you through exactly how to plan a road trip step-by-step—from choosing your route to mapping stops and avoiding the mistakes that can ruin a trip before it even starts.

How to Plan a Road Trip

The difference between a road trip and a successful road trip is good preparation. I know it sounds like a lot of fun to grab a bag and ride off into the sunset but in reality it isn’t very practical.

If you aren’t prepared and don’t have a well thought out plan, then you’ll waste time, drive around needlessly and maybe even miss some things. So, before you start planning a road trip, there are two things you need to ask yourself:

1. Do you have enough time for your road trip?
2. How much can you comfortably drive in a day?

These two questions will have a big impact on how successful your road trip is. Here’s why.

Step 1 — Figure Out How Much Time You Have?

Chances are if you’re thinking about taking a road trip you probably already know where you want to go. But before you start mapping routes, the first question to ask yourself is whether you actually have enough time to do it right. And if you don’t know where you want to go, more on that later.

A road trip isn’t just about getting somewhere — it’s about the getting there. If you’re going to spend your vacation behind the wheel, you want enough time to slow down, take the detour, linger over lunch in a small town and not feel like you’re racing a clock the whole way. Feeling rushed on a road trip defeats the whole purpose.

“Its not the destination, it’s the journey.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

The fun thing about road trips is having enough time to find a few unexpected places along the way. If you’re rushed — whether from poor planning or just not being realistic about the time you have — then the road trip just becomes a drive

When you start road trip planning, be realistic about the time you have and what you can actually do in that time. Don’t over plan. A well thought out itinerary will have enough time to drive to the destination and time to wander around and stumble on a few of those surprise things naturally.

Step 2 — Know How Many Miles You Can Drive

The next step in planning a road trip is calculating how much you can comfortably drive in a day. It might seem like a minor detail, but if you’re not used to long-distance driving — or most of your daily driving is short or in only city traffic — then a long or cross-country trip can be overwhelming.

Why? Because the more miles you need to cover, the more pressure you feel to stay on schedule. Every stop, detour or unplanned activity adds time and feels like a burden. Before you know it, you’re behind, exhausted and trying to make up time. It’s not fun anymore.

To figure out your driving comfort level, make a practice run. A short weekend road trip can help gauge how many miles you’re comfortable driving in a day plus get you used to driving longer distances. Remember: it’s not a contest. Plan what’s best and comfortable for you.

It might take a few trips to find your sweet spot but you’ll get there. You can always take someone along for support if you don’t want to do a solo road trip. Two drivers — or even three — are best. Taking turns driving means no one person is overly exhausted. Another tip: rest areas were made for rest. Use them.

Step 3 — Pick a Destination

Once you have the timeframe nailed down — and how much you’re comfortable driving — it’s time to choose your destination if you haven’t already. As I mentioned previously, most people usually have someplace in mind when they start planning a road trip.

But if you don’t, or just have a vague general idea, and need some inspiration, then it’s time to check out your favorite travel blog, YouTube channel or social media for ideas. I personally keep a list of places I want to visit as well as a few saved road trip itineraries in my Google Maps.

Road Trip Ideas

Still not sure? Then take a look at your hobbies and interests. Love nature? Consider a national park road trip. Grouping parks together, is a smart way to maximize your time and create a more efficient itinerary. Utah and its Mighty 5 national parks – which includes Zion, Bryce, Capital Reef, Canyonlands and Arches – is a great place to start.

What about focusing on a specific state? Arizona is perfect for road tripping. Start with the Grand Canyon – a park everyone should visit – and Sedona – add in a few lesser known cultural and historical sites in the state and there’s your itinerary. Keeping a road trip in one region means less driving and is smart for first time road trippers.

Do you like quirky road side attractions? Maybe a Route 66 road trip or a southern road trip is right for you. Literally, anything can be turned into a road trip. I know people who visit ball parks, lighthouses and wineries – with a designated driver of course, on road trips. The possibilities are virtually endless.

When choosing your destination, also think about when to go. Spring and fall are the sweet spots for most road trips — good weather, manageable crowds and the best light for scenery. Summer means peak crowds and higher prices but it’s the best time for northern routes and mountain drives.

Winter has its own appeal — the Southwest can be really nice and quiet when the rest of the country is frozen, just pack an emergency kit and check road conditions.

Step 4 — Plan a Road Trip Budget

Some people plan their budget around their destination. Others let their budget determine where they go. Either way, knowing your numbers before you get too deep into planning will save you a headache later. If you live on the east coast like me then a trip to the Smokies for $500 is very different from a cross-country California road trip.

I’ll be honest with you — I have never once made a formal road trip budget in my life. Not one. And I know that probably disqualifies me from giving advice on this particular subject. But hear me out. Just because I don’t have a formal budget doesn’t mean I don’t think about it and don’t try to save.

Gas

The good and bad news is: there are some non-negotiables in road tripping — you can’t change the price of gas unfortunately — so that’s at least easy to figure out and you can’t change the price of gas. I do however, feel like food is where you can save. That said — here’s my version of road trip budgeting. It’s not perfect but it’s real.

Before you leave, use GasBuddy to estimate fuel costs. Plug in your route, your vehicle and your approximate MPG and it’ll give you a ballpark. It won’t be exact but it’s a starting point. The further west you go the more unpredictable gas prices get — fill up when you can, not when you have to.

Gas tip: join a fuel loyalty app like Love’s Travel Stops. They offer rewards on the app and are one of my favorite places to gas up in the U.S.

Lodging

It’s the biggest variable on any road trip and the hardest to control if you’re winging it. Booking your anchor stops in advance — the busy nights, the national park areas, the holiday weekends — protects you from panic booking an overpriced hotel at 10pm because you’re exhausted and out of options. I’ve done that and it’s not fun.

Lodging tip: Use points or third party booking platforms like Booking or Expedia or learn to like camping. My daughter and I have saved a ton of money camping our way across the states. We could have never have done everything we have done if we didn’t camp.

Food

You don’t have to eat at sit down restaurants every meal. I have eaten so many turkey sandwiches on road trip just so I could save for dinners worth having or more expensive activities. And yet some of my best road trip meals have been at a picnic table or staring at elk out of the back of my car. Entirely free.

Keep a cooler and food in car. Yes, snacks are nice to have but something that feels like a real meal is even better. Having a few items to make a sandwich or a salad feels less like you are just trying to save money. I usually splurge on some really good bread or one fancy olives or some item to keep it from being ordinary.

Have an Emergency Fund in the Budget

Call it whatever you want — the “oops” fund, the flat tire fund, the I-didn’t-plan-on-this fund. Set it aside before you leave and do not touch it unless something actually goes wrong. There will be something you’ll eventually need it for.

The good news is: the best stuff on a road trip is usually free. The overlook you stumbled on, the small town concert you didn’t know was happening, the conversation with a stranger at a rest stop that turned into a two hour detour you’ll never forget. Budget for the gas to get there, have plenty of time and let the rest take care of itself.

Southerner Says: I keep a completely zero balance credit card in my glove box for these kinds of situations. It’s a no frills, no fee card but it works. I also have a big jar of change for incidentals — air, tolls and the occasional ice cream or pressed penny machine.

Step 5 — Plan the Route

Now that you know where you’re going and the budget — let’s figure out how to get there. Will you follow major highways, take scenic back roads or a mix of both? I usually recommend a combination — since the best discoveries on a road trip usually happen when you leave the highway.

Choosing the Route

There are plenty of road trip builder apps to help plan and choose your road trip route but I’m old school so Google Maps works just fine for me. It’s pretty simple — just enter the destination, or multiple destinations, and search from your starting point. Then browse the various routes suggested. You can filter out major highways and toll roads if you only want to travel back roads.

When picking a route, don’t forget to check the actual mileage between destinations and the type of road it is. A destination might look close and doable on the map but the road might be a small two lane road that requires more time and patience.

Google Maps Features

If you use Google Maps to create a custom map, take advantage of the layered maps feature to organize your stops, attractions and overnight stays. This helps keep everything organized and in one place. You can also add or remove layers from view as you need them.

One more thing as you plan your route: keep in mind that in many states — especially in the west — wildlife is abundant even along major interstates. This could potentially affect your overall drive time and how far you’re able to travel in a day. Always use extra caution driving at night and build in some additional time for slower speeds.

If you are an international traveler coming to the United States, pay attention to the distance between places. It might look close on the map but be very different than what you’re used to. Some states like Texas are so big, it takes thirteen hours to drive across. Other states like Montana and California (north to south) also require a lot of driving.

Step 6 — Plan Where to Sleep

The hardest part of how to plan a road trip is figuring out where to stop and sleep for the night. Generally, it’s not a problem if you’re simply road tripping from one location to the next and know your destination — it’s fairly straightforward. But if you have an open-ended itinerary without exact stops, then planning where to overnight can be challenging.

A reservation, or a set place to stay, means you’re on a schedule. Maybe you paid money. So when you stumble on something unexpected along the way and want to spend more time there, you might not be able to because you made your prior lodging arrangements.

To avoid that scenario, it’s tempting not to make any reservations and just wing it. Unfortunately, this can be risky. Hotels and even campgrounds in popular locations — or at busy times of the year — fill up quickly. You might end up having to sleep in the car. Ask me how I know about that. I spent a long night in a Walmart parking lot in Hot Springs one time because I decided to wing it.

Making Reservations

What I find helpful for booking lodging is breaking up the road trip into smaller segments in the plan to help figure out where to stay. Here’s what I mean: let’s say I’m driving to California from Georgia and I plan on stopping at Grand Canyon National Park in four days. Since I know that’s a popular, very busy national park, I’ll go ahead and book my room or campsite in that area.

That way, I feel secure knowing that I have set plans for that part of the trip and a place to sleep at the busiest, most crowded stop of my road trip. With those arrangements made, I can then tentatively anticipate where I might be on my route before I arrive at the Grand Canyon and either book more accommodations or wait to see what I find along the way.

Free Cancellation in Your Best Friend

The more you road trip, the more skilled you’ll become at figuring out the sleeping part. It wasn’t my favorite part of planning a road trip at first because I like to wander. I can’t tell you how many times I booked a night somewhere and wished I hadn’t because I changed my mind or found somewhere else I wanted to stay.

It’s those wandering road trips that cause you to question your hotel decisions and why it’s a good idea to book accommodations that offer free cancellation. Booking.com shows which properties offer that perk and then at least you’ll have around 24 hours before you check in to change your mind. I also have a whole setup for sleeping in my car just in case.

Southerner Says: If you are on a long haul road trip and plan on camping, you might want to plan a hotel stay or a home stay every few days so that you will have laundry access and a real bed.

Step 7 — Plan Some Road Trip Stops

Besides the necessary stops for fuel, bathroom and food, you’ll want to plan some fun stops on your road trip too. Roadside America is good for finding interesting places along the way and Atlas Obscura is a good source for unusual attractions on your route.

I always check my Google Maps lists — arranged by state — so when I plan a road trip, I look to see if any of those saved places are near my route. From there I have two lists: a must-do list or “A” list with the things I for sure don’t want to miss and a “B list, or bonus stops, — things I’d like to do if I have time.

Some of my all-time favorite road trip stops and memories have been some of the B list places — random stops I decided to make last minute because something else didn’t work out.

Trust me when I say the places you miss because you don’t have a good plan — or enough time — will haunt you forever. I still think about a gas station on Route 66 I passed up way back in 2014 and never found again. I look for it every time I drive across Interstate 40.

Step 8 — Pick the Best Road Trip Vehicle

The vehicle you choose for your road trip is one of the most important pieces of planning a road trip. It might sound strange since most people assume they’ll simply drive the car they already own. But if you’re planning a cross-country road trip then it’s worth considering whether your current vehicle is the best fit for your trip.

With gas prices, if your vehicle is a larger SUV that consumes a lot of fuel, it’s possible that renting a smaller more economical car could be more practical and money saving in the long run. If you’re road trip involves cold weather or somewhere with unpaved roads like Death Valley National Park then an all-wheel drive or a 4-wheel drive might be best.

Other factors that might affect the vehicle you take on your road trip is: how many people are going? Do you have room for everyone and their luggage? If you plan on camping – how much gear do you need to take? Based on your answers, in some cases, a rental might be the best option.

If you decide to drive your own vehicle, it’s smart to have it inspected by a professional before your trip. At the very least, check a few essentials yourself — like the tires, fluid levels, and battery — before heading out. In a former life, I owned an automotive repair facility and here’s a few things to check on your vehicle before a road trip.

Step 9 — Putting it All Together

Once you’ve gotten this far with your road trip plans, I recommend using either a digital calendar or a spreadsheet for all your activities and ideas. That way you can put it all in front of you, look it over and play around with it. Personally, I like to print a calendar and actually write on it. Either way, it’s entirely up to you.

I find a calendar useful because it helps with daily plans. If there’s a firm final destination and end date, I’ll put that on the date I have to be there and work backwards. From that, I can estimate how many miles I need to drive in a day. I can also see (about) where I need to be on certain dates. Then I fill in around those dates with things I want to do.

Once everything is on the calendar, I look at it closely. If I think I’ve got too much planned, or it’s going to be a rush then I remove a few things – moving those the “b” list — remembering I can always add it back if I find I have the time.

Step 10 — Road Trip Entertainment

Whew! You’re almost done planning your road trip. This last step isn’t strictly necessary but it can make your journey much more enjoyable especially if it’s a cross-country road trip. I’m talking about music, podcasts and even audio books.

Music

Music has a way of turning boring stretches of road into something so much more fun. Use Spotify, to create playlists for your road trip. I have a Drive playlist and the songs from my road trip songs article that you can access here and add to your own account.

Podcasts

Not gonna lie, sometimes, I get tired of music so Podcasts are my second favorite thing to listen to on a road trip. My go-to picks are Office Ladies, Smartless and 90 Miles From Needles. And recently, while road tripping through Kansas I checked out a Wild West Podcast.

Audio Books

Finally, audio books related to the area you’re traveling to can be a fun addition. Listening to a book about Bourbon while driving through Kentucky and following the Bourbon Trail really upped my appreciation for the craft and the area.

Southerner Says: Download everything before you leave. You will lose signal — guaranteed — and there’s nothing worse than dead silence somewhere in the middle of the Nevada desert because you forgot to hit download.

Road Trip Rules & Tips

There are plenty of road trip tips and rules you can use to make your road trip better but I consider these five road trip rules the best ones for a successful road trip.

1. Stay organized. That means from how you pack the car in the trunk and the inside. Boxes and bins can help. It’s also helpful if you put everything back exactly where it was. This will keep you from losing and looking for things over and over. Each person in the car should have their space. Don’t let trash get away from you. We once had quite a few things left over on a long road trip and it got under the seat and interfered with the navigation control unit under the passenger seat. We started checking the car for trash and throwing it out more regularly when we had no GPS.
   
2. Don’t let your gas tank get low. Just go ahead and stop and fill up. Even if you never run out of fuel even a low tank and wondering if you are going to run out is stressful in some areas.
   
3. Have cash on hand. I never leave home without some cash. Honestly, you never know when you might need it. I hit a hole on I-285 50 miles from my house in the rain. I should have called road side assistance but since I was trying to make it to an event and there was a truck stop nearby, I figured there had to be a mobile mechanic too. And there was. I called him and he was quick but only took cash or Apple Pay and I have an Android. Thank goodness I was able to get a hold of my husband and he made the payment. If you want to know, I missed my event.
   
4. Road Side Assistance. That experience is a good reason to have road side assistance because you never know when or where you might have issues — even close to home. AAA saved me another time on the north side of Atlanta when I had a flight the same evening. Yes it took them awhile but once they showed up it took like ten minutes and thankfully, I did make my flight. I love AAA but if you’re looking for a great alternative Good Sam has a solid product.
   
5. A Way to Charge Your Phone. I’m not talking about an extra cord — I mean charging if two cords fail and your lighter doesn’t work kind of charging. An auxiliary battery is really good to have around in this scenario. There are small ones and solar ones but if you spend a lot of time in the car then invest in something that has enough power to charge all your devices. I have this portable power station and it’s been invaluable.
   

How to Plan a Road Trip the Right Way

If you made it this far you’ve learned that good preparation goes a long way when planning a fun road trip. Planning means fewer surprises and more time to enjoy the journey. A little effort on the front end makes for way less stress on the road

If you want to plan even smarter, check out my guide on the most common road trip mistakes to avoid.

Now it’s time to start planning and let the road trip adventure begin. Are you ready? And if all this planning sounds like a lot — that’s what I’m here for. As a travel advisor I help people plan trips they’ll actually remember, road trips included. Fill out this form or send me an email and let’s start mapping out yours.

Now grab a map and let the road trip adventure begin. Are you ready?

See you on the road!

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