Road trips are awesome: Endless highways take you anywhere, almost anywhere. From the oceans to the mountains and every variation of flat farmland, rocky valleys and scenic vistas along the way, it can be all kinds of great adventures.
Whether you’re planning for a few days, a few weeks, or several months, the right gear can make or break a trip. What follows is not a list of gadgets, although there are quite a few. Instead, it’s a mix of easy-to-find articles, a few essential apps and services, and a handful of tips that will make your journey that much smoother. It also focuses mostly on the “road” portion of Road Trip, although some of these work well if you’re jet set. I hope you’ve got your camping and hiking gear sorted already if that’s your thing.
And who am I to give advice? A lover of road trips. Last year I did a 10 week, 10,000 mile road trip across the US. This year, a 9,900-mile adventure that hit nine national parks. Before that I made several trips in and around the US, Europe, Australia and more. Yes. I love road trips.
Understandably, there are different requirements depending on how long you are traveling, where you are traveling, how you are traveling and how many people are accompanying you. I don’t expect everyone to drive a Miata for 10 weeks, but if you get the chance I would highly recommend it.
Download maps for use offline
I think it’s fair to say that most of us take for granted that we will have mobile data everywhere. Depending on where your road trip takes you, maybe not. If you stick to the interstates, you’ll probably be fine. But if you want to take some incredible dual carriageways, maybe not.
It’s easy to download Google Maps, so you can still find out where you’re going even if you don’t have data. Just search for your destination, e.g. E.g. “Wrangell-St, Elias National Park”. Swipe up twice for location information to fill the screen. To see also : ZKW equips all-electric Volvo C40 with high-tech lights. Tap the three vertical dots in the top right and select Download offline map. Then select the area you want to cover on your hard drive.
GPS location information does not require a data connection, just a reasonably clear view of the sky. As long as the maps are already loaded, you can navigate roads and even many trails.
Consider an unlimited data upgrade
If you’re usually within Wi-Fi range, you probably don’t realize how quickly certain activities can eat up your data. On the same subject : Supreme Court ruling on abortion sparks health tech Cambridge Analytica moment. Music, for example, accounts for only a fraction of the data required for video, but listening six hours a day straight while driving can quickly destroy the data packed into your plan.
If your provider has an unlimited option, it’s worth considering. Some, like Google Fi, let you switch to an unlimited plan any month you want. I also like Google Fi because it doesn’t have international roaming in case your road trip gets really epic. Check your current provider if you don’t already have unlimited data.
Alternatively, consider downloading music/podcasts/audiobooks if you’re using Wi-Fi, then turn off your data connection in the car (but make sure you download the maps first!).
We’ve rounded up the best unlimited data plan options for the big three US airlines.
For more information, see Best Unlimited Data Plans for 2022.
Cars have come with USB plugs for years, but you’ve probably noticed that they don’t charge your phone very quickly. Some do, in which case you can probably ignore this gadget. If yours doesn’t, or you have more devices than charging ports, consider a separate USB plug for your “cigarette lighter”. The better ones, like the Anker PowerDrive Speed Plus and the Scosche CPDCA38, can put out enough power to quickly charge your devices. I had an older, slower version of the latter and it worked great for years.
If your car has Android or Apple Auto, these usually require a physical connection between the car and the phone, which rules out using a cigarette adapter.
This isn’t strictly a “road” must-have, but I recommend one for any type of trip. A decently sized USB battery, say 10,000mAh or so, that can quickly charge your phone or other device can be handy in many situations and a lifesaver in others.
There are endless sizes, shapes and colors. I don’t recommend the smallest ones because they’re more for emergencies and usually only give you a partial load. I also don’t recommend really massive ones as they’re hard to lug around. A 10,000 mAh battery can charge your phone from empty several times. There is no such thing as a “perfect” size, but it’s worth starting there to figure out what you need.
I’ve been using different batteries for years. My current pick is the Anker PowerCore 10000 PD Redux because it’s small but has a high capacity and charges my phone quickly via USB-C.
These were the MVPs of my road trip last year: These are wet wipes, but for windows. Why are they on a list of the most important things? Because windscreen wipers can’t do much: some bugs and dirt are just too much for them. These work brilliantly on even the cruelest of bugs.
The packaging is also resealable so you can stash it next to your seat when needed.
The majority of Americans live within a road trip of at least one national park, often several. No matter where your journey takes you, make sure you see if it passes near one. They are all good and worth a visit.
Some are free, but most have an entry fee of around $30. Or you can buy the annual pass for the national park, also called America the Beautiful or Interagency Pass. This will take you to over 2,000 federal states. Three visits to a park should pay off.
You can get them at the park entrance or on the USGS and REI websites.
If you’re considering visiting a national park this year, read the top tips for visiting.
Hoping for the best, planning for the worst? If you have space for it, some kind of roadside emergency kit is probably a good idea. I say “probably” since the better option for most people is a AAA membership, so you’re covered with your phone and a USB battery pack. I mean does your car even have a spare tire? Not mine. It comes with wishful thinking and a phone number.
But it’s possible your adventure will take you away from cellular coverage, and that’s a bad place to get an apartment or break down. The Lifeline kit linked here is decent for what it is. But honestly, I’m not sure how useful these really are. None of the items in this kit are a bad idea per se, but will you use them even if you break down? A first aid kit is available separately (and so should you). The same applies to a tire inflator. But is there anyone out there who knows enough about auto repair to need a crappy screwdriver and a wrench set? If so, wouldn’t they already have quality tools? Do you know how to safely connect jumper cables so you don’t accidentally blow up a car battery? If you said “positive to positive, negative to negative”, don’t buy jumper cables. call for help.
So yeah, I have a feeling that a USB rechargeable battery and AAA membership will be a lot more useful for most people on most road trips. But hey, if you know you’re going to be heading into the unknown it’s worth considering… but if you’re that advanced I’d assume you already have the right gear.
If you want other options, check out our best car emergency kits.
There is one financial statement that is perpetually on my always-renewing list: my AAA membership. I’ve only had to use it a few times, but it’s a peace of mind that’s easily worth its cost. And it’s not even that expensive. Towed once and you’ve paid for your membership for several years.
And it’s not just towing. They’ll help you change apartments, jump your car, and more. This is child’s play.
There are a ton of choices when it comes to cameras, and for most people I’d say your phone is fine. An expensive camera won’t take better pictures if you don’t know how to use it. You can also take great photos with your cell phone.
If you have an older phone or want something more for rugged travel, a GoPro can take great photos and videos and doesn’t cost much. The Hero 9 and 10 are very similar, although the 10 is a bit easier to use as it has a faster processor. I used the 9 on my trip last year and the 10 on my trip this year and the 10 annoyed me a lot less and didn’t block as much.
I actually wrote an entire article on this topic: Best Camera Gear for Your Next Road Trip.
This is a bit tricky as your car and needs are probably different than mine. If you get yourself a GoPro, you can capture some epic shots by having a spot in the car to mount it. There are a number of options. A suction cup mount is a good place to start. I like this one because it’s cheap but can pan and pivot in almost any direction.
I also have an antenna mount which I like a lot. You can see it with a long selfie stick attached with a 360 degree camera at the top of the image above. It’s by CravenSpeed and for the Miata, but they may have a version that fits your car.
As well as reporting on TV and other display technologies, Geoff conducts photo tours of cool museums and locations around the world including nuclear submarines, giant aircraft carriers, medieval castles, epic 10,000 mile road trips and more. You can find all of his tours and adventures on Tech Treks.
He wrote a best-selling sci-fi novel about city-sized submarines, along with a sequel. You can follow his adventures on Instagram and his YouTube channel.
