20 Essentials for Your Next Cross-Country Road Trip

"Oh no! I forgot my charger."

"Where are my sunglasses?"

"Do we need a tent?"

"Do you think we should carry a map?"

Planning a cross-country road trip can be a tricky job when you don’t know what you’ll need along the way and what may slow you down.

While it sounds tempting to just throw everything in the car, this can be a huge mistake on your part. You will simply be left with a vehicle full of unwanted stuff and nothing is at arm’s length when you actually need it the most!

So, pack light and pack only the essential elements. To help you out, here’s a list.

1. Choose your entertainment option before leaving

Create your playlist ahead of time and avoid movies or other screen-based distractions. A fun way to pass your time is to try learning all the words to a new song and then sing it replacing all the verbs in the chorus with your favorite expletive.

In case you are bored of listening to the music, you can take a quick (non-creepy) peek at other drivers and then muse about their jobs (e.g. "He has big hands, must be a butcher!") or you can find an imaginary job for them!

2. Camera

Stop often to stretch your leg and to shoot a few photos of the scenic view in front of you.

3. A notebook

To quickly jot down the juicy insider tips you learn along the way!

4. Your phone

Never forget that!

With Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter apps, your family and friends can see where you are. It’s also handy for planning and tracking your route, or even finding the closest gas station.

Since you are heading for a cross-country road trip, get an international SIM card to stay connected while traveling to a new country. Although there are a number of companies offering best international SIM cards, choose the one that can offer the best connectivity, data, and talk time services according to your travel need. In case you plan to travel to more than one country, you can go ahead and choose one of the World SIM cards. Getting a World SIM card will save you from the hassle of changing and activating a new SIM card each time you drive into a different country. To get the best connectivity and deals, try Matrix SIM cards.

5. Tent & your sleeping bag

Perfect for nights when you want to enjoy the natural world, or when you roll up somewhere and there’s no vacancy. The tent will save you in such situations.

Don’t forget to pack your favorite pillow, blanket, and a mosquito spray.

6. Paper products

Pack a box of tissues, paper towels, wet wipes, toilet paper, and some garbage bags. You'll use them for everything from sticky fingers to normal spills, usual cleanup and as a quick refreshing mask for road-weary eyes.

7. Grooming items

Items like tooth brush, tooth paste, facial cleansing and hair care products, shaving kit, lotions, perfume, and hand sanitizer are the few essential elements you should never forget. Buy them in smaller quantities if your trip is short to save some space and to keep all of them in a single box.

8. A knife

A Swiss army knife is good. It is handy for so many things.

If you are a woman traveling alone for the trip, pepper spray is a necessary evil!

9. Eyewear

This is as important an item as you can take. You need comfortable, clear vision to keep you safe on a long trip. Choose high definition, glare-free lenses. Also, bring your clear glasses for night driving or to drive during a cloudy day.

10. An extra cell phone car charger

It can be a lifesaver if you forget your charger somewhere.

11. Flashlights

It’s better to have several lighting options than just your car, so take at least two to three flashlights of varying sizes and batteries.

12. Food

You’ll also want snacks to keep from getting too hungry. Make sure you eat healthy food, the last thing you want is a sugar rush or carb crash to affect your driving. In addition to your normal road trip food, pack at least two to three days worth of food, preferably dried foods in easy-to-open cans.

Also, when you pull over, seek out regional foods to experience the local culture and cuisine of the place.

13. Water

Stay hydrated to avoid fatigue. Drink a lot of water and always keep sufficient bottles in your car.

14. An emergency kit

Don't drive anywhere without a trusty emergency kit containing items like a bottled water, flashlight (other than the ones you kept before), jumper cables, batteries, first aid supplies, tools to fix the dreaded flat tire, flares or a reflective triangle, and enough change to make a telephone call, if necessary. Keep some amount of cash in the kit as well.

Apart from these, keep a candle, gas lighter, a fire extinguisher and an ice scraper for windows (if you are heading to a cold location) in your car.

15. Use multiple tools to map your trip

When you’re traveling to a new location, it can be difficult to keep track of where you are and where you’re headed next. If you have an integrated navigational system installed in your vehicle, then you’re already one step ahead. If not, most smartphones have GPS applications available. Another good idea is to keep a compass and a map on hand just to be safe. Make sure you have more than one way of keeping track of your location.

16. Travel insurance

A road trip without any travel insurance sounds like jumping from the cliff without a parachute! Jokes apart, buying travel insurance can cover you from serious emergencies like medical evacuation and repatriation, loss of passport or baggage, medical assistance and more during your trip. So, make sure you invest in a good international travel insurance to enjoy a trip with peace of mind. Try Matrix International Travel insurance to get the best coverage!

17. All your medicines and prescriptions

Stock all the essential medicines that you may need during the trip. Also, if you are on a special medication, keep your prescriptions with you all the time so that if you get caught up in any unforeseen circumstances, you’ll be fine.

18. Spare keys

You don’t want to get locked out of the car in a middle of your journey! Always pack a duplicate set of your car as well as the house keys separately in a different bag.

19. All necessary documents

Pack your driver’s license, car registration, insurance proof, and all the other necessary documents that you might need during the trip.

Quick tip: Keep multiple photocopies of the documents in separate places and leave a copy back at your home as well. Also, whenever someone asks you to submit your ID (usually they do while you check in a hotel) try submitting the photocopies instead to make sure you don’t lose them or leave them behind.

20. A forex card

Of course, you will need money when you are on the road! While using your credit or debit card will quickly add up to your travel expenses with the extra transaction charges, your Forex card will save you here! You can use them for all online transactions and withdraw cash whenever you need it, all this with no added charges. For the best value, try Matrix Forex Card that offers preferential exchange rates and can be reloaded anytime and anywhere.

Conclusion

Remember to always be well-prepared for your road trip and hopefully, this list will help make packing easier for you.

Happy Traveling!

Yamini is a versatile Indian writer. She currently writes columns and articles for Matrix Cellular (http://www.matrix.in/), Atlanta Cutlery(http://www.atlantacutlery.com/) and Museum Replicas (http://www.museumreplicas.com/)