When planning your road trip to college, you'll often wonder what you might actually need in the car on the way to school. Living in Southern California and going to school in Washington, I have about an 18 hour road trip twice a year to go to and from school, and I often find myself wondering what I should pack in the car to keep myself and my passenger (usually my mom) occupied and content. Being as this is my sophomore year and my third time doing the drive, I have a couple must-have's I'd like to share.
1. Good music
Nothing is worse than sitting in the car for 18 hours with horrible music, or no music at all. I can't go anywhere without my phone, not necessarily because I have so many people to talk to, but more because it has all of my music on it. Spend an hour or two before your trip going through iTunes/Spotify/Tidal and make a sweet playlist with tons of music you won't get bored of, but may be okay repeating if you have a long drive ahead of you.
2. Good Company
My mom is often my road-trip buddy, and I definitely can't complain. Being in the car with someone you can talk about all sorts of things with, laugh, sing and play car bingo with can make a road trip so much more fun than it would be alone. Keep in mind you may get on each other's nerves because you'll be in the car together for quite a while, but be happy that you get to spend lots of time with someone you really enjoy in your car.
3. Snacks and lots of water
It may sound silly because usually on road-trips, you can stop wherever and just pick up food, but bringing along snacks from home will save you tons of money in the long run, and cut down on the time it takes you to stop and get food. Water is extremely important because first, it's always super good to stay hydrated, but even more so when you're on a long drive so you feel your best and don't get cranky because you're dehydrated.
4. A Map
Now to millennials and even myself, using a map sounds ridiculous because we all have our fancy smart phones with GPS and Google Maps and Navigation that can basically tell us where we are at all times. However, using a map is actually pretty fun and helpful because sometimes, our phones die or the internet goes out and then you're stranded, waiting desperately for that little dot that shows you where you are to come back and help you out of the situation you're in. If you can read a map, no problem! You don't need any service or a charged phone. It's also pretty fun to grab some sharpies and chart your route along the map, and can be a fun bonding activity for whoever you're going to be driving with.
5. A camera
This is fairly self explanatory, but always have your camera ready to quickly take a picture, sometimes you'll drive past something super special and want to snap a quick photo of it to remember it by.
6. Finally, a positive attitude
Most importantly, keep in mind that the person in the car with you is also pretty annoyed of being in the car for that long and would rather be able to stretch their legs out then being squished up against a suitcase. Remember that wherever you're driving to, once you get there you will have such fun and exciting experiences and even though the drive was WAY too long, it was completely, totally worth it.
Have fun on your road-trip!!!!
