There may be some of you that are still waiting for your upcoming spring break, and some of you lucky ones may have great trips planned to some amazing place, and you can’t hardly stand the wait. On the other side of things, there is the percentage of us that may be dying to get away somewhere, but we’re broke as a frickin joke, or we simply don’t have the time. Instead of sitting in the corner sulking, just waiting for your friends to get back from Cancun all tan, I would suggest a road trip.
The best trips I have ever taken in my life have included an over packed car, no plans or agenda, an unknown destination and a bag of cheddar puff popcorn. (Ok, so the popcorn really doesn’t have much to do with it, but it’s incredibly addicting and delicious and could enhance your trip) Even if you’re not in school and you don’t have a whole week off just get up and go some place you’ve never been for the weekend. A road trip with a car load of friends can be just the little refresher you need. If you have enough people gas will be cheap, and if you don’t mind sharing a hotel bed with about four people that can be just as cheap.
If a road trip sounds like the vacation of a life time for you, here’s how you get started. Pull out a map, close your eyes and land you figure somewhere on the map. That is where you should go. Or if that is a little too spontaneous for you, just pick a major city that is somewhere around 10 hours away.
The most expensive part of a road trip can end up being the food, or how you choose to entertain yourself. What you choose to do for fun will depend on where you’re going and what will fall into your budget, but if you’re looking to save on the grub just swing by a grocery store and load up on plastic spoons and SpaghettiO’s and Ravioli with the easy pop top to eat straight out of the can. There are ways around the food expense.
A few other tips that have helped me in the past on little road adventures are:
#1: Leave the GPS at home. If you get lost, great. It may seem a little frustrating at the moment, but it will make for an outrageous story when you get home. You never know what will happen or where you will end up when you are lost. The more you can roll with the punches and make the most out of where you end up the better. You will probably, hopefully, somehow, eventually end up back home. So no worries!
#2: If you try and keep everyone moving and stay on a schedule you will only get yourself frustrated. Not to mention you pretty much just blew the whole purpose of the trip. Take your time and just let things happen. You’re not there to be some where you’re there to get away and not think about what needs to happen next. Just hang with your friends and fun will find you. You won’t need to find it.
#3: Do something you have never done before and might make you a little uncomfortable. I’m not saying illegal, just something new. Maybe something you don’t have available to you back home, or something you would be a little embarrassed about the majority of your other friends back home seeing first hand. You don’t know anyone there, go for it!
You will need to pack light. So girls, I’m guilty of this every trip I take so I’m telling you from experience, you will need less than you think. One last important tip is: Put money aside for gas home first! For as spontaneous as a road trip can become it will be hard to know what will drain your funds. You want to be sure you can get home without calling mom and dad. If you have the right people with you a road trip will be a memory you won’t soon forget. You don’t need a lot of time or money, so get after it!
This is a super old post, but I am commenting just for the fact that I TOTALLY AGREE WITH THIS! I too have had a road trip of a lifetime, and it was only about 3 hours long. We left at 2AM, broke up with boyfriends, and found a hotel with a 24 hour hot tub. It was FABULOUS! You should all do this:) SMILE LOTS and MUCH LOVE!