FAQs About Road Trips
You’ve got questions, The Drive has answers!
Q: What’s a good road trip destination?
A: Literally anywhere, but the most fun for car enthusiasts is anywhere with some great roads. If you’re taking out a fun weekend car for the trip, you can make the journey as fun as the destination. For example: Try carving through the Appalachians on the way to Tail of the Dragon, or hitting the Pacific Coast Highway through California on your way to Mulholland Drive. If you’re taking a big SUV with 31” tires on it, try hitting some trails (that are at your skill level, of course!) and see the great outdoors.
Q: How much does it cost to take a road trip?
A: Road trips can be planned on a variety of budgets, but the biggest expense you’ll be facing is the cost of gas and lodging. If you sleep out of your vehicle at campgrounds, you can get that cost down to a few dollars a night, but gas will depend on your car’s efficiency and average gas prices.
I’m personally choosing a relatively efficient diesel turbo van for my trip to help keep gas costs down, but I’m also planning a 5,000-mile trip—probably all told a few thousand dollars in costs by the time I return.
Q: How long should I drive at once?
A: Even professional truckers are mandated to drive no more than 11 hours consecutively and are required to take a break after eight hours of driving. Assuming you’re not a professional semi-truck driver, you probably can’t last that long.
Personally, I take breaks about every 150 miles to stretch and relax, and I call it quits after 6-8 hours of driving. If you start getting tired and find driving difficult, there are rest areas or truck stops for that! Rest and get to your destination safely. I’ve done the dumb move where I tried to compress long trips into a single day or two by skipping naps and rest and I was miserable and exhausted. Not worth it.
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Chris Teague: Twitter (@TeagueDrives), Instagram (@TeagueDrives)
Toni Scott: Twitter (@mikurubaeahina), Instagram (@reimuracing)