Hitting the road soon? Long car rides can get dull quick if you don’t come prepared. Avoid the day-of packing scramble and gather up these road trip essentials for you, your vehicle, and your passengers. Bookmark this post for your future trips!

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For Your Car

CD Slot Car Phone Mount

If you’ll be using your phone for navigation during your entire trip, a sturdy phone mount is an absolute must-have. Constantly looking down to pick up your phone from the cup holder or your lap is a driving hazard! Make it easy on yourself with this car mount that sits in your CD player.

Phone Charger

Constant navigation and music is going to eat up your phone battery quickly. Don’t forget to pack a phone charger, and make sure you have an adaptor to plug it into your cigarette lighter (Do we still call it that?).

Emergency Car Kit

Probably the most important of the road trip essentials! In the event you run into car trouble, having an emergency car kit on hand will make your life so much easier. Hopefully you won’t need it, but you can never be too prepared!

For You

Reusable Water Bottle

Road trips can take a lot out of you. It’s important to stay hydrated so you can power through the miles! Ditch the plastic, save the environment, and take a reusable water bottle that you can refill at rest stops.

Hand Sanitizer

In the era of a deadly pandemic, this is a no brainer on the road trip essentials list. Keep antibacterial hand wipes or a sanitizer bottle in your car so that you can enjoy those Chick-fil-A waffle fries germ and worry-free.

Snacks

Speaking of waffle fries, pack some snacks for your trip in case you find yourself on a long, empty stretch without rest stops. My favorites? Apples, Kind bars, trail mix, and okay, I confess, Swedish Fish.

Navigation Apps

Remember the days of printing out Mapquest directions? Yikes. Whether you use Waze or Google Maps, make sure your preferred navigation app is downloaded before you leave and ready to guide you to your destination!

Pillow

For passengers only – sorry, drivers, we don’t need you falling asleep at the wheel! If you’re along for the ride, pack a pillow from home or bring a flexible travel pillow perfect for planes, trains, and automobiles.

Sunscreen

Sunburn is still possible in the comfort of your car! There’s actually a poster in my dermatologist’s office showing a trucker’s severe sun damage on his left arm and the left side of his face. Lather up, my friends.

Road Trip Playlist

If you know me well, you know I can’t drive even a mile up the road without music playing! I take the art of playlist crafting very seriously. Follow my ever-evolving, ultimate road trip playlist here on Spotify.

I’m all about the simplicity, so this is it for my car ride essentials. What did I miss? Let me know your road trip must-haves in the comments!