Best Road Trip Essentials to Organize a Car

Are you planning a road trip this year? If you’ll be spending hours driving in a car, you’ll want to plan to be safe and comfortable! We’ve put together the best road trip essentials to organize your car!

Having an organized car can mean the difference between having a fabulous trip and a miserable one!

We purchased a car for our youngest son and will be driving it across the country to deliver it to him!

Now it’s time to equip the car for our road trip!!

Before we talk about the essentials we are packing in his car, there are a couple of things we need to address!

car Cleaning before and during a road trip

First things first, before we pack anything in the car we need to clean it out! You will want to clean and organize your car before you leave home, and then keep it that way while you travel!

You’ll get frustrated fast if you start your road trip with empty cups and old receipts stuffed here and there! Get rid of the clutter and start fresh!

If you need the motivation to declutter and clean, check out this post for an easy strategy to clean your car.

Plan ahead for a successful trip

Here are some things you should address well in advance of your trip to make sure you have time to collect, order, and take care of them!

Remember, planning ahead for unexpected challenges is well worth your time!

• Have your car serviced – Take it in for an oil change and tire rotation. This might be a good time to buy new tires! If you are experiencing any problems with your car have it looked over and fix any issues before you hit the road!
• Paper maps/road atlas -it’s very important to collect paper maps in case your phone dies or you can not get service.
• Passport – Will you be driving out of the country? Make sure you have a passport if needed. It takes several months to get one.
• Electronic toll passes- consider buying one because it might be cheaper to purchase this instead of paying individual tolls. Do your research to find out!
• National Park Pass – if you will be driving through more than one National park, consider buying a pass.

Best road trip Essentials to organize a car

Please make sure items are rated to fit your vehicle before purchasing.

Essentials to keep the car clean while you travel

• Floor mats -Floor mats are essential to keep your carpet clean and free from stains and odors. They also protect your carpet from salt, sand, and mud! We purchased a used car for our son and it did not have floor mats. We highly recommend these floor mats because you can cut them to fit the size of your floorboard!
• Trash can & liners/bags – great when traveling across the country or just across town! Best way to keep your car tidy!
• Lint Roller -travel size to clean crumbs or pet hair from your seats! It also comes in handy if you forget to remove pet hair from clothes before getting into the car.
• Microfiber cloth – to wipe your windshield, and mirrors, or clean up spills!
• Cup holder coasters -to keep your cup holder clean and tidy.
• Tide-to-go pens – Keep one in your car, one in your backpack, and one in your purse in case you drip ketchup from your burger on your shirt!

Everyday Essentials to keep in your car

• Important paperwork – car registration and insurance information, car manual, AAA membership card, or phone number for roadside assistance. and driver’s license
• Paper and pen -handy to have in case you need to write down directions or important info you don’t want to forget!
• Tissues -not just for blowing your nose, they may come in handy if the rest stop is out of toilet paper!
• Rain poncho/umbrella – you never know when you might need to protect yourself from the rain or the sun!
• Hand sanitizer – great to have after you touched a cart in a store or to clean your hands before you eat on the road!
• Have coins -if your car does not have an organizer to hold spare coins, buy chewing gum and use the container to hold loose change. You might need change for parking meters, toll roads, air pumps at a gas station, vending machines, etc.
• Cash – Bring cash just in case you need to purchase gas, etc., and you cannot use your credit card.

electronic Essentials to get before the trip

• Hands-free cell phone mount – Great if you use your phone for navigation. There are different types of mounts so do your research to see which one would work best for you and your vehicle type.
• Power Inverter -to charge phones and other devices. It has two USB ports and two AC outlets.
• Portable charger -in case you run out of ports or need it outside of the car.
• Phone charger cables – Get iPhone cables or Android-based phone cables
• Research apps to enhance your experience. For National Park Audio tours, GyPSy. A map and direction app that gives more info about things to see along the way, Roadtrippers. Also get apps for roadside assistance, AAA, etc. if you have those services.

EMERGENCY Essentials

• Spare tire- make sure your spare is aired up. An upgrade option would be to get a full-size spare.
• Jacks – most cars come with jacks that fit your vehicle. Make sure all the parts are available and working
• Jumper cables – the bigger the vehicle the longer you probably want your cables to be able to reach from your vehicle to the one giving you a jump.
• Basic tools – a basic set of tools with screwdrivers, pliers, ratchet, etc could be useful.
• Set of car fuses and tester – get a basic fuse set compatible with your car.
• Small first aid kit -nice to have antiseptic and bandaids for a cut or blister.
• Flashlight– consider getting one on a headband in case you have to fix a flat tire in the dark! It’s nice to have light and be hands-free!

Essential items to add comfort

• Travel pillows -you can purchase small travel pillows or a pillow/blanket combo like in the picture above. If that’s not in the budget, take full-size pillows and sit on them when not in use!
• Throw blankets – I freeze in air-conditioning, so having a throw blanket is a must for me, especially in the summer!
• An extra layer of clothing -if you’re cold-natured, wear layered clothing.
• Sunglasses -nothing worse than being blinded by the light, so pack sunglasses for everyone!
• Headphones – make sure everyone packs headphones so you don’t have to listen to your kid’s favorite song fifty times in a row!

Essentials to pack for a road trip

• Personal backpacks – my best piece of advice (especially if you have kids) is to let each family member put their favorite things in a backpack. If it won’t fit, they can’t bring it. They can pack games, electronics, books, stuffed animals, etc.
• Suitcases – for clothes, shoes, and toiletries.
• Food – You never know when you might get hungry, and it’s so much cheaper to buy snacks in bulk than purchase from a gas station! Pack individual snacks like granola/protein bars, bags of chips/pretzels/popcorn/nuts/seeds, dried fruit, and beef jerky.
• Cooler with drinks – make sure to pack plenty of water bottles, juice, and some caffeine for a treat!
• Rooftop cargo holder – if everything won’t fit inside the car, consider purchasing a cargo carrier to go on top of your car! You must of course have an appropriate luggage rack on your vehicle. Consider more aerodynamic boxes from Yakima or Thule to help with gas mileage.

Road trip Essentials packing list

To make your next road trip easier, we developed a free printable checklist for your convenience!

To get access to the free printable, and our entire home organization resource library, sign up for our email list here!

We hope you enjoyed this post on road trip essentials, so whether you travel across the country, the state, or just across town, you are prepared!

Until next time, follow us on Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram!

Blessings, Donna and Rich

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You’ll want this important info when it’s time to hit the road!

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