Posts Tagged ‘Road Trip’

Tips for Traveling with Kids in Car

May 10th, 2012 Tushar Mathur

Traveling with kids can be tiresome, irritating and overwhelming all at the same time. Though road trips should be exciting, most young children don’t see it that way, and it only takes 200 “Are we there yet”‘s before parents start pulling their hair out.

If you’re not prepared for the road trip, it could be even more stressful. The best way to ensure that you remain sane during the trip is to prepare yourself for the trip before you leave. The following tips will help.

 

Before You Leave

Have a conversation with your kids about the road trip. Show them on a map where you will be going, what route you’re going to take and what states or cities you’re going to drive through to get there. It’s also important to let them know how long the trip is going to take.

Have your kids pack a bag of activities that will keep them busy. Coloring books, stickers, iPods, computers, Nintendo DS—all of these things can keep your child busy while in the car. Make sure they have their favorite stuffed animals too.

You also need to make sure that you pack plenty of snacks. Try to get them ahead of time so that you’re not making an extra stop along the way. Try to stick to non messy items, such as dry cereal, pretzels and chips. You can also pack peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. These will keep your children full until you stop for real meals. Make sure you pack plenty of drinks too, and try to use sippy cups or water bottles to reduce spilling. You also need to pack a garbage bag for wrappers and every other piece of trash, and having wipes and paper towels on hand is also a good idea.

On the Road

Make sure your child’s toys are easily accessible. It’s also a good idea to make sure that snacks and drinks are easily accessible too. This alleviates the whining and the frequent stopping.

Make sure you also have a portable DVD player so that your child can watch movies or listen to music. This can keep their attention for a longer period of time. Just make sure to bring the headphones.

It’s also a good idea to bring pillows and blankets. This will help make your child more comfortable, and may even help them fall asleep. Make sure that your child wears comfortable clothes in the car too, and make sure that a change of clothes is easily accessible in case of accidents or changes in weather.

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Save money by trying a staycation

November 18th, 2011 Tushar Mathur

Where are you planning to head this year for a vacation? Do you have a location in mind already? With everyone pinching their pennies these days, the idea of a vacation is often one of the first things removed from the family budget.

When you take into consideration all of the things that you need to pay for, it just seems like an easy solution to cancel the whole thing and stay home. But there is another solution, consider a staycation.

A staycation is exactly what it sounds like. Instead of going, you are going to “stay” somewhere close by. This trip won’t require plane tickets.

Most people choose to limit their destination to being only one tank of gas away. There is a good chance that something fun and exciting awaits your family right around the corner.

Just like any other vacation, some planning is required. You will still need to find hotel accommodations. You will still want to arrange for some fun activities for the family. In fact, the more you plan, the better your staycation will be.

Get out a map or check online to see what is located in the area around you. It can be as close as the other side of town or even in the next town over. Look around for activities that you and your family would enjoy.

If you like to camp, take this opportunity to look for campsites around your town. Are there places that you have never stayed before? Get creative as you look around.

As you search the area, think about things that you have always wanted to do with the family, but just haven’t had the time. Are there parks, recreation sites, or attractions close by that everyone will enjoy?

Don’t put off the visit any longer. This is the perfect time for you to enjoy the area where you live as well as the area surrounding it.

Remember that even though you are staying close to home, you are still enjoying that vacation experience. Everyone will still need to pack.

You will still enjoy eating out for part of the time. In some cases, you may still have a short road trip to spend time together. There are still vacation type benefits to a staycation.

Remember that a staycation does not have to be elaborate to be enjoyable. You don’t have to stay in a fancy hotel with room service every morning. You don’t have to spend money on theme park tickets if you don’t want to.

There are other things to do. It just takes a little research and a little creativity.

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5 Tips For A Great Road Trip

August 19th, 2011 Tushar Mathur

There’s nothing quite like a road trip, whether you’re heading off by yourself and you’re looking forward to several hours of you time or you’re heading off with friends or family they say half the adventure is in getting there and road trips can be great fun and build great memories, so long as they’re properly planned.

Plan Your Route x2

You might have a sat nav, latest copy of a road map and the latest smart phone but you still need to know where you’re actually going maps can get lost or forgotten and sat navs and phones can run out of battery or just stop working. Physically look at your journey on a map and if nothing else memorise the main cities you’re heading through. It’s also a good idea to plan a secondary route, you never know when a traffic accident can leave a road closed and if it’s just happened there’s no guarantee they’ll be any diversion signs up yet and even if there are, there’s always the chance that some idiot has decided it would be funny to rearrange them. Make sure you know where you’re going and make sure you know the route well enough to navigate any obstacles.

Plan For Your Guests

If you’re travelling with friends or family you need to make sure they’re catered for especially if you’re got kids in the car or people that don’t travel very well. It might be your car and you might be the driver but this doesn’t mean you have automatic rights over the music, at least not if you want a harmonious journey. Make a couple of CD’s or playlists up that cater for everyone and if you have to, implement a no singing along rule. If you’ve got children make sure they’ve got something (quiet) to play with. A new colouring book or game for a handheld games console can keep them quiet for hours and if you’re letting them have some sweets make sure they’re carefully rationed.

Check Your Car

Legally speaking we’re meant to check our car for things like tyre pressure and oil levels every time we drive somewhere but this is very rarely the case. Before a long journey it’s vital your car is up to the job. Make sure the tyre pressure is correct (for a loaded car if needed), check all the fluids like water levels, screen wash, oil etc and keep top ups in the boot just in case.

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Tips for a Long Distance Motorcycle Ride

August 17th, 2011 Tushar Mathur

There is nothing more exhilarating than taking off on your motorbike, cruising down the open road at full speed, feeling the wind rushing past you. Motorcycles are great for long term journeys, and it is possible to plan a motorbike road trip for a weekend or several days. If you are eager to get out there and explore the world on your motorbike, why not go for a long distance adventure?

Before you leave on your trip, make sure that you are fully prepared so that you will be safe and comfortable on the journey. Plan your route, pack your bags and hit the road!

What to Bring

Planning a long distance motorbike ride takes much more preparation than covering the same trip in a car, because a motorcyclist is limited as to what they can bring with them. The larger styles of motorcycle can accommodate hard cases for storying extra clothes and gear, but even with these you will need to back incredibly light and make tough decisions about what you bring. You will likely be wearing your riding gear, and packing a few changes of clothes depending on how long you will be away. You don’t need to pack a lot of clothing and accessories, so try to narrow down your wardrobe to just the essentials. Consider bringing several thin layers of clothing, so that you can shed them or put them on if necessary.

Remember to pack your belongings with the heavier things on the bottom, which will make the bike more stable.

Staying Comfortable On the Road and Taking Care of Yourself

Before you leave for a long motorbike journey, always get a good restful sleep. Being overtired can not only make a long trip torturous, it can also reduce your reaction time and judgement so that you are more at risk of getting into a motorbike accident. Don’t try to do too much riding in one day, and if you are feeling fatigued simply stop and rest for the night at a hotel or motel.

Wearing the right equipment can also help you stay comfortable during a long trip. A vented mesh jacket and a helmet that protects your face from the wind will protect you from sunburn, windburn, and their effects.

You will need a small bag full of soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, shampoo, etc so that when you stop somewhere on the road you can wash up and look civilized again.

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Hit the Road: The World’s Best Driving Locations

June 1st, 2011 Tushar Mathur

Ever since reading Jack Kerouac’s ‘On the Road’, the seminal literary work of the ‘beat generation’, I’ve been obsessed with the idea of the perfect road trip, the holiday consisting entirely of travel, a set of memories fixed by perpetual motion.

But what makes the perfect road trip? The people you take with you, the people you meet on the way, the things you leave behind and the things you rush towards all certainly make a difference, however, for me, what really tips the balance, is how you get there, the route you take.

Travelling on the best roads in the world should feel as if you are in the hands of a benign creative force, unfolding the wonders of creation before you with the breathless inevitability of a winning hand, gradually being revealed once all the chips are in.

Here’s my round of three world class roads that provoke such a feeling.

The Atlantic Road

The 8km road, situated in the Scandinavian country of Norway, winds its way between the towns of Kristiansund and Molde, passing some incredible scenery along the way as it juts through the several islands located in the western fjords and flirts with the mighty Atlantic Ocean. Indeed, many people chose to visit the road in Autumn when storms are raging, and the moody anti-light show of the sky makes the trip even more dramatic than the graceful bends linking the corners.

As well as the natural wonders you may see along the route, which, if you’re lucky, can even include whale sightings, you will also be able to see some impressive man-made feats, such as the Storseisundet Bridge, the most iconic of the routes 8 bridges, with its beautiful dramatic curve.

There’s plenty to do along the way besides marvel at your surroundings, such as great diving (in the summer) and fishing also.

The Karakoram Highway

If the word ‘highway’ conjures up images of four lanes of perfectly smooth tarmac lying submissively beneath the uninterrupted flow of fast moving traffic; you’d do well to cast off those associations before taking on this route, which, whilst (mostly) paved, only just qualifies as a road.

This route originally provided a supply line for China to export silk to Europe. Today it provides a connection between the states of China and Pakistan. The road winds through a series of hair pins known as the Khunjerab Pass, at an altitude of 15,397 ft and is recognised as being the highest paved road in the world.

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Road trips

September 20th, 2009 Tushar Mathur

Road trips give you a lot of excitement and pleasure. They also give you a number of benefits over air travel. In road trips you can make your own timetable and change plans whenever you need. More than that, you get the enjoyment of seeing steady changes in the scenery as you drive. If you really want your road trip the utmost happening then it is always vital to keep safety in mind. Simply by applying some easy safety tips, you will have many joyful, secure road trips in front of you. Whether you should buy a train ticket or go on the wheel of your car to your destination, the answer depends on a lot of reasons. Some of the pros and cons of road trips are as follows. Road Trip Pros:
• You can control your arrival time, departure time, journey and bring to a halt in the way wherever you feel. • You don’t have to stick to the particular hotel, train food or airplane food instead you can pack from home or can eat in a drive-through.
• You can change your destination if you don’t like that fussy place, you can simply drive away.
• You can see the landscapes in the pathway and not only a train track. That will give you a great relaxation and pleasure.
• You can put any number of bags that fits into the capacity of your car, and you don’t have to pay additional money. You can save money, particularly if you are traveling in a group because total traveling expense will be shared among the group.
• If there is a road, you can travel to the smallest town also as all small towns does not have airports.
• You can effortlessly abandon a road trip or come back whenever you want. Road Trip Cons:
• Driving through road takes much time as it is the slowest means to travel between two points, particularly between large cities where there is good facility of rail and airline service.
• Traveling by car is a big risk as it is more accident prone.
• You have to do all the work. From route planning to direction-finding to accommodation finding all is up to you.
• Traveling by car can be costly, including all the factors like petrol, tolls, parking, and meals and accommodation along the way.
• Bad weather conditions can affect your trip.
• If you are traveling through an older car, you might have to hire a car for your road trip, which is a more pricey option. Sometimes in the way, wear and tear on your car also turns to a costly expenditure.

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Off-Road Driving

July 10th, 2009 Tushar Mathur

New to off-road driving? Anxious to check out the four-wheel drive?
Here are just a few tips to keep you safe on the off-beaten path.

First, you need to do some preparing. Knowing how your vehicle works and what it is limited to is very important. You need to know what your vehicle is capable of, and stay within that range. Understanding your 4X4 system is equally important. Also, make sure that you are aware of your approach, ramp, and departure angles. This will help ensure no damage is created to your vehicle.

Become familiar with the feel of driving your 4X4. Start out with driving on dry, flat land to ensure the comfort of your vehicle. Knowing how your vehicle will handle during sharp turns, quick braking, etc. is also good practice.

Always be prepared for any kind of emergency. You never know when you might break down, and you should have supplies on hand. Flashlight, blanket, flashers, coat, spare tire and jack, etc are some items that should be carried in case of an emergency. Letting someone know where you are going and when you plan on returning from your off-road trip is also good practice in case you do have trouble. Not all areas receive cell phone service.

It is also a good practice to check out your vehicle before leaving. Tires filled completely, oil and other fluids at the correct level, including gasoline levels. Checking for tears or rips in hoses is also a good idea. This will help ensure a safe and fun trip and a prompt return home.

Make sure you are familiar with the path you are on. Make sure that the trail you are taking allows you the time to return home by the designated hour.

While on your off-road trip, make it a habit not to litter. It is just as illegal to throw out trash in the woods as it is in town or on a highway. Littering includes cigarette butts or food wrappers. Even candy wrappers are considered littering.

Know your limitations, and know the limitations of your vehicle as well. By taking some of these tips in consideration will help ensure a fun and safe experience in your 4X4 Off-Road adventure.

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How to Plan The Perfect Christmas Vacation

November 20th, 2008 Tushar Mathur
Christmas time is a great time to get away to see family and friends or visit a place that you have always wanted to see but have never done so before. However, if you want the perfect Christmas vacation, you should always keep these three tips in mind.

Make Your Christmas Vacation Reservations

If you are flying by plane, be sure to reserve seats on a flight. Get those tickets ahead of time. You save money along with getting the seats and dates you want to leave. You can do reservations by phone or on the Internet. You can also work with a travel agent to get just what you want.

Be sure you have your hotel reservation made as well. Holidays are one of the busiest times of the year and everyone will need a place to stay. Be sure you book your room in advance too.

Christmas Vacation Budget

Make sure you stick to a budget during the holiday time. This can be rather hard to do when you still have presents to buy as well. How can be sure you have the perfect Christmas vacation and stay within a budget? Start early. Be sure to do some research on your trip so you can get an idea how much it will all cost. Make budget allowances for unexpected problems. Once you have all this figured out you can go ahead and start saving a certain amount every month.

Plan for Unexpected Surprises

Planning for the perfect Christmas vacation means taking into account the problems that can creep up. For instance, car travelers should:

Have a mechanic look at their vehicle before the road trip;
Have blankets and food on hand;
Have a flashlight that works with spare batteries; along with other super handy items like a compass, first aid kit.

You don’t want your perfect Christmas vacation ruined because you were unprepared to handle any problems.

If you decide to travel by airplanes, never wrap presents. If the security guards need to know what they are, you wasted time and money wrapping them. You can always ship them to your destination instead of taking them with you on the plane. You’ll want to make sure they get there in time for the Christmas celebration so always check with your postal service for services and times.

Planning the perfect Christmas vacation isn’t hard as long as you plan way ahead of time and have the essentials you need to see those smiles coming from the kids.

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