Going on a road trip with your friends can be one of the best experiences of your life. It can offer you many new destinations to see, many experiences to live through, and many friendships to strengthen to create great memories. However, navigating all the aspects of a road trip can be a bit tricky if many people are involved.

Here are some key pointers to help you plan a group road trip with your friends that will ensure success.

Handpick Your Companions

One of the things that can either make or break your road trip is choosing the wrong friends to do it with. The famous saying – You don’t know someone until you have traveled with them – exists for a very good reason. When you’re taking a group road trip you will be crammed in a vehicle for hours with your friends, and you will share every meal as well as pretty much all of the activities that you have planned. If you have doubts about some of your friends before the trip has begun, the chances are it will get much worse.

The longer distance you plan to cover the closer attention you should pay to who you are inviting to join you. Remember that these kinds of trips don’t happen that often, so it could be a great opportunity for you to make good friendships into even better ones, and not to be walking on eggshells around people who will only make the experience worse for you.

Set Ground Rules

Once you have handpicked the friends who you want to join you on a road trip, it’s time to set some ground rules so you could have a solid base, and no bad surprises down the road (pun intended). One of the smartest things you can do is to set a rule that no smartphones are allowed during the whole trip. However useful our smartphones may be, they can be a serious conversation killer, and this is exactly the type of thing you want to avoid during your road trip.

What is the point of visiting special places and spending time with your friends if no one is paying any attention? Swap out your smartphones for simpler models so you could still be in contact with your friends and family outside of your traveling group, and so you could stay safe. Simpler phones will still be useful, but much less distracting. This will allow you to completely focus on your journey and not waste time and memories that can be life-changing.

Map It Out

Another essential thing that any road trip can’t go without is a solid route. When you’re setting ground rules with your friends about what your trip will consist of, it’s unavoidable to map out the route completely. Sit down with your friends, or simply have each one of them suggest where they would like to travel to, and do your best to combine every option into a single road trip. Now, this can be particularly tricky as it’s almost impossible to have every wish fulfilled. Make sure you have good communication and that you compromise.

Once you have decided which route you will take, you can further plan the specific activities for each one of the stops. Be sure to map out your route into your car GPS device to make sure you don’t end up lost in the middle of nowhere. This will also ensure that everybody involved in the road trip knows exactly where you’re heading next, and how to follow the road.

Figure Out The Food

A thoroughly planned and mapped out road trip surely is a great thing, but it’s nothing without good companions…and food. Getting proper meals and nutrition is one of the essential aspects of our daily lives, so why should it be any different for when we are out on the road. A major downfall in most cases when people are traveling is that they don’t have a place to cook their food. This is especially true if you are traveling in a car or on a bus, which leaves you open for additional costs of eating out at restaurants.

The cost of eating in restaurants can quickly add up, preventing you to do all the activities you were planning on doing on your special road trip. However, there are still options to overcome this such as bringing your packed lunches. If you’re taking a longer trip, this might not be advisable, so an alternative is to rent a travel trailer. Advice on how to do so can be found at https://www.thewanderingrv.com/travel-trailer-rentals/. Having plenty of space to make your meals, and store them safely will ensure a much quality time for you and your friends during the road trip.

Drive Safely

Driving safely on the road is simply a no brainer. If no one has a driver’s license or proper driving experience they should not sit behind the wheel. The same goes if you know that some of your friends are simply lousy or impulsive drivers. These people should not be put in charge of everyone’s safety. When discussing who will be eligible to drive, you should all give insights into who you think is the best pick.

Another aspect of driving safely while traveling with a group of people is not to overburden a single driver with driving miles on end. If someone spends way too much time behind the wheel they will lose concentration and get very tired, which is a recipe for disaster. To ensure this doesn’t happen, make sure everyone eligible to drive takes regular turns sitting behind the wheel. Being safe and responsible on the road is crucial, especially if there are many people in the same vehicle at stake. It’s also a good idea to have a dashcam in the car, as it can provide extra peace of mind and offer protection in case of any unexpected incidents.

Going on a road trip with your friends is one of the most special and unique experiences you can have. To make sure everyone stays safe and you have the time of your lives you should follow these essential pointers on how to best communicate with the rest of the group, and have the most fun.