6 Summer Travel Tips

This guest post was written by Glen Stansberry of LifeDev.net.

Summer is the time for travel. Beaches, vacations, family reunions … everyone seems to be driving somewhere for a little break. Some of my best summer memories are of my family climbing into our station wagon and trekking across the country to some historic site.

During many of these trips our beloved family station wagon (appropriately nicknamed “Puff the Tragic Wagon) always seemed to have some sort of problem. It took many summers of vacation car trouble before our family really learned how to be prepared for whatever the elements (or our car) threw at us.

Here are 6 tips we learned that might make your car trip a little better.

Check the fluids in your car. It’s always a good idea to check the main fluids in your car before you leave. Oil, radiator fluid and windshield washer fluid are the biggies. Taking the car for an oil change and tune-up never hurts either.
Check your windshield wiper blades. You never want to be in a rainstorm in unfamiliar territory with sub-par wipers.
Invest in some RainX. This stuff works wonders on your windshield. You can almost drive in heavy rain without turning the wipers on.
Double-check your spare tire. You never know when you’ll get a flat tire. Make sure your spare has air in it, and also make sure you know where all of the included tire-changing tools are. Being stranded somewhere without a way to change your tire is no fun.
Keep your gas tank happy. If you’re traveling to some remote place (like a mountain), odds are there aren’t a plethora of gas stations around. You may enter stretches of highways that won’t have a gas station for 60-70 miles. Keep tabs on your gas tank, and fill up when you have the chance. Otherwise you may find yourself knocking on the door of some local begging for a gas can.
Pack Less. It’s much easier to travel lighter and set aside some money to purchase things you might need when you get there. We tend to have the mindset of “always be prepared”, but really all that does is force us to pack everything but the dog. Only pack what you know you’ll use on the trip.

Car trips can be a great way for families to bond and share some lasting experiences. Make sure those lasting experiences aren’t bad ones and prepare your car for the trip. You’ll be glad you did in the long run.

For more great articles from Glen, check out LifeDev.net or subscribe to his feed.

6 Summer Travel Tips

This guest post was written by Glen Stansberry of LifeDev.net.

Here are 6 tips we learned that might make your car trip a little better.

Check the fluids in your car. It’s always a good idea to check the main fluids in your car before you leave. Oil, radiator fluid and windshield washer fluid are the biggies. Taking the car for an oil change and tune-up never hurts either.
Check your windshield wiper blades. You never want to be in a rainstorm in unfamiliar territory with sub-par wipers.
Invest in some RainX. This stuff works wonders on your windshield. You can almost drive in heavy rain without turning the wipers on.
Double-check your spare tire. You never know when you’ll get a flat tire. Make sure your spare has air in it, and also make sure you know where all of the included tire-changing tools are. Being stranded somewhere without a way to change your tire is no fun.
Keep your gas tank happy. If you’re traveling to some remote place (like a mountain), odds are there aren’t a plethora of gas stations around. You may enter stretches of highways that won’t have a gas station for 60-70 miles. Keep tabs on your gas tank, and fill up when you have the chance. Otherwise you may find yourself knocking on the door of some local begging for a gas can.
Pack Less. It’s much easier to travel lighter and set aside some money to purchase things you might need when you get there. We tend to have the mindset of “always be prepared”, but really all that does is force us to pack everything but the dog. Only pack what you know you’ll use on the trip.

For more great articles from Glen, check out LifeDev.net or subscribe to his feed.

Posted on 24 July 2007 in Finance & Family |
Digg |
Del.icio.us |
Stumble |
Print

Comments (14)

Sigurdur Armannsson Says:

July 24th, 2007, 7:33 am

I would like to add my favourite Travel/Vacation Tip:

Take two days off at home with your spouse (and kids) before you go for a trip or vacation to wind off and relax. It will make the trip much nicer.

Michael DeMeglio Says:

July 24th, 2007, 9:29 am

Great tips - having been a mechanic in the past, I’d also add these points:

1. Get your automatic transmission flushed - most oil change places do this now for around $100 and when you consider that a new transmission costs upwards of $1500, it’s well worth it. Heat will rapidly degrade the oils ability to do its job - and old oil will actually cause your transmission seals to become brittle and break. Transmission oil needs to be changed every 30k miles.

2. Have your belts and hoses inspected at least twice a year. Most oil change places will do this automatically but I’d suggest asking the manager to personally look at them with you so you know they’ve looked at the upper and lower radiator hoses as well as the heating system hoses. Fan belts are critical too - most of the time they turn the water pump - so if they break you’re not going far. New belts are around $20 a piece - real cheap insurance.

3. Have your tires checked for bulges and uneven wear. There’s nothing like a real long trip on 130 degree pavement to make a small bubble turn into a serious problem. There’s no replacement for a trained eye looking at each tire and checking the pressure while they’re at it.

I say this as a father, not because I want you to give your money to someone else. If you’re able to do these things yourself - perfect, otherwise ask around for referrals from friends and neighbors and find out which garages are good and which ones are just out to soak you. At the end of the day, cars are major expenses - so treat regular maintenance as a budget item and look at it as the best defense against big repair bills.

Glen Says:

July 24th, 2007, 10:38 am

Wow, great tips guys. I’m not the most proficient with cars, so Michael your tips are much appreciated.

And we shouldn’t discount the power of a little pre-vacation vacation with your spouse. Excellent point Sigurdur.

mikebdot Says:

July 24th, 2007, 10:39 am

How about renting a car? It’s not really that expensive compared to hotels, food, etc. Then, you don’t have to worry about it as much. Plus you don’t put wear and tear on the car either, so it extends your car’s life a bit.

Modern-Worker Says:

July 24th, 2007, 11:10 am

Puff the Tragic Wagon made me smile, heh.

Michael DeMeglio Says:

July 24th, 2007, 12:56 pm

Totally agree with mikebdot about renting - excellent choice for a lot of reasons. I haven’t tried the pre-vacation idea yet - I’m still working on adequate preparation for the actual vacation - let alone having the forethought to take a day off before traveling. I will try it next time though so I’m not rushing around like a mad man at 1am trying to get the luggage staged in the hallway or finding the kids bathing suits.

Kelly Says:

July 24th, 2007, 16:20 pm

You don’t have to buy the actual Rain-X stuff to treat your window… we just buy the windshield washer fluid with Rain-X in it and it works great, and saves a bit of time.

Morgan Says:

July 24th, 2007, 19:46 pm

Another tip:
Before you leave, let your kids (if you have ‘em) know in advance what to expect, including potential challenges (traffic, rain, long lines at museums… whatever). I’ve been travelling with my son since he was little, including on stand-by flights that were given to us by conferences too poor to pay for speaking engagements (but I digress). One of those stand-by flights found us in a smallish airport for 7 hours, waiting, waiting, waiting… but he was an absolute dream! I love travelling with him, and he’s always a model of patience. But the patience comes partly of being prepared.

chelle Says:

July 24th, 2007, 22:06 pm

oh…great p0st and advices!!!thanks for this informative p0st..our family are fan of picnics and traveling…we hate unexpected car problems…last year’s vacation, we had suffered radiator failures…urgently, we had land rover discovery 4.0 series radiator replacements..these info’s are appreciated…thankz…

Tom O'Leary Says:

July 25th, 2007, 4:23 am

Hi Leo

I know that was a guest post, but because you a big family, I was wondering if you had any tips on travelling with kids?

I imagine it takes quite some creativity to get your family on the road.

Thanks
Tom

Leo Says:

July 25th, 2007, 7:15 am

@Tom O’Leary: Well, first of all, I live on Guam, which is just over 30 miles long, so we don’t do a lot of long road trips. :)

However, we do drive a lot, and if you’re just looking for tips on getting kids ready for a road trip (however short), here are a few I use:

* Pack a carry-on suitcase - we keep a set or two of clothes and underwear and swim clothes for the kids in the van, just in case there’s an accident, or we go to the beach or a pool, or they spend the night at a relative’s house.
* Teach them to get ready on their own. Our four older kids can shower and dress themselves, brush their teeth, even get their clothes ready. So we don’t need to worry about getting them ready when we go on the road. We just need to make sure they get started on time, and make sure they’re doing everything they should. So we only need to worry about ourselves and the two youngest ones. And the older ones can even help out with the younger ones.
* Have snacks and water and activities ready.
* Plan ahead - if we’re going to be on the road for lunch, we’ll pack a lunch to take with us, to save on expenses.

William Profet :: OneJobTwoSalaries.com Says:

July 25th, 2007, 9:12 am

My suggestion is: Forget about the car, get an one-two week holiday and go abroad. I recommend Greek Islands!

I’ve been there three times - twice to Thassos island and once to Rhodes.

These places are perfect - blue skies, blue sea, bright sun and a Greek salad. Oooh, my… I love it! :)

skybus airlines Says:

July 27th, 2007, 21:11 pm

Great tips, especially on how to prepare the vehicle for long travels. This is certainly helpful for those who are planning on a road trip.
Certainly a good read.

SandPine Says:

August 2nd, 2007, 16:54 pm

Another couple of car things -

Wash & clean-out the car. Clean out the glovebox. Buy a box of hand wipes. Take along a couple of hand towels.

When you fill up for the trip, include a bottle/can of fuel system cleaner. Or maybe do this a couple of tank fulls ahead of the trip. Mr Engine will thank you.

Enjoy the trip !