Although the summer sun may have gone, along with the best of the UK’s weather for another year, road trips still offer a great way to get out and about with the family for an autumnal or winter staycation.
Whilst the weather may be worse, you can still make the most of the nation’s best sites and attractions, but with a fraction of the crowds and traffic on the road. A winter road trip however offers different challenges for drivers, and there are several things you’ll need to consider when planning your getaway.
To help drivers plan for their end-of-year staycation, we’ve shared five tips to help you plan the perfect autumn or winter road trip.
1. Plan Your Route
The most important part of a road trip is route planning. You may know your starting point and final destination, but do you know where you’ll stop off on the way, or what route you’ll take between each location? Prepping a route in advance will mean a much less stressful trip.
We recommend that you take some time to plan how you’re going to get from A to B, researching any particular sites you’d like to visit on the way, and ensure that you book overnight stops in advance.
We also recommend using sat nav on your journey. This will not only allow you to follow your route, but also keep updated with any potential hazards or disruptions on the way.
2. Prepare For The Weather
Autumn and winter can be unpredictable seasons, with torrential rain giving way to blinding sunlight in an instant, and road conditions becoming hazardous overnight.
For this reason, it’s best to make sure that you’re prepared for the weather. Keep some sunglasses handy so you can prevent sun glare off wet road surfaces. You’ll also want to make sure that essential maintenance tasks have been completed. You should pay particular attention to ensuring that your headlight bulbs are working, as well as checking your windscreen wipers are adequately removing water. Remember, if your wipers are squeaking, you may need to replace the wiper blades.
It’s also worth making sure that your car’s tyres have adequate tread on them to deal with slippery roads in bad conditions, as well as topping up your screenwash and adding some anti-freeze for the colder months to prevent your windscreen from freezing, but if it does freeze over, make sure you have an ice scraper handy.
3. Organise Your Car Storage
When taking your car on a road trip, it’s a good idea to make sure your storage is optimised to allow you to take whatever you need.
Consider fitting a roof box if you need extra capacity for luggage or equipment for camping and other activities, or a bike rack if you’re planning on cycling at some of your destinations.
4. Protect Yourself In Case of Break Downs
Unfortunately, no matter how well maintained your car is, break downs can happen unexpectedly, so it’s vital to make sure that you have everything you need in case of an emergency.
Carrying high vis jackets will mean that you’ll be safely visible should your car break down at night, and you should also ensure your car has a warning triangle to alert other drivers as well.
It’s also important to make sure you have a fully charged mobile phone available in order to contact break down services. The app What Three Words is also incredibly useful if you have to stop off the beaten track. Finally, make sure you have coats close to hand, as you’ll need to exit the car if you break down on a high-speed road.
5. Keep The Kids Occupied
Long car journeys can be challenging for kids, who may sometimes get bored if they don’t have anything to occupy them when travelling.
Ensure that they have everything they’ll need close to hand, from toys and games to snacks and drinks. Back of seat organisers can be useful for this, allowing you to make sure that everything they’ll need to keep them occupied is nearby and won’t require you to stop to get it out.
For all your Autumn and Winter motoring essentials visit Euro Car Parts here.
