A Guide to Planning an Awesome Road Trip

While planes, trains, and buses can take you where you wish to go, few travel experiences are more exciting than a road trip. You’re bound to feel a buzz when you jump into a car to hit the open road, as different sights, sounds and people will await you.

However, to have an unforgettable time, you need to plan your journey perfectly. To ensure you’re 100% prepared, read this informative guide to planning an awesome road trip.

Pick the Perfect Car
Many people often choose to rent a car when heading off on a road trip; however, this can restrict your time and journey, as you’ll have to return the car at a destination on a specific day.

Instead, it might be better to take your own vehicle on the road with you, so you will have the flexibility to extend your road trip or cut it short. Of course, securing a car is easier said than done for some, especially if you have a poor financial history. If this is the case, consider bad credit auto loans at Crediful. It’s also wise to choose a vehicle that offers great gas mileage, so your money will go further throughout the journey.

Check Your Car Before You Travel
Before you put your luggage in a car and turn on the ignition, you should take the vehicle to a mechanic to check for any potential problems. You might also need to change your oil, review your lights, and refill your windshield wiper fluid. If you don’t, you’ll increase the likelihood of you being stranded by the roadside during your road trip.

Discuss How You’ll Divide the Driving
The last thing you’ll want to do is argue with your road trip buddies, which is why you must discuss how you’ll divide the driving between you. For instance, will you each drive for a few hours at a time or will one of you sit behind the wheel for the day until someone feels tired? Talking before an adventure will ensure you each know what’s expected of you before you step into a car, which can prevent conflict from occurring.

Book Hostels and Hotels in Advance
While you might want to see where the open road takes you during a road trip, it’s a sensible idea to book a hostel or hotel in advance. This will ensure you all have a safe place to sleep each night, so you’ll wake feeling refreshed and ready to get back onto the road the next morning. Plus, booking accommodation in advance could potentially reduce your expenditure, so you’ll have more money to spend throughout the adventure.

Pack Entertainment
Keep boredom at bay when driving down a dull highway by packing plenty of entertainment. For example, create a fun soundtrack you can all sing along to when driving from A to B. While the driver will need to pay attention to the road, passengers should also stock up on a portable DVD player, books, magazines, and crossword puzzles.

Bring a Real Map
While a GPS can accurately help you travel to your destination, a paper map will never lose power or break. It will, therefore, serve as a handy backup should your GPS fail on you. So, it will provide you with some peace of mind that you can safely make your way back home.

Leave Room for Spontaneity
While you might already have an idea of the destinations you want to visit during a road trip, you should leave a little room in your itinerary for spontaneity. Restricting yourself to a fixed schedule could result in you and your road trip buddies missing out on fun experiences, such as roadside attractions or exciting activities.

Avoid Troubled Spots
If you are driving for many hours during a road trip, you will not want to find yourself in the wrong place at the wrong time. For example, few things are more stressful than crossing the Hudson River during rush hour traffic. Ensure you have a smooth, hassle-free road trip by steering clear of traffic jams as much as possible.

Split Road Trip Tasks
Rather than one person handling all the road trip tasks, you could always split the duties up between you and your road trip buddies. For example, while some might be good at driving and navigating, others might prefer to plan meals or pack entertainment. Identify who does what well to effectively divvy up tasks and prevent one person from organizing everything.

Finding the Right Rock: Conflict-Free Diamonds

Conflict Free
Although for many people planning to tie the knot will not really care too much about the background of the type of diamond they buy for their betrothal rings, this is not always the case. Indeed, there are more and more couples today that not only look for rocks that have not had anything to do with supporting a conflict in a developing country, but will actually campaign against such wars which usually leave a trail of devastation in their wake.

Image Source: Pixabay

Understandably, the last thing a young couple planning to have kids once they are married would want on their conscious is the possibility that the diamond they have on their wedding rings has in some way helped fund a brutal conflict in an African country. Fortunately for such people with good morals and admirable principles, there are plenty of like-minded providers of brilliant cut diamonds and other styles in New Zealand to choose from. In fact, what many people hoping to purchase an ethical diamond will do in order to achieve this is scour the internet for websites providing insightful blogs on the matter. For sure, there are websites that could prove to be extremely useful for couples who although want to buy a stone to be used for their wedding rings, do not wish to purchase anything that could be deemed as unethical.

Image Source: Pexels

Research

As we all live in a world where it is possible to find almost anything we can think of with an online search, there is no wonder that people after an ethical diamond will reach for their smart phone or laptop in order to get their search off to a start. However, because there are so many sites detailing information about how to snap up an ethical rock for our wedding rings, it might not always be clear as to which ones are more reliable sources of information.

When purchasing any of the Diamond.co.nz engagement rings Wellington lovers prefer, one should be on the right track to buying the right kind of stone with regards to ethics. Just by spending a short amount of time going through the different options in beautifully designed wedding rings being sold by this leading New Zealand company, consumers should be convinced they have come to the right place at last.

Couples who would like to learn more about the best ways to source an ethical diamond would be wise to consider the following: 

• Look beyond conflict-free rocks

• Find retailers with social standards initiatives

• Carry out extensive research on conflicts worldwide

• Don’t settle for a donation to a specific charity

• Remember direct activism can help change the industry

Fair Trade
It is probably true to say that lots of companies throughout the world that deal in the sales of diamonds and other precious stones will do all they can to ensure they only buy from companies that are involved in fair trade practices. 

Image Source: Pixabay

And couples planning to get married will not just think about where the diamonds they are interested in have come from, but also the fair trade of other goods they may need or want at any particular time. Of course, if we are determined to not have anything hanging over us with regards to the source of the rocks used to create our wedding bands, we will need to make the effort to ensure that we only deal with highly-ethical jewellery firms in New Zealand.

The Top First Aid Kit Essentials You Need to Pack for Your Next Holiday

Are you going to be going away on a winter break this year? Or maybe you are already thinking about where you are going to be jetting off to next summer? As soon as you start to pack you can quickly get carried away with the excitement of going on holiday and forget to pack other essentials. While we all, hopefully, remember our passports and sun cream on our next trip, one thing that many of us are guilty of forgetting about is packing a first aid kit! While this is not the most exciting thing to pack it is vital and you want to have the peace of mind on your holidays that it is there should you, your family or friends really need it.

So, if you are wondering what exactly you need to pack in your first aid kit, make sure to carry on reading for all the advice that you need.

Painkillers
A handy thing to always have in your first aid kit is a few boxes of painkillers and we would recommend taking a few different types such as Ibuprofen and paracetamol. These come in handy when you have a head ache or a minor ache or pain. What’s more, it Is a good idea to pack a few packs of these in your suitcase to take with you as you don’t want to be stung by inflated tourist prices when you are abroad.

Plasters
Next up, in your first aid kit we would recommend that you have a box of plasters. A multipack with lots of different sizes should be enough to help protect against any infection, and we have all been there where we have a new and very uncomfortable pair of sandals that we need help breaking in and in these situations,  plasters can be a lifesaver.

Mosquito Repellent
There is nothing worse than going on holiday and ending up being covered in itchy and horribly mosquito bites every night. To avoid this, you need to buy insect repellents that contain DEET. Apply this more during the evenings as this is when they tend to come out and bite more.

Bandages and Gauze Pads
Another essential item that you need to have in your first aid kit is bandages and gauze pads. You only need a small roll, but this will come in useful If anyone has a more serious cut or wound and will help until they can seek proper medical treatment. You can buy a range of great bandages on MFASCO who offer same day shipment if your holiday is fast approaching and don’t have the time to go out to the store. This website stock lots of different types of bandages including strips, bulk, finger, kids, waterproof and wound closure. 

Hand Sanitiser
Last, but most certainly not least, we have hand sanitiser. This is an essential in your first aid kit no matter whether you are simply heading off somewhere new on holiday for a few weeks or going backpacking. This will sterilise your hands while you are out and about to stop you from picking up any infections.