The air turns balmy, the jackets come off and plants start peeking out of the ground. Something wonderful happens in spring, making us feel alive, and making us want to hit the road.
Recent gas price spikes may make some would-be travelers feel that they may need to rethink the spring road trip. But with a little planning we can still enjoy this great pastime. Here are 5 great ideas to keep your spring road trip on track this year:
1) Find hotels that will pay for your gas: Some hotels are stepping up with incentives to keep travelers traveling. When you pick a destination, call around to find a hotel offering gas cards as an incentives to book a stay
2) Be smart about fueling up: Gas tends to go up before big travel holidays, so if you can, fill your tank well in advance. You should also make sure you check your tire pressure and oil before you get on the road. Of course, if you're planning your trip with enough lead time and are in the market for a new car, you may want to consider a car with great fuel efficiency, like the Chevy Cruze ECO, which offers a phenomenal 42 miles per gallon on the highway1.
3) Plan your stops ahead of time: What's a road trip without quirky stops? Whether you're going to Virginia's George Washington Birthplace Monument or to the Trujillo Homestead, you can find a wealth of cool ideas at roadsideamerica.com/
4) Make the most of your car's gadgets: The Chevy Cruze comes equipped with everything from Bluetooth to USB ports to OnStar, standard for 6 months. Gone are the days of lugging portable DVD players, huge bulky road maps and card games. Now you can plug and play most of your devices and get maps, movies and more, leaving a lot more space in the car for the people. Stock the trunk with snacks: One of the quickest ways for your road trip to go off budget is stopping because the kids are hungry. The more you stop, the more you spend. Take a trip to the big box store and load up on drinks and snacks (the trunk has plenty of room).
Of course the best defense against high gas prices is driving a fuel efficient car. Maybe one of your stops should be the Chevy dealership. Nothing is more fun than driving a 42 MPG highway Chevy Cruze!
Happy road trip!
1 EPA estimate
