Road trip checklist
For a long drive over a day or two, with other people in the car. The car checks are the half that gets skipped and the half that ruins a trip.
43 items
Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.
The items
- Car checks, the evening before
- Tyre pressures, including the spare
- Tyre tread and sidewalls
- Oil and coolant
- Screenwash topped upYou will use more than you expect. Buy a spare.
- All the lights, with someone watching
- Wiper blades
- Fuel or charge
- Service due? Book it before, not after
- Documents
- Licence
- Insurance and breakdown coverCheck the cover includes abroad.
- Registration document
- Bookings, downloaded not just bookmarked
- In the car
- Phone mounts and charging cables for every seat
- Offline maps and route downloaded
- Toll tag or change
- Sunglasses for the driver
- Bin bag
- Kitchen roll and wet wipes
- Reusable bottles
- Emergency kit
- Warning triangle and hi-vis vest
- First aid kit
- Jump leads or a jump pack
- Torch
- Tyre inflator
- Blanket
- Water
- Food and entertainment
- Snack box within reach of the back seats
- Real food for one meal
- Coffee for the driver
- Films downloaded, headphones for each child
- A game that works in a car
- Travel sickness tablets
- Before you lock the door
- Windows shut, hob off, taps off
- Heating on holiday setting
- Bins out
- Plants and pets sorted
- Tell someone the route and the arrival time
Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.
Questions people ask
- What should I check on the car before a long drive?
- Tyre pressures including the spare, oil, coolant, screenwash and lights. Ten minutes the evening before, not at the services three hours in.
- What do I legally have to carry?
- It depends where you are driving and it changes — a warning triangle, a hi-vis vest and a breathalyser are required in some countries. Check for your route.
- How do I keep children happy in the car?
- Downloaded films, headphones each, a snack box within reach, and a stop every two hours whether or not anybody has asked for one.