While there are pros to making a road trip at night, such as less traffic, there are also cons. Driving long distances at night can be challenging for you to stay awake, especially if you’ve already had a long day. Sometimes you might not have a choice but to make your drive at night though, so you might as well make the most of it. Chris and I have made the 8 hour drive to Louisiana at night after a full day at work many times. There were times we made it with no worries, and then there were times where our car became the struggle bus and we had to pull over every 5 minutes just to stay awake. We became determined to never experience the latter again and have learned a few things along the way. Here are our night time road trip essentials that help make those over night drives a little more bearable:
Movie or Podcast
If you’re riding as a passenger at night while it’s too dark to read a magazine or book and turning on the car light might distract the driver, streaming a movie on your phone is always a good option. If you’re driving, consider playing a podcast out loud to keep you entertained for hours.
Lots of Caffeine
If you’re a daily caffeine drinker, you probably won’t want skip out on your intake the day of your road trip. If you don’t usually drink caffeine, you may want to consider it this time. Be sure to drink it before you get on the road so it has time to kick in though, since traveling at night can be tricky. One minute you may feel completely awake and the next you can get tired out of nowhere. Since it’s dark out, there’s not much to see and you can quickly get bored with the drive.
Peppermint Essential Oil
Along with the obvious need for caffeine, peppermint essential oil is a great way to keep you alert and awake while you’re driving. The dark sky will tempt you into falling asleep, but inhaling or diffusing some peppermint will perk you up. A mini USB diffuser is a great option for the car.
Frequent Stretch Breaks
You may want to consider stopping more often at night, in a safe place, to stretch. This will help keep you awake if you’re not typically a night person.
Something Comfy
You can never go wrong with wearing something comfy. A pair of stretchy yoga pants and a comfy tee are always great choices, but you may want to consider a sweater as well since it may be cooler at night while the sun’s down. It can never hurt to plan ahead when it’s that time of the month either.
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kenzie negron says
love this post so much! I am obsessed with your phone case! xx,kenz
http://sincerelykenz.com
Dara @ The Southern Thing says
Thanks so much! The case is from Best Buy!
Elisabeth Hayes says
These are all great tips! Thank you for sharing 🙂
xo, Liz
http://lipstickandconfetti.com
Summer says
I really like your phone case ♥♥
summerdaisy.net
Hil D says
never thought of the peppermint oil! I use it mostly for headaches and nausea but that would be great!
Dara @ The Southern Thing says
I use the peppermint for headaches and nausea too, it's one of my favorite oils! Next time try it for a quick pick me up. It works!
Ashleigh Wright says
Such a great list for road trips! Thank you for sharing! I will pin for when I need it!
Breakfast at Lillys says
What a great post!
Your phone case is too cute, btw.
xoxo, Jenny || Breakfast at Lillys
Educents Com says
Agree with the podcast comment. My favorite is This American Life. What do you listen to? Would love to widen the variety of my podcast library 🙂
-Erin, blog.educents.com
Keating Bartlett says
Great post! My husband and I LOVE bringing movies with us on roadtrips. It makes the nighttime driving go by so much faster.
Dara @ The Southern Thing says
That is something we just started doing and it really does make the time go by much faster! It helps to play a movie you know, that way if you're driving, you can just listen and follow along!
Kyleigh Wegener says
I never thought of getting a USB diffuser. Plus peppermint is my favorite Essential Oil. I'm need to get me one!
Dara @ The Southern Thing says
Yes!! I love mine! It's great for plugging into your computer too!
Tiffany Allen says
i think also a good playlist so you don't get too bored or have to search for radio stations in other areas.
Rachel Gault says
Great tips! I haven't tried the essential oil but I think that's a great idea. I might have to do that on my next road trip!
Jessica Charlene says
I didn't even know that USB car diffusers existed! I'll be needing one of those! Thanks for the tips!
Susannah says
A USB car diffuser is a thing?!?!? That's awesome!!!
Jenn, hellorigby.com says
What great suggestions! I can't survive a road trip without something comfy and some coffee for sure!