25 Tips on How to Save Money on a Family Road Trip

When budgeting for your vacation, knowing what everything will cost for your road trip budget is not always easy. When you can save money on a family road trip, it does help with unexpected expenses down the road.

If you’ve known me long enough you know I love a good long road trip. I prefer the freedom of the road over flying. There’s also something nostalgic and “All-American” about the wild road frontier.

Each year, our family loaded up the car and traveled from Florida to Michigan. We’ve spent a lot of time together in the car.

Since often it’s about the destination and not the journey, anything you can do to save money on the journey helps. Plus, if you are a family with teenagers, you know things like food add up fast.

One of my best tips to save money on the road is to pack your own food. Stopping for every meal gets expensive fast. Plus, it’s not the healthiest option when feeding your crew.

We’ll cover gas, food, hotels, and practical tips on how to save money on attractions when you’re driving to your destination. I have more info on saving money on your overall vacation.

How to Save Money on Gas

Gas is the number one fluctuation on the road. State by state and city by city it can vary. Here’s what we do to keep costs down.

Gas Rewards – No, not a credit card reward. Most stations are doing cents off or frequent customer rewards. Typically, we use Shell rewards and get at least 5 cents off a gallon. Some rewards require you to make other purchases in order to receive cents off. Check here for a full list and pick your fav.

Credit Card Rewards – Even if you don’t have a Gas Rewards Credit Card, check your current credit cards to see what kind of cash back or points you may earn at gas stations. For example, both my Chase Sapphire and American Express Delta and Hilton cards have a variety of points for gas, up to 6 points per dollar. Right now if you click the Chase Sapphire link above, you’ll get an extra 75,000 bonus points for signing up.

Gas Gift Cards – Publix grocery stores in the south often offer $10 off a $50 gas card in their weekly specials. You can buy 1 for every $50 you spend on groceries. So if your weekly food haul totals around $150, add on 3 gas cards. I try to stock up when we’re traveling. Keep in mind, not all gas stations are nationwide. Stick with the ones you know are on your route.

Gas Apps – Gas Buddy or even your preferred gas station are great apps to price compare gas prices on your route. Know you need to get gas, check the exits coming up, and see if one is better than the other. Alternatively, saving a few cents per gallon doesn’t add up to much and isn’t worth driving out of the way to get it. Think of it this way, saving 3 cents a gallon only amounts to 42 cents on a 14-gallon tank. It’s not worth your time or extra gas to go miles out of your way.

Cash Back Apps – Have you heard of Upside? Upside offers money off per gallon of gas that you can deposit straight to your checking account. Click this link or use promo code B3G5S to get an extra 15¢/gal bonus the first time you make a purchase. It takes a couple of days to process, but you’ll have money back into your account by the end of your trip.

Fueling up – Whenever you can, fuel up first thing in the morning. Gas evaporates in the heat, and fueling up in the heat of the afternoon won’t get you as much as you’re paying for. Of course, if you’re in it for the long haul, you’ll have to get gas at various times of the day. However, if you stay overnight somewhere, fuel up before you head out, even if you have half a tank.

Tire Inflation – Over time, the air in your tires can deflate. Properly inflated tires make a difference in how your car moves along the highway. If your car is working harder, you’re using more gas. Check your tire pressure at the beginning and end of a trip. Get an instant-read digital tire gauge to make the job easier.

Cruise Control – Using cruise control eliminates the fluctuations in your speed which causes more gas use. Set for the speed limit and keep your eyes on the road for any traffic.

Smart GPS Routing – Nothing is worse than sitting in traffic, idling away your gas. Use your smartphone routing system or an app such as Google Maps or Waze. These apps find the best route, even if it’s not the main route. Or if there’s an accident, it will reroute you. I’ve ignored the reroutes before and regretted it. It sucks sitting on the freeway for an hour, parked.

Toll Roads – While not gas savings per se, toll roads can quickly eat into your cheap road trip. Do a little research with routing before you head out and check to see if you’re route takes you on toll roads. The Uni Pass works in 19 states and if you purchase ahead of time, can save you from toll-by-plate fees.

How to Save Money on Food

No matter how long the road trip, food expenses can add up fast. Packing a cooler is one of our best ways to save a lot of money on a road trip, but I have a few more food costs saving tips too.

Pack food – Not only is this the healthier option versus fast food, think of what you can buy with $40 at the grocery store over a drive-through. To keep food cold in the cooler, we freeze half-gallon jugs of water. This keeps food from getting soggy in ice and makes for great drinking water down the road.

We’ve gone a full 24 hours on the road without buying food. Check out our ideas on what food to pack. If you plan ahead, you can save on meals.

I also love the idea of a plug-in cooler, to keep cool longer. Check out this cooler here, which also has the capacity to warm food.

Water – This is another expense that can add up quickly, especially if you’re hitting the convenience stores. Instead of spending money on plastic water bottles at the gas stations, pack water ahead of time. And no, I’m not talking about packing the plastic water bottles either. Grab reusable water bottles and fill a large 5-gallon water cooler with water from home. This not only saves you money – the cooler costs about as much as 2 cases of water – it’s a lot more environmentally friendly.

Grocery Stores – If you do need to stop for food, consider stopping at a local grocery store rather than a drive-through. The iExit app will tell you what’s close and on your route. That small bag of chips to go with your sandwich at a sub shop is as much as a full bag at a grocery store, that feeds the whole family. Many grocery stores have a deli with fresh subs. We also like crackers, a block of cheese, and pepperoni for a fun, easy to grab meal. Added bonus: Plenty of fresh fruit!

Coffee – One thing I haven’t tried is portable coffee on the road. Have you ever tried making coffee on the road rather than hitting Starbucks?

Milk – Depending on how long you’re on the road, you may want to give milk to the kids, or use in cereal. We use boxed milk for this. You can find it near the dry and evaporated milks. Often they come in juice box like packs and in chocolate or plain. We add them to the cooler to chill and they taste great.

Breakfast – If we stay overnight in a hotel, we always book one with a free breakfast. Generally, the costs are about the same on the road and this gets us hot food, sometimes, and bananas and juice. If you’re paying for a place to stay, might as well get breakfast to go with it.

How to Save Money on Overnights

Depending on how long you have to drive, it may or may not be worth getting a hotel room on the way to your final destination. We have driven straight through, but I only recommend that if you’re not tired. Two tips for saving on overnight accommodations:

Sleep at the Rest Stops – This depends on your comfort level. Choose a well-lit official interstate rest stop. Generally, we do this to pull off the road for a few hours until the sun rises and we feel more awake again. We park by the truckers, rather than up front with the cars. We know the truck drivers have pulled off the road are sleeping and generally not getting out of their rig. When the kids were small and slept anywhere, this allowed us to save money and get to our final destination faster.

Hotel Rooms – When you’re on a road trip, hotel rooms can be a significant expense. Here are a few tips to help you save money on hotel rooms. Book your hotel room in advance. If you plan your route ahead of time, you can save money this way.

Check online for discounts and coupons. Again, this is also a place to check your credit card rewards for offers, savings, and cash back.

Finally, since this is an overnight, book just what you need. If you’re traveling for a long day, you may just need a bed to crash and free breakfast in the morning. If you have kids that need to burn off some energy, find a place with a pool. Make sure the hotel has free parking. No need to spend money on parking when you’re only there for one night.

Campgrounds – Again, depending on your set up, a campground is a cheap way to pull over for the night. If you use the iExit App, you can find a campground on your route. Call first for availability and rates.

How to Save Money on Attractions

There will be plenty of reasons to stop along the way. Roadside attractions, if not planned for, are the biggest money-eaters.

Along the road, you’ll be hit with signs to buy fireworks or visit the world’s largest whatever. Of course, all of these come with the gift shop.

Granted, sometimes these are fun and make for great photo ops. Just prep the kids or give them a spending limit so you don’t go overboard on a crocodile purse you’ll never use. Our advice to save money on attractions:

Take Scenic Breaks – There are plenty of overlooks and pull off the road places to park, especially in the mountains. Get out, stretch your legs, and take in the beautiful scenery around you.

Free Roadside Attractions – Not every roadside attraction costs money. Sometimes a wacky blast from the past may be just as fun. (Check out some fun, some free, wacky Florida attractions here.)

Visit Historical Markers or Landmarks – On the interstate, historical markers, homes, landmarks, etc are noted with brown signs. Depending on the marker or landmark, many of these are free. Granted, some are just a sign with a bit of historical information on it. However, if your family members need a break or a place to visit, these locations can easily become a scavenger-hunt-style games for the kids.

Roadtrippers is a great app that has a massive list of roadside attractions. Take it a step further and sign up for their premium version here. Get $5 off with code BTR5QTP.

National Parks – The National Parks System is more than the 60+ big parks like Yosemite or Yellowstone. It’s also hundreds of national monuments, lakes, historic trails, and national historic sites. Having a National Parks Pass for $80 gets the whole family into some of the best places in the United States. Even if you’re road tripping to a National Park, keep your eyes out for some of these locations along the way and with your National Park Pass, save on entrance fees.

These are just a few of the ways we save money when road tripping. Preparing your car for the journey and planning for emergencies will be covered in another blog. Sign up for my email list to get notified of new content.

Understand Your Legal Rights With Regards to Accidents

Obviously, when you’re preparing for a family road trip, you aren’t necessarily focused on all of the things that could go wrong. However, it’s always good to be well informed of your legal rights when it comes to road accidents. Getting into an unexpected road collision will not only dampen your family trip, but it could also incur significant damage to your vehicle. Similarly, if you or any of your family members experience any injuries as a result of a road incident you may be liable for compensation. This is where an experienced personal injury lawyer steps in and allows you to gain the justice you deserve for an accident that wasn’t your fault. Doing your research and becoming well-versed on this topic will prevent any mishaps and misunderstandings in the future. Hopefully, your family road trip runs smoothly and your loved ones don’t experience any injuries during your memorable vacation together.

Other Important Ways to Save Money on Your Road Trip

Prepare your car – Do a thorough check on your vehicle to prepare it for a safe road trip. This means in addition to checking tire pressure above, do things for a full vehicle check-up like checking the oil, washer fluid, spare tire, battery, etc. This will prevent avoidable emergencies and major costs on the road.

Emergency Kit – Should an emergency arise, be sure you have an emergency kit stocked and ready to go. This includes items such as your first aid kit, but also jumper cables, or a jumper bank. This one is my favorite power bank.

FAQ How to Save Money on a Family Road Trip