Why a USA Road Trip Should be on Your Bucket List

To some people this is a stupid question, because it’s BEEN on their bucket list. But to some, like me, it wasn’t so obvious at first. My first trip abroad, I remember meeting people from all over the world, the Netherlands, Australia, Switzerland, Iran, the list goes on...and everyone would ask me about America and all the amazing natural wonders. And every place they mentioned my response was, “Nope, haven’t been there.” And it forced me begin to think...here I am longing to see the world and I haven’t even explored my own backyard, my own country. The truth was, a big reason I had not done so was because plane tickets across the U.S. are not the cheapest, and if I had money to spend on a plane ticket I would rather it be going abroad. Plus, coming from a big family we took few family vacations and I didn’t know anyone on the West Coast growing up, so I had no reason to go before. But now as a young adult, I was buying my own car and I began to think of the possibilities. With a big purchase like this I wanted to incorporate it into my travel goals (of course) that I was so desperately saving for. And so the thought occurred to me..with this car I could take myself on a road trip around the states! The way I came to the conclusion is ironic, because I ended up not even taking my car - we took my sister’s much more capable Volkswagen. But nevertheless, that’s essentially how the idea came to me. So of course, I immediately began searching on Pinterest like a maniac and stalking travel instagrammers in my spare time. The more I looked the more overwhelmed I became with the amount of spectacular sights that felt like were at my fingertips.

Now, I’ll be 100% honest, I soon found although these sights were “at my fingertips” in the same country, it was anything but easy making it happen. A long term roadtrip takes a tremendous amount of planning, budgeting, saving and effort, especially if you’re like me and don’t have an endless amount of money, you plan on taking a car because you don’t own a fancy RV, and are on any type of time limit. And even after all the preparation is over, the trip itself can be exhausting. Living out of a car and packing up your bags every few days turns a trip like this into a temporary lifestyle, not just a vacation. It’s particularly important to grasp that concept before venturing out.. On top of that, there will be unexpected bumps in the road that you cannot predict. You could have car problems, get a flat tire, have awful weather, get lost in a place you have no service, or you get somewhere and all the campgrounds are booked and you have no where to stay and are forced to sleep in your car (true story, this happened to me).  HOWEVER, that being said, it will 100% be worth it and 1000% be a trip of a lifetime. And the good news is, this blog is here to help! I spent months budgeting and hours a day at my laptop planning because I’m a control freak, on top of the 3 months I was on the road. So I have an enormous amount of information to share that will hopefully prepare you and split the effort needed in half if (I mean when) you plan on taking this journey yourself.

Here are some photos to further convince you 😊

As you can see, my U.S. road trip WAS a trip of a lifetime, and as you can imagine, pictures do it no justice!! I constantly stood in awe to this beautiful country’s glory and felt alive within myself throughout the journey. I learned how to survive and how to cope with the unknown, and grew in confidence. So if you’re still asking yourself why a road trip across the U.S. should be on your bucket list, here is the simple reason why:

The contiguous United States is huge, 3,119,884.69 square miles to be exact, and home to some of the most dramatic landscapes in the world, each unique in their beauty. As you enter into each new state or national park, it will feel as though you’re entering into a whole new world some of which familiar, some of which severely bizarre. Living on the road is tough at times but overall one of the most liberating experiences of your life, as a true independent nomad.