How to go about planning a massive road trip?

That’s really all you need. Don’t plan too much.

How long do you have? This could matter a whole lot. Do you have time to stop and see stuff, or do you have to make a beeline for the west coast to make time?

The trouble with planning too much is that things happen that will change those plans. Car trouble, traffic delays, terrible weather, illness, maybe even the sudden urge to see something that you hadn’t thought of before. If you planned too much, you’ll pass that stuff by, because you want to keep to the plan.

It’s actually best to leave things open, allow some room for adjustments. Make some plans for San Diego, and maybe plan out a stop or two along the way, but in between, leave it wide-open.

Yes, this means not making lodging reservations. If you’re a AAA member, become one, there are all kinds of good reasons for it. After you become one, pick up their maps and TourBooks for the states you’ll visit, and maybe halfway through the day, pick a general target place to end the day, looking through lodging listings around that target place. Compare ratings, prices, and so forth. If you know anything else about the area, that is helpful. If it’s the only place in town, consider calling ahead to reserve because there might not be many other choices. If there are options, maybe pull into your chosen place at the end of the day to get a look, and if it looks OK, take it for the night. If it looks seedy, consider getting out of there and picking another spot in town.

Meticulous planning is for when you’re at work. This is a vacation, right? :)

Over the years, we’ve picked two or three major destinations for each trip. We made those reservations in advance. In between, we left it wide open. We had some ideas, tried to make them, and we often did…but plans changed along the way as well. We’ve found some places that made us want to stick around an extra day. We’ve blown tires, had overheating trouble, and so forth. We’ve encountered dangerous weather. We’ve showed up at a reserved place to find out that it’s a dump. All of these things forced adjustments.

If you make too many reservations in advance, you don’t allow for those adjustments. Then, if you can’t make a reservation, you have to call and cancel, maybe incur a fee, and start to scramble around making new plans.

Don’t write it in stone. Instead, set down an anchor or two, and let the wind take you where it may for everything in between.