Plan a road trip around the best roads, not the fastest

The fastest way across a country is rarely the best one. A road trip planned around good roads takes a little more thought and is a lot more fun. This is the order that works.

Start with the nights

Most trip plans start with the roads and end up with days that are too long. Do it the other way round. Decide where you will sleep each night, then work out the drive between them. MotoRidez builds multi-day tours this way, nights first, so each day is a trip of its own.

Pick two or three anchor roads

You will not remember the journey between the good bits, you will remember the roads themselves. Pick the two or three you most want to drive and plan around them. Everything else is the way between.

Be honest about the day

A day of four to six hours behind the wheel is a good one. Ten hours is a delivery. On twisty roads the map’s distance flatters you: you will cover less ground than the kilometres suggest, so check the estimated time as well as the length.

Put fuel and food on the map

Country fuel stops keep country hours, and the best roads are often a long way from anything. Turn on the Fuel and Food layers and mark where you will stop before you set off. If you will camp, the Camps & rest areas layer shows places to stay along the way.

Keep a day of slack

Weather, a closed road or a place that is too good to leave will cost you time. A trip with no slack turns the last day into a motorway run.

Download it, then go

Save the route for offline use before you leave. Offline maps for a road trip covers what to download and what to check.

Share where you are

If the trip goes through remote country, share a live link with someone at home. It is a link you can switch off, and it shows where you are without handing over the whole trip.