Road Trip Readiness #FuelTheLove

 This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #FuelTheLove #CollectiveBias 

With the summer months upon us, let the travel season begin! The stress of the school year slips away as you hit the open road with your crew – ready for adventures and fun. We traveled to Disney World earlier this year, so our trips this summer will be local. We take our car EVERY WHERE and somehow, in the past four years, we’ve hit over 75,000 miles from our road tripping. One of the most important steps in preparing for our future trips is to make sure our car is ready and Walmart’s Automotive Care Center helps us do just that.Whether you’re traveling near or far by car, you want to make sure you (and your car) are prepared!

While you might already have your suitcases packed and ready to go, I’ve put together some ideas for essentials that will help you get and stay ‘car-ready’ for your big trip!

For the Thirst

If you’re anything like us, we get thirsty on long drives. Rather than lugging around a massive cooler, I opted for a smaller family size cool that will accommodate free ice without leakage and usually fill it with our favorites – water & bottles of your favorite sports beverage. Even better, once used, you can scrunch the bag down and save additional storage on the way back for souvenirs!

For the Bellies

We cannot go anywhere without feeding the masses, so I always make sure to pack our favorite snacks. We love to include things like granola bars (breakfast on the go and a bit more substantial), snack crackers, snack things and a few little sweet treats!

For the Kids

Inevitably, whether it’s a long or short trip, kids will be D-O-N-E with the open road and be ready for a bit more entertainment than miles of pavement. I pack each of the boys their own little activity bags and they LOVE them! We usually take these on any trip longer than 2 hours and they fit perfectly next to their car seats. We love to include books, stickers, sticker books, activity pads, colored pencils and their favorite crafting supplies.

For the Adventures

I love this little bag because it holds all of our adventure essentials for exploring the great outdoors. The material is thermal, so it helps to minimize these important bottles from melting! We include bug spray, tons of sunscreen a hydro-stick for extra dry skin, baby wipes, and lip balm.

For the Accidents

Inevitably, when we’re traveling we always have use for an extra set of clothes quickly. I specifically pack an entire change of clothes (including underwear) for each boy so that I have them available immediately in the event of a spill, accident or other unforeseen circumstance that requires a change of clothes. This has proved vital on trips in the past.

Car Preparation

In addition to having the car essentials for a road trip, we also make sure our vehicle is travel ready. The boys and I recently headed to Walmart’s Automotive Care Center for an oil change on our Kia Soul. Since the last time we were there, the car has turned over 75,000 miles, so we switched to Pennzoil’s High Mileage option. One of my favorite elements of Walmart’s Auto Care Center? They are attached to the store which means while my car is being serviced, I can take care of essential road trip shopping.

All Pennzoil products help clean out leftover oil residue and help to better protect from friction. Even better, the High Mileage option helps to reduce leaks and oil consumption which means our engine will be road trip ready for years to come! Even better, from June 10th through September 9th, Pennzoil oil changes will be on Rollback at Walmart’s Automotive Care Center stores:

• High Mileage $35.88, compared to the regular Walmart price of $39.88. {Industry standard price is $46}
• Platinum Full Synthetic $45.88, compared to the regular Walmart price of $49.88. {Industry standard price $66

Did you know that Pennzoil also offers a free warranty that covers 15 engine parts? For more information, check out the Pennzoil Warranty Site.

How do you prepare your car for your summer road trips? 

Print your own Road Trip Car Essentials List (a labor of love from myself and crowdsourcing on social media):

Click on the image or download here.

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