What’s better than a road trip with your family? A nod to the open highway and all its beauty. There is something exciting about each road trip journey that makes them all so special. With Covid continuing to run rampant, our family has opted in for more road trips as opposed to going to crowded airports and flying to our destination. And as a family that travels often, we are always on the hunt for useful resources to make our trip run as smoothly as possible.

In 2019, we surprised our kids at Christmas with a trip to Disneyland and then a road trip up the 101, along the coast, from Los Angeles to Seattle. Having never driven the 101 before, we were in search of an app to show us cool, hidden gems along our journey and that’s when we came upon Roadtrippers! You guys, I can not rave about this app enough! We have used it religiously on every trip since! In fact, we have even used it locally in Seattle and nearby cities to see what hidden gems are around us. No road trip should ever happen without using Roadtrippers!

RoadTrippers

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Okay, okay….I’ve kept you in suspense long enough – so why is Roadtrippers so cool? First of all, you tell it how far you are willing to drive from your original route, and it will give you suggestions for cool places to visit that are “off the beaten path.” And, regardless of the length of your road trip, Roadtrippers helps you plan out your adventure. Seriously, you’ll be the coolest parent on the block when you take your kids on your next road trip! And they might even learn something along the way! (What’s better than kids learning when they don’t even know it’s learning?!)

Here is the overview of our Christmas Trip up the 101. We loaded up the app with our departure city (Anaheim because we were leaving Disneyland) and headed all the way to our final destination, Seattle!

Search and Explore Secret Gems on Your Road Trip

If you click the Search and Explore bar at the top of the page, all these filter options below pop up! Look at how many there are! While we are driving, my favorite filter is the Sights and Landmarks because it shows all the secret gems along the route.

Once you click inside the Sights and Landmarks menu, here are all the options that pop up. It’s so much fun! We usually click all of them so we don’t miss anything!

Once you choose “View Places”, the app returns to the map. You can zoom in to various areas along your route and decide where to stop! Below is a zoomed in section of our trip as we passed through San Francisco. An example of a fun place to stop could be ‘Sam’s Castle’, the yellow icon on the bottom, close to Pacifica. If it sounds interesting to you and your family, you’d click the icon or scroll through the suggestions at the bottom of the page.

Once you click ‘Sam’s Castle, here is a sample of what you’ll see. You’ll notice there are photos, an address, phone number, a link to the site, and even reviews from other visitors who’ve previously visited! It will even tell you if pets are welcome at the site, if there is available wifi, restrooms, parking, etc. Awesome, right? As if that’s not enough, as a traveling family of four, we love that Roadtrippers offers filters for families! This way you can find attractions that are kid-friendly without having to search through pages of results.

OMG, you guys…on that note…we found a legit Scooby-Doo van on another journey when we drove Seattle to Houston! This van is in Moab, Utah! This was all thanks to the Roadtrippers app! Check this out! Super rad, right??

Budgeting for Gas on Your Road Trip

Okay, so….Roadtrippers doesn’t stop there. I don’t know about you but, it can be tough to budget for a road trip. That’s where Roadtrippers comes in! The app helps you estimate how much money you’ll need for gas based on the information about your trip. This is helpful so you’re not left guessing how much money to bring. (This is the kind of hand-holding this Momma needs!)

Over Christmas in 2021, we surprised our kiddos with a trip to Bend, OR and then over to Twin Falls, ID. Here is a screenshot of the cover page of this trip. You’ll notice the estimated gas price of $70 where I put the pink arrow. I seriously can’t get excited enough about what a genius app this is!

Ideas for Your Next Road Trip

One of my personal favorite things about Roadtrippers is that it gives you ideas for future road trips! For example, I recently discovered Mt. Hood in Oregon has alpine slides! WHAT?! Yes, please! And because of Roadtrippers, can add it to our list of places to visit next time we’re in the area! Check it out! You press the heart at the top of the screen and it saves it to your profile.

Then, when you open your profile and go to ‘Places’, it is saved there for when you are ready to plan your road trip! I’m already working on this summer’s Yellowstone and Bend, OR road trips!

Roadtrippers Community

But, you guys…if you can believe it, there is even MORE! There is a community of other road-trippers so you can get ideas and recommendations for your trip! How cool is THAT?

Simply decide where you want to go, have your phone handy, and just let this AWESOME app be your best road trip buddy and lead the way on your next road trip!

So, How Do You Get This Awesomeness?

It’s so worth the $29.99 a year…plus, if you use this link and enter promo code: BTR5QTP you can get $5.00 off when you subscribe! I’m telling you…we do not travel without this app on! Download Roadtrippers today on iOS or Android devices!