US road trip and national park tools

Road Trip Packing List

Set the trip length, who is coming and what you drive to get a printable road trip checklist, car checks first.

A road trip packing list is a printable checklist made for your specific trip. This page builds one from your trip length, the people in the car, your vehicle, the season, and any extras such as camping, pets, national parks, or night driving. The list updates as you change the options, and each line has a tick box so you can work through it before you leave. It is free, needs no sign-up, and runs in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere. The default setup (4 days, 2 adults, a car, summer) gives 74 lines, and 14 of them are car checks.
Road trip packing list example

How to use the Road trip packing list

  1. Set “Trip length (days)” to the number of days you will be on the road.
  2. Enter the number of “Adults”, “Kids”, and “Babies”.
  3. Choose your “Vehicle”: Car / SUV or van, RV, or Electric car (EV).
  4. Choose a “Season”: Spring, Summer, Fall, or Winter.
  5. Turn on any extras that fit your trip: “Pets”, “Camping on the way”, “National parks”, or “Long drives at night”.
  6. Read the boxed “Before you go: car checks” list at the top and finish those checks first.
  7. Tick each item as you pack it. Use “Clear all ticks” to reset the list for your next trip.
  8. Remove lines you do not need with the remove button. “Removed items (N)” lists them, and “Put back” returns any you change your mind about.
  9. Type a missing item in “Add your own item” and press “Add item”.

To print, use “Print / save as PDF”. Pick 1 or 2 columns with “Print columns” and Letter or A4 with “Paper”. You can also use “Download TXT” or “Download CSV”. “Copy link” stores your non-default options, removed items, and own items in the address. Your ticks stay in this browser only. The printed list may be used freely, including commercially.

What should I pack for a road trip?

Start with the core groups: documents and money, car kit, comfort, food and drinks, clothing, and toiletries. Then add the groups that match your trip, such as kids, baby, pets, camping, or electric car extras.

The documents group covers your driver’s license, registration, proof of insurance, roadside assistance, a card and cash, health insurance cards, confirmations, tolls, the rental agreement if you have one, and emergency contacts. Keeping these together saves time at a checkpoint or a hotel desk.

The season changes the list. Winter adds a coat, hat, gloves, and a heater check. Summer adds a windshield sun shade, a swimsuit, a sun hat, sunscreen, and an air-conditioning check. Spring and Fall add a light layer.

Tires matter too. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) advises checking every tire, including the spare, at least once a month, when the tires are cold (the car has not been driven for about three hours). Use the number on the tire placard on the driver’s door jamb, or the one in your owner’s manual.

How many clothes for a road trip?

Plan about one outfit per day, plus a spare set of underwear and socks. The tool follows the rule of one a day plus a spare, capped at a week, because most people can do laundry on longer trips.

The counts per person are:

  • Underwear and socks: days + 1, up to 7.
  • Shirts: days, up to 5.
  • Pants: half the days, rounded up, between 1 and 4.

For a 4-day trip for 2 adults, each adult gets 5 underwear, 5 socks, 4 shirts, and 2 pants. On a 10-day trip, each person is capped at 7 underwear and socks, 5 shirts, and 4 pants. Pillows and blankets are counted per traveler, sunglasses per adult, and spare outfits per child.

Everything else on the list scales with the trip length and the number of travelers in the same way, and the count is shown next to each item.

Frequently asked questions

What do I check before a road trip?

The boxed “Before you go: car checks” list has 14 items for a gasoline car. These include tires and spare, tread, oil, coolant, washer fluid, wipers, lights, brakes, battery, fuel, warning lights, load, and route, plus A/C in summer or the heater in winter. An electric car list replaces the oil, coolant, and fuel checks with a battery-charge check.

What should be in a car emergency kit?

The car kit group includes spare tire gear or a tire sealant and inflator kit, jumper cables or a jump starter, a flashlight, a first-aid kit, a tire gauge, triangles, and a multi-tool. When you choose Winter, the list adds an ice scraper, tire chains or traction aids where they are allowed or required, and a warm blanket.

What do I pack for a road trip with kids or a baby?

Turn on “Kids” for entertainment and a car-seat install check, or “Babies” for diapers and baby gear. The list also adds a car-seat line that tells you to check your state’s child-restraint law. The page does not state that law itself. For babies, the list estimates 8 diapers per baby per day, which you should adjust to your child, and outfits equal to babies times days plus 2, up to 14.

How is an EV road trip different?

An EV list drops the oil, coolant, and fuel checks and adds a battery-charge check. It also adds a charging cable, adapters, apps, and a charging plan for each leg of the trip. The tool does not show charging stations or live routes, so plan your stops before you leave.

Can I print the list?

Yes. Use “Print / save as PDF”, choose 1 or 2 columns with “Print columns”, and choose Letter or A4 with “Paper”. You can also use “Download TXT” or “Download CSV”.

Can I use the printable for commercial purposes or sell it?

Yes. The lists the tool produces may be printed, shared, and used for any purpose, including in a classroom or in products for sale such as printables or books, royalty-free and without credit. The only limit is that you may not copy the website or the tool itself as a competing service.