Check Your Car Tyres before Going on a Road Trip

This post contains Affiliate links 

Summer is here and for many that means a family trip - whether you’re heading off for a family adventure, exploring somewhere new or you’re heading across the country to see extended family or join in with a special celebration, travelling a long distance with kids can be at times a rather stressful affair. We already have a few planned for the summer including heading down to the coast and towards Kent and Essex. Growing up in South Africa our closest major city from Cape Town is an 8 hour drive away so I quickly got use to long durations and wanted to share a few key tips and hacks you can employ to make the trip that little bit less stressful.

1. Have a clear and straightforward route

It's really important when travelling with kids to plan your route well. You, of course, need to know your final destination and how long it's going to take to get there as well as pre-planned put stops and possibly somewhere you can stretch your legs for an hour or so, that way the kids can run off some steam. It’s important that your car tyres should be properly checked before hitting the road while driving in Essex or other local areas nearby. In the UK we usually try and stop off at a National Trust site or Cadw sight when on a long trip - many can be found near the motorways and they usually have a coffee shop and toilets as well as space to run around. Also as much as I love maps (and we always carry one) I do recommend having a Satellite Navigation of some sort as they are pretty reliable these days and can pre-warn you about any traffic jams up ahead and how to avoid them.

2. Check your tyres

The one must-do thing before leaving on any trip is having your car checked over, change the oil & water. Most importantly make sure your tyres are safe and of good quality. It's surprising how these things can be overlooked - in fact, I had a flat tyre last week and that's only a few months after buying my car. Making sure your tyres are in good condition not only makes your trip safer but also smoother. There will usually be a specialist in your area and yes it's always worth the money when it comes to these things and if you're looking for new tyres in Essex – you can visit Jet Wheel Tyre and they should also be able to give you advice on keeping your tyres well maintained. 

3. Get yourself car breakdown cover

If you want to prevent stress then do yourself one favour and get your car covered with breakdown cover. It’s important to always keep an extra car tyre to ensure you won’t face much trouble while travelling. Once we broke down on the way to Cornwall a few years back, it was the height of the summer season and luckily we had AA but still we had to wait for two hours on the hard shoulder with two small children but at least it didn't cost us a small fortune which is what happens if you do breakdown but you don't have cover - you have to pay huge premiums for on the day assistance.

The key with any road trip is being prepared as it most likely will all go smoothly but it may not - pack and extra pair of clothes for the kids in case one of them has an accident, make sure you have a first aid kit as well as an extra 2L bottle of water for the car as well as Oil on hand. Know your route and also have a paper map in case your Sat Nav fails you but most of all just try and chill out and enjoy the ride.