Road Tripping This Summer? 5 Ways to Save Money

This is my favorite time of year -- I live for flip flops, late sunsets, and road trips. I'm not alone in my love of road trips -- according to The Vacationer's Summer Travel Survey, over 75% of Americans intend to take one this year.

What's so great about road trips vs. plane travel? Well, you can roam on your own schedule. Road trips can be as short or as long as you want -- you could hop in your car and drive to the next state over, or drive until you run out of road! If you try some of my tips below, you'll shave money off your vacation tab.

1. Be strategic with credit cards

The right credit cards can do a great deal for your road trip. Consider these options.

Hotel cobranded cards

Many of the major hotel chains have credit card options. Since I'm a Hilton fan, I've considered the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card. It would give me a higher status with Hilton automatically, and I could earn a lot of points at Hilton properties (terms apply).

Gas credit cards

The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express is a favorite of mine, and it comes with me on road trips because it earns 3% cash back at gas stations, as well as on tolls (terms apply, see rates and fees).

General travel rewards credit cards

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is an excellent option that offers 5X points per $1 on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3X points per $1 on dining purchases, and 2X points per $1 on other general travel expenses.

Ready to hit the open road? Any money you save by following my tips can free up more cash in your vacation budget for souvenirs, museum visits, or another trip later this year.

2. Bring a cooler

The prospect of paying $3 for a single bottled water at a gas station is offensive to me -- perhaps because I can buy a pack of 35 of them at my local grocery store for less than $6. This is why I own two coolers and usually bring one of them when I take a road trip vacation -- the small one holds a few drinks and ice to keep them cold, while I can pack sandwich fixings, fresh fruit, and drinks (and ice) in the big one.

In addition to saving you money on road food, this move also gives you a healthier vacation experience -- a freshly made turkey and cheese sandwich and fruit salad is undoubtedly better for you than a fast food cheeseburger. Plus, you won't have to wait in line at the drive-thru when you could be burning up the miles on the way to your destination.

3. Explore your home state or region

As an adult, I've taken multiple road trip vacations of 1,000 miles or more. But longer trips come with higher gas costs, more hotel stays, and more time off work.

If you've got the itch to travel and want to do it in a cost-effective manner, consider planning a road trip to destinations in your state or region. I'm pretty fortunate to live within several hours of multiple world-class cities both in the U.S. and Canada, and getting away for a weekend is often a lot more achievable than planning a trip of a week or more.

4. Book hotel stays before you leave

I've never been a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants road tripper. I like to have a destination (and stops along the way) set, and I especially like booking overnights in advance. I appreciate knowing how long each day's drive will be -- and I really like checking out all my options for hotels in a given area so I can get a good deal.

This makes for a much better travel experience than driving until you're cranky and exhausted, then trying to find a hotel with a vacancy. You're going on vacation -- be kind to yourself by booking your stays ahead of time.

I'm a Hilton Honors member, so I tend to default to searching for Hilton properties first, as they are reliably good and I can earn points on my stays. If you tend to stay with the same hotel chain often, joining its rewards program is a good move -- and usually free.

5. Maintain your vehicle

Sometimes, you've got to spend money to save money. Getting your vehicle in for a tune-up before your road trip won't be free. According to AutoZone, costs for a tune-up could range from $40 to $150 for a very basic one, all the way up to $500 to $1,200 or more for an older or classic car.

That said, getting a professional's eyes on your vehicle before taking it out of town can save you the cost and hassle of having your car's transmission die while you're in a strange town. This happened to some friends of mine, and they had to spend an unscheduled night in said town and then pay to have their vehicle towed back home while they proceeded on their trip in a rental.