Here are few essentials handy when on a long drive

Road trips have a charm of their own. The freedom of being on your own, being able to stop wherever you wish, not having to stick to a given schedule, but go with the flow, and just riding away with music playing, and the sheer adventure of it all makes road trips amazing. And in India, especially south India with its tropical climate, winters are ideal for road trips. However, for an enjoyable trip one needs to do a bit of planning and have a few essentials handy and you are good to go.

1. To begin with one needs to check the roads one would be taking, if there is any recent repair work happening that you aren't aware of or if the road is good enough or damaged because of such things like the rainy season, whether the place you would be visiting is foggy, what is the distance – all these things have to be considered before you head on a road trip. With internet teeming with helpful people, and blogs with information, a little bit of research would take care of it all. Don't forget to download your map to help you in absence of internet signal.

2. Ensure your car is in good condition, check to see if the spare tyre has air in it, and service kit is in place, keep the highway service facility's numbers handy, check if you are carrying all the documentation. Also, if possible, carry a spare key in your handbag, or pocket and always carry the bag with you. Fill the petrol tank and do not wait for it to be completely empty before you head for a petrol pump.

3. Ensure you have enough cash for emergencies, and, carry your cards as well.

4. No one forgets their phones nowadays, but do remember to carry a phone charger, and power bank.

5. Carry enough packaged food in case of emergencies. One must try and travel light when on a road trip but be generous with your food stock. Buy sealed water bottles whenever you find a proper shop; drink bottled water as much as possible when on a trip. If there are 10 things that can go wrong on a trip, eight would arise out of unhygienic water we may end up drinking. These days the small on the go ice boxes can come handy if you like your water to be cold.

Here are a few miscellaneous but extremely important things to carry - hand towels, tissues, wet tissues, sanitizer, first aid box, old newspapers, a few plastic bags for the weak tummies amongst you.

Last but not least, carry your favourite songs in a CD or a USB drive, you cannot always depend on the internet when on road.