The ultimate road trip song, is Road Trippin’ by The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Let’s go get lost somewhere in the U.S.A. This video is like a vacation all its own.

Click more to see the rest of the songs:

Since we live in the west, we usually end up on parts of Route 66, so no road trip mix would be complete for me without that song, but the one I prefer is this remix by Depeche Mode called Behind the Wheel/Route 66. “My little girl, drive anywhere. Do what you want. I don’t care.” Yeah! I LOVE to be the one behind the wheel!

I know this song isn’t about a road trip, but One Headlight by The Wallflowers is just a great driving song.

Every Day Is A Winding Road by Sheryl Crow is a fun and bouncy song if Depeche Mode and The Wallflowers got you too down.

Roam by The B52’s makes me want to get out on “those dirty and dusty trails.” Unfortunately, this video is less about roaming and more about some weird vision of The B52’s.

I absolutely LOVE this song, The Way by Fastball. “Where were they going without ever knowing the way?”

Road to Nowhere by Talking Heads isn’t about road trips, but it’s still one of my favorites. If you like this song, you’ll probably also like this version by Nouvelle Vague.

Running Down A Dream by Tom Petty is a GREAT road trip song! There is a line that says, “Me and Del were singin’ Little Runaway.” The first time I heard this song, I thought Del Shannon was actually IN the car with him! I didn’t realize he was singing to the radio. This video, however, is less like a great road trip and more like an acid trip.

I can’t imagine a road trip playlist without Life Is A Highway by Rascal Flatts.

This foppy bit of pop is All Around The World by ATC. I just had to add it to make this list less depressing.

Here is another psychedelic romp from Daft Punk called Around the World.

Running on Empty by Jackson Browne talks about driving throughout the Southwest, but it’s not really ABOUT road trips. Still a good song for a long drive, though.

If you’re haulin’ a trailer behind you, King of the Road by Roger Miller is a must.

I kind of thought Kermit the Frog and the Muppets sang this song, but apparently, it’s On The Road Again by Canned Heat.

I’m not usually a country music fan, but Take A Back Road by Rodney Atkins really made me want to get out of the house and head to Moab.

I’ve Been Everywhere by Johnny Cash is one of those list songs that people love because they love to check off all the places that they’ve visited as well. I love to listen to these kinds of song to see if my hometown is there, but unfortunately Johnny Cash doesn’t mention Salt Lake, even though he had that whole section of all the lakes he’s been to. No, Mr. Cash, you HAVEN’T been everywhere! You missed UTAH!

I never heard Lonely Town by Stan Ridgway in the 80’s when it came out, but it’s a great road trip song.

For a creepy hitchhiker song, here is Evangeline by Icicle Works.

I Drove All Night by Roy Orbison was written for him in 1987, but he passed on it. Cyndi Lauper recorded a version of it in 1989 and it became a hit. In 1992, however, the voice it was written for sang it beautifully.

Drivin’ My Life Away by Eddie Rabbit is a classic. This is a fan video that is lovely with lots of footage of riding on the highway.

I know Driver 8 by R.E.M. is about a train conductor, but it’s such a great song for driving to.

One Way Ticket by Leann Rimes is a pretty good song for a road trip, even though she’s on a train as well.

Wanderer by Donna Summer is different than most songs with that theme. It is literally a song about the desire to travel and the worry of being left behind. Unlike Dion and Ricky Nelson, she’s not bragging about all the loves she leaves behind. She just has a gypsy drive to travel. This video is a painful bit of New Wave imagery. Just play it and listen without watching.

Ramblin’ Man by Hank Williams Sr. is another song about the unquenching desire to be on the road.

Ramblin’ Man by Allman Brothers is a COMPLETELY different song, but it also strictly about how the desire to travel can be so fully a part of ones personality.

There is something about the bass hook in Radar Love by Golden Earring that just sounds like driving on the freeway.

Take Me Home Country Roads by John Denver is a perfect driving song when you’re bouncing on a dusty back road.

Keith Urban’s Days Go By isn’t about traveling, but the lyrics that reference driving, cars and “a hand out the window” just makes it a perfect road trip song. Plus, it’s such a positive and happy song!

Drive (For Daddy Gene) by Alan Jackson is about a boat, a Ford truck and an old Jeep. It’s more about fathers and their kids, but it’s still a great love song for that joy of driving.

I prefer Peter Paul and Mary’s version, but Woody Guthrie’s Car Song is the only one I could find on YouTube.

America by Simon and Garfunkel is a strange kind of traveling song, but you can’t beat the chorus.

No Particular Place To Go by Chuck Berry is an AWESOME song for “ridin’ along in your automobile.”

Brian Setzer wrote Switchblade 327 about his beloved 1932 Ford Switchblade 327. It’s more about a street race than a road trip, but it’s still a great driving song (as long as you watch your “steel-toed boot on the accelerator.”

Car Song by Elastica is more about the love of cars than a road trip, but it still fits.

Get Out The Map by The Indigo Girls is a perfect road trip and camping song. I love it.

Autobahn by Kraftwerk is an electronic ode to driving in Germany. The car noises and the blips and beeps more than make up for the lack of lyrics.

Obligatory Road Song by The Brunettes is exactly like it says on the tin. This live version doesn’t sound nearly as lovely as the one on the album, though.

Headlights On Dark Roads by Snow Patrol is a little dark and not about traveling at all, but the car and headlight imagery is perfect for this playlist.

Breezin’ (Along With The Breeze) is sung by Lucy and Desi in the movie, The Long, Long Trailer. I’d love to find a copy of this song by them, but it’s unavailable on iTunes or Amazon.

Breezin’ (Along With The Breeze) is available by a lot of people. Perry Como’s version is my favorite after Lucy and Desi’s.

What road trip playlist isn’t complete without Happy Trails with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans?

Learning How to Smile by Everclear is a great road trip song. Heck, it starts with, “Five miles outside of Vegas, we broke down.”

Long Line of Cars by Cake is a strange little song about being stuck in traffic, I think… The video definitely shows a road trip, so I guess I interpreted it correctly, but you never know with Cake.

Mint Car by The Cure doesn’t mention anything about driving or travel, but it embodies the feeling of a great road trip.

Travelling Light (feat. Anita Kelsey) by Markus Schulz is a techno journey with road trip lyrics to match.

Speaking of Travelin’ Light, I would be completely remiss without including Billie Holiday’s song. It has more to do with love and loss, but when you’re “free as the breeze,” you can travel light.

I’ll probably add to this list as I think of more songs, but for now, I have more than enough for our next road trip to Vegas!

Then I heard about the Costa Concordia sinking just off the coast of Italy last night and all my fears resurfaced.

Here is a video from Sky News in Great Britain:

Just short of the one hundred year anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, we are faced with the vision of another cruise ship in dire straits. I had just calmed my nerves enough to feel that going on a cruise was a perfectly safe method of travel, but all of that is gone.

Here is the panicked video of someone on the ship:

Here’s video from the air as the rescue was happening:

Here’s a video of the ship the next day:

The difference between this sinking and the Titanic tragedy is the death count. Even though the listing of the ship disabled many of the life boats, they were able to get many of the passengers off the boat and onto the island. As of this writing, only five people have been confirmed dead and 17 people are missing. That is a far cry from the hundreds who died when the Titanic sunk, but I can’t help feeling that I should just keep on camping instead of luxury cruising for my vacation.

More Info:

• Costa Concordia: How Could This Happen to a Modern Cruise Ship? – USATODAY.com
• Costa Concordia Pictures, Video – Francesco Schettino – Zimbio
• RMS Titanic – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It reads:

Me travel?

… not THIS summer!

Vacation at home!

Whether you’re staycationing because of financial reasons or to “aid the war effort,” here are a couple of tips to make it a good one.

• Clean your house before your staycation starts:I don’t know about you, but I have trouble relaxing at home when there is clutter, laundry and cleaning to do. Make sure you do all your chores before you start, so that you won’t be tempted to work your way through your off time.

• Turn off the phone and the computer: Part of the fun of vacationing is being isolated from daily life. If your coworkers and in-laws can still pester you with a phone call or email, you won’t feel as refreshed after your week at home.

• Hometown Tourism: Before you would go on a trip, I’m sure you would research activities at your destination. Do the same for your staycation. Make a list of all the museums, tours, excursions and events in your hometown that will be available during your time off and schedule some into your week.

• How do you relax? After thinking about my favorite vacations of the last few years, I’ve realized that I relax by experiencing new things and by giving myself time to read good books. For a staycation to really work for me, I need to plan some new experiences and take the time to just let myself read, whether it’s in the sun or holed up in my room. Think about your favorite trips over the years. What was the best part of the trip? Make sure you schedule that into your staycation.

The idea of a staycation is an old one. The practicality of staying home during your time off work is appealing and can be just as refreshing as travel if you plan for it appropriately. Happy Staycation, Everyone!

Advert via: vintage_ads: Contest Entry

Sometimes, your luggage is damaged FAR more than the minor scuffs and scrapes. If it is, here is how to deal with it.

• Inspect your bags BEFORE you leave the airport: It might not be too late if you go home first, but you will have to make a trip back to the airport, so make sure your luggage is fine before you leave.

• Take pictures: Take pictures of the damage to your suitcase and then open your suitcase and inspect the contents. If anything is damaged within the suitcase, photograph it.

• Find the baggage handling service desk: This may be a bigger task than you realize, especially if your flight arrived late at night when the airport is nearly empty. Once you find the desk, you’ll need to show your ticketing information and the damaged luggage to make a claim.

• Damage reports are different for each airline: You’ll need to fill out a damage report, so make sure you are given one for the appropriate airline.

• Wait and then call and then wait and then call: Honestly, these claims take FOREVER to process and getting reimbursed is a lengthy process. Expect to call the airline SEVERAL times in order to find out how your claim is progressing.

In the end, it may not be worth your time to pursue a claim against the airline if your luggage is damaged. I have always just thanked my lucky stars that I arrived at my destination with all of my bags, whether they were intact or not.

It reads:

The future of bus travel has arrived. Well ahead of schedule.

Introducing the brand-new, redesigned Greyhound bus. Learn more about the specific amenities our newly redesigned motorcoach has to offer.

New Amenities: Wi-Fi, outlets, legroom, safety and eco-friendly.

Being able to be online while traveling might make riding the bus better than flying or driving it myself, so I thought I would check the prices.

To ride from Salt Lake City to Las Vegas, it would cost me $107 and take me 8 hours (which is three hours longer than driving it myself). For comparison, I checked Expedia to see how much it would cost me to fly from Salt Lake City to Las Vegas and it was $133 and take me only an hour and a half.

Why would anyone take the bus when flying costs only thirty bucks more?

I thought that maybe there would be better savings if I tried comparing a bus ride and flight from Salt Lake City to New York. There IS a better savings ($100 VS. $278), but the difference in travel time is 53 hours VS. 8 hours. Is it worth $178 to save 2 DAYS of travel time? To me, it is, so I wonder how Greyhound stays in business. They can barely compete on pricing and lose EVERY time when they compete on travel time.

The future of bus travel? Sorry, Greyhound. Wi-fi and electrical outlets just can’t compete with saving TWO DAYS of travel time. In fact, the future of bus travel looks a lot like the past…

Ad via: vintage_ads: Greyhound 1948

It was a song extolling the convenience and joys of air travel. As far as I could tell, it wasn’t being ironic.

Here are the lyrics:

(Chorus)
Air travel (air travel) it’s the thing of the day
Air travel (air travel) it’s doin’ fine
So come on everybody now let’s get on board
We`re gonna take a trip around the world

(Chorus)

Can you imagine it? A time when people ENJOYED flying in an airplane? No strip searches at security. No elbows and shoulders crowding you for hours. I imagine it to look a lot like this:

Ad via: vintage_ads: United Airlines

It reads:

Extra hands assure extra luxuries on Delta Royal Service Flights.

Not two, but three alert stewardesses assure you of every attention in the brief span of a Delta Royal Service Flight. So linger over your luncheon or dinner with its complimentary champagne and choice of entree (tenderloin steak to order, Rock Cornish hen or seafood on appropriate days). There’s also music by Muzak, fast baggage handling, and beverage service for the discerning passengers who specify these luxurious flights.

I have to admit that every flight I’ve been on has had at least two and usually three flight attendants, but the idea of tenderloin steak served with champagne on an airplane is completely foreign to me. I’ve heard that air travel used to be something one dressed up for, but I’m not old enough to have ever seen it.

Personally, I like my flight the way it is. I don’t want to be fed on an airplane unless they hold me hostage for eight hours on the tarmac. I don’t even want an in-flight movie. What I’d really like is free Internet connectivity and three more inches of personal space. If I have to wear a pink Jackie O suit and pearls to get it, I’d be willing to do it.

Advert via: vintage_ads: Оригинал   (733×1024)

• Flavorwire » Vintage Travel Posters vs. Today’s Versions

It’s interesting to see what the old posters looked like compared to how they are advertising travel today.

Via: Vintage travel posters – Found in Mom’s Basement

• Susan’s Journal » Blog Archive » Interesting travel.

Normally while on a flight, about ten minutes or so before it lands, they go through that whole put-your-tray-tables-up thing. Well, this time, they started talking to us about forty five minutes out. The pilot came on, and he said, “There are thunderstorms in our destination city. We are not going to divert the plane, but we are going to experience some violent turbulence. You have about ten minutes to use the bathroom, then we are going to lock it and start cabin preparations.” I could tell the hunk next to me was nervous. The poor guy. What a flight to be on. So I strapped in, turned off my electronic device, checked my seat and tray table, then held on tight.

She obviously lived to tell the tale, but it’s just great to hear about scary plane flights.

It reads:

For fun-filled trips to Winter Playgrounds…

This year, take all or part of your vacation in Winter – when you need it most!

We know a man who can show you how to relax in Southern sun at scarcely more cost than staying home! He’s the Greyhound agent in your town – and he’ll arrange your trip in easy-riding, well-warmed coaches, select optional scenic routes and stopovers… he can even make hotel reservations and plan special sightseeing. All this at rates so far elow those of conventional travel that you can spend extra days in the sun.

Your Greyhound agent (man or woman) will explain the advantages of Limited schedules with extra luxury – or Express service, which will take you straight through at no extra fare, often without change of bus or baggage.

Start planning now – and see your Greyhound agent soon – he’ll make your plans come true!

I have always felt like traveling by bus was far too expensive compared to the convenience of flight or driving myself. I checked fares for a Greyhound bus to Las Vegas from Salt Lake City and the prices ranged from $91 to $121. When I checked Expedia for airfare, the prices ranged from $285 to $457. So riding in a bus is FAR cheaper than flying.

But how does it compare to driving?

I can drive to Vegas on two tanks of gas, which is about $80 round trip. So riding with Greyhound is only slightly more expensive than driving myself. When I drive myself, however, I don’t need to rent a car in the town I’m visiting, which saves me a bundle as well.

Maybe when this advertisement was made, traveling with Greyhound was an inexpensive way to go, but now, it just doesn’t compare to driving myself.

Ad via: vintage_ads: Greyhound Bus