Are Road Trips Worth It?

Memory Bank Road Trips was founded on the belief that there is something worthwhile, inspiring, and unique about piling kids and luggage into the car and experiencing the country slowly and deliberately. Every song sung in the car, every unexpected pit stop, every moment of basking in something gloriously different with the windows rolled down…these are all deposits into your family’s “memory bank.”

Obviously, there are additional and wonderful ways of traveling with your family…our family is particularly fond of cruises! But road trips, they are the heart and soul of our family’s adventure time together. Unlike any other mode of travel, road trips are just you and your family. No crowded airports. No bustling cruise ship. And it is no coincidence that road trips, which are admittedly the most rigorous form of family travel, the one that requires the most effort, energy, and patience, just so happens to also be the mode of travel that reaps the most rewards. The one that leaves your family’s memory bank filled with an almost uncountable amount of treasure. The rewards prove themselves in small and grand ways. It could be as simple as your child’s excitement as he recognizes on a wall map the states that you drove through. Or it could be something more life-changing, like your family’s spontaneous decision to alter course which led to the unexpected acquaintance of a now life-long friend.

So what is it that causes families to hesitate when it comes to committing to a road trip? Why the concern or doubt that it’s worth it, much less that it’s doable? That’s an easy answer…road trips are hard. They require work, effort, planning, and dump-truck-loads of patience.

First, let’s address the work, effort, and planning. These are logistically hard. Putting together a road trip plan that gets you from Point A to Point B in a certain amount of time with a certain amount of budget, taking into account all of the stops and activities in between, demands an incredible amount of time. Part of the difficulty is the sheer volume of options that this country offers. It’s a good problem to have, that our country is filled to the brim with beautiful sites worth visiting, but a logistical problem nonetheless. Which locations should I visit?? How do I know which ones to pass over?? Hard. The issue of planning it all according to a tight schedule can also be overwhelming. Making sure that you have time to explore a state park while keeping in mind your check-in time for your lodging which is several hours away…this is a planning conundrum!

Is the logistical difficulty worth it? Memory Bank answers with a confident “Yes!” In fact, this is the very reason that we started this company. If concern over your ability to put together a functioning plan is keeping you from experiencing a road trip with your family, then that need is EASILY met. Memory Bank Road Trips literally exists to take that burden off your shoulders.

Next, let’s address the issue of patience. Maintaining patience during a nine-hour drive from one part of the country to another while your precious children are unhappy in the seat behind you is mentally and emotionally hard. There are so many little things that can easily fracture the peace that you so desperately try to keep inside your vehicle…someone forgot something, someone wants something, someone is hungry, someone looked at someone.

Is the emotional toll worth it? Once again, we answer with a resounding “Yes!”
It’s not only okay, but GOOD, to work through these things together. As a family. Under the umbrella that “this road trip is going to bring our imperfections to the surface and we are going to forgive, love, and enjoy each other.” Hour after hour together, progress will be made. Enjoyment will be found. And family unity will grow. Your family road trip will leave you with even more than a memory bank that overflows…you will also be blessed immeasurably by relationships that have been deepened, character flaws that have been (painfully!) refined, and peacemaking tactics that have been sharpened.

Theodore Roosevelt sums it up when he famously said:
“Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort…”
Including road trips.