As a driver, what is the safest distance to travel by day per car (not an 18-wheeler)?

Question

My husband and I want to do a road trip this summer. We'll both drive. What is a good guideline for how many miles we should drive in a day? Is 800 miles too much? What do you do? Thanks.

Answer 1

if you dont want it to be ridiculous keep it under 500 miles. But you can do up to 1300 miles a day. It's ridiculous but doable.

800 miles isn't bad if you have to do it one day and the rest of your trip will be relaxing

Answer 2

Personally, I don't think there is a safest distance to travel by day per car. I mean people drive around the block and some do get into an accident.

What I would consider unsafe to drive is when you lose attention to the street and pay attention to something else, both of you are sleepy, drowsy or tired, getting into an argument or driver needs to make a call. That's the time to give yourselves and the car a rest.

Some tips: Make sure you have a map with you, know the route you're taking and write it down before hand. Know the weather conditions, road conditions so you'll come prepared. Let friends know where you're going and when you plan to come back. Let them follow up on you if they don't hear from you when you are expected to call.Bring a spare tire, a battery jumper, frozen water(this will melt as you travel), food and your cellphone fully charged. Don't forget your camera, extra batteries and extra memory.

Added: Me and my husband travelled from San Diego to Great Lakes, Illinois more than seven years ago.We did not stop based on the car's mileage. We stopped when we were hungry, need to go to the restroom, need some fresh air, are tired or sleepy. We decide which places we want to spend the night and we did that, enjoying the places we passed by as we travelled.

Answer 3

On average, it's better to avoid driving more than 3 hours per day. (Otherwise fatigue will set in and make accidents more likely.) So if you and your husband split driving duties, I'd recommend you drive no more than 6 hours per day. At 65 miles per hour, that'd be about 400 miles per day. If you are driving on a freeway with a higher speed limit, you'll go a bit further.

But remember....you're traveling to see new things right? You'll want to stop and stretch your legs once in a while.