Planning a road trip to a secret destination is the trend these days as couples and friends alike are planning them for their loved ones.
There is nothing more romantic than a road trip, according to fashion designer Aseema Kazi, who recently went on one with her husband Faizel to Sun City. She says she did not reveal the location with her husband, but only dropped clues along the trip.
“It is all about personalisation. You have to plan your trip according to the person you are planning the road trip for.
“During our trip, I kept dropping hints about our possible location. I was doing the driving so he did not know where our destination was. When we arrived at The Palace at Sun City everything was personalised for my husband, from the moment we entered to the time we had left,” she said.
Here are some tips that Kazi believes will make that road trip extra special:
Get a tracklist to mark the occasion
Creating special tracklist to mark the occasion can help set the tone for a great trip. If you’re the driver, consider asking your co-pilot to play some music they like. “It’s a good way to connect and make conversation, helping you both pass the drive time and deepen the connection, all with the added benefit of enjoyable tunes,” says Kazi.
That pit stop decision
Kazi suggest a ‘pitstop talk’ discussion before the trip. Questions like ‘Do we stop here?’ ‘Do we pack lunch or buy lunch?’ Or ‘do we leave earlier than scheduled so that we end up making the time for any scheduled activities?’ should be asked.
“No one wants to have an argument on the road so deciding helps a lot,” she said.
Take the scenic route, it's more romantic:
Always choose a scenic route, says Kazi. “We opted to go through Hartbeespoort Dam as I find this route to be so “touristy” with all the little curio shops and the views of the majestic dam is just perfect,” she said.
Have a road trip food
Depending on your dietary requirements you can pack a basket of healthy snacks or opt for proper road trip junk food such as crisps, chocolates, sweets and tons of water to hydrate you.
Quality time
Kazi says that trips like this help recreate the flames in a relationship.
“The whole point of the couple’s road trip is to spend quality time together, so make sure you do plenty of that. You have hours to spend with each other, and you can catch up on things that you couldn’t speak about in a long time.
“Talk about the days when you first met, or how this trip was planned. Talk about your dreams… or just about anything else. It’s not every day that you can actually have a conversation for hours without the annoying buzz of the cell phone or a sudden meeting,” she says.