Travel tip: Why a hitch and trailer is a must and better than a car top carrier

Traveling can get really crowded in your family vehicle and the more you bring, the less room you have. Travel tip: Get a hitch and pull a trailer.

In my ever-growing family that has gone from three to six in a matter of five years, the family SUV/Van has become quite crowded. While my 17-year-old has taken over the 3rd-row bench, I now have a nine-year-old and an 11-year-old near the windows and a two-year-old in the car seat between them. Add in charging cords, blankets, pillows, snacks, and whatever else my wife says they can bring, they are cramped and crabby by the 2nd hour of the trip.

There are options to make your life a lot easier. Car top carriers make it simple. Throw a carrier on top, throw in the luggage and strap it down. The problem I have is it isn’t exactly easy to get everything loaded up there without a ladder. It is also a pain in the rear when you realize you need something out of there, o.k. when your significant other realizes they need something out of it, mid-trip.

There are other options and in my opinion, better options. While it might be less expensive to throw a car-top carrier up on your roof rack, you will find life easier with it towed behind you.

I give my wife credit, it was her idea to have a hitch added to the back of our vehicle. It was also her idea to order a travel hitch luggage bag and tow cage. Those two have really changed the way we have traveled.

Since we added the hitch to our car, it cost about $350.00 and we will never buy a family car without one again, the travel bag is incredibly strong and you can find them on Amazon for about $70.00 while a fold up tow cage will cost you around $149.00.

I purchased a car-top carrier bag that worked out really well but honestly, my wife’s idea was a lot better. For starters, I can access the bag whenever I stop. Case in point, we recently left a house we visit each year and I thought I forgot to pack something. I stopped at a rest area and was able to open the bag and find it without having to climb up to open the roof carrier.

All of our luggage fit inside the bag, all of the other stuff my wife brings with her fit in it and I was able to fit my snorkeling gear in as well as food. We then left the back storage area inside the car open for the kid’s stuff and snacks and no one had to have anything at their feet.

Traveling can be fun and it can be cramped and I have learned over my last three trips, that traveling without being cramped leads to quieter kids and fewer “Are we there yet” calls from behind me. Now if my wife could finally stop putting a million things at her feet…