Summer Senior Citizen Road Trip with my Parents

July 29, 2010

My parents wanted to see their youngest grandson graduate from high school.. so driving my Dad's '02 Toyota Avalon I took my parental senor citizens, ages 86 and 84, on a thousand mile road trip to visit my sister and her family. We traveled from Palm Desert up the Central California Coast to San Luis Obispo and back, with a few excursions to some favorite spots.

Some of our road trip highlights:

The drive up the coast from Ventura to Santa Barbara was clear and gorgeous, Morro Bay and Cayucos State Beach were breathtakingly beautiful but too chilly for my sun-dried raisin, desert rat parents! They do not get to the beach very much anymore and that was a real treat for them.

Fish and Chips at The Galley Bar and Grill on Morro Bay.

Andersen's Split Pea Soup in Buellton, CA for pea soup and eggs for breakfast, a family tradition to stop here on road trips.

Apple Farm's apple dumplings with vanilla ice cream, almost as good as my Mom's!

The quaint Peach Tree Inn, our hotel. A classic car club was staying there so I had my own private "car show" parading in and out all day.

The "Seniors" of San Luis Obispo High School talent show performance at the SLO Performing Arts Center.

Taking a road trip with senior citizens can be trouble free, relaxing and fun if you plan and prepare for every contingency. Here are a few items we did to make our trip a success:

1. Have your senior citizens go see their doctor and get approval no more than a week prior to travel.

2. Take along a list of all medications and a few extra days worth in case of an emergency extended stay.

3. Plan for frequents rest breaks along your route and visit the cleanest possible public restroom locations.

4. Take along plenty of hand sanitizer and use frequently to combat germs.

5. Book hotel reservations with ground floor easy access or rooms or that have handicapped access as these rooms are designed to help prevent falls.

6. If they are unsteady walking on uneven ground, offer your arm for support and plan your walking routes with safety in mind.

7. Be the chauffeur and do "curb-side" service to save steps and help them not get too fatigued.

8. Try to stick to a healthy diet, offer snacks and remind them to drink plenty of water, keep cold bottled water in the car.

9. Find the major hospitals or emergency rooms on your route and understand what is covered in their health plan.

10. Take a well stocked first aid kit, extra sweaters and a blanket along with your emergency road side safety kit.

11. Have your car checked and serviced before departure.

12. Plan to do as much driving as possible during off-peak traffic times.

13. Schedule outings for the time of day when your senior citizens energy level is highest. Stick to regular meal, medication and sleep times.

14. Go online and use GasBuddy to find the best gas prices on where to fill-up at the pump, resort town gas prices can be treacherously expensive!