Open the sliding doors, strap the cargo carrier turtle on top, then jam three bikes, two coolers, and five suitcases with Tetris-like precision in the back… This is how family vacations typically start. But I’m here to tell you it doesn’t have to be like that!
I recently ran off to Las Vegas to get hitched. While it was a vacation for me, the (new) missus, and a couple of buddies, it was far from the scenario above. While the main point was to get married, play some table games, and enjoy ourselves, upon reflection I realized the trip had been accidentally infused with a bunch of activities that made my inner car guy ecstatic while also keeping the rest of the crew engaged.
While my experience was pretty specific, here are five ways to let your inner car guy out on family vacation.
Rent a Classic Car!
We initially planned on having a standard limo take us to and from our wedding ceremony. But the company canceled on us just days before we were set to fly out, and we found ourselves scrambling to come up with a solution. First, we just needed legitimate transportation. Second, I wanted the day to be special, so it needed to be at least kinda cool. And third, we had just three days to figure this out.
Luckily for me… Vegas! As you may know, you can do pretty much anything in Sin City – gamble, dine, drink, golf… and there’s a bunch of vendors that rent unique cars (or bikes) for 24 hours at a time.
We lucked out and found 777 Exotics Car Rental had 24-hour rentals for a decent price. Better still, they had some neat inventory. We landed on a 1970 Buick GS convertible. Conveniently, I got to nerd out a bit more when I popped the hood and realized it had been LS-swapped with fuel injection, Dakota Digital Gauges, and Vintage Air A/C.
Go Karts!
The next, probably most obvious thing, is to take the family go karting. Whether you’re letting your inner child come out or you are a child, it’s pretty tough to be frowning when you’re mere inches off the ground, (definitely not) bumping into everyone, and competing for those top lap times.
Not only will everyone have a good time, you can leave your friends in the dust when you lap them 3 races in a row.
We went to Speed Vegas, which also has a full-size track where you can take a Lamborghini, Ferrari, or other supercar out to test your skills, as well as some cool paraphernalia such as an F1 car in the lobby.
Take a Road Trip!
Now, whether this is your whole trip or just a segment of your larger vacation, a road trip can be good to get away from home base and check out something you wouldn’t normally get to see. We had the opportunity to drive from Las Vegas to Palm Springs for a night.
If you’ve never done this, I highly recommend it, as the terrain is so alien compared to what I see everyday in Southeastern PA. We just enjoyed documenting the changing images inside the window frame of our decidedly uncool Toyota Corolla rental car.
We live in this massive country (in the U.S. at least) and hardly get to see any of it, so seize the opportunity! Plus the are so many songs wrapped up in hitting the highway; it really feels like pure Americana.
Roadside Attractions!
Whether on your road trip detour or en route to your actual vacation, it’s always fun to pit stop and stretch the legs at some of the wacky stuff along the way. Roadside attractions can be hit or miss, but you’ll certainly end up with a story either way. In years past I’ve managed to hit Car Henge and Meteor Crater, but on this trek through the desert we made time to check out Pioneer Town right outside Palm Springs.
Pioneer Town has been used on movie sets past and present and has a couple knick-knack shops where you can get a koozie or bumper sticker. The town didn’t have a ton going on but it was cool to add another earmark to our trip, and the Joshua Trees were pretty cool to see up close.
We also managed to detour to Radiator Springs, U.S.A., at Disneyland. Not technically a roadside attraction, it nevertheless added another dash of autorama to our journey.
The attractions themselves don’t have to have anything to do with cars, but you can spice up the trip however appropriate.
Get Married in a Drive-Thru!
Admittedly, this is a bit of a cheat as many of you are probably already married and you can’t just do this randomly. But, for those of you that wan’t something a little outside of the norm, it was an absolute blast! We got married at the Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas. More specifically, we did it in the “Tunnel of Love” and it’s just about the best way I can think of for a car guy to get hitched.
And not to worry if you don’t have your own car. They have a pink Cadillac always on site that can also be used. Bonus: we didn’t even have to get out to get fries afterwards.
Our adventure clearly peaked here. Believe it or not, it was actually all her idea. You may be surprised what your family will do to make sure everyone has a good time on your next vacation!
