Are you thinking about going on a cross-country road trip during your vacation this summer? Are you already making plans about exactly where to go and what you'll see? In order to ensure that your trip is a successful one, you'll need to do more than just plot out your destinations. Planning for things to go wrong can be just as important as planning for when things go right. Otherwise, even something as mundane as a flat tire can throw off the rest of your vacation. Before you finalize your plans, here are some things that you need to do:

Get a tune-up: Even if your car isn't quite due for a tune-up yet, get one at least two weeks before you're set to head off on vacation. Not only will this help to prevent any issues while you're going across the country, but your mechanic will also be able to let you know about anything serious. You can then decide whether you want to fix the potential problem now or whether it can wait until you're back from your vacation. Whatever your choice, knowing what could go wrong is infinitely better than just leaving with the naive hope that nothing will go wrong during the trip.

Purchase a roadside assistance plan: While your mechanic might give your vehicle a perfect bill of health before you set out, things can change once you're on the road. You could blow a tire in the middle of nowhere, only to find out that your spare has also gone flat. Or you could hit a deer or a bear, causing damage to the front of your vehicle. Whatever happens, a good roadside assistance plan will ensure that you're able to get yourself, your vehicle, and your family to somewhere safe so that your car can be checked out and fixed up. Contact a company like Parkway Wrecker Service for more information.

Pack an emergency kit: Make sure that you have enough food and water to last each person in your group at least one or two days. Even with a good roadside assistance plan, it could be hours before the tow truck is able to get to you if you should happen to break down in the middle of nowhere. Having emergency food and water available will enable you to handle the situation as more of a mild inconvenience and less of a true emergency. In order to make sure that you're able to stay in contact with your roadside assistance company, consider making 2 or 3 extra phone batteries or portable phone power packs part of your emergency kit.