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Travel by car

The motor fuel in the tank of your car is duty-free. When entering Austria, you may bring another 10 liters duty-free in a jerry can. It used to be that if you wanted to travel, you had to plan for a long stagecoach or train ride. But the automobile changed all that. Although at first considered a luxury, the car quickly became an American necessity. Between 1908 and 1926, Ford Motor Company sold more than 15 million Model T automobiles.

With the rising costs of airfares and the increasing time it takes to get through security at the airports; more and more families are deciding to travel by car for their vacation. Most of us with young children are returning to the days we grew up in where we traveled most places by car with our parents.

Almost from the beginning, people liked to use their cars to go on vacation. Gas was cheap and traveling by car was an affordable way to see the country. An increased demand for rubber tires caused the rubber industry to flourish. Roadside diners and drive-ins catered to auto tourists.

In the early days of car travel, people often went "auto camping." Mainly they camped outdoors in parks. But, even in the days before trailers and Winnebagos, some people turned their cars into mobile homes. Eventually, motels, or "motor hotels," sprang up along the highways that criss-crossed the country.

Having a car meant families could go places far from where they lived. If you lived in a warm area, you could pack up the car and go to the mountains to ski; if you lived in a cold place, you could drive to the beach for fun in the sun. Cars made it possible to do what had not been easy for most people before: explore America affordably on their own schedule.