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The 10 Best road-trip gadgets

If you're planning a car or bike journey of any duration this summer, make sure you enjoy the ride with these picks.

Will Coldwell
Thursday 23 May 2013 14:23 BST
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1. Thule Excellence

Thule is the market leader in car storage and this slick and stylish, aerodynamic roof box is its flagship, top-of-the-range model. The elegant piece of kit has a capacity of 470l, seriously boosting the amount of gear you can take on drives.

£799.99, halfords.co.uk

2. Garmin Nuvi 52LM

An entry-level model from a well trusted brand for in-car GPS. The 5in display shows your driving speed, speed limits and arrival time and the innovative lane-assist function with junction view indicates the proper lane for a turn or exit. It can also be loaded up with a wide range of extra maps.

£119.99, garmin.com

3. Saris Bones 3-Bike Rack

A simple, rear-mounted bike rack with a bright, funky design that comes in a range of colours. It is designed to fit the majority of vehicles and be compatible with most bikes, which are stabilised with integrated ratchet straps. The arc-based design fits over most spoilers and separates the bikes on different levels.

£130.49, cyclesurgery.com

4. Mio Cyclo 300 Europe

A simple, user-friendly, bicycle navigation device that also keeps track of your performance. The integrated car-navigation mode can even give you turn-by-turn directions to the nearest, or starting point, of a selected bicycle route This particular model includes maps for all of western Europe making it a must-have gadget for summer touring.

£298, mio.com

5. Campingaz Powerbox

Designed for longer camping or road trips, this coolbox can be used as a chest-style cooler or an upright fridge. It can be hooked up to the car battery or a mains connection, has a 36l capacity and when upright can store three 1.5l bottles vertically.

£70, millets.co.uk

6. Rice Food Containers

Perfect for picnics or lunch on the road, these eye-catching, stylish block-colour food containers stack together with a cleverly designed carrier strap that clips to all three. They're also very robust and easy to clean.

£8.25, flittybird.co.uk

7. Worldwide Travel Adaptor

It may not be the most glamorous piece of kit, but it's certainly one of the most useful things to have with you on a trip abroad. This adaptor also features twin USB sockets; perfect for keeping all your gadgets in action.

£17.99, maplin.co.uk

8. Lifeventure Thermal Mug

A high-quality, stainless steel thermal mug, ideal for camping, or sipping coffee on the road. Designed to be the same size as a large cup of tea, the vacuum insulated mug has as screw-on lid that should make sure that you don't spill your hot drink.

£9.89, wiggle.co.uk

9. Coleman LED Flashlight

A handy, compact, yet ultra-bright torch that can be tucked away in the glove compartment in case of emergency. It is weather-resistant, with durable aluminium casing and weighs in at just 144g.

£24.99, coleman.eu

10. Supertooth Crystal

The ultimate Bluetooth accessory for a road trip, the Crystal is a zero-installation in-car speakerphone. It not only allows for hands-free driving, but can also sync with your GPS and stream music directly from compatible phones like a mini-soundsystem.

£35.99, currys.co.uk

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