Nothing beats cruising down the road with your windows down, blaring your favorite music as you let go of all your worries for just a moment. OK, so if your road trip is taking place during winter, the windows-down part might not be a thing. But the music can still happen!
There are countless playlists and stations that span across various music platforms for streaming and listening, and it can be difficult to know which are the best ones. After all, analyzing all of them would take hours upon hours, and you probably have plenty of other things to focus on as you plan your road trip. That’s why we’ve done the heavy lifting for you. Below, we’ll discuss some of the best playlists and stations we’ve found and cover the benefits of using four of the most popular streaming/listening platforms—SiriusXM, Pandora, and Spotify.
THE BEST PLAYLISTS AND STATIONS OF 2020
Before you determine which music platforms to use for your road trip, let’s see a little bit of what each has to offer:
SiriusXM
There are well over a thousand stations on SiriusXM, so the ones that you listen to will depend on the type of music and entertainment you enjoy most. If you like listening to modern Top 40 music, stations like The Pulse and SiriusXM Hits 1 might float your boat. You can also choose pop music stations by the decade, such as ‘50s on 5, ’60s on 6, ‘70s on 7, and so on.
If rock music is more your speed for traveling, check out Classic Rewind, Lithium, or Alt Nation. For hip hop fans, stations like Hip Hop Nation and The Heat are very popular, as are The Highway and Willie’s Roadhouse for country listeners. There are also plenty of stations that cater to other types of genres like dance/electronica, talk, and sports.
Pandora
With Pandora, you can either stream current radio schedules or record shows for listening later. And there are a lot of great shows and stations for enjoying either of these functions. For instance, Family Road Trip Radio is perfect for those with children in tow, as it offers a mix of pop, rock, reggae, classic rock, children’s music, and other genres. Country Road Trip Radio plays songs from Thomas Rhett, Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean, and other top country artists. And if you’re looking for a great sing-along experience with others in the vehicle, try Lip Sync Road Trip Radio, which plays everything from Queen to The Fugees.
Spotify
Spotify is strictly a music-streaming service, which means that you listen to whatever song you like at any time, rather than having to wait for a song to come on or record a show. While there are millions of songs to choose from, maybe you would rather sit back and enjoy the work that curators have put into their playlists. Indie Rock Road Trip contains songs from Local Natives, Vampire Weekend, Freedom Fry, and other popular indie artists. The Road Trip playlist is tailored more for college-age drivers with the likes of Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, and Charli XCX controlling the waves. And Rockin’ Road Trip will provide you with songs by artists like ZZ Top, Bloc Party, and The Wild Feathers.
THE BEST MUSIC PLATFORMS
Now that you have an idea of what each of these platforms has to offer in terms of music and entertainment, let’s briefly look at their benefits:
SiriusXM
The biggest advantage of using SiriusXM is that, unlike Pandora and Spotify, you don’t need to use data or download content. It works just like traditional radio except there are more options—like, a lot more options.
Pandora
Pandora offers both a free and premium option for users. The free service allows you to create playlists and curate your stations over time, though you will have to deal with ads and you can only skip six songs per hour.
With Pandora Plus ($4.99/month), you don’t have to worry about ads and you can skip as many songs as you like, as well as rewind songs. And if you want to go all the way, choose Pandora Premium ($9.99/month), which allows for unlimited mobile playback and customizable playlists, among many other features.
Spotify
Spotify also allows users to create a free or premium account. When it comes to radio functions and discovering artists, Pandora has the upper hand. But Spotify generally offers more in every other category. For example, the free Spotify service allows you to listen to any song you want on-demand (though you’ll still have ads). If you upgrade to Spotify Premium ($9.99/month), you can listen to almost any song you can think of in top-notch sound quality, you don’t have to sit through ads, and you can listen offline.
Conclusion
When you’re in the midst of planning your road trip, don’t forget to prepare for your music and entertainment along the way. Look into SiriusXM, Pandora, and Spotify to determine which platform(s) will most enhance your travels, and consider the stations and playlists mentioned here. Finally, keep researching because there are a plethora of stations and playlists that might be the perfect fit for you and your family!
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