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I was kidding about the gun! :-). No pets for us either. As far as jewelry and valuables, we do have a security box with what amounts to very little in jewelry and mostly documents we don't want to misplace. i.e. marriage certificates, birth certificates, auto titles etc., passports, and so forth. New home documentation . . . .
I made sure I had the essentials; coffee pot, cup, cork screw, wine glasses, can opener, a couple pans for cooking along with some plates & bowls, bedding, towels. I forgot silverware & ended up buying plastic ones then went to goodwill & bought a few pieces until my belongings got there. I also took my tv in the car, disguised with bedding around it. I don't have a large screen though.
WE just moved from Tampa to Massachusetts in a similar situation....we were in our new apartment for 9 days before the movers arrived and stayed in hotels in transit.
You said you don't have pets which will make it much easier for you. We have a dog and two cats and drove up in two cars. One car was dedicated almost entirely to the animals and their belongings!
AS oyhers mentions we brought important papers....NEVER let the moving complay take something that is veery valuable or difficult to replace. We also brought the typical overnight stuff like toiletries and about 3 days worth of clothes. Our ne place had a washer dryer so we packed a small number of Tide pods so we could do laundry as soon as we got there. We also had a pair of Aerobeds which were great for 9 days of camping out waiting for the movers. We didn't bring our toolbox but we did bring a couple of box cutters to make unpacking easier. We brought a single roll of toilet paper so we wouldn't have to worry about going out for it the moment we got here. We also got a DVD drive for our laptops and packed a fe DVDs so we had some moveis to watch since we wouldn't have TV, internet, etc. for a couple of weeks.
If you ar edriving in a single vehicle the following won't be helpful but since we took 2 cars my husband had an idea that was great - we got walkie-talkies. It made keeping in contact with each other much easier on the road.
Wondering how people have managed moving cross country with a pet. We have one cat. My friends who moved cross country with their cat did the vet check-up, got some meds and a travel carrier for it, and shipped it on the plane with them, while their cars were transported. That seemed to work for them and their cat, but we'd likely drive with our cat with us, probably around 1,000 miles, which would require an overnight stay somewhere. Seems a travel carrier could take up quite a bit of space in the vehicle that could be used for other critical items that have been mentioned in this thread. I do have a class III hitch receiver on the SUV, and could pull a trailer if needed, but would rather not deal with that hassle. We also have a second car (small hatchback).
Wondering how people have managed moving cross country with a pet.
We have done several cross-country moves with cats:
WI to AR - Nissan Versa hatchback, no extras, 2 cats. Had to only wait a few days for delivery of household goods.
AR to CA: Nissan Versa hatchback w/ Thule rooftop cargo carrier, 3 cats. Had to only wait a few days for delivery of household goods.
CA to FL: Nissan Versa hatchback, no extras*, 3 cats. *We were going to be in temporary, fully furnished housing for a month while waiting to close on our house so when we went to FL on our house hunting trip, we brought 2 large suitcases full of clothing and rented an indoor storage unit nearby so that once we arrived, we could just go to the storage unit and retrieve them rather than having to waste space in the car.
There was a lot of crying (them) and tears (me), especially for the first portion of the drive each day because they are scared and perhaps hoping that extra loud crying will lead us to take them back out of the car. We always made sure they had food/water available though they don't really eat or drink much while in the car because they are so scared/nervous. We had a litter box set up in the very back for their privacy. We took 2 hard-top carriers that we would either remove the doors from and/or secure back with bungee cords. This is not for everyone, though. We felt our cats were less scared if they could come up and sit with me at times while my husband drove. You have to be careful that they don't try to climb all over the driver or try to go under the dash. We made sure to fill every crevice to block under the seats so they couldn't go through that way. This is generally where you'd stuff clothing, towels, etc. that you want to bring but don't necessarily need until your final destination. We also took heavy duty Ziploc bags and filled them with litter so that we would be able to take litter without having to take a giant, solid box which would take up a lot of room. Those fit well under the seats, too. Stayed in pet-friendly hotels. I personally recommend Drury Inn stays when available as they are pet-friendly and I like their complimentary breakfast which made it easy for us to take turns getting so someone could always be with in the room with the cats. And we had an "overnight" bag packed for the cats with some toys and their food (dry & canned options), bowls, silverware for cutting up canned food, etc. We can choose to have just the one litter box from the car and bring it with into the hotel room or if you have the space, just pick up a couple of disposable ones for the hotel room that already have litter in them.
To the OP, I second all the other replies with important documents and things that you need for the immediate when you arrive. If you do have the ability, I would recommend trying to ship out anything in advance that you might need to a friend in the area or having the box(es) held at a UPS or FedEx location so that you can pick it up once you get settled in. Also, the stores like Dollar Tree are great for supplies you might need like paper plates, cups, silverware, and even cleaning supplies and cooking utensils. Wishing you a safe move!
Most movers will not move aerosol products or hazardous things. My car had a few boxes of those items, so make sure you leave room. Things like hairspray, bug spray, wd40, etc... many products you normally keep in a garage or under your sink.
This also includes any other liquids such as beer, wine and other alcohol. You probably don't want good wine sitting in a stuffy van for days, anyway. Use it up, give it away or plan to take it with you. As others noted- same with house plants.
General caveat after a few major moves: make sure they pack everything, and check every "hidden" storage space such as drawers in the stove. At one place, I'd stored items under the bed. The packers didn't look for them and so didn't pack them; when the movers took the bed out they ignored the items because they weren't boxed. Just left them there. They also ignored items in storage benches along the wall in the finished basement. Fortunately, that move was local but I ended up making a few runs in my car with all the stuff they left behind. When DH and I did make a long-distance move we ended up with gardening implements filling the car because the movers had left them behind in the shed. The last move, 3 years ago, I was on the premises and kept following them around with the vacuum cleaner and pointing out all the things they'd "forgotten". They did move everything (except of course, the usual prohibited items) but it took real work on my part to keep after them.
I'm seriously considering the most random item to this list for me: All of my weights and free weights. We're talking about like 300 pounds of plates and 280 pounds of free weights. That would weigh the car down pretty substantially but at the same time the moving cost of those if they're doing it by pound would be kind of ridiculous, and they don't actually take up that much space so....
Take your irreplaceable stuff and computers etc. into the hotel with you at night as many thieves target people moving cross country (I've done it numerous times and never had a problem).
BTW I am female and did 2300 miles alone in 2.5 days with a dog and never felt like it was too much for me driving wise (I've done that 3 times). And have done a 1500 mile trip alone with a dog about 6 times (including crossing a border and taking a ferry). A 1300 mile trip will be a breeze.
I like to bring a cooler with food with me, dish towels to put on my lap when I eat, and wipes in case I spill anything.
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