Nothing beats an epic road trip for adventure, scenery, and lifelong memories. But capturing incredible photos and videos along the journey requires the right camera gear.
I’ve tested and used countless cameras and accessories over years of travel. In this in-depth buyer’s guide, I’ll review my top recommendations for the best road trip camera gear to purchase in 2024.
The Ultimate Rugged Action Camera
The GoPro HERO10 Black represents the gold standard for compact, durable action cameras in 2024. GoPro dominates the action cam space thanks to class-leading image quality, intuitive software, and battle-tested ruggedness to survive your wildest adventures.
I always pack a GoPro for road trips thanks to its unmatched versatility on land, air, and sea. The HERO10 captures impeccably smooth and stabilized 5.3K 60fps footage even during intense motion. It’s compact enough to mount anywhere from helmets to handlebars. The optional Max Lens Mod takes the wide angle capability even further for immersive scenic panning.
For road tripping, I love using the HERO10 Black as a dash cam for capturing drives through stunning landscapes. The results never disappoint!
Pros
- Best-in-class stabilization even at max 5.3K resolution
- Rugged waterproof design without bulky housing
- Crisp, vivid imaging with improved low light quality
- Intuitive editing apps for mobile and desktop
- Expandable lens and light mods
Cons
- Requires expensive subscriptions for cloud storage
- Still reliant on touch controls
The GoPro HERO10 Black represents the premier option for travelers demanding top-tier action camera performance, durability, and creative flexibility at a reasonable price point.
Most Versatile 360 Camera
360 cameras unlock a whole new world of creative possibilities on road trips by capturing your entire surroundings in one spherical shot. My top pick is the Insta360 ONE X3 thanks to its unmatched versatility, convenience, and imaging power beyond basic 360 cameras.
I always bring the ONE X3 camping, hiking, and touring national parks to immerse followers in the full grandeur of each destination. The integrated touch screen streamlines changing settings on the fly to adapt to vastly different lighting and motion.
While cheaper 360 cams force you to record non-stop, the savvy Shot Lab technology automatically directs focus to recognize and track people, animals, and objects even hands-free. This allows the ONE X3 to showcase the most interesting views while allowing quick editing and still images after recording wraps.
Pros
- Cutting-edge Shot Lab focus tracking
- Crisp 6K resolution for stunning clarity
- Easy editing with keyframe selection
- Lightweight yet durable IPX3 design
- Long 100 minute battery life per charge
Cons
- Requires accessories for vlogging
- iOS app needs improvement
For next-level interactivity and creative flexibility, the Insta360 ONE X3 stands tall as my top-rated 360 camera for road trips in 2024.
Most Innovative Action Camera
When portability reigns supreme, check out the ingenious Insta360 GO 2 for an incredibly tiny yet capable action camera. It’s a game-changer for travelers focused more on adventures than gear.
The GO 2 is literally thumb-sized but produces impressively smooth and vivid 1440p footage thanks to its fisheye lens and stabilized 3-axis gimbal. The secret lies within magnetic mounting options allowing hands-free attachment on clothing, vehicles, gear and more to capture unique perspectives.
Everything from skiing to skateboarding to daily vlogs come to life through the dynamic tiny GO 2. The charging case with built-in tripod offers over 3 hours of total battery life to outlast even the most epic days. Auto-Horizon ensures perfectly oriented shots every time.
Pros
- Shockingly small and light design
- 1440p video punches above weight class
- Tons of clever mounting possibilities
- Durable enough for most adventure usage
- Auto-Horizon levels shots automatically
Cons
- 4K model has shorter battery runtime
- Not removable from mounts
For road trippers demanding ultimate portability without sacrificing video quality and creative mounting freedom, the one-of-a-kind Insta360 GO 2 packs a punch.
The High-End Action Camera Option
While the GoPro HERO10 Black satisfies most action camera needs, power users should check out the new HERO11 Black released in late 2022.
The HERO11 Black packs a new image sensor enabling an enhanced 27-megapixel photo resolution and widescreen 5.3K video capture. The key improvement comes from a taller 1:1 aspect ratio, however, optimized for vertical-friendly social media formats.
You can still shoot traditional landscape orientation content while having the flexibility to capture stellar vertical videos and photos for platforms like TikTok and Instagram without excessive cropping or quality loss.
Everything we appreciate about GoPro like handling, convenient mounting, apps, and accessories integrate seamlessly with the HERO11 Black edition to justify the upgrade for hardcore users.
Pros
- Breakthrough vertical shooting capability
- Massive 27MP photo resolution
- Next-generation HyperView lens included
- 25% longer battery life than HERO10
- Easy app and subscription ecosystem
Cons
- High MSRP price point
- Modest improvements over HERO10
While the HERO10 Black still satisfies most buyers, the HERO11 Black brings welcome upgrades focused on expanding creative flexibility to justify the investment for travel content creators.
Smartphone Gimbal Stabilizer
A smartphone gimbal like the DJI OM 5 can seriously step up your road trip videography game through silky smooth camera movements.
Gimbals counteract natural hand shake using internal motors for buttery stabilized pans, tilts, and tracking shots. The OM 5 clamps securely around phones to provide a cinematic look normally requiring thousands in Hollywood gear.
I always pack the OM 5 for impromptu bike rides, hikes, and walking tours while knowing my iPhone footage will impress rather than induce headaches. The intelligent ShotGuides feature makes capturing pro techniques like dolly zooms easy even for beginners by providing step-by-step direction overlays.
Pros
- 3-axis mechanical gimbal smoothes hand shake
- DynamicZoom achieves dolly zoom effects easily
- ActiveTrack focuses on subjects automatically
- Lightweight and portable single-handed design
- Universal smartphone mounting clamp
Cons
- Requires app and calibration
The OM 5 gimbal brings professional stabilization and movement to ANY smartphone for cinematic travel content.
Portable SSD Hard Drive
Capturing ample road trip footage demands ample digital storage space. My top-rated portable hard drive is the SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable SSD for delivering massive capacity in a nearly indestructible package.
You’ll easily fill camera and phone storage multiple times over on longer excursions. By backing up everything each night to this palm-sized SSD drive, you enable non-stop recording without concerns for overflowing memory cards.
The rugged design withstands dust, rain, drops, and vibration inside vehicles so footage remains reliably stored and travels home safely. The blazing fast speed also accelerates transferring large files back onto a computer or into cloud backups.
Pros
- Massive 1 terabyte capacity
- Nearly impossibly compact size
- Durable enough to survive rough elements
- Up to 1050MB/s data transfer speeds
Cons
- Premium price for leading technology
With portable external drives like the SanDisk Extreme, storage limitations and data loss concerns evaporate allowing travelers to create endless memories and footage on the move.
The Bottom Line
Road trips enable some of life’s most memorable adventures and stunning journeys. Capturing the magic requires the right camera gear designed specifically for life on the move.
By utilizing my top overall picks like the GoPro HERO10 Black action cam, Insta360 ONE X2 360 cam, DJI OM 5 gimbal stabilizer, and SanDisk SSD storage, your 2024 road trip videos and photos will impress for a lifetime. Bon voyage!
