8 Safe Places to Park When Sleeping in a Car
“Where do you sleep?!” is one of the most common questions I get asked about living in a car and driving around the country. And I get it! If you’ve never traveled, the idea of living in a car is super foreign, and something like “where to sleep” can seem confusing or scary. Since I’ve been living in my car on and off since 2012, I have discovered that sleeping in my car is rarely confusing and rarely scary!
This blog post doesn’t need a long intro. I am just going to list the places that I sleep when I am living in my car, the places that I know other people sleep, and the places that I recommend. And almost all of them (besides some paid campsites) are FREE.
Disclaimer: These are my opinions and experiences of places that have worked for me. This is not legal advice, and I can not guarantee that all of these options will work for you, or that you will not get asked to leave. I have only ever been asked to leave a parking lot three times in the past nine years (twice at grocery store parking lots, and once at a Pilot), but your experience might be different. Just be as kind, considerate, and stealth as possible.
Truck stops. Truck stops are my favorite place to sleep, and the places that I sleep the most often. Sleeping at truck stops is legal*, safe, and easy (especially since they are very common around the United States). And there is a 24-hour store with bathrooms! I usually sleep at Flying J truck stops, but other options are Pilot, Love’s, TA, and a TON more. You can find locations on their websites or their phone apps. Just watch out for signs that say things like “30-minute parking only.” While I’ve never really had a problem sleeping at a truck stop even if I did see a sign like that (I’ve only ever been kicked out of a truck stop ONCE in nine years), I sill err on the side of respect and caution and generally only sleep at truck stops that don’t have time limit signs.
Rest areas. Rest areas are very common on the side of highways throughout the country, and most of them are safe and easy to sleep at! They also have bathrooms and sometimes even some vending machines and picnic tables for daytime use. Similar to truck stops, just make sure there are no time limit signs and, if there are, sleep there at your own risk. (Again, I’ve only ever been kicked out ONCE, but it’s still a small risk.) There are also some larger rest areas/roadside services that have much larger parking lots, and even some fast food and convenient stores inside.
Welcome centers. These are very similar to rest areas, but these are located near state boarders. They are almost always safe and easy to sleep at.
Walmart. While I personally have only ever slept at a Walmart once, they are one of the most common places for car/van/bus/RV dwellers to sleep. Most Walmarts allow overnight parking/sleeping! If you want to be extra cautious, you can Google a Walmart that you’re thinking of staying at, and see if anyone has commented about it being okay or not.
Some other 24-hour parking lots. While these have been hit or miss for me in the past, some other 24-hour parking lots like gyms, casinos, and grocery stores could be worth a shot! Again, if you’re nervous, you can always Google the town you’re in and see if anyone has specific ideas for places to sleep.
Free/paid campsites. If you like camping, then you might want to camp sometimes on your road trip! But, even if you don’t want to buy a tent or properly “camp,” you can still car camp at campgrounds. Some are free (and usually the free ones either have no amenities or possibly just a pit toilet), and paid options as well (that sometimes have bathrooms, showers, laundry, and/or a pool).
BLM. BLM stands for Bureau of Land Management, which is essentially free land (mostly in the western part of the US) that you can park your car to sleep, or hang out during the day! There are usually not any amenities at BLM land, but it is still a very popular choice for travelers who want a more private/quiet place to sleep.
Side streets. Side streets - in cities or the suburbs - is a legal* place to sleep overnight (unless there are no parking signs. Unlike the possible flexibility of truck stop parking signs, do not disobey street parking signs because you will get a ticket. But, besides that, there are lots of side streets that allow overnight parking. But to be polite and stealth, try not to park directly in front of someone’s house.
That’s it for my list! There are obviously tons of other options, but these are the ones that I recommend. Let me know in the comments which one on this list (or even not on this list) is your favorite!
*Obviously, any business has the right to ask you to leave. And also, laws and rules in each state are different. And all of our experiences are different! But, after sleeping in my car on and off for nine years, I have only ever been asked to leave ONE truck stop. I was also asked to leave two grocery store parking lots, but that’s it! Three times out of hundreds, if not thousands. But, while these have been 99% fine for me, there are always exceptions!