Travel Pace Planner
Plan an overland journey with the SRD 5.2.1 travel rules. Add each stage of the trip, pick a pace, and get the days it takes plus the DCs to have ready. Works on your phone at the table.
Travel pace (SRD 5.2.1)
| Pace | Per minute | Per hour | Per day | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fast | 400 feet | 4 miles | 30 miles | Disadvantage on Wisdom (Perception or Survival) and Dexterity (Stealth) checks |
| Normal | 300 feet | 3 miles | 24 miles | Disadvantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks |
| Slow | 200 feet | 2 miles | 18 miles | Advantage on Wisdom (Perception or Survival) checks |
Mounted groups can move twice the distance for 1 hour, then the mounts need a Short or Long Rest before doing it again. Groups that fly or ignore Difficult Terrain can always move at a Fast pace. Waterborne travel uses the vessel's speed instead of a pace.
How far can a party travel in a day?
Using SRD 5.2.1, a party travels 30 miles a day at a Fast pace, 24 miles at a Normal pace and 18 miles at a Slow pace, based on 8 hours of travel.
How does terrain affect travel pace?
Each terrain sets a maximum pace: Grassland and Arctic (with skis or similar gear) allow Fast; Coastal, Desert, Forest, Hill, Underdark and Urban allow Normal; Mountain and Swamp limit the party to Slow. A good road raises the maximum by one step.
What happens if the party travels more than 8 hours?
At the end of each extra hour, each character makes a Constitution saving throw or gains 1 Exhaustion level. The DC is 10 plus 1 for each hour past 8.
What does each pace do?
Fast gives Disadvantage on Wisdom (Perception or Survival) and Dexterity (Stealth) checks. Normal gives Disadvantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks. Slow gives Advantage on Wisdom (Perception or Survival) checks.
Ready for the fight at the end of the road? Check it with the encounter calculator, or roll up a tavern, NPC or loot for the next town.
Rules from the System Reference Document 5.2.1, licensed under CC-BY-4.0. See attribution.
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How we calculate
- Each stage: hours = miles ÷ miles per hour for your pace (Slow 2, Normal 3, Fast 4). Days = total hours ÷ hours traveled per day.
- Terrain sets the fastest pace allowed (a good road raises it one step; Arctic without skis is capped at Normal). A party member at half Speed or worse holds the group to Slow.
- Encounter distance and the Foraging, Navigation and Search DCs come from the SRD 5.2.1 terrain table; travel beyond 8 hours a day lists the extended-travel DCs.
Sources
Method and sources verified on Oct 25, 2026. Estimates only, not advice.