If there was a real zombie apocalypse (or major catastrophe) I'd avoid going near:
- malls or large shopping centres because people will be cramming in there trying to loot stuff at the last second and will more than likely end up becoming a problem.
- grocery stores or pharmacies. Looters again looking to stock up. Or for pharmacies, junkies looking to get their fixes (which, if zombies, could be even worse since a slight overdose due to wrong drug type or even just location could mean yet another zombie).
- gas stations. Again another case of people flocking to a resource because they have none. Plus with a large scale issue underway fuel resources will become scarce as fuel deliveries cease so I'd rather not venture to them anyway.
- gun stores because people will be targeting them to steal from and they're kinda likely to have a lot of ammo and are more than likely to shoot attackers.
- hospitals due to the fact that plenty of sick/injured will end up together and possibly making things worse.
- police stations. Sure they have guns and body armour... but they also have police who are more than likely going to be there protecting it.
Basically I would avoid any place people would flock to for supplies or protection. More people means increased risk of violence and thefts (especially as people grow more desperate).
If anything I'd go in a more remote area, away from most other people. I might go with a small group of 5-8 people to start with this way there's enough to keep watch for trouble (or so we can take turns sleeping). Ideally each of us would have some kind of skill or benefit to offer the group. I don't want to be bringing someone along just because they're a nice person. Sorry, but in the post apocalypse world you need to have utility to the group. Things like medical experience will be very highly sought after. (Especially since it's likely that a lot of doctors will be lost trying to treat people.) Anyone who can repair vehicles will be extremely useful. Ammo makers and gunsmiths will also be important. Hunters and farmers will be critical for food supply. Anyone with security training will be useful too.
I'd also want to avoid bringing people that depend on very specific medications. So, for example, if someone needs anti-depressants to cope with normal life I wouldn't want them along because when their supply inevitably runs out they're going to go through some big mood swings and that could be a danger to everyone. (Even if all they do is sit in the corner and do nothing that's still a problem because it's a mouth that needs feeding but isn't contributing to the group in a useful way.) I know that may sound extremely cold however when the world is in shambles there won't be time to worry about how someone might feel, there'll be too much to do trying to survive.
As far as weapons go, there's a fine balance here of close quarters versus ranged. Guns all take ammo to function and the weight of it adds up fairly quickly (some more than others depending on the type... EX- .308 ammo is heavier than .223 ammo but .308 is better at dropping a deer). Carrying a lot of ammo gets heavy and means you either get tired faster or can't carry something else. Which is where close range weapons like a knife or machete come in handy. They don't need reloading (just sharpen and clean the blade and you're fine). But by the same token, I do not want to go up close and personal with a zombie (or other person for that matter). Even if the other person isn't infected with a zombie virus or any other illness they can cause a lot of damage in close quarters with just bare hands.
Additionally guns make a lot of noise. WAY more than the movies portray. (There's
a scene in John Wick 2 where the two are using suppressors and trading shots while walking. This would not happen. The guns
they're using in the movie are 9mm handguns. Those handguns make around
160 decibels per shot. That's more than a rock concert or jackhammer going off. Even with a suppressor knocking about 25 decibels off it's still louder than a rock concert. Everyone would know there's a gunfight going on.) This means they're going to attract attention every time they're used. Plus the fact that without ear protection each shot causes a small bit of irreparable damage to everyone nearby's hearing.
So for me I'd have my handgun in my holster, plus maybe 3-4 boxes of ammo (150-200 rounds) and my AR with around 150 rounds for it. If I were travelling with others I would probably give one of them my shotgun to use/carry (with around 75-100 shells) and another could have my hunting rifle (with 80-120).
I'm not too worried about carrying loads of .223 ammo because it is so common it'd take a while to run out. 9mm is in exactly the same boat. It's used by a lot of law enforcement agencies too so they'd almost always have a stockpile on hand themselves.
Even then though the goal of having guns is more for hunting than engaging with other people, eventually ammo scavenging may be required.
The initial goal would be to wait a month or two until the main issue is over, plus give us time to get somewhat set up. From there the goal would shift towards expanding and adding more survivors. While fortifying defense from inevitable raiders and attackers. Once things are well fortified and we can start getting more survivors then we can begin phase 3... rebuilding society.