Tips to Road Trip with Kids

If you’re traveling with kids, I can give you a few pointers, having done it many, many times. I’m going to give you tips on driving vacations and road trips. It can be very trying for you and the kids to be stuck in a vehicle. It can also be a fun adventure in itself. Here are a few tried and true methods that I have used, and they’ve worked.

Prepare

First of all, prepare first. Have a backpack for each kid with a variety of small toys, activity books, and snacks to keep the kids entertained and easily within their reach. You can even switch out the contents for the trip back so they don’t become too bored. Have a separate backpack for yourself for things that the kids may need, Tylenol, wipes for messy faces, water, and additional snacks. Don’t forget to give each kid their own favorite blanket and a pillow. You can even purchase special travel blankets. They sell cute, small fleece ones for $5 at most dollar stores.

Leave at night.

If possible, leave at night. If you can swing it, traveling at night avoids a lot of traffic. Hopefully, you can get the bulk of the driving done while the kids are sleeping. Kids can sleep anywhere comfortably, so use that to your advantage.

Audiobooks

We found that audiobooks on tape/DVD are especially helpful. The kids, along with the adults, become engrossed in the story and it does really pass the time. And “poof,” everyone is quiet! As a bonus, audiobooks can be borrowed from the library for free. We listened to children’s books, but I also slide in a classic, Little Women. My husband was surprised that he also enjoyed it. I’m sure you can go ahead and download some audiobooks right onto your phone if you wish. I always steered clear of gaming devices. I was trying to get them a little vacation from that. Looking at the countryside never hurt anyone.

Quiet Contest

The “Quiet Contest” has never let me down. It’s as simple as it sounds. The child that kept the quietest for the longest earned a dollar. My kids were always very interested in earning that dollar, and it was money well spent. If you’re against dollars, offer another prize. I definitely pulled this one out in emergencies, with the emergency being that I was getting irritated with them.

Find interesting stops along the way.

You can find them beforehand or don’t hesitate to pull over at an exit if you see something interesting. A quick 20-minute stop at a neat overlook or park or another interesting site can help everyone stretch their legs and appreciate things that they’ve never seen. My father always stopped at a scenic overlook and it became tradition. We took pictures of the family there and it’s neat to look back and see how we grew through the years.

Maps

Print out maps of your trip, one for each child. Show them on the map where you are starting and going and let them follow the route with a crayon. You can help them with this and they can see the progress and learn some map skills while they’re at it. Instead of the constant, “are we there yet?” they can actually follow along.

Postcards

I always bought each child postcards of our destinations, along with a small photo book for each child. This way, I knew that each child had a keepsake and actual great pictures of the trip. These proved to be very nice as they got older to remember all of the sites they saw. Plus, postcards always have a nice little informational blurb on them.

Be realistic.

Long car rides can be difficult for adults so of course they can be very trying on kids who have less patience and not-so-good of a grip on time. Rotate seating if you need to separate certain kids if they start bickering. Make rest stops fun and help them get rid of their pent up energy. You can absolutely have kids do short sprints in the grass at the stops, jumping-jacks, a quick round of head-shoulders-knees-and-toes. Yes, you are travelling with children. You can be silly and have some fun along the way.