Last Updated on September 15, 2020 by Ellen Christian
Your idea of a good time may not be surviving a holiday road trip with your children but it’s better than the alternative. When I was a child, my parents made the trip from Connecticut to Vermont numerous times to visit my grandparents. I was far from a country girl at that time and remember looking out the window wondering if I was ever going to see anything besides cows and trees. In between asking my parents repeatedly how much longer it would be until we got there, I argued with my sister who insisted on putting her foot on my side of the car and looking out my window. I’m sure that my parents had the most wonderful time in the world during our holiday road trips.
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Surviving a holiday road trip with your children
- Bring snacks & drinks. Kids of all ages are happier with a snack and a beverage while traveling. To make it easy on you, make it a mess free snack that won’t leave crumbs everywhere in the car and a juice box that cannot be spilled. Goldfish crackers are a great choice in my house.
- Let them bring their mp3 players. If I hear one more argument about who got to pick the last song on the radio, I may lose my mind. Plus, I have no desire to listen to the latest rap song 492 times on the way to my parent’s house. With their mp3 players or iPods, I have quiet.
- For younger children, bring a busy box or lap book to keep the entertained. When my kids were little, they could entertain themselves forever opening and closing flaps, undoing buttons and trying to tie bows. As teenagers, they seem to have lost this skill.
- Remember the classic road games. We used to love playing “A my name is Anna” and “I’m going on a picnic” when we traveled.
- Plan several stops if you have a long trip so younger children can run around and everyone can use the rest rooms.
- Remember plenty of face wipes or a damp cloth to keep sticky fingers clean. Stow a stocked first aid kit in the glove box just in case.
What are your best tips for surviving a holiday road trip with your children?
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Ellen is a busy mom of a 24-year-old son and 29-year-old daughter. She owns six blogs and is addicted to social media. She believes that it doesn’t have to be difficult to lead a healthy life. She shares simple healthy living tips to show busy women how to lead fulfilling lives. If you’d like to work together, email info@confessionsofanover-workedmom.com to chat.
These are some great tips! It is definitely a must to make stops so the kids can get out and stretch their legs. My family travels a lot, and I rely on my iPad a lot of the time. With the iPad, my kids can play games, read, watch movies, and even watch live TV through the DISH Remote Access app. A co-worker of mine at DISH told me about this app, and with a Sling Adapter hooked up to my DISH receiver, the kids have access to all our subscription channels live anywhere we can get a Wi-Fi or 3G connection. They absolutely love this option, and it keeps them quiet for hours.
we like to play the license plate game, too! These are great tips, thanks!
These are great tips! I wish my hubby would understand that stopping is essential though! LOL!
I always bring snacks and games wherever we go. LOL…
for the first time in a while we are flying at xmas, phew great stuff though
Great tips. Might be using one or two in few days coming back home
We go on road trips all the time. These are some great tips!
I just got a soundfreaq speaker and I am looking forward to be able to have that in our older car such that I can listen to my ipad in the car for long trips.
As a road-tripping family, these are GREAT tips! We also liked to get out and look at all the tourist trap places.
Never EVER leave their favorite stuffed toy behind (at home or the hotel)!
It is so much easier now with Ipods, etc. I always make my girls put down their toys for a while to spend time driving as a family and enjoying Christmas lights!
We used to road trip to FL when I was a kid, and sometimes I wonder how my parents did it. I was a reader, and we had a Game Gear, walk mans, and a couple Road Trip Bingo games. I also counted truck trailers and kept a running tally. Things seem so much easier now, with iPads, in-car video systems, and other things that travel way better than some of the stuff we had. These tips are great, and some are good to keep in mind if you’re on a road trip with adults too!
You know I’ve seen a lot of posts about this recently and I know when I was young my mother made it our responsibility to bring along things for the trip. I sometimes wonder if we are not cutting out problem solving and cause and effect from our kids when we are to eager to entertain them instead of making the decision their own. I’d suggest books on this list to read and a note book to create a journal on things seen and experienced on the trip.
I haven’t taken the kids on a road trip yet…..not something I’d look forward to.
Those are all really great tips and that Kia is sharp too!
I have yet to take a road trip with the kids (does a 2.5 hr drive from the New Orleans airport to Mobile, AL count?). I’ll remember these tips when we do venture on an extended car drive!