Deciding on a family road trip can be a daunting challenge, not to mention an exercise in patience. However if you prepare ahead of time, the trip can be one of the most memorable experiences of your family’s life.
Here are some tips for making your family road trip a fun and safe one.
- Prepare a checklist of items you will need. This will include first aid kit, food, snacks, drinks, and lots of toys, coloring books, paper and crayons, a portable DVD player so your kids can watch their favorite movies and a cooler. A good idea is to ask the kids what games they would like to take, within limits of course.
- Ensure that the snacks are healthy in nature. Too many sugar snacks can have the kids bouncing off the car seats. Remember, this is a relaxing family vacation and you want to avoid the kids getting bored or repeatedly asking you when you are going to arrive.
- Check online to print out games for the road that you and the kids can play along the way. There are an assortment of puzzles and riddles as well.
- In addition, if you have very young children you will need to take a diaper bag and wipes for the occasional spills. Blankets and pillows and a favourite item or stuffed animal for the young ones is a good idea as well.
- Decide on the destination and then contact AAA for a trip ticket. Ask for the scenic route, one that is much more calming and pleasing to the eye, especially the driver!
- As you check out the planned route you may want to check online to find gas stations along the way that offer the cheapest gas. Also if there are any points of interest along the route mark them on the map and plan to stop at these sites.
Are We There Yet?
- While on the road ensure that you make regular stops. This will allow the kids to run around and let off some steam. It will allow the adults to stretch and re-energize. Bring along a football or soccer ball so that the entire family can have some fun while exercising at the same time.
- It’s very important that safety concerns are met. This includes having the car checked at your local mechanic or gas station. Ensure that the oil and filter are changed; the tires are well inflated (don’t forget the spare tire, too); the windshield wipers are replaced (if needed); and the car is in great condition before you head out.
- You may want to place the following items in your trunk: a lawn chair, extra blanket, emergency road kit, umbrellas, water, flashlight and batteries, a battery-powered radio, and windshield wiper cleaner. In the glove compartment include a first aid kit and cell phone charger. Keep all medications in a Ziploc bag in the glove compartment as well.
If you enjoy scrap-booking, this road trip may be a perfect opportunity to add new treasures to the book. As you make stops at some scenic sites, ask the kids to find an item they would like to include in the scrapbook. If the kids point out something that they find fascinating, take a picture to include in the scrapbook.
Engage the kids in the decision making, age appropriate, and allow them to decide what they would like to bring. Have them pack their clothes (check the suitcases afterwards) so they feel part of the overall experience. Planning ahead of time for a family road trip will save you time, stress, and money. And the kids will enjoy this adventure, too!
Thanks all these tips are great to come in handy
Great tips.. I’m so glad my little one loves long drives and is content to just watch out the window most of the time. Binoculars are fun. The last point you made of extra/emergency items to bring was great.. hadn’t thought of some of those.
Haha. ‘Are we there yet’? in our car gets replaced with, ‘Are we lost’? on loop. Because the scenery isn’t familiar she is convinced we do not know where we are or where we are going.
Great tips! Traveling with the whole family can be stressful if you are not prepared.
This is a fabulous photo and some very useful tips too. 🙂
I love all the ideas
I love all the ideas.
Great travel tips!
Wonderful trips. I tend to get very stressed out and over pack, but I do like to be prepared for anything!
Any chance that picture is from Alberta? Reminds me of the mountains there.
We are planning a family trip trhis year-some of these will come in handy.
Awesome Tips. They will come in handy when we take a trip to some of Ontarios Provincial Parks. Wonderful that they are free all year. This year its my son his girlfriend and their 3 daughters , my granddaughters.and me Nana. We are all excited for summer.
Road trips are so fun.
Thanks these are great travel tips, my favourite is to ask for the scenic route, one that is much more calming and pleasing to the eye, we usually look for the fastest route!
Great road trip tips! I second the suggestion of bring lots and lots of wipes! Always need wipes 😉
These are great tips for a fun family road trip!
Thank you g for the great tips and the info as they were useful for future trips.
We’ve taken lots of trips with the kids and have learned most of these ideas the hard way. But we’ve gotten good at traveling together.
We used to take turns letting the kids choose the destination for our weekend getaways. This made them excited to be really a part of the trip. During tourist season, we loved the licence plate game. We would give them each a list of all the states and provinces. The first one to get a certain number got a prize! It really kept them occupied!
Talk about great timing! My husband & I are taking our granddaughter on a road trip next week. Thank you so much for the great info!
thanks for such great tips, travelling with young children can be quite intimidating
Thanks for the tips!
Very good article- We do a long road trip each summer with my granddaughter. We always take bubble gum
for a treat. A couple of years ago, she learned to blow bubbles on those long miles in the car!
We love to travel, thanks for all the great tips. They will come in handy before our next adventure.
Our families live in another province so we go on road trips fairly often. I therefore appreciate all your tips and plan on using some!
Great tips, we just bought a travel trailer and can’t wait to go camping
good ideas. AAA – do you need to be American or member? Otherwise, CAA for Canada
I love the travel tip about scrapbooking and will use it when we travel to Maine next month.
Great tips~ Road trips can be a lot of fun but also a test in patience especially if not prepared~
My Granddaughter has 3 requests for road trips, A drink, snacks and games. If you have these 3 your fine.
Great trips with summer road trips coming up fast
Thank you for sharing these tips.