Road trips with kids can be a nightmare.
I think about 99.9% of parents who has been on long journey’s in the car for hours with the kids will agree with that heading? If your not one of them then you are one of the very few EXTREMELY lucky ones.
My kids send me nuts just being in the house together where we can escape to different room’s when things get too much, but in a car you don’t have that luxury (apart from the odd service station stop).
Kids get bored easily, bored kid’s get moody and then you find yourself refereeing a slander match in the back seats, which no one wants.
We have done quite a lot of long journey’s with ours now. Most recently to the outskirts of London which took about 3 hours and last Summer we drove to Devon for a camping holiday which wasn’t too bad going but there was a lot of traffic issues on the way home so a 5 hour trip took us 8 hours.
The furthest we have ever drove with the kids was to France which was about 10 hours driving not including the ferry across the channel.
Our summer (accidental hack).
When we went camping in Devon in the summer 2021 we had to pack so much stuff as we were going for a week and along with all the camping gear and food we also had to prepare for the great British weather which is so unpredictable (you can have a heat wave one day and snowing the next).
We have a 7 seater Peugeot 5008 so its got plenty of room when we but the back seats down but even with it packed floor to ceiling we had to use the middle seat which meant both my kids were separated in their own little cubicles for the entire journey!! Peace and quiet for Mum and Dad.
My 6 things YOU NEED for road trips with kids!
This list is going to help you travel anywhere with the kids with minimum agro! So make sure you take notes and I hope it helps you have a lovely journey.
1. Home Comforts
If your going on a long journey then make sure you take some home comforts. Car rides can be tiring for the kids as well as the adults so make sure you take pillow’s, blankets and their favourite cuddly toy to keep them company.
If your lucky they might sleep for a few hours giving you time to read your book or even catch 40 winks yourself (obviously as long as your not the driver hahaha).
2. Snacks
4 things you will definitley hear coming from the back seats
- Are we there yet?
- I’m bored!
- I need a wee!
- I’m hungry!
We are already coving the boredom so lets cover the hunger too.
Pack LOTS of snacks, crisps, biscuit bars, anything really, but try to avoid anything thats sticky or slimey. Make sure you stock up on bottles of water and juice to keep them hydrated (especially in the summer months incase you end up in any traffic jams in the heat).
3. The Tunes
Drown the kids moaning out with loud music ( just kidding hahaha or am I?).
Create a playlist of all your favourite songs and the kids favourite songs, throw in some of their favourite Disney movies songs too. Im sure your not sick of “we don’t talk about Bruno” yet.
In our house we love all the 80’s rock band so we usually have Queen or Guns n Roses blasting while we are all singing along together with it.
4. Screen Time
Entertaining the kid’s on a long journey is a task in itself and there might be times when you just want to sit back and watch the world go by in silence.
This is when modern technology is the best thing ever. Make sure you have their tablets charged up ready for the journey and download some of their favourite programmes or movies (you can do this on Netflix before hand so they wont need Wi-Fi to watch them).
Let them put their headphones on and chill out for an hour or 2.
5. The Classics
If they start getting fidgety and bored of just watching or listening to things make up some activity packs before hand.
Colouring books and crayons
Card games
Reading books
Travel games
Ill put a few links to the best ones ive found and used from Amazon futher down for you.
6. The Essentials
My kids are messy and accident prone so I class these as essential.
Wet wipes are quick and easy ways to clean up any mess, especially when you stop at a service station and your chocolate monster gets out the car with their face caked in all sorts.
Small first aid kit just in case and a roll of trash bags to throw all their food wrappers and anything else that needs binning.
Activity's for the kids in the car.
Ive added a few links below for activity’s the kids can do in the car to keep them busy. You could probably create your own pack but if you haven’t got the time then there are some great ready made ones on Amazon.
This page contains affiliate links and I earn a commission if you make a purchase through one of the links, at no cost to you.
I hope you have a wonderful trip where ever your destination may be.
In August we are driving to france again to our favourite Eurocamp site La Croix Du Vieux Pont so I will be writing all about our journey there and back and what we get up to whilst there in a few months time.
Also check out my blog from our trip to Devon, with lots of tips on places to visit.
Pingback: 30 hilarious jokes that will have the kids laughing. - Trimble Travels