4 Tips For Taking Road Trips With Kids

This post may contain affiliate links. By clicking on any of the links below, I may get a commission if you make a purchase at absolutely no additional charge to you. This helps offset the costs of running this blog & I appreciate your support. Please see privacy & disclosure policy for more.

Taking the family on a road trip is a tradition that goes back quite a few years. Many adults remember those classic road trips that they themselves took as kids, and there are typically some fond memories and some events that they want to forget. Today, people continue to take road trips in order to “see the sights.” Some things have changed, but there are still a few things that are mostly the same. Here are a few tips on taking a road trip with the kids.

4 Essential Tips For Taking Road Trips With Kids

Pack Things To Do

Before going on the trip, parents should take some time to pack a few things to do. This can include books, magazines, coloring books, activity sheets, and music. There are a number of great resources on the Internet that can provide fun car games, such as the license plate game. Obviously some of these games may not appeal to older kids, but the point is that multiple options should be packed so that there are a variety of activities.

Take A Break

When traveling the open road, people can start to feel a bit claustrophobic and sick of the vehicle. If the road trip is during the summer and the family is staying in hotels, it often helps to select a hotel with a pool. Most kids love to jump into the water, particularly after a long day in the car. Many hotels have pools and parents do not have to stay at a luxury hotel in order to find a pool.

Easy On The Technology

Today’s vehicles can come equipped with DVD players and many kids have their own personal music devices, portable DVD players, or compact video games. Some of this is fine for the car, but parents should resist the temptation to let their kids play for hours and hours. After playing or watching for a long time, kids can get a bit cranky and be resistant to other types of activities. Therefore, a limit on electronics is usually a good strategy.

Flexible Itinerary

Finally, it is helpful on long road trips to stay flexible with destination points and miles traveled during the day. When parents go out on the road with their kids, they may not know how far they can get before their kids mutiny against them. Therefore, having some level of flexibility often helps. Hotel reservations can often be cancelled without a lot of notice, so changing stopping points is certainly feasible.

The goal of a road trip is to have fun, and though the days can be long, it can still be a memorable experience if people take steps to make it so.