Many of us will be taking family road trips this summer, I know our family will be. It can be quite challenging with children. So how do you prepare for those long car rides with kids? I have some helpful tips for family travel road trips to make it those drives safe and comfortable!
Car Safety
○ When was the last time you had an oil change? If you are going on a long drive and it’s almost time to have an oil change may I recommend having it done prior to your trip and not waiting.
○ Check tire pressure. Also do you have a spare? Make sure the spare tire is in working order as well.
○ Fill up on gasoline so that you do not have to stop immediately. Also do not wait to the last minute while traveling to re-fill because sometimes there may not be gas stations around to do so.
○ I do not know about you but smashed dead bugs all over my windshield on road trips makes me nuts! Fill your windshield wiper fluid so that you can keep your windshield clean while driving.
○ Check all car seats and make sure they are tightened and secure.
Keeping the kids busy
○ My older children have tablets. We purchased them primarily to use in our homeschooling but the kids have other fun games and movies downloaded on them. If your children have tablets as well make sure they are fully charged before you begin your drive. Maybe even get a car charger for recharging.
○ Keep snacks and cold drinks available so you do not have to make a lot of food stops.
○ Bring other forms of entertainment for children like books, coloring books and crayons, movies and small toys.
○ Keep a small travel potty in the car. Mine stays in my van at all times. You may find it gross but I keep a few empty water bottles in my van for the boys if they need to go potty and cannot hold it and sometimes out in the middle of no where there is no other choice! Boys can be so much easier traveling than girls are!
Plan Ahead
○ Map out your trip. Make stops along the way so kids can get out of the vehicle and stretch their legs. Maybe a all day stop at a museum, park or other landmarks along the way.
○ Make a your own travel planner. Keeping maps, coupons, brochures and other road trip papers organized.
○ Don’t forget about the driver needs breaks too. Stop for sleep or take breaks with another adult driver.
What tips do you have when you take road trips with your family?
You hit the nail on the head. For us, it is all about entertainment and snacks.
I find the biggest safety issue when travelling with kids, is the kids! When they are bored, they bug and distract. Having a lot of things on hand makes for a happy and safe trip! Great post!
Agreed! That’s why we always have lots of books and their electronics are always fully charged!
These are great tips. Safety is as big a part of a road trip as keeping the kids entertained. Thanks a lot. Now that my son is 14, my biggest tip is bringing the devices.
Keeping the kids busy is such a challenge. It’s almost harder when they’re older!
I disagree – my kids have electronics now that they are older! That keeps them busy endlessly.
The portable potty is such a great tip that I hadn’t thought of. My son hates public restrooms, and that would help us immensely.
Food and constant activities! WE also bring a potty with us. That saves so much time!
These are great tips. Traveling in the car with the kids is waaaaay different that road tripping with just adults.
Great tips! We rarely travel because there’s so many of us, and we don’t own a vehicle but mostly because theres just too much to do and pack and such….. These are great tips!
Lol. Keeping the kids busy is a good one. Thanks for the great tips. I will share it with my nephews.
Great tips! For little ones, the best thing I’ve found to keep them amused is to pack a metal cookie sheet and a set of magnetic alphabet letters. When my daughter was younger, she would play with them for hours, spelling out words and playing “guess the word” with me.
I am going on a roadtrip this month. I think the travel potty is a great idea!
We always check tire pressure and all fluids in the van before we go on a trip. And then definitely keep the kids entertained and happy so I can drive safely.
To be honest the farthest we have ever driven with our kids is 2 hours away from home. And I make sure we have snacks, drinks and a roll of toilet paper for just in case.
A portable potty was a must when my kids were smaller. I am such a planner, I normally have every stop planned out, ha! Thanks for sharing…
OMG. The spare tire is such a big one. You never even look at it until you need it! Great tips! Our biggest tip is that we bring along plastic bowls so when we stop for food (or unpacks our snacks) we have something to catch the crumbs and spills. I used to always pack a travel size of dish detergent but now I just pack the Bounty Paper Towels that have Dawn dish soap built in.
When my kids were younger we went a lot of road trips to Grandmas house. I always tried to plan ahead and pack snacks and activities. These are great tips.
Definitely need to keep those kids busy! Mine get so impatient!
We do a lot of driving and travelling. My husband always gets a full tuneup before we go on long drives. It has saved our poor old car.
We always make sure everyone brings on one of their lesser favorite items. Don’t want to loose that one precius thing for them on a trip and have a melt down! Plenty of wipes keep me sane too during the drive
We love taking road trips during the summer and planning ahead is a must. One of the things we plan and pack are snacks because hungry kids in the backseat can make for a dangerous ride.
These are great tips! Keeping the kids busy is super important!
If I am travelling on long trips I have to have snacks and drinks. I also schedule plenty of time for bathroom breaks. It is much better to get there a little early than to not allow enough time and get there crazy late.
I don’t think there will be any road trips for us this summer. I am not a fan of driving
The potty tips has gotten us through many long trips. My kids hated using the rest stop toilets.
Planning ahead is crucial for a successful road trip!! This are great tips you can never be to prepared.
You’ve got good tips here. I like to fly way better but road trips can definitely still be fun. 🙂
Those are really great tips! I plan on traveling with my kids this summer so I’ll print this as a reminder.
Great tips! Always good to keep in mind.
I’m all about planning ahead! We don’t travel with kids…but we travel with pets…which sometimes take just as much planning LOL
These are great tips! We have a couple of long car trips coming up this summer.
These are great tips. Planning ahead is so important. I planned our trip where we wouldnt have to drive more tan 5 hours a day for the kids sake.
Those are great tips. We make sure to send the car to the mechanic before we go on a trip
We did all of that but one thing that was helpful for a trip from Michigan to Flordia with a bunch of kids was maping out every single Mcdonalds, stopping at a few different Mcdonalds at each state line and making potty stops and snack breaks lot’s of time to stretch out the legs. If there are cool sigh seeing places make sure to make a visit and let the kids out of the car every chance to not only give the kids much need exercise but yourself a brain break too. The other thing that helps we traveled with toddlers was we left at night usually time for their bed time so the kids slept for most of the trip, except of course my special needs daughter she was so excited to see everything and refused to sleep even though she was tired. She eventually feel a sleep in the back seat just before the first hotel rest stop. We booked two different hotels and really took our time getting there. Never rush when you are traveling with children. Stay off your cellphones pull over if you must chat on the phone children in the car are a distraction in it’s self you don’t want to have any extra distractions.
I needed these tips since I’m leaving on a trip soon!
These are awesome tips! Definitely making sure there are no road side problems is a must, and I like the idea of planning out all your stops so you know what to expect next.
It’s so important to be prepared with enough things for them to do or they will drive you crazy! lol! Seriously, these are great tips and we are planning a few road trips this summer so they will come in handy.
Not planning any road trips this summer. But these are handy tips if we do take one.
These are some great tips! We are going on a longer road trip soon so this will be awesome!
Yep! That’s the only way we make it through any trip… entertainment, snacks and ways to get comfortable sleep.