Family road trips are always a nice way to get together and spend some quality time. However, the ultimate question “Are we there yet?” and screaming and arguing are inevitable if you do not know how to keep your kids occupied. Be prepared for everything they may need for a long drive.
Get Crafty
Crafting is always fun and supplies are easily packed in a backpack. For car trips, you want to avoid any sharp objects like scissors, so pack a lot of paper and an origami guide to occupy your children for hours. Also, if you have children who like making their own jewelry, pack the proper supplies for making creative friendship bracelets. Besides these crafts, you can always bring lots of paper and crayons. Let your children be inspired by nature, and tell them to draw the sceneries they see on the road.
Surprise Your Kids with Treats
When going on longer road trips, you should spoil your children a bit. Surprise them with some special candy you packed for the road and let them have lunch they normally aren’t allowed to, like eating in fast food restaurants. You can also let them buy some toys that are completely useless, so they will have less time to complain and more time having fun. Since these road trips can be tiring for everyone, it is best to spoil your kids (so they aren’t hanging around your neck the whole time). Every now and then, give them some chocolate or their favorite candy, but only if they are really trying to be calm and quiet.
Necessary Help from Devices
Gadgets are the easiest way to occupy your children. You should probably plan to bring lots of gadgets like smartphones, tablets, and iPods. Besides having fun music for your children, you should have some games prepared for them to play during those long hours of riding in the car. The games they play should be educational and make them think.
It is best to install lots of games on your phones and tablets that will come in handy later on. Make sure to bookmark the funbrain games on your devices to make it easier for your children to access. Here, you can find various entertaining games for exercising your child’s reading and math skills. To include the whole family and make things more exciting, you can make a little competition with these games and have a nice stress-free road trip. The most important thing is to not forget the portable chargers because if their devices run out of juice, the fun might be over for all of you.
Be Prepared for Emergencies
Besides the emergency kits for a sugar crash, you should also make sure to have an emergency kit stocked with food, water, and blankets. When packing, bring along frozen juice boxes which will keep other food and snacks cool. Later on, use them as a refreshing treat once they have melted. Also, you should have a list of emergency numbers, such as relatives, roadside assistance, and even your pediatricians. No matter how good of a driver you are, you never know what could happen; especially during the winter season. So, stay alerted at all times.
Follow these tips and every family road trip of yours would be a never-ending fun experience. If your kids are constantly entertained, then you will have some peace and quiet for yourselves and the boring questions and fights will never occur.
About the author
Marie Nieves, student of economics who loves unusual trips and have a plan to travel the whole world. She is an avid lover of photography. As she always loved to travel, she really loves to talk about her experiences. On her journeys she likes to read poetry and prose and loves to surf the Internet.