Over the last 5 years we have hustled from MN to Banff in 2 days pulling a tent trailer; drove to Washington DC and back without a working radio/stereo system; and most recently hauled a 20ft travel trailer to the Grand Canyon. Each ride is unique (and exhausting) in it's own way but we've survived and enjoyed our trips enough to plan additional long haul vacations. Here are the tips and tricks that have made these long rides a bit more pleasant:
- Snacks! You can never have enough snacks on a road trip. There is a great meme to the effect that your road trip snacks should look like a 5 year old got to pick anything they wanted from the convenience store. And while that sometimes is true, we're also intentional about how many treats we're consuming. Your driver definitely doesn't need a sugar crash. I always have an easy protein (Vermont Beef sticks are a family fav), fruit, nuts and granola bars available. Travel trick: bring all of those extra Target bags along for trash management or even car sickness if things have gone totally off the rails.
- Audiobooks/Podcasts/Apps. Last year our family listened to the entire Harry Potter series on a trip to Yellowstone. Finding an audiobook or podcast you can all enjoy is a great way to pass the time and keep everyone off a screen for a bit. Our family's favorite podcasts have included: Brains On!, Wow in the World, & Smash Boom Best. Our favorite audiobooks have been the Harry Potter series & "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" series. Check to see if you can borrow audiobooks from your library (I use the Libby app) and download them before you hit the road. Travel Must: We have found the GyPSy Guide GPS guided app to be a must listen. This is a paid audio guide that tells you about your destination. This is a family favorite wherever available. Be sure to download it before you head out and check the map to see where the guide begins. Once dowloaded, it will work without cell connection.
- Headphones. When you're ready for some alone time (good luck!) pull out the headphones and connect everyone to their own device. When we drove to Banff our SUV's DVD player died about 5 minutes into the trip, seriously not an exaggeration, making all of the kids' movies I had packed worthless. The girls ended up watching LEGO Batmann on repeat on my husband's iPad. What I wouldn't have given for some noise canceling headphones!
- Blankets. We each bring along our own blanket (or 2) to be used for temperature control or rolled up as a pillow. Our family has also used blankets for sun shade, a back seat divider, and a picnic blanket.
- Activity books. These will, of course, change based on the ages of the kids. Coloring books can work for most ages. My kids had lots of fun with wipe-off puzzle cards on our last trip. They also enjoy the National Geographic "Ultimate U.S Road Trip Atlas." Travel trick: Each kid gets their own activity bag/basket in the car. I pack these so there are some surprises (sunglasses, gum, suckers, card game/activity book, markers, cozy socks, book, eye mask for bedtime). Then along the way they can have a place to store their items.
- Drink LOTS of water. No one wants to make extra bathroom stops BUT if you're going too far without stopping you're more likely to end up with leg cramps, back pain or even a blood clot. Keeping up with your water intake will remind you to make those frequent rest stops. If there is safe green space at the rest stop, we get the kids moving as best as we can. The front seat also drinks Smart Water or uses a Power Pak for electrolytes.
- Dress in layers. See blanket bullet point for more info on temp control 😉 Travel trick: wear easy to slide off and on shoes. There is nothing that makes the driver grouchier than needing to run in to the bathroom and a kid that's still tying their shoes... ask me how I know.
- Roadtrippers. We do a lot of our long trip planning on Roadtrippers.com. This is a good way to map out distances between destinations, find other waypoints, and look for camping or hotels along your route. We do have a paid membership to use the additional travel planning tools.
- Other random items I keep in the car: paper towels, Wet Wipes, a coin purse with lots of quarters for tolls, Target bags (green option- compostable dog bags), gum, hard candy (helpful for altitude changes), small cooler for drinks, specialty batteries/charge cords for devices, & sunglasses for everyone.
If all of this sounds ridiculous and like "too much stuff!" my husband totally agrees with you. And yet, who is reaching for a snack and thankful that I grabbed the new container of Wet Wipes on hour #20? You guessed it. Happy travels!
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