How to Survive Enjoy a road trip with your kids (without screens)

Does the thought of strapping your kids into their seatbelts and making them stay there for an 8 hour road-trip give you a little anxiety? Yeah, that was me, too. But since then I’ve learned how to not just survive a road-trip but to actually enjoy it. And now I want to share my tips and tricks with you!

Our First Road-trip

Years ago road-trips weren’t a thing around here. Our second kiddo had awful colic it felt like just looking at his carseat made him scream. Even the 15 minute drive to church was unbearable – a long car ride to somewhere fanciful was simply not an option. Flash forward a few years and with colic behind us, road trips were put back on the list of possibilities. 

The first roadtrip I ever took with my kiddos, I did it solo. Just me, 5 kids from infant to age 8, a minivan with no tv, and 6 hours of drive time. Was it crazy to start with something so big? Maybe. (Probably.) But whatever, I did it and I don’t regret a thing! 

We were headed to visit a friend who had recently moved away, so I knew we would have a few days to recoup after the long drive, before having to head back home. I also did a TON of research and asked a few friends for advice. I went into this journey feeling super prepared to have to drive, navigate, AND keep all the kids happy enough to not make me regret my decision. I also made sure that my kids were strategically placed in seats where one of the older boys could grab anything I handed him and pass it out to the rest of the crew. We prepared with discussions about why I needed good helpers, and what my expectations were for behaviour. Next up was packing the entertainment.

The Entertainment/Tools

We don’t always use each of these things on every long drive, but this list will give you an abundance of ideas to choose from when you’re on the road. Ready? Let’s dive in.

Mileage Count Down

This is probably my favourite things to do on road-trips. Look up how many miles to where you are going, and divide it up into equal parts depending on how far you’re driving (think 25mi, 50mi, 100mi… we usually do 50). Then write out the miles on little strips of paper and tape them on the dashboard or somewhere easily visible. Each time you reach a new mark, take down a piece of paper and do a little celebratory dance. Not only does this make it fun and celebrate your progress, but it also gives the kids a visual of how far they have left to go. Bonus tip: print out a map of your journey and have the kids trace along the route as you go.

Road-trip games

For our first road-trip I printed out a bunch of road-trip games and had them laminated. The games were things like ‘count the cows’, ‘find every state license plate’, ‘roadtrip bingo’, etc. A few dry erase markers and napkins to wipe the sheets clean and this bought me a lot of time! Plus the kids could use the back to just draw. You can also keep a bag of other non-messy manipulatives like pipe cleaners, sticker books, color-wow books, sketch pads with crayons (just make sure the kids aren’t drawing on the car walls), play dough, rubiks cubes or other puzzles, etch-a-sketch, shoe laces, and washi tape or painters tape and our personal favourite, paint by sticker books.

Audio entertainment

My kids are SUPER into audio books because of roadtrips. Audio books are a wonderful way to keep the entire family entertained (even parents love them!). If you don’t have the budget to purchase audio books, try downloading an app like Libby and connect to your local library for free. You can also use a podcast app to find lots of free classic stories. Just type in the name of any classic book and you’re bound to find a reading of it. Speaking of podcasts, there are tons of podcasts available and many that are child friendly, too. You can also listen to your favourite music, or just sing together as a family. It can also be fun to create songs about what you’re seeing or play games, like “Pass the Story”.

Favourite foods

Eating is a tricky subject depending on how clean you like to keep your car. My advice? Give them their favourite foods and just plan to hit the carwash later. Snacks are always a great way to keep kiddos happy. Just avoid meals that are too heavy and might not settle well, or that are exceptionally messy, or exceptionally sugary (because hyperactivity). Also, be stingy with the beverages. Nothing is less fun than having to stop for 3 potty breaks in 40 minutes. Seriously. Really frustrating.

Take breaks

I know the temptation is to get where you’re going as fast as possible, but taking breaks is a great way to refresh everyone. If you’re a planner, look along your route and figure out where there might be a good playground or park to stop and run around for a while. You can also plan a longer stop for lunch. As for bathroom breaks, we try to keep these to when we also stop for gas. That way we don’t feel obligated to make a purchase at a convenience store, because we have already paid for their services at the gas station.

Treat stash

Okay, I know I just said not to give your kids sugary treats BUT this is where I make an exception. I keep a stash of small treats and try to only pass them out when things start getting dicey. It’s a guaranteed cure for crying kiddos. Some of my favourite treats are ones that are either lower in sugar (and don’t contain food dye) or that will last a little while. We like to stick to things like organic lollipops (this is the most loved treat), mints, a hard candy they can suck on, dark chocolate, and my personal favourite: gum. If your kids can handle gum, it can keep them happily chewing for a quite some time.

Final Thoughts

If screens are what you need to survive your road-trip, then by all means go ahead and use them. While over here we believe that the drive is part of the adventure, we have also used movies to pass the time when we’re traveling long distances multiple days in a row. However, we still like to make sure our kids have time to look out the window, take in the scenery and geographic changes, and to have time connecting with other another. 

Overall, just know that with the right attitude and some fun activities to do along the way, your road-trip with your kiddos can be not just survivable, but enjoyable!

Want some visuals? Check out my YouTube video going through these same road trip tips and tricks.

Planning a road-trip? I’d love to hear what works best for you, and what you would add to my list. Happy road tripping!