Road trips are one of the timeless classics when it comes to family adventures. Hitting the open road lets you experience the country in ways that air travel cannot give you, but a road trip can be excruciating for your kids if they are restless in a moving vehicle.
Finding fun ways to keep them entertained is a must to enjoy the entirety of your trip so you need to find good ways to let them get some energy out. There are tons of reasons to just hand them a phone or tablet, but these innovative options are more educational and healthier.
Make Them Journal Their Experience
Road trips help make lifelong memories, so you want your kids to remember their experience too. The best way to do this is by giving them a journal to jot down their thoughts, favorite places, and things they saw, and everything else about their time on the road. Journaling is a fun activity that helps them improve their reading and writing abilities even if they do not realize it. Not to mention, they will be able to look back on the trip with fondness.
Create a Keepsake Box
In a similar manner to a journal, you can give them a keepsake box which lets them bring back little trinkets and memorabilia from the trip. Things like special rocks, pins, badges, maps, coins, postcards, and stamps are all really fun things to collect while stopping in place to place, or once you reach your destination. Having something physical to remember from the trip is always a plus, and the best part about a keepsake box is that they can personalize it with arts and crafts or keep it for the next trip.
Play Classic Car Games With Them
Sometimes the classic road trip games just cannot be beaten in terms of classic fun. Even for young children, cooped up in a seat from the folks at https://www.babyandco.com/, they need to get some energy out and play the license plate game or I-spy, or the letter game can help. I-spy is a classic and keeps their interest occupied on the landscape around them, and cars are always passing by for the license plate game, the letter game is also great because there are so many topics to choose from to see who can say the most things starting with one of the 26 letters. These road trip activities have been around for years and they never fail to entertain.
Do Your Research on the Places You See
Before you plan the trip, you can do some research to help you stay entertained along with your kid(s). Giving them trivia about different cities or states is a cool way to enhance their knowledge and make the trip more memorable. Not only does it help you prepare for the trip when you know where you are going, but as mentioned, it keeps you interested in the journey as well. The destination may be the goal, but everything along the way is the cherry on top.
Participate in Sing-Alongs
Sing-alongs are another good way to keep your child from boredom. You do not need to be a world-class singer to have some fun with some joyful tunes in the car either. Introduce them to some of your favorite songs (kid-friendly of course) and go with some of the timeless ones like, “She’ll Be Coming ‘Round the Mountain,” or “We’re Going to the Zoo.” Making up songs where you need to fill in the blanks is also a really fun way to get your kid thinking creatively and adds some unique flavor to the songs.
Bring Plenty of Healthy Snacks
Packing a good mix of snacks is not necessarily innovative, but it is necessary. Keeping your kids hydrated and fed with some healthy food options will keep them from getting restless, cranky, or complaining. Carrot sticks, celery sticks with peanut butter and raisins, water, mixed nuts and seeds, and fruit are all perfect options that will provide them with nutrition to keep them from asking the dreaded, “Are we there yet?” question.
Road trips are an incredibly popular way to head out and see the world. They provide you with the opportunity to get up close and personal with the landscape and stop along the way to see everything. For kids, it can feel like the opposite, and they would prefer to play with electronics. Ditching this and going with more interactive games will provide them educational value and quality family time.
