“Are we there yet?” these four words are like nails on a chalkboard, especially during a road trip. Below you will find some ideas to help ease the road trip woes with kids.
Roadtrips can be some of the best or worst times to make make memories as a family or friend group – the fun is completely dependent upon the vibe of the car during the journey. Some of these game or toy ideas may make or break your next trip, you’re welcome.
Ideas to try:
- Count an Animal : Before leaving, decide what animal you are going to look for (squirrel, horse, cow, etc.) and then whoever spots it first gets the point. At the destination the person who has the most points gets to pick the next meal.
- Rest Stop Races : At each rest stop pick a physical activity that everyone will complete. These could be jumping jacks, timed runs, push ups, get creative and whoever gets the most or finishes the most in a time period wins.
- Trivia : any member of the car (besides the driver) download an age appropriate trivia app on their phone and start showing off those smarts. You can keep track of who gets the most points for the more competitive cars.
- Keep those hands busy : this could look like fidget toys or busy books for any age.
- “Water painting : Melissa and Doug created a hit with their Water Wow books. Kids will love the easy painting while parents love that they are mess-free. Even if they happen to leak or spill, the amount of water is pretty small. Hold them up to the air vents in the car for a quicker drying time.” These are great for just about any age child.
- Alphabet Game : As a group find the entire alphabet on signs, stores, etc. starting with A. This can also be a fun learning time to practice letters and finding big and little letters.
- Fun Playlist, Audiobooks, or Podcasts : this can be used for all ages. Build a playlist as a family, listen to a family friendly book, or throw on your favorite podcast with your friends (or when the babies are sleeping).
- Snack Bags : this one may take a bit of pre-planning, but try to get everyone’s favorite snacks in surprise bags for them. Don’t use these until you hear the first “are we there yet?” surprise everyone and it should buy you about five minutes of whine free time if you picked snacks correctly.
Here’s hoping your next roadtrip goes smooth as pie! Let us know below if you have any other tips or tricks we should add to our list.
Sources:
Singleton, M. (2023, March 13). 52 Fun and Hilarious Road Trip Games! [2023]. Blogger at Large. Retrieved March 23, 2023, from https://www.bloggeratlarge.com/exciting-road-trip-games/
Team, C. (2021, August 12). 30 Screen-free Road Trip Ideas for Kids. RUN WILD MY CHILD. Retrieved March 23, 2023, from https://runwildmychild.com/screen-free-road-trip/
