Summer is coming and for our family vacation that means road trips. Believe it or not, we as a family enjoy traveling by car. It's just so easy. There is room to bring everything we want, and it makes it easy to travel without two dogs. What I have learned over the years though is that a successful road trip comes down to a few simple tips. We hope that this Road Trip with Teens post inspires you.
It's critical to plan the travel portion of your road trip. Beyond the route that we are going to take, I look for interesting places to see along the drive. What I have found is that when traveling with kids, it's important to break up the drive with little pit stops. I try to find interesting little towns or state parks that will make for a fun side adventure. By breaking up the trip in this way, none of the kids get that cranky “I've been in the car too long” attitude. For my husband and myself, having a road trip plan with stops relieves stress.
How to Prepare for a Comfortable Road Trip as An Outdoor Adventure Lover
We let our kids take part in the planning process of the trip and then I give them each a role at our destination. Everyone has to have something to do and something to be responsible for.. If you are going to take a road trip, show the kids on a map where you are going and how you are getting there. Show them the little stops that you have found along the route, and maybe challenge them to find a few stops that they would like to see. Involving the kids in the planning process creates excitement and anticipation for the trip. The kids are eager and happy to get in the car and hit the road. I share it all digitally. Remember, on a road trip, happy kids equals happy parents!
No matter how you plan it, most road trips will involve at least a few back-to-back hours of drive time. The best way to deal with this is to bring along a little entertainment. Have the kids bring a favorite book or game. Our family, really likes the Amazon Fire Kids Edition tablet. They start at $99.00, which is pretty cheap for a tablet. The kids can load books, games, and movies onto the tablet for the long drive (just remember to pack some headphones). Even better, the tablets are about as kid-proof as possible.
Our just barely a teenager uses a Fire HD 10 Kids Edition Tablet featuring Amazon FreeTime which allows you the parent control over what your child views and does with the tablet. As you are driving you can be sure that your child is watching and playing age-appropriate content. It is also important to note that the Amazon FreeTime Unlimited content is available to download to the device, meaning there is no need for wifi while on the road.
Our older teens bring their iPads or laptops and connect through their phones to play some of their favorite games. Make certain that everyone brings their headphones so everyone (including the driver) can do their own thing. Also set aside a pouch for charging cords and cables, etc.
We build lots of stops into the road trip plan. This keeps meltdowns to a minimum and just makes the road trip itself a fun experience. The key here is to make the drive just as interesting and fun as the destination. Little stops along the way to take in the sights make the drive fun, and you just might make some cherished memories. For our family, this means truck stops. Loves. Pilot Travel Center. Flying J. All of those places are his jam. That's right…we make scheduled stops at truck stops along the way during absolutely every road trip we take. I kind of enjoy the truck stops, too. Where else can you shower, get your fortune roll-up paper, maybe find an attached Denny's or diner, find more random things than the middle aisle of Aldi, get gas, take a nap and so much more?
Here is what Jason Connerty (my husband) of FoodieFather.net has to say about truck stops:
Now we don't let the kids pack without any guidance at all, but we do involve them in the process. We will the kids what kind of plans we have so they know how many outfits they need, and then the kids go and pick out clothes for the trip. This creates a sense of involvement and buy-in for the upcoming trip, and it teaches kids the practical skill of packing. They will learn just how much room their suitcase has, forcing them to decide which items to bring and what to leave at home. We also schedule a clothes-washing day on every trip. This is so much more practical because we can pack less room in the car.
We always make sure to bring a little cooler on our road trips. Before leaving the house, we fill it with snacks, fruits, and drinks. This is a lifesaver when anyone announces they are hungry or thirsty 30 minutes into the ride. Be sure to stock up on everyone's favorite snacks.
Road trips can be a wonderful way to vacation and see the country. Just remember, a stress-free road trip takes a little planning on the front end (see how stress-free our daughter is in this family vacation gif or road trip gif). Following these tips will help to ensure that your trip will be fun and stress-free. We hope that this Road Trip with Teens post inspires you. Happy driving!
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Great tips! We will be on the road several times this summer and I’ve become a pro at packing what we need. I have a list already made that we check off so we don’t forget anything and we start the process two to three days ahead of time so we aren’t packing last minute.
Perfect tips! We haven’t done a family road trip since my son was little – and it was so much easier than I expected!
My youngest has had an Amazon Fire tablet for kids for several years. I love it because I dont have to worry about the content he is viewing. We always take the fire and car chargers/charger on our road trips. With teens working now, its hard to go on road trips.
We are going on a road trip this coming June and these will come in handy! Thank you for these awesome tips!
My 11yr old packs his own bag now. He has a list of what he needs and how many and grabs what he wants. My youngest. Well, we try doing the “you need 4 pairs of pants and 4 shirts” and it always ends up with her whole pajama drawer in her suitcase and nothing else.
Great tips! We just came back from a 16 day roadtrip with 5 kids. The entertainment kept my sanity. 🙂
Excellent tips! We often road trip from Arizona to California and have it down to an art. However, with that comes our ever evolving children always changing up their snack preferences, attention spans and seat preferences. It’s always great to incorporate time for spontaneous stops and breaks!
I had a snack bag with a bunch of pre-packaged snacks ready to go. I kept them all in an easy access bag and it kept big bags from getting dumped.
Great tips for the road trip that we all need to take this summer. It is best to involve the kids in all the choices of places to go and what they wear.
These sound like some great tips! A road trip can be such hard work and so keeping everyone happy is a big thing, I love the kindle for kids such a good idea.
These are all great pieces of advice. When my kids were little, there were no tablets or smartphones to keep them busy while we went on a road trip. We did have a portable CD player so they can watch movies. We also packed drawing pads and crayons so they can make “masterpieces.”
These are awesome tips! Snacks and entertainment always work for my kids.
Very awesome tips for families who are planning to go on a road trip this summer! It’s really important that you have everything you need and when you have the kids with you, entertainment and snacks are a must!
I think letting the kids pack their own bag is a good tips. Plus it will help them as an adult do you know how many adults I know still dont know how to compact their luggage properly?
I like these ideas and I could definitely use a fun family road trip sometime this summer. There are so many places I want to visit.
I think these are all such really good tips. Road trips are always the best with family. We usually take something with to keep the kids busy and we always have snacks available too.
We’re actually going on a roadtrip really soon so these are tips I’ll have to take into consideration. That tablet is definitely something I will check out with my husband! My son would love it.
We have the Kindles for travel and they are a necessity! We hit the road here again soon and can’t wait!
This year we let our kids help pick our vacation destination with some parameters. I think it is going to help us all have a really fun time!
I take a lot of road trips with the family and it can get a little crazy! I’m definitely going to try out these tips for the next trip we take.
We’ve been letting (making) our girls pack their own bags for a while now. That way if something is forgotten they can’t blame us!
These are all great tips. We will be taking a couple of road trips this summer.
It’s been a while since we’ve taken a road trip, but I agree with all of these tips! Stopping for lunch at a place they can run and play was really helpful too!
The tips are excellent and must work effectively for all kids.
Have you ever been on a road trip with another family? We have, and these weren’t kids who drove me up the wall, but our men. They were constantly exceeding the speed limits trying to outdrive one another. At first, it was even funny, but then my kids and myself grew more and more nervous. We were lucky not to get fined. Will you suggest any kind of sane side-entertainment suitable for my dearest adventurous driver?
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