10 Easy Tips for a Happy Family Road Trip

Last year my family took six, successful and fun road trips! Five of those were me solo parenting with my two kids. It was the most exciting summer of our lives to date. This coming summer is looking just as exciting! Over the course of these trips I have learned many lessons to make each trip a little bit better. These ten things I will use with my kids every trip until our next phase of parenting. 

1. Car potty: Always have a car potty with bag liners. For some, stopping at rest stops is no big deal. However, when I am outnumbered, in a place that people encourage me to avoid … I do just that. Avoid them. We purchased a foldable potty, that we slip right under the driver side seat. When it is needed, we slide the driver’s seat all the way forward giving as much space as possible, set it up, once done being use we clean and put it back under the seat.  Our favorite type of foldable car potty is linked here. The one we have, we have owned for years so it is no longer in stock. 
2. Extra Time: We allotted hours of extra time. This takes the stress out of traffic, needing to stop for potty breaks or just seeing something cool that you want to visit. Like the world’s largest loon statue or a beautiful outlook you didn’t know was going to be on your route. This give you the opportunity to enjoy the moment, savor the memories being made and experience the beautiful world around you. Not sure where to start? National Geographic has you covered! 100 drives, 5,000 ideas
3. Plan stops: I searched along routes ahead of time for parks, restaurants, museums etc for safe, exciting places along our route. Giving us something to look forward to. Making the 8 hour drive feel less daunting because it is broken up in chunks. Not sure where to start? National Geographic has you covered! 100 drives, 5,000 ideas
4. Road Trip Toys: I have a bag of toys that only come out for long road trips in the car. These toys have no tiny parts, are something the kids can do independently and I try to make them involve the world around them. I try to provide open endend toys, variety and things that encourage them to look out the window and experience what is around us. I am not going to pretend that a tablet doesn’t come out now and then. Especially if it is dark out, we are in traffic or I just need a moment to listen to my GPS… or, Lord help me, an actual map when there is no signal. Some of our favorites, or ones similar for older children, are linked here. Road trip bingo, national park word search puzzle, magnet boxes, sketch pads and journals.
5. Involve Kids: Let your child(ren) research a destination. This makes them feel involved in the learning, the experiencing and the excitement of the trip. Last year our five year old researched the Smokey Mountains and stops along the route. She picked some really impressive places! Put a limit to spending, miles of course etc. Once a spot is chosen, have them research that spot! What is there to do, where is there to eat, when does it open, when does it close etc. This helps them understand how much work goes into planning a trip, also helps them feel more connected to the trip and the memories. One of our favorite guides that our Daughter started with is linked here. Bonus prepping, we curate playlists for each day! My parents had us research locations, tourist spots etc for trips and I still remember the thrill of feeling in charge and the excitement of leading everyone through my plan! One book our Older enjoys for national parks is linked here
6. Ouch pouch! This is it’s own bag for medicines taken daily, bandaids, bug spray, tweezers, sun screen, aloe, life  vac etc. The med kit so to speak. Not just a first aid kit but all your medical essentials. I suggest putting in anything and everything. We have needed things I never saw coming and I am glad I over prepared. This bag should not go in a suitcase because it needs to be accessible at all times. We put ours under the passenger seat. Yes, we forget to bring it in at every hotel and cabin, so we ended up running back out to the car at bed time for our daughter’s asthma medication, or when a bandaid is need.  Having it accessible all day every day made those extra steps worth it. We were given an ouch pouch by a friend for our baby shower and it has seen thousands of miles and so many destinations! One like ours linked here. 
7. Snacks: Having healthy, easily accessible and organized snacks for the road helps avoid the extra money spent and extra sugar consumed at gas station stops. Those can be fun and we splurge once in a while but having a plan ahead of time helps avoid the issue. It also helps you feel at ease knowing you don’t need to stop unless you have too! Our favorite snack organizers are linked here. The collapsible feature is important for itnto fit in different places based on different needs. We typical use their bentgo boxes as a snackle box.  If were were eto buy new here is the shape I would be looking at. Our go to Bentgo for the kids is linked here   
8. Traditions: Start a new tradition on your next trip. Maybe take a photo at each spot in the same pose so you can see the age and growth progression trip after trip. If  you can swing it try getting a post card from each stop. For us, we get an ornament at each major stop  (sometimes the small ones too if it feels right!). It gives everyone something to look back on and talk about the trip, the memories and the excitement you felt then! 
9. Ponchos: I bought a set of rain ponchos and put them in our diaper bag/hiking bag/ each place for everything to be held.  On our first trip. We didn’t use them till the 6th. But I am so glad we had them, easily accessible and it saved us from a  day full of soggy clothes in the car after our first stop on a long day of driving. We dried them out  best we could folded them and placed them between two suitcases and we used them again the next day. Small cost, little space but big win! 
10. Give a trusted family member your itinerary and location Especially if you are solo parents on the trip. They can see where you are on the list and know if you are off track.  My sister and Sister in law have a to the minute list of where we will be and by when. If we stop somewhere I tell them. An extra layer of security in a crazy world. Life 360 has portable trackers now. We have a similar product to this one 

We love road trips and have learned a lot so far. We encourage each of you to get out there, hit the open road and explore the world. It is not only their childhood, it is also your parenting experience. Happy traveling!