Going on a summer road trip is a tradition in my family. We like to get moving anywhere and everywhere, even if we aren’t planning on moving there, it’s always fun to visit new destinations on an old fashioned summer road trip. Just like making a successful family move, making a successful family road trip depends on a lot of preparation and keeping your kids involved!
Map out your destinations for your road trip. Before you get moving anywhere, figure out where you plan to get moving to on your road trip! There are so many sights on a family road trip to see from green cities to national parks. Consider taking a tour of the West Coast or making a Mid West summer road trip!
Once you’ve figured out your road trip plan, get your kids involved! Let them pick a destination to learn about. It gets them excited about the road trip, and they can be your go-to-guide for that stop!
Plan for family fun at road trip pit stops. Get moving to a park at a rest stop and stretch your legs! Prepare a picnic, and then spend the afternoon moving in the sunshine. Take out a Frisbee, some balls, or perhaps some nerf guns for family fun.
Bring lots of entertainment for the kids! A summer road trip usually requires quite a bit of driving, so it’s important to keep your restless kids entertained. Break out the DVDs. Invest in a portable DVD player if your car is not equipped with one. Bring along books, games, decks of cards, simple arts and crafts. At every road trip rest stop, have a wrapped new book or activity book and place the present on the kid’s seat. It’ll be an exciting gift that’ll keep them excited for every new destination on the road trip! (Old fashioned car games are always a hit on our family road trips!)
A hunger free kid is a happy kid on a road trip. Prepare healthy snacks in a cooler for the road trip. Easy to eat treats like grapes, carrots, string cheese, along with small snack size packs of crackers and cookies and trail mix. Another idea is a loaf of bread with jars of peanut butter and jelly or honey. Pack items like utensils, napkins, and plastic bags in a cooler. Pack reusable bottles to pour water and powder to make juice. (Juice boxes can often leak or explode.) Just because you’re on the road doesn’t mean you have to eat badly on your family road trip!
It’s important to have these items on hand during the summer road trip: Kleenex, hand sanitizer, baby wipes, extra zip lock bags, medications, personal pillows, walking shoes, and a sweater and rain jacket. It’s also important to bring an emergency kit in case anything happens on the road trip. Lots of unexpected things can happen on a family road trip.
And those are my tips for making a successful summer family road trip! I’d love to hear about all your moving adventures on your summer family road trip in the comments below!