How to keep the kids entertained on the road
Are the kids joining you on your next caravan or motorhome adventure? It’s likely that the long journey won’t be their favourite part of the holiday. So, to keep the little ones entertained while you’re on the road, we’ve put together some ideas to make road trips more fun.
Games
There are lots of games that you can play while you’re travelling with kids. You could choose a car brand or colour, count how many of that type you spot, and the person with the highest spots wins.
Is it raining? Get the kids to pick a water droplet at the top of the window and the one that reaches the bottom of the window first wins. There’s always a traditional game of ‘I Spy’ - made more challenging by being on the move.
To kill more time, try the alphabet game. This is where you go through the alphabet to list things like fruit, countries, bands or books that begin with each letter. There’s also the continuous story game where each person adds the next sentence onto a story. It’s a fun way to use your imagination and an opportunity to be a bit silly.
From car bingo to Uno, card games are a classic. Make your own bingo cards and cross off destinations, signs, emergency vehicles or animals until the kids can say ‘bingo!’
If all else fails, try the quiet game. See who can stay silent the longest and you might get chance to enjoy 30 seconds of quiet time.
Gadgets
If your little ones are lucky enough to own their own games consoles, why not take them along with you? If you’d prefer not to hear their beeps, invest in headphones for them. Remember to pack spare batteries or a charger to make sure they can play their games on the journey home too.
Download some films onto their tablets and keep them busy for hours on end. Plus, watching a film is likely to make them sleepy. Two kids? Don’t forget the headphone splitters.
Alternatively, you could all listen to an audiobook or children’s podcast together using Android Auto or Apple CarPlay.
If they’re likely to get restless, try something a little more active. Give them a camera so they can take pictures of their journey and create a scrapbook of photographs when they get home.
Small toys
If there’s one thing parents dread to hear on long car journeys, it’s ‘are we there yet?’ Those four words are a sure-fire sign that the kids are fed up. Keep a few small toys to one side for this very moment.
Whether it’s a magnetic doodle pad, a sensory toy, or a travel board game, new toys will keep the children occupied. You could even wrap them up for that extra layer of excitement.
Car crafts
Pack a colouring book, crayons/felt tip pens and some sticky tape and suggest creating some artwork to stick on their window. Post it notes are good for this too.
If you’d like to add an educational element to the journey, give the kids a map. You can get them to follow your route, circle the landmarks they pass, and write something about them.
Sticker books could also be perfect for a screen-free car journey. From tractors and dinosaurs to farm animals and Disney characters, there’s a sticker book out there for every child.
Make a memory book
This can start even before you set off. Get the children to keep an account of every day of their holiday. Begin with packing, then the journey, and what they do each day from then on. Add photos too.
Creating a lovely memory book could also come in handy if the kids have to do a school project on what they did over the holidays.
If all else fails, you can always resort to tasty treats and a good old-fashioned sing-along!
Correct at the time of publication. Information in this article has been gathered from various sources, therefore Safeguard cannot be held responsible for any view or opinion expressed herein.
