Travelling with Kids

With a bit of know-how and sprinkle of good luck, travelling with children needn't be a headache.

After 3 perfect little travellers, came Summer, the not so perfect little traveller. We couldn't drive down the road for 10 minutes before she would go into meltdown, and it wasn't pleasant for anyone in the car, hence we used to avoid travelling as much as possible.

The drive from A to B became a challenge, and after a lot of patience and experience, she is not so bad now, and I think we finally managed to master it. The past few months we've managed a few long trips with no tears, and no more headaches. Over the past couple of years, we've final mastered a few different road trip activities for traveling with Kids.

Below are my ideas of lightweight, travel-friendly amusements that we found helped us on our car journeys. The idea is it has to be entertaining but portable for the kids to enjoy.

-Pillows and blankets: I've found if they can snugly up, get comfy, they will more likely doze off to sleep. Pillows and lightweight blankets are a must.

-Coloring pad and crayons: These keep the kids busy for a short period during the journey, but it offers fun and contributes to the other activities - colouring offers a bit of versatile during the trip.

-Books: I recommend books specifically that have interactive features, such as pop-up flaps, which are very popular with younger pre-readers who might not sit still for a whole story otherwise. For the older children, Where's Wally is a fun choice, this keeps the boys content for a while.

-Smartphone/Tablet:  If you have a smartphone, it's easy to download free children's games to amuse the kids of all ages wherever you and your phone/tablet are. 

-Snacks: plenty of snacks keep them content, although, I avoid too much water/juice on the journey - but making sure they are well hydrated at the same time, otherwise the wee stops are relentless. 

-Have some games in mind: Eye Spy is a great one that keeps the kids entertained for ages. Or, my boys play Yellow Car - first one to spot the yellow car simple as that, although, they do change the colour now and then - it is as rubbish as it sounds, but it keeps them entertained so I am not complaining.

What are you tips for keeping the kids entertained on road trips?