Plan Ahead for Pleasant Family Road Trips |
Now that summer has arrived, many of us will be planning our vacations with our families, and in Canada, that often includes a road trip out of town or to one of our neighboring provinces. Getaways with the kids are great but sometimes the family car trip can be a source of stress for many parents, but it doesn‚t have to be that way - smart planning can make the difference between having a miserable or enjoyable experience.
One of the first steps in keeping your kids amused on the road is to include them in planning the trip. Start by picking up a map that covers both your departure and arrival points. Sit down with your children and make a plan of what route you will be taking, and towns that you will be passing through -when en route, get the kids to highlight those places on the map.
Another great pastime for the kids while traveling is keeping a journal of the trip. Not only is this a nice memento for everyone to enjoy after the vacation is over, but it is also a nice summer enrichment project for the kids. Provide them with a large scrapbook or notebook, tape and crayons. Suggest they start a collection of special keepsakes of their journey such as hand drawn pictures of places they‚ve seen, postcards, restaurant placemats, a roadside rock, souvenirs and special tokens along the way. Have the children paste their mementos in their scrapbook while driving, and at the end of the day, encourage them to write a short story in their journal about their adventure.
Books on tape and music can provide hours of enjoyment for the entire family and can be borrowed at the Free Public Library. If your family members don‚t agree on what to listen to, borrow a couple of walkmans from friends so the children can listen to music or audiotapes of their choice. If this is not an option, have everyone write down their favorite songs on a piece of paper, toss them into a container, and have random draws of what tape to listen to along the way.
Items such as play dough, playing cards, stickers, puzzles, activity books and mini travel games are available at a very low cost at your local dollar store or can be borrowed from friends, this will give young people hours of enjoyment. You can use plastic serving trays as make shift activity tables for these games. Try innovative incentives for really long car rides such as offering a different toy to play with for every half hour that the kids get along with each other.
If you don‚t have the time or budget to pick up travel games, there are many old-fashioned car games that work well for young people of all ages. For instance, have a Car Scavenger Hunt before leaving on your trip, list several sites or points of interest that you will be driving past on an index card. Give your children the list, and have them try to spot those locations along the way. Or play games such as „Word Find‰, simply think of a word and ask your children to spot that word on a billboard or sign on the side of the highway.
After driving for several hours, you will probably be getting anxious to reach your destination, but children travel much better if they have a chance to stop every couple of hours to stretch their legs and blow off steam. Many roadside stops are well equipped for families, and offer picnic sites and playground facilities. Pack a small cooler with cold drinks, fresh drinking water, and light nutritious snacks. Try to avoid packing junk food that doesn‚t sit well while traveling, and can ruin everyone‚s appetite for meal stops. Keeping snacks light and simple such as chopped veggies, fruit or cheese and crackers will keep everyone feeling fresh and in better cheer for the long drive.
If your trip requires an over night stop, try to book accommodations that offer some sort of recreational or play area for children. After being confined to a car all day, the children will need an opportunity to release built up energy. Some parents find that if they allow the children to stay up past their bedtime, they will take longer naps in the car the next day. Of course, this will depend on your child‚s routine and flexibility for some of us it may mean a cranky youngster for the ride. If your children tend to nap in the car, bring their favorite stuffed animals along for their comfort, they will sleep much sounder.
On a final note, always remember to buckle up, and avoid letting your children play with sharp or pointed objects or toys that could cause serious harm in the event of an impact. And keep in mind, with a little planning you can also enjoy the journey, not just the destination!
Anne Marie Robichaud is a Mom and staff writer for Canadian Parents Online. If you have comments or suggestions please feel free to contact Anne.
