OK, the title of this Tuesday Tips might be slightly exaggerated, but really — I’m not the biggest fan of long car journeys. And especially not with children! I feel like a snack service, entertainment centre and traffic control centre all in one, and that for a very. long. time.
Soon we’ll have another lengthy car journey ahead of us — we’ll be driving to the Loire Valley in France for a fun week of camping with Emilie and her girls, and afterwards we’ll continue our trip to the Cantal as usual. So not a bad time to pen down some tips to make long car journeys with children as pleasurable as possible! (And of course, I’m hoping for your added tips and tricks to make our journey easier…) Here goes!
- With smaller children, it’s a good idea to plan (part of) your journey during their nap time.
- Bring baby wipes for sticky hands and faces etc (preferably non-scented ones if you’re sensitive to smells with regards to car sickness)
- Bring some plastic bags for trash.
- Bring plenty of water in refillable bottles. I like to give each of my kids their own bottle.
- Bring enough snacks (nuts, easy-to-eat fruits like grapes, and a few little sandwiches).
- Bring audio books on Ipods with headphones. My kids are happily entertained for hours with these. You can also think about making a playlist for the whole family to enjoy — we love sing-alongs to kill the time in our car!
- Bring (chapter) books for who reads, but only if they don’t get car sick (my kids are ok to read on straight highways)
- Bring notebooks with pens, or a travel journal to work in on the road. These
are great too.
- Bring neck pillows and thin sheets — great to use as blankets or as a sun shade.
- For the last few hours, you can maybe play a fun film on an Ipad or car video set (with headphones).
- For my own entertainment during the hours I’m not driving myself, I like to bring some crochet or knitting.
are great too.That’s it!! Wish me luck for in a few weeks… ; ) And as always, all tips and tricks are very, very welcome!
xxx Esther