To say I am a road trip warrior is no exaggeration. Road trips? I got those down to a science. I have been schlepping my kids back and forth on twelve-hour car rides since they were infants, many times solo.

I’ve seen it all! The screaming, yelling, puking, “I HAVE TO PEE NOW!”, “Are we THERE yet?” “SHE WON’T STOP LOOKING AT ME!”

Even with these potentially mind-numbing experiences, I’m here to tell you, road trips with kids can be some of the best times ever. Before you get in the car to travel, let’s talk about things that will your life easier when taking road trips with kids.

Here are my top tips for taking road trips with kids without screaming that you are going to pull this car over.

1. Have your kids make a ‘top 3’ carry-on list.

Yes, tell them to pack three things that they really love and play with. This does two things: it sets the expectation that those are what your kid will be expected to play with and it gives them a choice. (It stops arguments dead in their tracks. “You picked it!”) I usually say the three things can be no bigger than your hand.

2. Have a “new thing” every hour or so.

This may be a lollipop, stickers, gel pens and notebooks or anything little. When it comes to road trips, we like to celebrate our of successful behaviors with a planned treat. Indulgent, you say? I think more budget-focused. Pre-planning cuts down on gas station impulse buys that break your budget AND slow down your progress. If they know to expect something regularly, they’ll stop asking if you’re there yet, too! When my kids were smaller, I actually brought our kitchen timer in the car and set it so they wouldn’t ask me every five minutes if we were there yet…and so I wouldn’t forget to dole out the “new thing”.

3. Pull up some podcasts or get an audio book.

Can’t fit anything else in your car, but you need to entertain the kids? How about someone filing their ears with an amazing story? Had I known it was going to take us that long to read The Hobbit, I would have queued that book up for a car ride. Learn from my mistakes. If there is a kid’s movie coming out that is based on a book, a road trip is a great time to listen first and compare. Personally, I always make my kids read the book before we go to the movie, so they are always super excited to listen to it and get it done in the car. Maybe you consider going to see the movie when you get to your destination?

4. Take away electronics/screen the week before.

Yup, a whole week. I know, I know, but if you do this, they won’t be bored when you hand them back in the car. Now, if you know me at all, you know I dislike screens at home, but in a twelve-hour road trip situation, I am willing to compromise our normal routine with screens. They do get put away in a bag when we get to our destination and they don’t come out again until the way home. But that’s just me. You do what works for you.

5. When one has to go, we all get out.

Yes, all of us and we all try. I have given in once or twice and let one kiddo skip someone else’s potty break but I always get burned in the end. Sometimes in as little as ten minutes down the road. There’s nothing bad about getting out, taking some deep breaths and stretching your legs, regardless of the need to “go”. It just resets everything when you get back in. I never regret getting making a quick potty stop.

6. Stop at places you know have multiple bathroom stalls.

We all love Starbucks, but they only ever have one stall bathrooms and if there are five of you, like there are for me, one-stall bathrooms slow you down to a snail-pace. And if you have a jam-packed Starbucks like the one near me, you are never getting out of there. You can always go through a drive-through for coffee. Make potty breaks efficient. 

7. Bring sticky notes and something to write with.

Use the sticky notes as ways to notice kind and grateful car behavior. All family members can notice and write down kindnesses and stick them on car windows, or as we do, bring a notebook and stick them in. This will boost the happy neurotransmitters needed to make it twelve hours on the road together. I’m all about brain boosting and brain boosting is necessary for long trips. I like to read them or have someone else read them on the hour before then next “new thing” comes out. I also save them as keepsakes for our family vacation photo books. I am not good about scrap-booking or making my albums super detailed, but just sticking or taping down the sticky note helps me remember our awesome time in the car.

8. Plan some screen break games.

Before we get our next “new thing”, we take a break from screens and play a game. I made one specifically to boost some road trip kindness. I started this years ago when my kids were small and now they look forward to it. In fact, it has become our tradition every time we go road trippin’!

So from my family to yours, may the road rise up to meet you and may kindness guide your way. Feel free to print this out and boost kindness in your car while cutting down on those crabbies.

If you want to keep a stash of road trip games, there’s always magnetic hangman, magnetic tangrams (so fun) or get the whole car (minus the driver) playing magnetic Bingo!