Family travel - road trip tips

Getting away from it all. That’d be nice, wouldn’t it? Of course, when you take a family road trip, you don’t so much get away from it all as you do take it all with you (ha!). Assuming you enjoy family time, you might need some family travel tips. Because if there’s one thing that’s guaranteed with family long-distance drives, it’s fallouts and arguments where the planning and structure of the trip leave people bored and frustrated.

Of course, it’s worth mentioning that a road trip can involve a long stop off at a destination, making the whole journey a trip toward something, rather than just a drive out to several forgettable overnight stops. Check out a holiday park, like Cape Paterson Holiday Park, for example, and have yourself a child-friendly blast.

But if you do have your heart set on filling your tank and hitting the open road, just for the sake of spending quality time together in the backyard of your own country, perhaps take the following advice to heart…

Portable chargers. Extra chargers. And chargers for those chargers.

Life is online and it doesn’t stop just because you’re four hours away choosing which drive-thru gets the lucky chance to deal with your attack of the munchies. Not only do you need your phone to be charged and operational in case you break down, but your kids will need entertainment in the back of the car.

Download as many TV shows, movies, and games as you can to their devices and keep those devices charged. And make sure everyone has headphones. It’s the only surefire way to ensure that everyone feels they have their own space. It won’t stop people from feeling restless forever, but it’ll help prevent any bickering.

Snacks. Snacks as far as the eye can see.

Snacks keep people’s blood sugar levels up. The rich flavours in chocolate also release serotonin, the feel-good hormone. You’ll never see any angry person with chocolate around their mouth. It’s not healthy, of course. But bribing your cooped-up family into positive emotions using sugary treats as a pacifier is a fast way to grab an extra half hour of peace.

Travel games

Sometimes kids run out of ways to entertain themselves. Even with a world of digital content at their fingertips, they find ways to declare that they are bored. It’s quite astounding, but anyone with children knows that it’s a perennial problem when it comes to road trips. You need backup. And that backup is travel games. Here’s one you might like...

Not everybody enjoys the licence plate game. Spotting different types of plates can get old fast. Instead, draw up a treasure hunt before you leave. Ask your kids to find someone wearing something stripey. Or a dog on a red lead. Or a shop with a blue sign. Ask them to find birds flying in a V formation. Or someone on a skateboard. A 20-strong list with prizes to be won is a great way to cure any onboard boredom.