We’ve done our fair share of road trips with a toddler. Both as a way to get from Point A to Point B, and as a trip in itself… like in a campervan around New Zealand. It took some time, patience, and effort to develop strategies that work well for the whole family.
Hopefully I can save you some of that trial and error with these 9 tips for a successful road trip with a toddler:
- Take it Slow
- Plan Kid-Friendly Stops
- Drive During Naptimes
- Give in to TV
- Have Some Backup Entertainment
- Pack Your Own Food
- Book Accommodation with a Kitchen
- Be Prepared for the Mess
- Have Fun! Seriously 🙂
Toddler Road Trip Tip #1: Take it Slow
If time allows, don’t set your expectations too high for how far you’ll make it in one day. We actually found that somewhere around 5 hours of driving per day was kind of our sweet spot. Anything more than that had us all cranky, antsy, and regretting our decisions.
If you aren’t used to road trips with toddlers, 5 hours may seem like kind of a joke goal to you. I mean, as a couple, that’s hardly even a road trip. That’s just a long drive with a bathroom break in the middle.
But your toddler is not an adult. He isn’t used to sitting all day. She needs more breaks and more entertainment. Don’t expect your toddler to act like an adult. Expect your toddler to act like a child and plan accordingly.
Our ideal road trip would go like this…
- Drive 1.5-2 hours while Elsie watches a movie.
- Break for an hour or two. We all run around, eat something, go to the bathroom, etc.
- Drive 1.5-2 hours while Elsie takes a nap.
- Break for an hour or two. We all run around, eat something, go to the bathroom, etc.
- Drive 1.5-2 hours while Elsie watches a movie.
- Arrive at that night’s destination
In this instance, we drove anywhere from 4.5-6 hours, but it took being on the road anywhere from 7.5-10 hours. And everyone stayed happy. And we weren’t dreading the next day’s drive. And we weren’t a complete disaster of moods when we arrived at our destination.
Toddler Road Trip Tip #2: Plan Kid-Friendly Stops
A quick walk around the gas station convenience store may be enough to rejuvenate you for another couple of hours on the road… but that’s not enough for a toddler.
We’ve found the most success with taking breaks for hikes and playgrounds. Both of these stops allow kids to just be kids. No wrangling them through the aisles. No shushing them as they release pent up energy at the cash register.
Just let them go. Plan to stop for a while. Plan for them to get dirty. And everyone will be happier.
There are two ways to plan these stops… Ahead of time before your road trip even begins, or wing it as you go.
If you plan ahead of time, you can find some worthy stops you may have otherwise passed by. We’ve found some fun waterfalls and other gems that took us out of our way for 10-20 minutes, but were so worth it in the end.
The downside of planning ahead of time is if the timing of naps, traffic, when you get going in the morning, etc. don’t happen on schedule. You may find yourself pushing everyone’s tolerance levels in the car just to get to your chosen hike or playground.
If you wing it as you go, you could find yourself floundering in some areas to find a suitable stop. Or you might not have service to even research where you could stop. But it also allows you to go with the flow of how the day’s going a bit more.
We usually do a mix of the two. We have a few ideas picked out along the way. Based on nap schedules, the weather, and how everyone is feeling, we then pick which stop makes sense next as we go.
Does it take a bit of planning and research? Yes. But I’m a planner and enjoy the process. If that’s not you, then winging it works well, too.
It isn’t applicable everywhere, but in some places I’ve used the free app Playground Buddy to help find our playground stops. It opens up an interactive map of where you are or where you’re going.
App users have indicated where playgrounds are in the area and some have uploaded pictures of what to expect at that playground. There are icons that tell you whether the playground has amenities like bathrooms and picnic tables.
It’s always worth checking! It proved to be especially useful on our road trip through New Zealand.
Toddler Road Trip Tip #3: Drive During Naptimes
This may go without saying, but driving through naps is pretty much a necessity. Having a sleeping toddler in the backseat for an hour is almost the same as magically (and peacefully) transporting yourself from Point A to Point B.
Turn off the movies. Have silence in the front seat for a bit. And let the drone of the road lull your toddler off to sleep.
Toddler Road Trip Tip #4: Give in to TV
Do I want my daughter having hours of screentime as a daily habit? No. But do I want a peaceful road trip? Yep!
Except for during naptime, my daughter gets as much tv time as she wants on road trips. She sometimes gets bored with it, actually. She asks for us to turn it off, and she happily plays with her toys in the backseat.
If you plan fun stops like hikes and playgrounds, your toddler won’t mind switching off the movie to go swing for a bit. They’ve been cooped up in the car for hours. Their little bodies are itching to move!
I’ve found the library to be an invaluable resource for having a fresh stock of movies on road trips. You don’t need to download a million movies and shows in hopes that they’ll be interested. And if they usually watch a specific show on your tv (hello, Paw Patrol!), your library likely has some DVD collections with episodes of that show.
A bit of a warning about kid’s library DVDs, though. They may not work. Kids have handled them. There may be scratches. You may lose certain scenes. But in my experience, the kids are a lot less bothered by this than adults. My point? Don’t bank on any one DVD to get you through.
Oh, and don’t forget the headphones! As good as it is, you don’t want to be listening to Frozen on repeat for days on end! We’ve had these cute tiger headphones for years. They work great, Elsie finds them comfortable, and they’ve lasted for a long time.
Pro tip for headphones: Put the headphones at their max volume and then adjust the tv volume. That way, there’s no accidental blasting of the ear drums if your kids decide to mess with the headphone volume control. If they mess with it at all, the only option is to turn the volume down.
Toddler Road Trip Tip #5: Have Some Backup Entertainment
It may surprise you, but sometimes the tv isn’t the magic bullet you had hoped for. You may need some backup entertainment options with you.
This could be something as simple as having some kids songs on hand. In our house, a Frozen CD can take us just about anywhere!
Other families swear by kids podcasts. We like to sing the Cocomelon song Are We There Yet? Or play a game of I Spy.
I don't like buying junk that will just end up in a landfill, but things like stickers or a small notebook for doodling can go a long way. You could also try some small magnets and a mini whiteboard.
On our most recent trip, Elsie was a bit older (4), and we got her this lap tray that buckles around her car seat. The lap tray was a lifesaver! The tray is a whiteboard, so she could doodle and color whenever she wanted. We just kept markers and the eraser in the convenient pocket on the side.
The tray also provided for a nicer surface for eating and stickering. We got Elsie this Melissa and Doug Reusable Sticker Book. We let her pick it out at the store, but she wasn't allowed to play with it until our "long car ride". She studied the packaging every single day for a week before we left for our trip. Once on the trip, she barely played with anything else for 15 hours!
Don’t forget about yourself! While the kids are watching their movies, what are the two of you doing in the front seat? Road trips are an amazing time to have meaningful chats, plan for the future, and really get into conversations you’re usually too busy or tired to have.
Don’t feel like talking? We love listening to podcasts together. The Rich Roll Podcast is one that we often both enjoy. Download a number of options before your trip. You never really know what mood you’ll be in when the opportunity strikes.
Toddler Road Trip Tip #6: Pack Your Own Food
Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks. Pack it all if you can. It just makes everyone happier and your road trip easier.
Which of these scenarios would you prefer?
Here’s Lunch Option #1: You can run into Subway, figure out what everyone wants, wrangle the kids as the sandwiches are made, try to get everyone to sit at a table and not make a huge mess of the place, pay way too much for a small baggie of chips, and then pile everyone back into the car, feeling frazzled and wondering if you actually tasted any of your meal.
Here’s Lunch Option #2: You pull up at a playground. The kids run off to play and release some of their pent up energy. You get the cooler out of the car, prepare the sandwiches (or whatever you’re eating), and call the kids over to eat. When they’re done eating, they’re free to go back and play rather than having to sit nicely for everyone to finish their meal. As they run around some more, you clean up. Everyone piles back into the car feeling satisfied and ready to relax for the next leg of the drive.
Am I idealizing a bit? Maybe. But you get the point.
Toddler Road Trip Tip #7: Book Accommodation With a Kitchen
There’s more to a road trip than what happens on the road. Where you spend the night can also make a difference in everyone’s overall happiness during the trip as a whole.
One of the reasons I recommend booking accommodations with a kitchen goes along with my previous point. Packing your own food.
When you arrive at your destination for the night, the kids can just play and be themselves as you prepare dinner. It also allows them to get to know the space a bit before you expect them to sleep there.
I know, the thought of cooking a meal doesn’t always sound enticing after a day on the road, but you don’t need to get complicated. You can always prepare and freeze something like pasta sauce ahead of time. When you arrive, all you have to do is heat up the sauce and cook some noodles. For some more ideas of easy vegan meals you can make anywhere, check out the post Vegan Travel Food: Pro Tips and Easy Meals You Can Make Anywhere.
Let’s not forget about the money you’ll save. Even though Airbnbs with a kitchen may cost a bit more per night, you’ll definitely save if you aren’t eating out. And plus, the price for sanity is invaluable.
Toddler Road Trip Tip #8: Be Prepared for the Mess
Especially with playground and hiking stops, mess is inevitable. If you’re prepared, though, the mess will create less stress.
- Line your seats with towels if you need to.
- No matter what, bring towels with you.
- Bring changes of clothes
- Have a place (like plastic bags) for dirty shoes
- Have trash bags ready for food wrappers, tissues, etc.
- Dress the kids in “travel clothes” you don’t mind getting dirty
- Find out ahead of time if you’ll need motion sickness meds
- Just in case, have somewhere other than the carseat for the puke to go
Toddler Road Trip Tip #9: Have Fun! Seriously 🙂
Take it slow. Find some fun things to do along the way. Enjoy being in the car with nothing to do but have quality time with your family. Embrace the journey, not just the destination.
Just like your normal everyday life, it won’t all be fun. But make room for those fun moments, and you’ll look back on your family road trip fondly.
So what are your road trip tips? What has worked best for you and your family? Let me know in the comments below!
