We’ve been doing road trips as a family since our oldest was three weeks old, so we’ve had our fair share of amazing and not-so-great experiences. Especially for families that need to stick to a budget for vacation or if you just want to explore closer to home without flights, knowing how to plan road trips with kids is a great skill that will make family travel together really fun for years. We’re going to share our best tips for planning driving vacations with kids.
When you think about how to plan a road trip with kids, you’re probably wondering how to make it fun to be in the car for a long time as well as how to make sure your road trip stops are worthwhile. We’re going to talk about all of that and make it easy to put together good road trip plans that are fun from your door to your destination. If you have any questions about our tips or need additional suggestions, please leave a comment or send us a note. We’re always happy to share more and help you plan a great road tip!
How To Plan A Road Trip With Kids
Not everyone gets excited to go on a road trip, least of all kids. Some parents stress out because their kids are so addicted to technology that they will have a meltdown being on the road instead of in front of a screen, but when you plan a fun road trip, it can be a great break for everyone. Bringing technology to be used sparingly is a tool that can make a road trip easy for everyone involved. Between planning in-car activities and things to do at your different stops and overnights, a road trip can be such a smooth family vacation.
Some things we try to do when we’re planning a road trip is to limit our daily time in the car and maximize our time where we have our overnights planned. This makes it so people don’t go stir crazy and get cranky, as well as you get to actually be a part of the places you’re visiting. Keeping the fun going in a fluid, relaxing way helps to minimize frustrations or wasted time.
Are Family Road Trips Good For Kids
Family road trips are great for kids, especially when they’re a part of the planning process. Incorporating your family’s interests in the vacation plan is a great way to make everyone feel invested and want to participate fully in your trip. It’s a great way to make everyone feel like their opinions are valued and build up confidence as a member of the family.
Something that kids initially turn their noses up at on road trips, and I think this applies to most kids, is that road tripping included the chance to see all sorts of history. When our kids were younger they could not have cared less about history and seeing old buildings or hearing the stories of why things are the way they are… but through repeated exposure to history and learning how to talk about historic events and places in a way that the kids connect with, that’s when road trips started to be more fun and interesting. They’ve grown as people though family road trips.
What Are The Benefits Of Road Trips With Kids
You just have to know that road trips as a family does more than just sate the parental need to make memories, but there are parts of your kids’ lives that will be positively shaped by the process and experience. While it could be all fun and games, there are some developmental bonuses to long car trips together.
Educational Benefits
There’s nothing quite like driving through all kinds of landscapes, towns and habitats to put the world into perspective in terms of how diverse it all is. As I think to our family road trips to places like Yellowstone National Park or the National Parks of California, it’s fascinating to see how you go through tiny, seemingly poor farming communities and then you’re amidst the peak of luxury tourism all in a day of a road trip to National Parks. You see how farmland shapes communities and then how the mountains are the peak of conservation efforts. Traveling by car demonstrates so much of what makes a region what it is and really brings kids into the bigger picture of where they live.
We always talk with our kids about why we make specific travel decisions, both on flying trips and family road trips, and oftentimes these conversations lead to talking about budgeting. Road trips tend to be more budget friendly for families than flying everyone to a destination, so that naturally paves the way to talk to kids about fiscal responsibility in light of something they enjoy and are actively experiencing: vacation.
Social and Emotional Growth
Living in a world of technology and instant gratification, some kids are impatient or have very shortened attention spans compared to what parents often think they should have. There’s nothing like being STUCK in a car and having to connect with the people in close proximity to you to help you understand others, even if you don’t realize that’s happening. I know that not every bit of a long road trip is going to be full of genius conversation that fosters emotional growth, but family vacation 100% teaches kids about patience for others, sharing interests and being a part of a group. Yes, a road trip with kids is absolutely a group project.
Family Bonding
Even as a parent I despise the term “family bonding” but it is what it is, and as much as I dislike the words, I love the way our relationships change and grow through our travels. Being on a road trip with kids and exploring new places together allows everyone to have fresh eyes together and shape each other’s memories, both good and bad. Taking breaks from the driving to hike or take pictures at the weird roadside attractions you are going past (the Florida Keys has some great roadside attractions for photos) is an important part of finding little moments to enjoy together.
As our kids have gotten older and we have big things to talk about, like college or life aspirations, road trips have proven to become better and better conversation times. What else are we going to do when we’re all on a long drive together? It’s such a good opportunity to talk without distractions or outside influence.
Confidence Building
Traveling and having new experiences is always a confidence booster, but when you really get your kids involved in the family road trip process, it can have an impact beyond the current vacation. I’ve mentioned how we get our kids involved in the planning portion of road trips, and that truly has helped them build up their confidence both as skilled researchers and as people whose opinions are valued. Reinforcing the good stuff that the kids bring to the trip can be very influential in how they look at their roles in future group settings and activities.
How Do You Plan A Road Trip With Kids
So how exactly do you plan a fun road trip with kids? It can be as easy as you want it to be, or as complex as you think your family needs to make an awesome memory. I love the process of planning and researching, so our road trips with kids tend to be very coordinated and planned within a fifteen minute window for everything, but I know that’s not how everyone travels, and that for some adults and kids, that’s too much and will actually negatively affect their experience. Keep in mind the crew you’re traveling with, the distance between gas stations if you’re going rural, and interesting things to see along the way. This’ll make it fun and you’ll enjoy the process of planning your next road trip.
Route Planning
Depending on how many days you get for your road trip with kids, you’ll want to spend LESS THAN HALF of them having long driving days. Y’all, we’ve done no fewer than 50 road trips with our kids over the years and I know how much time they can be in the car in a day and still say that they’re having a good time. Yes, there are definitely days when you may need to drive for eight hours straight, but it’s best to limit those to just one at the start of your road trip and one at the end. Any other driving should be planned to be less than 3 hours so that you can actually experience the destinations you’re going through or to.
We like to mix it up for our to-and-fro when we’re planning a road trip with kids as well. We may take the interstate freeway one way to ensure we get to the big ticket destination quickly, but then on the way back we’ll take the scenic route or plan to make a wide loop back so it’s as different from the initial journey as possible. This sort of route planning helps both the kids and adults enjoy it all much more. Also, the scenic route tends to have more roadside attractions, including fun gas stations and folksy stops.
Build a Flexible Itinerary
Like I mentioned, I love a regimented itinerary that has narrow windows for travel between points or doing one singular thing. Having said that, I also plan our road trips with kids to have secret blocks of time built in to allow for extra enjoyment if a stop is really great or extra travel time if we think we’re going to hit traffic or lots of scenic pullouts. When you build a flexible road trip itinerary it can look one of two ways:
- Time buffers to allow for unplanned delays, both good and bad
- A flexible list of activities to occupy your time in a destination.
Since we already talked about the buffer to allow for unexpected delays of sorts, let’s just touch on the list approach. When we’re on a road trip we try to spend at least two nights in each destination on the itinerary. When we have lots of time in one place, sometimes we’ll just have a list of the sights and activities we’re all interested in and work through the list based on each stop’s location. We may start at a historic landmark that’s open to the public 24/7 and then visit a few different places with set operating hours, and then finish the day with one or two things that don’t have limited hours. Making a list of fun things at a destination and NOT assigning them times but still noting their hours is a great way to be flexible and roll with what your family is enjoying.
Check Your Vehicle Thoroughly
This may seem like an odd part of the road trip planning process, but checking your intended vehicle thoroughly at least two weeks before you plan on heading out is very important. You do not want to have car troubles, big or small, while you’re on a road trip with your family. Having your vehicle checked in advance gives you the opportunity to fix anything that may turn into something bigger or to arrange for a road trip rental car for the adventure if needed.
That’s right: you can get a rental car for a road trip and in some cases it’s an amazing idea. Renting a car instead of using your everyday vehicle can allow you more space to be comfortable on long drives, it puts the maintenance and potential issues on a company instead of yourself, and if your regular vehicle is older, this will put the miles and potential wear and tear on a different vehicle, thus extending your own car’s life. We’ve also done this as a way to test drive a new car we may want to purchase for a longer time.
How To Keep Kids Entertained On Road Trips
I know that planning a road trip with kids involves putting together really cool, interesting stops along the way and awesome destinations, but that time in the car between the stops is why road tripping gets a bad rap. We’ve altered our approach to keeping the kids entertained on road trips through the years, and even still we are not reliant on technology and phones to keep them occupied. A little thought and setting some clear expectations in advance can make the entertainment element of a road trip pretty easy for everyone.
Road Trip Entertainment
For all the anti-technology speak I share, we do use it strategically, both at home and where we’re doing road trips with kids. We save the technology for the longest stretches of driving and we do it in set blocks of time. We’ve found that the best split is 30 minutes of tech time and then 30 minutes of engagement or reading. Being able to alternate between a screen where the kids rarely blink and other brain activity and conversation when they can give their eyes a rest is important. Also, as time passes, posture gets worse, so breaking up tech time on the road helps with that.
There’s a lot to be said for just looking out the window, but a lot of kids aren’t up for giving that a shot initially. One way you can make it entertaining on the longer part of the driving is to open up music selection to everyone in the car, either by rotating who’s choosing the music or by having the kids agree upon a podcast or audio book everyone can listen to. I don’t like either podcasts or audio books, so I leave researching those up to the rest of the family BEFORE we’re on our road trip. Having audio content downloaded in advance is ideal for when you hit those more remote parts of the driving vacation.
Road Trip Activities For Kids
You can’t go wrong with the road sign or license plate game. What? You don’t know these games? They’re easy and actually tend to work well with both little kids and teens in the car. The way our family plays the Road Sign Game is to start at the letter “A” and find a word on a road sign that BEGINS with it, and then progress through the alphabet. No cheating or changing the rules of what counts midway through! The License Plate Game can be done similarly, looking for plates that begin with the letters OR you can work your way through the states and provinces, keeping track of them on a notepad or phone.
And I know it may seem like a vintage idea, but I love the game boards and travel games. When I was a kid I had all the Auto Bingo games, magnetic checkers, Yahtzee in a zipper container, a backseat tray (flat surface to sit between kids)… Seriously, the road trip games we had were great and when I became a parent I made sure our kids had them too. Easy games for the car have been a road trip entertainment savior since the kids were old enough to play.
Technology does have its place too. As working parents, we’ll have to open a computer in the car sometimes or take a call, and for that we do ask the kids to entertain themselves with quiet tech, usually their tablets. They have games they can play together, they have Duo Lingo, and they usually have a few movies or shows downloaded. Leveraging technology sparingly allows everyone to stay engaged but then also disconnect from everyone in the small space of a car for a few minutes here and there.
What To Pack For A Road Trip With Kids
I aim for us all to NOT be over-packers. When it comes to a road trip with kids, unless you’re camping on your vacation, you don’t need to be wild filling your car with everything you think you might need. Yes, you should be prepared, but you don’t need to go wild bringing the kitchen sink. Here is a very simple, practical packing list for a road trip with kids.
Road Trip Clothing
The first rule of packing clothes for a road trip is to plan for the weather in the forecast and be ready for it to change also. We do a lot of summer road trips, but we also will do holiday break trips to enjoy some cold weather. I like packing for summer vacations because it’s all shorts and fun stuff. Winter trips require more gear, and even just more pants and long sleeves, so that takes up a bit more room.
- Clothes – one outfit per day for short trips, plan to do wash/double up for longer trips
- Shoes – always bring walking shoes and flip flops/poolside shoes; hiking boots can be good if the destination requires it
- Jackets – bring coats that are appropriate to the climate you’re visiting; sweatshirts are nice to have also
- Hats and Accessories – hats are great for both looking cool and keeping sun off; sunglasses, scarves and other weather appropriate items are good too
When you are packing clothing for your road trip with kids, have them help you pick out their clothes if they’re young and can’t fully pack for themselves. With older kids (including teens) double check their work if they’re packing their own bags, as sometimes they just aren’t thinking about what they need or listening to advice as they go.
Personal Items for Road Trips
We don’t tend to travel with a lot of personal hygiene items, but some people are very set on their particular products. I like to have my quality shaving products and our teens need their skincare items, but besides that, toiletries provided in hotels are often just fine and save us having to pack extra stuff. Having said that, here are the personal items and toiletries that you should think about packing:
- Skincare products – very important for sensitive skin people and teenagers
- Shaving products – nobody likes a cheap disposable razor
- Haircare – beach vacations can be extra salty and hiking trips bring on the sweat, so if you have a lot of hair or need anything special, pack enough for your trip and then “spill”
- Medications – between prescription medications and OTC options, evaluate what you’ll need two weeks in advance. Don’t forget allergy medication!
That should do it for keeping things simple and making sure everyone has what they need. You can keep packing to a minimum if you try.
11 Fun Summer Road Trips with Kids
Now that you’ve got the tools and the inspiration for planning a road trip with kids, here are some great suggestions from some of our favorite drives we’ve done as a family. If you’re rolling with your own plan, be sure to check out our Road Trip Planning Tool for ensuring your drive times and stops work out for the best trip possible.
Oregon Coast Road Trip itinerary – Summer is the best time to enjoy this long drive down the Oregon Coast. There are lots of beaches and state parks to visit, 11 lighthouses, quiet towns, fishing opportunities and plenty of hiking. This is a good all-ages family road trip and can be done in 4 days or 10 days.
Florida Keys Road Trip plan – Even though it’s easy to do the drive from Miami to Key West in just one day it’s way more fun to stretch it out and take your time. The Florida Keys road trip is wonderful with kids and is a great way to get them to build up their bravery with snorkeling and enjoy lots of good food and fun too!
Maine Road Trip itinerary – A family road trip through Maine is very unique. The coast is loaded with lighthouses and boat tours (and lobster). The Highlands are full of waterfalls, covered bridges and hiking. Maine in the summer is beautiful and really fun to explore with kids.
American West Road Trip from Denver – I like to recommend this road trip with kids for people visiting the USA from another country. This road trip through the American West brings you to epic scenery, historic sites, National Parks and Las Vegas. It’s a fun family vacation whether you live in the USA or are visiting.
2 Week Florida Road Trip North to South – This two week family road trip plan is great in either the summer or over winter break. In the summer it’s going to be hot but you’ll have plenty of beaches and freshwater springs to swim in. In the winter, you’ll love the warm weather and amazing wildlife, especially manatees all along your road trip route. There are so many cool places to visit in Florida.
7 Day Alaska Road Trip – You can’t beat an Alaska road trip in the summer. This is such a fun family experience, and a long drive here in Alaska always includes views and wildlife that you can only dream of… until you’re on the Parks Highway heading to Denali National Park yourself.
Arizona Road Trip from Saguaro to Grand Canyon NP – I know, Arizona in the summer sounds insufferable, but it’s actually really wonderful if you balance your time in the car with the sightseeing and activities. This is another trip that’s great to do over winter break.
Washington DC and Virginia History road trip – Yes, this is the quintessential American 5th Grader trip. For much of the USA, 5th grade is the big year to learn about the founding of the USA and kids are old enough to understand and enjoy a lot of the sites, including the incredible Smithsonian Museums in Washington DC.
Wyoming Wild West Road Trip – If you ever wanted to test drive being a cowboy or a paleontologist this is the road trip with kids you need to do. Enjoying small Old West towns, dinosaur digs, and Yellowstone National Park, planning a Wyoming road trip is a great collection of family memories waiting to happen.
California National Parks Road Trip – Did you know that California has more National Parks than just Yosemite? It actually has 9 National Parks, more than any other state. This plan is a great road trip with kids because you get to experience so many different climates, habitats, histories and different types of activities everywhere you go. All family members will be able to pick a favorite park by the end of it!
Utah National Parks Road Trip itinerary – Utah can be really hot in the summer, but it also can be perfectly beautiful and epic. This family road trip plan through the red rocks and canyons of Utah is wonderful any time of year, but spring and summer are best. Enjoy visiting 5 different National Parks and seeing the Earth from a whole new perspective.
We’re an open book when it comes to planning road trips with kids and making them count for all that they can be. If you have any questions or need some more specific advice, please feel free to leave a comment or send us a note. We’re always happy to chat more and share whatever can be helpful so you can create some awesome memories with your family.
