Simple Travel Tips for Family Trips

If you remember a few posts back, I talked about 100 Ways to make this year awesome. The very first thing on my list was to take a family trip – which we did. Our mode of travel these days is best described as anything that allows us the required flexibility to travel with two kids. For us that means we pick an AirBnB within driving distance and just hang out there for a few days. To make things as stress free as possible, I have a few simple travel tips for your next family trip that have made travel life simpler for this mama.

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Keep the Kids Entertained

Depending on how far you’re going, you may spend more or less energy on this. Tablets, Smartphones, and portable DVD players give you an easy win for not much effort; however, I try to use those when I’ve exhausted all my other options (because I can only listen to the same Little Baby Bums song so many times). Plus – when those batteries go dead or you realize you forgot the charger at home, you’re going to want a backup.

“Bucket of Fun”

This is one of the easiest travel tips I’ve discovered as a mom. It takes virtually no time, 5% effort, and can cost as much or as little as you want. Here’s what to do:

• Find your “bucket”. Mine is an old Thirty One bag.
• Fill with trinkets. Done.

This could not be easier. And as for the trinkets – get creative. You can use things you already have at home or make a Target run (oh darn 😏) and pick up a few things. Here are a few things that are a BIG hit on our trips:

• Board Books – Great for small hands, sturdy, and fit easily into my bucket
• Coloring Book & Crayons – Great for the actual trip and to have at your destination
• Stickers & Sticker Book – Snag a small notebook like this one to use. Nothing special
• Bandaids – Good for emergencies. Also this bought us AN HOUR of entertainment on our last trip
• Mini Figurines – These princesses were a huge hit!
• Fidget Toys – Weird but effective

ALLLL the Gadgets

There’s something to be said for having the right tool for the job. But sometimes those tools are really too expensive to ONLY use when you’re traveling. Don’t worry – I’ve taken care of all the research and figured out which to splurge on or which ones to skip. For our first family trip (with a 4 year old and a 9 month old), I wanted to make things as easy as possible. Here are three things I added to my car to help (and how they actually worked out).

Keep Everyone Fed + Hydrated

So keeping the kids entertained can be pretty easy (to some extent). There are TONS of options and you can literally pull something out of your bag that they haven’t seen in the last five minutes before and they think it’s the best thing ever. ✅ Done. Your next issue may not be so easily resolved.

Maybe it’s the same for you, but in my family, we sometimes have to gauge hanger on a scale of 1-10. Anything above a 5 and you better start looking for snacks because 5-10 can go pretty quick and no one wants to be stuck in a car when they’re hANGRY. Here are some simple travel tips to help you avoid that situation.

Simple Travel Snacks

You know your family best – stick with snacks you know will be enjoyed. Otherwise you’re going to be unloading those snacks when you get there and then loading them back in the car and then unloading them when you finally get home. I don’t know about you, but I don’t have the time or the energy for that.

If you’re still stuck on figuring out what to take, I’ve included a few of our go-tos below. In general, I try to pick a snack for a few main categories (decided by me…because I’m the one packing): Drinks, Salty/Crunchy, Sweet, Big Snacks…for when lunch is still a ways down the road, and healthy-ish snacks. Here are our favorites:

• Water ✨ BONUS TIP: Fill a water bottle/sippy cup/Yeti for everyone the night before and put them in the appropriate cup holder. ✨
• Special Drinks (Think coffee for dad, Diet Dr. Pepper for mom, and maybe a juice box or milk for the kids when you stop for lunch). You can pack this ahead of time or plan to stop along the way.
• Party Mix (You know what I’m talking about…I’m pretty sure everyone has a recipe for this and a different name. Chex Mix = Party Mix = Doo Dads) ✨ Make this the day before and divvy it up into personal snack bags or containers to make it easier to pass through the car. ✨
• Cookies (Our go to is chocolate chip if I have time or Oreos if I need to take it easy.)
• Granola Bars/Protein Bars
• Pepperoni Rolls
• Fresh Fruit (Apple slices are good. Bananas if we’re stopping soon and can throw out the peel. Or sliced berries and grapes if I need to use them up.)

Logistics for the Trip

I know, I know. There’s no way that any trip – especially with kids – will go absolutely perfect. But if you’re like me, you’ll cling to as many simple travel tips as you can to hopefully start things off on the right foot.

Be Prepared for (Almost) Everything

How many “kits” can one car hold? It’s a lot. And any Google search will help you find an infinite number of things you need for your next road trip. I have four main things, not necessarily full on kits, I keep with us:

• Emergency Kit (People) | Bandaids, Neosporin, Burn Cream, Insect Bite Cream, Sunscreen, Aloe, etc.
• Emergency Kit (Car) | Window Breaker/Seatbelt Cutter, Tire Changing supplies, Blanket, Jumper Cables
• Cleanup Kit | Paper towels, plastic bags, Clorox Wipes, Hand Sanitizer, Extra Rags, Change of Clothes
• Boredom Kit | Not to be confused with the Bucket of Fun above…but for when we might be less prepared. Travel Battleship and a deck of cards

Settle In As Quickly As Possible

Wherever you’re going, chances are someone will ask if you’re there yet at least 10,058 times before you actually get there. And if your destination has any sort of “fun” within sight, you can bet that your kids will be chomping at the bit to go do THAT and not so much concerned with getting things unloaded and unpacked. There’s no hard and fast rule here other than do what works for you. For us, one person unloads while the other entertains the kids.

Have an Exit Strategy

This might top the list of simple travel tips for me – know when to leave and make a plan to do it quickly! Time your core travel hours around something that makes sense. We have tried lots of things – drive overnight while kids sleep, leave after lunch and let them nap in the car, and even leaving so that we get home right at bedtime. I think this strategy will change the most over time, but it’s still very important for us to consider so we know travel times and when we have to load up to make that happen.

Make Your Way Home

Using any of these simple travel tips will help ensure your family trip goes smoothly. But alas, even the best vacations come to an end. And coming home is always a good feeling. 😊

Where will your next family trip take you? Don’t forget to snag a copy of my travel checklist to make sure you have everything you need!