Roadtrip with toddlers… what are your must haves? Any recommendations to keep them entertained, is most appreciated.
Travel at night when they’re asleep. You may have to wake them up to go potty or change a full diaper if it’s a longer ride of more than a few hours.
For travel when they’re awake:
Have lots of snacks, healthy if possible: milk boxes, organic string cheese or cheese cubes, beef sticks, baby carrots, grapes or cut fruits (but no berries—they stain), cut up raw zucchini, canned chick peas in little tubs, ice water you can pour into a sippy cup in hot weather.
Found a tin with scenes on 8x10 magnetic pages, lots of magnets of people, animals, trees, etc. to populate the scenes. Quiet, hard to lose pieces, not messy. Colorforms is another toy like this. Just make sure child can’t eat the pieces. Etch a Sketch is another non-messy toy. Finger puppets if they can use their imagination to have them talk and act.
Picture books, board books and easy reader books. Things where they can thread yarn through holes. Stiffen the ends of the yarn with clear nail polish if you’re DIY.
Kids songs and activity music. You can do Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes or Baby Shark in your seat, among other activity songs. Sing the alphabet song, etc. Milkshake band out of Baltimore, MD has fun kid songs. Do they make kids audiobooks? Ask at your library.
Count motorcycles on the road if she/he can see out the window. It gives them something to do, helps them count, and will subconsciously make them aware of motorcycles on the road when they start to drive.
Can your child play and build with DUPLO blocks without throwing them at you?
They make black pages you scratch to reveal colors underneath. Not too messy. Crayons can be used to draw all over your car, can melt in the heat and can be chewed on, so they’re not the best idea.
I Spy With My Little Eye… if they can grasp the concept. We’d have them specify something inside or outside the car.
You can have them point out big trucks, red cars, cows, horses, sheep, silos, tall buildings or whatever you are likely to encounter on your trip.
If there are two adults in the car, it may be easier to have one sit in the back seat with the child to facilitate reading, handling out snacks, helping reach stuff, pointing out sights, etc.
Plan to take longer for potty breaks and to run up and down to get energy out at rest stops. If you spend the night, see if you can stay in a place with a swimming pool and included breakfast. Have fun, tire them out, makes getting a shower/bath easier after to rinse off the chlorine. Most kids like breakfast foods, plus you can raid the breakfast bar for snacks like bananas, Cheerios, muffins, little yogurts, granola bars.
Have yourself 3 redbulls and drive at night while they sleep.