Heading out on a family road trip and looking to set it up for success? Today I’m sharing 5 tips for road tripping with kids! I’ve included some of my favorite tidbits that have helped make traveling full-time with my young daughter a success.
My girls in St. George, Utah while we were traveling full-time
When it comes to road tripping with a child, I sort of consider myself a pro nowadays.
That’s because my husband and I traveled full-time around America for over a year when our daughter was three. Plus, we’ve gone on countless long road trips while living in, first, New England, and now, Southern California. Through our adventures driving to places in the east like Myrtle Beach, Maine and Vermont, to destinations up the west coast, to everything in between like Colorado and New Mexico, I’ve learned a lot and gone from a rookie to seasoned road tripping mom.
With my family at Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah in May 2023
With that being said, today I wanted to share some of my tried and true tips for road tripping with kids. These are things I do every time we hit the road to make our trip a success!
5 Tips for Road Tripping with Kids
#1 – Build in frequent stops.
One thing I always do before road trips is plot out our route on Google Maps and locate convenient park and playground options. Then, we plan to stop at one of those parks a few hours into our drive to get my daughter’s (and dog’s) energy out and let everyone stretch their legs.
Playing at the LSU Burden Center playground in Baton Rouge
#2 – Bring a few new activities and toys for the ride.
Another one of my tips for road tripping with kids is to bring a few fun things to do. Before a trip, I usually pop into the dollar store and nab a few things on Amazon for car activities. My daughter loves stickers, so I typically include stickers and a coloring book or board book that she can spend time sticking them onto.
Sometimes I also hide away little toys that she likes for a few weeks leading up to a road trip. And then, when I reintroduce it on the trip, it feels new again to her!
It doesn’t need to be fancy! Here are a few on-the-go Amazon activity ideas that we love:
- Glitter Foam Alphabet Stickers
- Bluey Magnetic Playset
- Paw Patrol Color Wonder Mess Free Coloring
- Kids Binoculars
#3 – Bring snacks… a lot of them!
Too many snacks are always better than not enough when it comes to kids (and also, husbands that get hangry!). I never rely on rest stops for our snacks, since I like to keep it pretty healthy and have food on hand from the get go.
One of my go-to snacks to bring are my sweet and salty granola bars pictured above.
I suggest bringing a variety of snacks, such as apples, crackers, gummies and trail mix. I also often pack a PB&J sandwich for my daughter, which comes in handy if we wind up stopping for dinner at a restaurant with nothing that she wants to eat.
My daughter constantly snacks on road trips
When boredom turns to anger when my little one has had enough of sitting in her car seat, I pull out my special sweet treat surprise – which is something like a lollipop or chocolate peanut butter cups that’ll interest her and with any luck, snap her out of an impending meltdown. Packing your kiddos’ favorite treats is sure to be a win!
#4 – For parents of recently potty trained kids and young ones… bring a portable potty!
If you have any kids under the age of 5, I highly suggest getting a portable potty like this one.
I can’t tell you how many times we’ve been in the middle of nowhere with no truck stop in sight and need to pull over on the side of the road so that my daughter can go potty. Now that she’s five years old, we don’t need to utilize it often, but when she was 2.5-4 years old, the portable potty was a staple in our trunk.
Family road trip to Lake Tahoe in 2024
#5 – Know your limits.
Last but certainly not least in my tips for road tripping with kids, it’s crucial to know and understand your limits. Pushing it too much will likely be a recipe for disaster. For my family, we never drive more than about six hours in a day, and we stop every couple of hours because that is our limit with a very active little one!
Share with me… Where are your road tripping to?
In 2025, I’m thinking about planning a road trip from Southern California to Arizona and to do a few California coastal trips to places like Santa Barbara.
I know these people! 🙂 We are planning a long road trip to Florida for spring break this year, and the snacks and activities will be a must. Of course, Robbie is older these days so it’s getting easier…but still…plus, the snacks are for me! Haha.
Snacks are ALWAYS a must! For everyone haha