Road trip essentials?

[Acunningruse]

We (me, DH, DS 10 and DD 6) have several long car journeys this summer (some UK, some in France) of 4-5 hours each way. DH is very anti-screens and to be fair I know if we take them with us in the car, they will then just want to go on them when we are on holiday which is not what we want. So what are your essentials for keeping everyone happy on the journey?

I'm thinking of taking them to choose a new book each (cos thats the same as a Nintendo Switch, right?!) and sweets?

I feel like I'm missing something as our car journeys are always very fraught...

Hopeful bump!

My kids always loved story tapes/audio books. Don't know what the modern equivalent is!

They also had a scrapbook for each holiday.

We're on holiday but not a long car journey sort, we're just in the UK. My kids have avoided screens while out and about for 48hrs (age almost-9 and 11). We've played A LOT of 20 questions, hangman and the YES/NO game. We also have Top Trump cards with us. As a last resort we play eye-spy. If on the road, we'd choose a colour of car, winner has the most amount of their colour in a say- 30 min time period. Or buy I-spy books for road journeys.

Audio books? Are your kids into that? They can choose a story or two each.

Surely if it's your husband who won't let your children use the tech which occupies 99% of people on long boring journeys, it's up to him to find a suitable occupation for your bored children?

Audio books, playlists and podcasts. ... my kids "loved" in our time with Melvyn Bragg especially . Education I call it. Didn't get screens or phones until they were older on account of them not being available

Games like the animals game (an animal beginning with a then b then c etc. countries, capitals etc

Thanks for the ideas... though based on the fact that a 20 minute car journey today ended in actual violence towards each other I may need something more than I-spy in my back pocket...

Has your husband suggested any bright ideas that will entertain your children and make the journey less fraught or is he just assuming you will come up with a screen alternative that will be sufficiently enthralling. If he hasn't got any bright ideas might I suggest that screen use although not ideal will be the best way to keep the kids calm and settled.

that wont have been because of the car, thats what sibblings do

Oh God life is too short to add such stress to your journeys, if you don't want them to have their devices then let them have your phone / ipad to watch movies / play games on.

Or drive and let DH take over the responsibility of entertaining them.

Let them have their screens for gods sakes. They won't be trying to kill each other in the back of the car for 5 hours then. Just keep a rule that screens are kept in the car on holiday.

Trying remember what we did in the car as kids before screens were even invented. We did squabble a lot but in between fights, we played pen and paper games, card games etc. Not much reading as it makes you travel sick.

We also played word games like I spy which was quite limited, the vicars cat and made silly phrases out of number plates. You could also got them spotting car makes etc.

I’m fairly strict about screens but long journeys in the car is the one time I’m relaxed about them. It’s boring as sin even as an adult and frankly I think it’s one of those inventions that you’re silly to reject when they make your life easier. Yes, daily tablet use is bad for them, but for the one offs, why wouldn’t you? IMO it’s like insisting on scrubbing the floor when you could run around a steam mop - there are times when modern inventions make our lives easier, why wouldn’t you?

And for the record my kids are so excited when they get to use the tablet because it’s a ‘holiday/trip to grandma’s treat’. Moderation being everything…

plus I’d be such a hypocrite because when DH is driving I’m on Instagram or mumsnet

we spent hours listening to Stephen Fry reading Harry Potter on long car journeys.

Our eldest once refused to get out of the car when we arrived as he wanted to carry on listening.

Honestly, if your husband is going to make things that difficult with the pointless screen ban then I would insist of flying and forget any long road trips.

We drove to the south of france this week. Currently on day 4 and I just said to DH today that we must get the iPads out of the glove box to charge for the journey home ie they haven’t used them once since we arrived.

Car journeys are fucking boring. Especially when you’re in the back and can’t see the road ahead. I think he needs to relent. Or the alternatives are squabbling before you even reach the first motorway junction or because kids used to be fine back in the day maybe do it 80s style so drive at night, adults fuelled by service station coffee and probably unsafe to be driving, let the kids get in the boot of the estate with no seatbelts, pillows, sleeping bags but drugged up on medised.

A compromise on screens would be to have some sort of film set up so they are watching a film not mindlessly scrolling or playing computer games. But this is something for your husband to worry about as he's the one who has banned screens.

I couldn't read - it would make me throw up. When we don't have screens, Audio books/podcasts/BBC radio plays are good - finding one that everyone wants to listen to can be tricky though

Just William is a suggestion for an audiobook for the whole family to enjoy together

Totally agree with @TropicalTrama car journeys are boring especially when you're in the back, so my suggestions would be

DVD Player Portable Car Two Monitors

individual lunch boxes for snacks and drinks

cosy blanket for each 🙂

DD got car sick when reading so we did a lot of I spy or similar but it gets boring after a while for everyone.

She listens to podcasts, audiobooks and music but we also allow to watch a movie, normally after around 2 hours or so.

Screens in cars can also cause car sickness so watch out if it's not tried and tested first !

Books always made me feel queasy while travelling, sorry.

I once had a Giles Brandreth book about travel games for planes, trains, cars and pogo sticks - which had loads of ideas for different kinds of games for different ways of travelling. Guess closest to a mile driven, picking different colours of vehicle to count, bingo type games with different things you'd likely see...are ones we still play that I remember.

Audio books.

Discussions to plan the following day or talk about sights you want to visit and debate the merits of the ice cream factory over the museum of moths...as place you want to visit versus the kids want to visit.

If no screens, do they have devices (phones, iPods etc) that can play their own music/podcasts/books and allow headphones for each to choose their own, some of the time?

But we always allowed screens for long journeys (and learned the value of headphones as well so we didn't always have Peppa Pig blaring at us...)