Share your top tips for keeping kids entertained on long journeys to win Where’s Wally? activity book bundle PLUS bumper colouring kit!

[SorchaMumsnet]

As the summer holiday countdown (kind of) begins, we’ve teamed up with Where’s Wally? to find out your top tips for keeping the kids entertained on long journeys and wet days…

To celebrate the publication of Where’s Wally? In Outer Space and Across Lands activity books, with tonnes of Where’s Wally? activities and 100 stickers in each book, we’ve put together this ultimate keep-the-kids-busy prize.

Mumsnetters loved Where’s Wally? The Colouring Book:

“Quiet, concentration, sharing, agreeing... and all four of those things at the same time! Big hit in this household” FeelingSmurfy

“Fantastic detail on every page - these are the real deal compared to trendy 'mindfulness' colouring books” debjani

Share your top tips for keeping the kids entertained on long journeys to be in with a chance of winning a Where’s Wally? activity book set including Where's Wally? The Colouring Book, In Outer Space and Across Lands, plus a bumper colouring kit!

If you haven’t already seen Where’s Wally? The Colouring Book, check out this created on a wet Sunday afternoon – 4 ½ hours of colouring fun with a very quiet 7 and 5-year-old…

This discussion is sponsored by Walker Books and will end 21 July

We always have lots of audio books and narrated ballets. This year the older two (5 and 3) are choosing their favourite music eg Planets, Peter and the Wolf too. I make a big I spy book for the journey and then stick colouring sheets and word searches in there for them to do too. Sticker books a favourite too.

This year they are going to see how long a loom band they can make during the 10 hour drive in France!

We always timetable stops for a run around too and make sure there is food in the car if we need to keep one of them awake!

My son travels very well. He has a plastic tray table that has pockets on either side for putting pens, cars, drinks etc. He has his books open on it too. Now aged 5 he recently spent 5 days travelling through game parks in South Africa. There were hours of sitting in the car and over there they sell wildlife identifying books for kids. He had a pad for drawing everything he saw. When he was smaller the Gruffalo puzzle book helped him on long journeys - six 9 piece puzzles to keep him occupied.

For car journeys - we have a Disney playlist & the kids have to name the film, the characters & what is going on at that point of the film (can't do reading or Nintendo ds as they get sick!!).

For planes & trains - annuals/ activity books are great & mini figures you can tell stories with .

My top tip is nothing too big or too small - that you can't find from under your chair, or that rolls around too much xx

i think car games are good, easy to play and a good distraction. have snacks and drinks to hand but also have a good rest stop to stretch the legs and blow of abit of steam

Toys and games

We take lots of snacks and drinks - mostly healthy stuff but the odd real treat thrown in that they don't get often.

They're just starting to get into audio books so those are great, and DVDs for really long journeys (we do a 1400 mile round-trip twice a year).

We also play lots of games - spotting different coloured cars, animals, eye spy etc, rhyming games etc.

They all seem to be able to do colouring in the car which would instantly make me feel car sick, so we take notebooks, pencils etc.

For our really long journeys I wrap things up and they get a little 'present' every now and again which they really love. Usually things like a little notebook, a pencil, a kinder egg - a treat they don't get any other time! - and often things they need anyway for whatever kind of holiday we're going on, like swimming goggles or a hat. It doesn't cost much, but the unwrapping seems to be very very exciting!

Recently I had a big tidy up and have collected up all the plastic nonsense from party bags etc and am planning on giving it back to them on our long summer journey. They can then have it all while we're away and I'll quietly gather it back up at the end of the holiday!

Mini Cheddar game is genius!! Can't wait to try that one :) We play a similar game, but definitely not as good!! Ours is first to spot a yellow car shouts 'Banana!' & gets a point. Drive & front seat passenger have an unfair advantage on anyone in the back seat though!
Singalong music CDs are good - these have been good at soothing LO (who is now 3) since he was a tiddler. When he gets restless now he's older, we got a cheap DVD player on Ebay which keeps him entertained when all else fails :)

start with non dvd,machanics first! get the good stuff tucked away till u need it haha.then you get to bring out the big guns later if they really get bored!no but dvds are fab.books but careful if ur chuld is prone to sickness then let them only read for short shrifts.
music.do a compilation mp3
audio books.
mini games.
paper and pen
diary of the holiday
talking.talking is somehow sometimes easier in cars!
try if they get het up to talk it through with them first.dont get stressed with them.aks them to look out at what they see.ask them to tell you about where your going and what youll do when you get there.
singalong

they also love their own packed lunch box and the promise of mcdonalds service.

We have travelled to France and Denmark in our camper van, so are quite used to long journeys. We play 'spot a dog' - the person who spots a dog first gets a point, and whoever scores the most points gets the prize when we stop for a rest - usually a nice pastry or an ice-cream.

My girls love listening to the SatNav, I think it's the idea that it won't be forever we will get there eventually. My eldest gets travel sick if she looks down. So we play lots of i-spy, singing along to music or listening to audio books, and we play things like spot something with the colour X or starts with the letter X.

We make sure that we take a selection of books & toys. We also take lots of snacks!

we play games with treats, our fave is say a word in french or italian and the kids have turns guessing the word in English...then twist about say a word in english and the kids have to say it in French...really good fun and a great way to learn...

Audio books and 1743568899543 games of I spy.

My son is 4 and gets fidgety on long journeys. We have a car organiser that fits on the back of my seat that we fill with colouring books, snacks and toys.
The works is fab for picking up cheap colouring books or puzzle books. We also found a clean take away coffee cup is good for storing crayons as it fits in the cars cup holders and when it gets dirty you can just throw it away. Saves crayons melting into the car seat in hot weather too.

Stickers are always a massive hit - the girls can make pictures with them, enhance pictures with them and play role playing games (eg. teachers). Add in some paper and crayons/pens/pencils and my three will be entertained for HOURS :)

Lots of drinks, snacks and music the kids like.

DVD player in the car as well as games on their tables. Eye spy is still quite popular in our car.

Magnetic games so they can't lose the bits so easily!

On long journeys I always take a lap tray- the ones with bean bag filled bottoms for comfort and some colouring books and crayons for my 4 year old along with a bag of snacks and on special occasions like holidays we take little gifts wrapped up so he can open them along the way, which makes it even more exciting for him,

we play the car game. We all pick a colour and count how many cars we can see in that colour. Also portable dvd players are good

We always play iSpy, but with a difference! We as parents offer pocket money if you find a certain item. ie. first person to spot a red bus or the first person to spot a tractor. It's great fun, and you can change the rules as you go along.

audi books are brilliant

competitions and challenges.

dress the boys in different coloured tshirts - first to count 100 cars of that colour wins. First to see certain shops/sights also.

I Spy has to be favourite. Then how many certain colour cars. First to reach 10 say. Or colours of front doors is a good one. Plenty of water if hot and wet wipes to cool brows helps as well.