Games, Activities, and Toys to Keep Kids Occupied During Long-Haul Travel

When you’re preparing for a long road trip and you have young children with you, one of the biggest dilemmas that you tend to find yourself in is figuring out what you can do to keep them occupied so that they are not asking you every five minutes “Are we almost there yet?”

That’s why, in the midst of your packing up, we wanted to provide you with a few options that you can offer to your kids. With the help of these games, activities and toys, they will not feel like the trip is quite so long. That way, you can spend more time focusing on getting to your destination rather than entertaining the little ones sitting in the backseat.

Crayola products. Back when we were young, pretty much all Crayola had to offer were some crayons and markers. Boy, have things changed since then. From their Color Wonder kits with “magic ink” that does not leave marks on your car’s upholstery to window markers that literally let kids write on the car windows without making a big mess, yours can enjoy drawing pictures literally for hours on end.

Download some travel games. Thanks to the internet, you can find just about anything; including some travel games for children to play. One website where you can print some off for free is Mini Time. They have crossword puzzles, license scavenger hunt templates and also traditional games such as Tic-Tac-Toe and Connect the Dots too. Just go the site and put “printable car and travel games” in the search field.

Travel version board games. Speaking of playing games, if your kids like ones such as Connect Four or Trouble but you don’t want to literally go through the trouble of packing up the family-sized game, there are stores that sell versions of them in travel size. Amazon is one website that provides you with a variety to choose from at a really economical price.

Portable DVD player. There’s no doubt about it. When all else fails, a portable DVD player can be a real lifesaver because if you pop in a movie, that can easily keep your children entertained for a couple of hours (or until they fall asleep). However, our recommendation is what you save this until you have run out of other options because if you start out with movies, after one or two of them, your kids could get bored and then you’ll be stuck trying to figure out what’s next.

Educational toys. Toys are always a fun distraction for kids. If you happen to be looking for some great gift ideas for 10 year old girls, you might think about getting them something like a jewelry maker. The problem with that is if you are going to take it on your trip with you, there’s a good chance that your kids will lose a lot of the tiny pieces. Our suggestion would be to go with some portable educational toys that are age-appropriate instead. One website that has a nice variety of them is Mind Ware. They have everything from puzzles to books to building sets. It’s a fun way for your child to learn—until you reach your final destination.