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The Long
Road Ahead: Family-friendly road trip tips
Whether you're
packing the car up for that long drive to
Grandma's, or planning a month-long family
excursion across the country, road trips can
bring a great deal of excitement and anxiety. Travelling with children doesn't have to be
stressful – it can be a joyful adventure,
creating funny anecdotes, amazing discoveries,
and memories to last a lifetime. Take some
helpful tips from Uniroyal and family travel
expert, Kate Pocock, to prepare your family for
the road ahead.
1. Divide and conquer.
It's always better not to have siblings sitting
right up against each other in the back seat.
Position a mesh bag filled with soft toys or
puppets between the kids, or have Mom or Dad
take turns in the back seat to play cards,
listen to a story, etc. Even in a small car,
sometimes just changing seats will stop the
wrangling.
2. Stop a lot. Kids can't
sit still for long periods, period. So plan lots
of pit stops for food and refreshments, a swim
at a local beach or pool, or even just free
playtime to run off steam. Carry a soccer ball
or frisbee for impromptu sports breaks. Keep
swimsuits and towels handy for a quick swim
—every small town has a local outdoor pool.
3. Picnics. The last
thing kids want to do when they emerge from the
car is sit again at a restaurant table. So keep
a spare set of plastic cups, bowls, and plates
in the car for picnics. Local supermarkets along
the way offer ready-made sandwiches, juice
boxes, and treats. Or carry a cooler with
provisions.
4. The wired mobile.
Story tapes such as Grimm's Fairy Tales, Harry
Potter or the Narnia series that the whole
family will enjoy, are indispensable. You can
install TV and DVDs so that backseat buddies can
watch movies all the way to the ocean. Some
vehicles even come equipped.
5. Kid-tested schedules.
Have the kids plan part of the trip and they
will go along with you happily. Give each kid a
survey — would they like to stop at Old Fort
Henry in Kingston, or at the sand dunes in
Picton along the way? Let each kid pick one stop
for the family. This works!
6. Clean-up patrol. Bring
cases of wet wipes, bottles of water,
washcloths, towels, stacks of clean diapers,
paper towels, etc. to clean up messes and
disasters. Dress the kids in layers and dark
clothing just in case of spills.
7. Making memories. Even
the worst road trips will become memories to
laugh about later, so bring a camera along and
let the kids take some of the pictures. You'll
see your holiday from a totally new perspective.
8. Make sure to pack an
easily-accessible box of games and activities
for the kids such as window stickers for
mosaics, song sheets for sing-alongs, loot bags
filled with small surprises, clear plastic photo
albums filled with colour photocopies of family
pictures, travel puzzles and games and action
figures.
9. Prepare your car for
the road – as important as it is to pack the
kids' security blanket, it's equally important
to provide your family with that same security
by ensuring your vehicle is in tip-top shape and
road trip ready. Make sure to check the air
pressure on your tires, top up all of your
fluids, and if you've been meaning to get that
funny noise checked out, now is the time. Don't
leave home without all of the necessary
emergency equipment such as extra
windshield-wiper fluid, a flashlight, batteries
and a first aid kit.
For more helpful hints
for a successful road trip, don't forget to pick
up your Uniroyal Passport to Road Trip
Adventure, written by family travel expert Kate
Pocock, packed with interactive road trip games,
valuable coupons and fun for the whole family,
available at participating Uniroyal dealerships
across the country beginning in June.
- News Canada
All Tips are offered as suggestions only
While we have tried to provide you with
a list of suggestions to help parents when travelling with
children to keep them safe, unfortunately, we can’t
think of everything and it is the responsibility of
parents to ensure their children’s safety.
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See the following sections for specific tips:
For General Travel Tips Click on
For Tips on Using and Purchasing Travel Equipment
for Babies Click Below:
For All-inclusive
Vacation Tips Click Below:
For Tips on Eating out with Children
Click Below:
For Tips on Who and What to Tip Click Below:
For Tips on Enjoying Live Theatre
with Children Click Below:
For Tips on Buying
Toys Click Below:
For Travelling with
Teenagers Tips Click on
For Motion Sickness
Tips Click on
For Tips on Taking Pictures Click Below:
For Tips on Travelling with Grandchildren Click Below:
For Tips on Protecting Your Home Click Below:
For Tips on Taking a Dude Ranch Vacation Click on
 For Travel Tips - Children with
Severe Allergies Click on
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