Stop and enjoy the view occasionally.
Next week many families will pack the car and take a long drive to visit relatives or their personal holiday retreat, and large number of those trips will become endurance trials with crying kids, and angry parents.
Do you want a peaceful road trip, arrive relaxed and ready for the holidays?
Well, here are my five tried and tested tips for a great holiday road trip:
- Pack tonight – Pack your bags and load the car the night before you leave to reduce the pre-departure stress.
- Early start – Leaving just before dawn you will avoid the early morning traffic, and your kids will probably go back to sleep for a few hours. That will make the trip shorter for them, and reduce the boredom.
- Bring entertainment – Audio books, travel games, music and videos will help keep bored young minds occupied and the grumbles to a minimum.
- Stop regularly – Every 2-3 hours pull over and take a break. Find a park or playground where the kids can run around for 10-20 minutes, we found this easier to do by packing a picnic rather than using roadside stops.
- Take a scenic detour – There is a lot of great places to see that our modern highways efficiently race us past to get us to other places quicker. Take the scenic route occasionally, and rediscover those places.
Remember your holiday started as you left the driveway, and no one wants a bad start to their vacation. Plan, take your time and enjoy the journey.