Part Two: How to Keep the Family Entertained on Long Trips
Traveling by Car
The biggest cause of holiday driving stress this summer is going to come from your back seat. It’s that dreaded, repeated question that will occur several times during a journey, that can make every summer holiday road trip a challenge: Are we there yet?
With peak-season traffic and soaring temperatures, taking your children on a holiday road trip, suddenly seems less appealing.
However, the professional residential cleaning experts at MOLLY MAID suggest trying these activities to keep your children entertained during your holiday road trips!
I Spy
This classic game is guaranteed to keep your children occupied during the long trip to your vacation destination. Have your children take turns selecting objects around them. Once their object has been identified, have the winner select and item, and so on.
Travel Tablets or DVD Players
As parents, you’ve probably already realized the silencing qualities of a tablet or DVD player. Set up a movie on your tablet or DVD player for your children and prepare for a blissful journey. Make sure to select a movie that all your children will enjoy, to prevent arguments.
Backseat Bingo
This activity needs a little bit of planning prior to your journey. Draw a 5×5 grid on a piece of paper and fill each square with objects and landmarks you might witness on your travels. Be sure to make a few copies of your grid, filling in each box with different landmarks to give each Bingo card some variety. Have your children mark each square with a sticker once they have seen the object or landmark outlined on their bingo card.
Travel in the Early Morning
This is a great tip that is highly underrated! For best results, start your journey in the early hours of the morning. Pack your car, buckle your children in and tuck them in with their favourite blanket and stuffed animal. Once everyone is settled, start your journey. As long as the air conditioning or heat is set just right, their little heads will be nodding off in not time.
Map Reading
As long as you children don’t suffer from car sickness, there is nothing more fun than tracking your progress on a road map. The combination of brightly coloured squiggles and interesting landmarks will not only educate your children on how to read a map, but will also give them a sense of responsibility to get everyone to your destination. You could even turn it into a game by highlighting famous landmarks and rivers to see who can spot them first.
Pack Snacks
Back a small bag of snacks for your children in case they get hungry on the road. You can even make each child their own individual snack pack filled with their favourite snacks and drinks. Add a small toy to their bag for an added treat!
Audio Books
Why not choose a story that that the whole family can enjoy listening too – these tend to ‘relax’ rather than stimulate younger passengers. If they get bored, they may even doze off for a well needed nap.
Music
There’s no escaping the fact that putting on a playlist containing tracks from your children’s favourite films will keep them entertained. Make sure to add songs that you enjoy as well!
Traveling by Air
Travelling by air can be more entertaining for children. Nevertheless, this can also be a stressful time for parents. The professional residential cleaning experts at MOLLY MAID suggest giving some of these tips a try, to alleviate some of your travelling worries.
Drinks for Take-off and Landing
Have drinks on hand for your children to sip on during take-off and landing. This will help alleviate the pain and pressure on their ears and give them something to concentrate on rather than the change in air pressure. Keep in mind that the change in air pressure often affects children more than adults. Non sugary drinks are advisable as spillage is often inevitable at these stages of the flight!
New Toys
Buy your child a small new toy or game for your flight and give it to them once you have taken your seats on the plane. This will create excitement for your child and ultimately provide them with something to do on the flight, at least for a little while!
Bring a Variety of Books, Toys and Games
Provide your children with different books, toys and games at regular intervals during your flight. The change in books, toys and games will provide them with different activities to do throughout the flight. Activity books and cards are great as they provide children with something to focus on for longer periods of time. If you don’t have any travel board games, verbal games such as ‘I Spy’ or ‘Twenty Questions’ are also a great way to pass the time on a long flight.
Dress your Children in Comfortable Clothing
If you are travelling on an evening or night flight, dress your children in their pyjamas. Dressing your children in their pyjamas will help avoid disrupting their sleeping pattern and will give you a chance to relax while they sleep.
Happy Traveling!
