Keeping the Peace While Traveling
Summer is almost here, and with that often comes travel! Whether you’ve got a road trip planned, or you’re jet-setting to your destination, we’ve got tips to help make it a smoother event for everyone.
Our 4 kids packed into our van on a long drive to Nebraska
Road Trip Peace
We live in New York City and all of our family is back in Nebraska, so twice each year, we load our family of 6 in our minivan and we travel the 20+ hour journey from NYC to Nebraska (and then back again). And since air travel is a financial burden on us, any time we’ve traveled in the last 4 years, it has been via driving. We’ve driven to Florida twice, Alabama once, and all up and down the coast of the Northeast. Our children have become professional road-trippers, and as someone who road-tripped all over this country as a child, I feel like I am a reliable authority on some peace-giving tips for such a journey. If a road trip is in your plans this summer, I think you’ll find something here that helps it be slightly more peaceful.
Embrace the bored - I know it’s tempting to want to fill every silence and offer a solution for every moment of boredom, but being bored is quite good for all of us. Our brains need a break from the constant stimulation of our regular daily lives. It give us a chance to be still and quiet, and possibly have some creative thought. We usually start our long drives off with a quiet car (maybe music, but sometimes not) and the kids eventually make their way to the creative activities I have packed for them in our car organizer such as coloring, sticker books, and playing with small toys.
Listen to podcasts together - As a family, we enjoy listening to the Family Road Trip Trivia podcast. It’s silly, and a fun activity to do together - even our 4-year-old can participate! I’ve subscribed to the podcast so that each new episode automatically downloads on my phone. They build up over time and whenever we have a few hours in the car, we spend some time in the morning playing along to a few episodes.
Pack food - Eating on the road is both expensive and generally unhealthy. Don’t get me wrong - we enjoy the occasional gas station snack run, and a road trip is one of the only times our kids can count on eating fast food, but when we’re spending 2 full days in the car, I like to make sure that at least two of our meals for the day and most of our snacks are food that we are used to eating to keep our budget and our tummies on track. I like to load up on some of our favorite snacks (both the fun ones and the healthy ones) and keep it all close to me in our big cooler. We each pack a water bottle that can be refilled along the way, and for the most part, we find that we have to buy very little extra food and drinks when we’re on the road. If the weather is cooperating, finding a rest area to have a quick picnic is a nice break from driving, which leads me to my final tip…
Rest stops > gas stations - Obviously if you have to stop for gas, you should stop at a gas station, and sometimes there’s an emergency potty situation and a gas station is all that’s available. BUT if we are just needing to stop, use the bathroom, stretch our legs, and maybe have lunch, we like to look for rest stops on our trips instead of only stopping at gas stations or travel centers. Most rest stops have grassy picnic areas with tables and drinking fountains, along with designated pet areas. Many of them also have playgrounds, which is a sight for sore eyes (and legs) after being in the car for hours on end. It doesn’t have to be a long stop, but even 20 minutes to enjoy some sunshine and fresh air while you eat your packed lunch is better than nothing and will surely make your next few hours on the road better. Once you find a rest stop that you like, you can favorite it on your Google Maps app so that you always know where to stop should you find yourself on that road again.
Air Travel Peace
Traveling by plane isn’t something my family does often, however I have taken a handful of flights with young kids, and we are currently prepping for an international flight so I have thought through what has worked for us in the past, and what I have up my sleeve for the future.
Pack food - Ok here we go again with packing food, but trust me on this. You’re allowed to bring food through security and once you’ve made your way through the TSA line, something that cost $5 at the grocery store is suddenly $12. Multiply that times every member of your family, and you’ve got yourself one really expensive day at the airport. Pack yourself a few “lunchable” style meals for the members of your family to either enjoy while waiting at the airport or to eat on the plane if you’re traveling over a meal time. If you bring an empty reusable water bottle to refill after security, you’ll be all set.
Access airport lounges if you can - This tip won’t be available to everyone because not all airports have lounges and not all people are going to be able to access the ones that are available, but if the airport you’ll be traveling from has any lounges, dig into the requirements for accessing it. Depending on how often you travel, the fee for lounge access can pay for itself in the free beverages, food, and wi-fi you’re able to enjoy while you wait for your flight or during a layover.
Buy something new - I’m not normally an advocate for buying new toys/books unless it’s a special occasion, but one could argue that traveling on an airplane is a special occasion. If you’re flying with kids, a great way to pass the time and make it feel even more special than it already does is to buy a small new item like a mess-free creative activity. We love drawing boards, Color Wonder products, and Water Wow! painting books for kids. For adults, treat yourself to a new magazine at the grocery store when you’re picking up travel snacks. It will be cheaper than if you bought it at the airport, and when you’re done with it, pass it on to a stranger to share the wealth!
You might have noticed that I didn’t touch on screen usage for either car or air travel. I am not advocating for attempting to travel, especially with kids, without the use of screens. However, each family’s relationship with screens and screen time is unique, and I’m not here to prescribe our philosophy to your family. If using screens with abandon is in your travel plans, you do you! If you’re hoping to get through at least part of the day without using screens, that’s great too. Ultimately your experience on your trip is yours to create, but I hope that no matter what you choose, you’re able to make your journey part of the fun.
If you have travel tips to share from your own experience, feel free to reach out on Instagram. We’d love to hear them!
— Colleen
PS. You can get to know me and my family a little more here!
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