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We've done many cross-country trips in the car,
both as children and adults...
 Usually rushing to meet a military change-of-station deadline. Back in those
days, we couldn't afford restaurant meals and carried sandwiches, snacks and
fruit in the car. When we reached our stop for the night, we would stop at the
grocery store for the fixings of a cold meal we could eat in the motel room and
then have time for the children to play or swim before bed.
If
you plan on driving, get your car ready ahead of time. Check brakes, tires,
windshield wipers, turn signals, and lights. Be sure your tags won't expire
while you're traveling, and check your auto insurance.
Check the road conditions and the traffic laws for the area you'll be visiting,
and be sure your car is ready for the weather. Also check to see if the area you
are traveling to or through will be having a festival or other holiday - you may
have trouble getting through town, and banks and other services may be closed.
If you are traveling by car with children, you might want to to pack the car
while the children are asleep so you can pack faster and more efficiently.
Also, pack the car in the garage, with the doors down, so no one will see that
you are leaving.
Plan entertainment for children: coloring books and crayons, travel journals,
scrapbooks, stickers…
Consider a cardboard or fiberboard chest of drawers for each person and pack
your things in that. Also, a tote bag for each person is a good idea - to
corral the shoes, socks, jackets or sweaters you'll all take off as soon as you
start your trip. When you stop for gas or meals, everything will be available.
Truck stops are usually well-lit, busy and safe. The food is usually pretty
good, too, and you can purchase just about any travel supply you can think of.
Just watch out for the adult material!
Meals in the car: if
you're picking up fast food, take it to a rest stop or picnic area if possible.
You all need to stretch, and you can keep the mess out of the car.
Other useful items for the car trip:
- Items from the appropriate packing lists above
- Maps of all states you're traveling through
- Plenty of change for telephones, vending machines and
tolls, and small bills for tips.
- Wet washcloth in a zip-lock bag
- Pre-Moistened towelettes
- Roll of paper towels
- First aid kit (keep it in a lunch pail or a small
fishing tackle box), including motion sickness medication
- Empty Zip-Lock bags for items collected on the trip
(shells, rocks, sugar packets, matches, etc.) and for packing wet items
- Pillows and extra pillowcases
- A trash receptacle - for front and back seats
Useful items for Traveling with children:
- A covered cake pan is great for storing crayons and
coloring books, and it doubles as a lap desk)
- A shoe bag (or store-bought bag) to hang over the back
of the front seat to hold snacks, toys, etc. for the back-seat passengers
Travel Games:
- The Alphabet Game
- The World's Greatest Travel Game (cubes with pictures on
them)
- Scavenger Hunt
- License Plate Game
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Travel By Car
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