Road trips hold a special place in the United States. Hollywood has created plenty of movies featuring some version of the road trip spanning back decades, and most families will try a road trip or two before the kids are grown up. However, aside from looking for a mobile windshield repair service around Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, or other major cities, every parent knows that trying to keep young kids entertained on long trips can be one of the hardest parts of planning a successful family vacation.
Luckily, there are some ways you can keep your kids entertained, so your drive is that much smoother:
Get Creative with Snacking
Snacks are a staple of any long ride where kids can quickly get hungry, and traffic may have you considering skipping the next pit stop. However, rather than merely passing out your kids’ favorite candy or other snacks, you should strive to employ snacks as a creative feature of the vacation.
One way of doing this is to turn snack time into an activity. For example, you can use a laptop or tablet to transform your back seat into a cinematic experience, complete with a “concession stand” stationed in the vehicle’s front passenger seat. Or, rather than rely on a movie, you can employ snacks that can be turned into activities, like using Swedish Fish to have your kids go “fishing” or different kinds of cereal to create cereal necklaces your kids can munch on throughout the ride.
Use Audiobooks and Music to Your Advantage
Reading a book is a great way to pass the time on a long road trip, but your kids may not have the same level of interest you do in spending hours quietly reading until they’re much older. However, long car rides are a perfect time to introduce your kids to some audiobooks you enjoyed as a kid.
Alternatively, if your family prefers to listen to music than audiobooks, you should consider using it to interact with your kids. Turn a playlist into a concert where everyone in the car plays a part in making the song come to life, and you’d be surprised how quickly time can pass.
Plan for Pit Stops
As much as some might want to skip pit stops altogether to save as much time as they can while traveling, it’s worth planning for a few pit stops along the way. You or your kids will get hungry, need the bathroom, or suffer from cramped legs and want to walk around a little to loosen some of the muscles, making it essential to integrate pit stops into your travel plans. Also, don’t forget to wear a mask, remember the proper guidelines on washing hands, and have hand sanitizer for everyone while making pit stops.
Researching attractions along your travel route is one way to keep your kids entertained. You can plan to stop at roadside sites with rides, games, or fascinating finds that few people know about at home. Alternatively, you can also allow your kids to simply run around to get energy out, making it that much easier to keep the car tranquil on the next stage of your journey.
Of course, keeping kids entertained is only one part of the equation when planning for a trip. Sometimes, your car breaks down, or you find a crack in your windshield has suddenly become a serious issue, and you want to get it repaired. If you need a mobile windshield repair company in the Wilkes Barre area or are interested in finding out more about ways to plan your road trip with your kids, give the Auto Glass Fitters team a call today!
