Tips for a screen-free family road trip

In our enthusiasm to get the tripstarted, we often put all our focus on the destination – where we’ll stay, what activities we’ll get up to, where we’ll eat – forgetting that the journey also requires plenty of attention, especially when it’s a road trip.Preparation is the key to a safe and happy drive!

Safety check

Start with a safety audit of your car. If you’ve got young children, you’ll need to make sure they’re secured in the appropriate capsule or booster seat

or that they’re the right age and height to graduate to the back seat with seatbelts. Be sure all seatbelts are in working order and aren’t too loose. You want everyone to be safely strapped in.

Give your vehicle a good going over to ensure it’s road-worthy. Don’t forget to check fluid levels, tyre pressure, lights and indicators, fuel level, windscreen wipers and brakes, and give the windows and mirrors a clean.

When you’re packing, make sure heavy items are well secured so they can’t fly around and cause injury should your car be involved in an accident. Have a first-aid kit handy and a few essentials like a torch, jumper cables and some spare ‘occy straps’ (octopus straps). You never know when they’ll save the day.

If you can, avoid driving at night and be aware of any routes that are likely to have livestock on the road. Be mindful that wildlife like kangaroos and wallabies are often more active at sunrise and sunset.

Plot your route

Plan your route with time for plenty of stops along the way. This not only helps avoid driver fatigue

(you should stop every two hours) but gives the kids a chance to have a run around before the next leg. Roadside rest stops are fine, but parks are better. Sometimes it’s worth a quick detour into a town to get the kids on a swing and have a bite to eat at a local cafe.

And speaking of eating, a stockpile of snacks is essential to keeping up morale. Make it a mix of treats and healthy options. As much as endless jelly snakes seem like a great idea to the kids at first, two hundred kilometres in they’ll be glad for an apple, grapes or some cut-up orange.

If your road trip is taking you to remote areas or through deserts you need to be prepared. You can forget about Google Maps if you have no phone reception. Buy a good map for backup and even consider purchasing a personal location beacon (PLB). Carry enough drinking water for adults to have four litres a day and up to two litres for teenagers.

Having a range of activities will be critical to keeping the kids engaged and your sanity intact. If you’re keeping them off screens, you might like to install travel trays so they can easily draw, write, do puzzles, build LEGO, and experiment with crafts (but maybe leave the glue at home). They are usually padded and curved around the edges and sometimes have built-in cup holders.

Keeping the kids entertained

Pick up a free Great Aussie Road Trip activity booklet from your local Shell Coles Express or Reddy Express this month to get the kids into the spirit of the adventure with their own ‘passport’ and heaps of fun Aussie-focused puzzles and picture games.

Family classics like ‘I-spy’ and ‘20 Questions’ never go out of style when it comes to passing time, but you might like to add a few more games to your repertoire like ‘When I go’ (start with, “When I go to Nambucca Heads I bring a surfboard” and then each person repeats the phrase and adds an item – keep it going as long as you can) or inventive storytelling where each person advances the story with one sentence.

Audiobooks and podcasts can fill the gaps when you’re all talked out or you can take turns being the car DJ – two or three songs each ensures everyone gets to hear their favourites. And finally, pack the kids’ favourite pillows for when they inevitably drift off to sleep.

^Disclaimer

^{Viva Energy Australia Pty Ltd (“Viva Energy”) has compiled the above article for your general information and to use as a general reference. Whilst all reasonable care has been taken by Viva Energy in compiling this article, Viva Energy does not warrant or represent that the information in the article is free from errors or omissions or is suitable for your intended use.}