Hi all,

We will be traveling to FL from Northern NJ with one stop overnight. Any ideas that will make this trip less excrutiating for my 7 year old (and us of course) would be appreciated. So far we have purchased a portable DVD player for the car and he has Gameboy. However, any other suggestions would be appreciated ie; car games, snack ideas, anything you can think of. The longest ride we have ever taken was about 7 hours non-stop so I am dreading this. He really is pretty good in the car but like I said this is a very long trip.

Thanks all!

First of all and most importantly, STOP referring to this as a time to ENDURE and start referring to your trip as a special time to CELEBRATE!!! Your attitude, and convo's with others, WILL be assimilated and repeated by your 7 y/o!

With the exception of flying to Disney World (to which we even drive now!) we have ALWAYS taken road trips with our two kids and i truly wouldn't have it ANY OTHER WAY! We truly see this time in the van as EXTREMELY special, to decompress, relax and gear-up for when we arrive at our destination. The road trip itself is almost 'sacred' for our family, as its time away from kids activities, neighbors, friends, in-laws (!!!) and until fairly recently, even away from cell phones & lap-tops. It is OUR time to bond as a family, and bond is exactly what we do! Hubby Clark and i truly believe that our yearly road-trips (since they were NEW-BORNS) is the 'glue' that has bonded us into a strong family unit.

Embrace and enjoy this time as YOUR time as a real family, to enjoy each other and the scenery as it flys by. Yes, there WILL be scenery, things you can talk about, discuss and TEACH your 7 y/o. Pick up some road-trip car games (available everywhere) and especially, buy some conversation-starter-books geared for chidren, TALK alot, and ENJOY the trip!

Afterall, the joy of life is in the JOURNEY, not just reaching the destination!

Have a GREAT TRIP!!!!!!!

Your attitude will absolutely rub off on your child as Ellen has advised. But if you are prepared then you will be less stressed and a good attitude will follow.

We take many car trips and they have been great. Books on tape help. Family classics like Black Beauty, Little Women, Treasure Island have held everyone's interest.

Quiz cards are fun - I think Brain Quest makes the ones that are held together on a grommet so they done fall all over the car.

License Plate game is a tradition for us. Much more challenging now that every state has so many alternative plates. We keep a written log.

I also put together a backpack for each daughter (usually a small one, new for each trip) filled with crayons, paper, a new book, a journal and snacks they can eat when they chose. Eventually these packs get filled with mementos from the trip - museum maps, swizzle sticks etc.

We also fill the car with pillows and small blankets to help with naps.

But the most helpful tip I can give you is to leave at 4am. Have your car packed, warmed up and ready to go. Put your semi-sleeping child in the car covered in a blanket and keeping him as cozy as possible. With any luck you will get a few hours of driving in before he is active and this will shorten the trip for everyone. Traffic is not an issue when you drive so early in the morning. We've done this several times and it has worked like a charm. Gets less effective as they get older but at 7 it should still work.

The Harry Potter books on tape are great. A 7 year old would love them and you would enjoy them as well. We listened to them last summer while on vacation.

If you can find interesting places to briefly stop along the way, it breaks up the boredom.

In my experience, it's physical fidigetiness that overcomes children's temperaments, rather than boredom. Try to stop every hour for a quick exercise break, even if it's just to run a few laps around the car and jump back in.

Kids get lonely in the back seat. Since you probably have a car with an airbag that prevents your son from riding in the front, why not try having one adult ride in the back with him for part of the time.

Avoid sugary snacks, they make most kids more fidgety and of course he won't be able to brush his teeth after. Take fruit, cheese, crackers in single-serving sizes or baggies/Tuperware.

Some kids respond well to little surprises to unwrap. Establish a schedule ahead of time to avert begging -- specific times (like every hour) or miles (every 100 miles) work well. The surprises can be as simple as puzzles or colored pencils.

If all else fails, there's always Dramamine and Sudafed! (Though test these out fisrst, as they perversely make some kids very agitated.)

Agree with the above posters that attitude is everything. We have made several very long trips and our kids have done just fine. Once from San Antonio to Wichita, KS in a day the other Chicago to Wichita in a day. The SA trip was when our kids were 2 and 5! We don't stop every hour; usually about every 3 hours. But when we do stop, it is usually for a longer time. On our trip to Chicago, we would stop at rest areas, have a picnic, and the kids would play catch with their dad. That was one of their favorite parts of the trip! So, while it is important to pack things for the driving time, I would suggest packing a few items to help run off some steam during breaks--a ball and glove, jump ropes, etc. or even plan some races or tag games. It will be good for everyone.

For our most recent trip, the kids enjoyed having their own CD players and/or using the headphone jacks in the van. I also have the kids pack a backpack of things that are of interest to them and we also take snacks that I distribute at intervals.

I don't really agree with giving kids medicine just to sedate them.

Hope you have a fun and memorable trip!

We like books on tape, too. In terms of snacks, string cheese is good for our kids, as are apples and bananas.

When I was a kid on long car trips, whenever I'd ask my parents how much longer it would take, they'd say it would just be a few more minutes. That kept me asking frequently. I tell my kids it will take a really long time, so they'd better settle in and find something really good to do. We overestimate the time of arrival by about 15 minutes, and tell the kids that they can ask us at that time how much longer it will be. At the designated time, we're either at our destination, or have a good idea of when we'll get there. That keeps everyone happy.

I'll second the idea of leaving very early. We do this and it works great.

Also, plan on stopping at a rest-stop or park for a picnic lunch. It will give all of you a chance to stand and walk. My husband usually eats the whole meal standing up.

Your son might be too old for this, but a magna-doodle or one of those cheap write-on pads with the grey film that you pull up to erase worked great when our girls were younger. Not as messy as crayons or markers.

Try a car game like Rubberneckers. (It was recently discussed here. Do a search and you'll find the website). It's a really fun game, where each person has to find something during the trip. (Bird on a telephone wire, make another driver wave back at you, etc.) Good for kids and adults alike.

My wife was a real pro at this (trips from south Florida to Canada and California with 3 pre-schoolers), but she doesn't read this forum. Her model was to stop every two or three hours (at a mall if possible) and walk around for 15 minutes or so. Meal stops also aimed for places where the kids weren't confined to a seat the whole time. The kids each had a backpack with their own books and toys.

I would second the ideas of trying to avoid being stressed out yourself when you start (you can try anyway), and doing several early morning hours of driving before stopping for breakfast. Look at the map and road signs to pick out intermediate waypoints that will give a feeling of progress.

Lots of good advice.

When I was a kid we took an 8-10 hour car trip (16-20 round trip) at least twice a year, plus various other trips, always in the car.

Some things that I think worked well for me:

Definitely looking at the drive as an adventure - an opportunity to see things along the way and to hang out together with your child.

Stopping often to run around or look at things. Stopping just for the heck of it because we saw something interesting.

Making kids a part of the planning - plotting the route, figuring out how long it will take, where would be a good place to stop, etc. This not only gets the kids involved, but there are tons of math problems and critical thinking that go along with this. Also, pick up some travel guides for the areas you will be travelling through and together as a family decide what to see.

Anonymous mentioned little surprises to unwrap. What I did was wander the aisles at ToysRUs, picking up anything that was good to do in the car that was not too expensive. I had the things tucked away in a tote bag I had up front and did NOT tell my kids I had bought anything. When they exhausted what they brought in their backpacks and were bored, I could surprise them with something new, the novelty usually lasted a while.

The "Magic Slates" (grey film things) were a big hit for about $1.29 - they had never seen these before! How about a new game for his GameBoy? Hide it in your purse, pull it out at the right time.

Thanks for all your great ideas. I had thought about a "magic bag" that I would pull surprises from time to time. Two new gameboy games to be sure. Yes my attitude needs help. I am the one that hates car rides, not my son. I hate driving long distances. I am trying to put a good spin on it and haven't been negative in front of my son. Listen, with the weather we have had here in NJ the last week I can't wait to get in the car!

Thanks again and keep them coming!

I can't say enough good things about the Harry Potter books on tape/CD. I'm a 30 year old who was introduced to the book series this way and quickly became hooked. The reader/performer, Jim Dale, won an Emmy award for his reading of the first Harry Potter book. I think both book one and book two would be fine for a 7 year old, and more than entertaining enough for the parents.

Getting your child a series of maps routing your travels is great to follow along with.

Rubberneckers is also great.

most kids are able to read in the car without getting sick, so if your child enjoys reading, that might be good.

If you keep your child up an hour or so later than usual the night before departing, and then leave very early the next morning, he will more than likely sleep for the first 2-3 hours. That means you can drive straight through until breakfast while he sleeps in back.

If you don't usually use fast food (for health reasons) in your everyday life, it can be a treat for kids when traveling on the road.

Enjoy your trip!

Ok, do you absolutely have to do the drive in one night? I know it is possible, but depending where you are going in Florida, maybe take an extra night. That way you can stop more often along the way and you won't go batty feeling like you have to get down there by a certain time. For example, last May, we drove from Maryland to South Florida with our 3 year old and 4 month old and took two nights. The first night we stopped in Florence, SC and the second night we stopped early in Daytona Beach. That way we were able to take the kids on the beach for awhile and let them unwind. While the trip could have been done with only one stop, we felt the drive was much more enjoyable that way.

Let him bring (almost) anything he wants - our kids seem to bring their entire bedrooms, set up camp in the car, complete with snacks, mini-cooler that he has control over. Understand the sentiment of your second post - my husband and I have a tougher time on long car trips than our kids, especially when we are not the driver.

You know your kid best - I know the standard recommendation is frequent stops, but my kids measure the length of the trip from time into car at home until time out at end of day - frequent stops just add to that. They would rather just get there.

He is likely to nap in the car. Remember that that will make him less tired at night, and he may want "entertainment" later in the evening that you prefer.

Is it out of the question to bring a friend for him?

Hi Gail,

I agree that sometimes the more stops the worse it is. We plan on stopping no sooner than every 300 miles or so when we need gas. We usually go to Maine which is a 7 hour drive with only one gas/refreshment stop so he is use to that. He is bringing his duffel bag and is filling it with whatever he wants. I am also going to take a bag of "goodies" to surprise him. Word search puzzle books, brainquest, and other travel games. As far as the friend thing goes, I feel that at this age it is too much. It will definately be an option in the future. We have friends sleep over all the time but I don't think I am up to the responsibility for that length of time.
Thanks again for your suggestions.