BTDT: Road trip!!

My boys are 5, not quite 2 and an infant. The road trip is about 8 hours. Any suggestions? Any "learn from my mistake and don't do _ or do _"?

We are debating about what time to leave. DH thinks we should leave around midnight and let them sleep in the car but I'm afraid of us being super tired and I say we leave around 4 a.m. Any BTDT with some insight?

I'll take any and all suggestions! TIA!

Message edited 2/13/2017 3:10:27 PM.

BTDT: Road trip!!

If you're going to leave at night, why not just leave right after dinner? We leave at 7pm a lot of the time although were not usually driving as long. They are usually peaceful although sometimes my 4yo yaps well pay her usual bedtime.

In general, the biggest thing I've learned is not to rush stops. If we do, we end up miserable as soon as we get back on the road. I've found it takes a good hour to really turn things around if we're losing the kids.

BTDT: Road trip!!

I have a now 2.5 year told that we have been driving back and forth from Virginia to Long Island a few times a year since he was 6 weeks old. The trip takes anywhere from 6.5 to 9 hours. We have good luck leaving between 4-5am. Less traffic, and it's still dark out so he sleeps well. We usually get about 3-4 hours into the trip before he wakes up looking for breakfast so pretty much halfway there! For the second half of the trip I bring his ipad, water wow coloring books, flash cards, snacks, and he also just enjoys "people watching" and checking out the scenery on the road. I don't find it to be too bad at all!

Re: BTDT: Road trip!!

We usually drive to Myrtle Beach which is about 11/12 hrs. I prefer to leave around midnight and let DS sleep in the car. We usually can get to about 6/7am with him sleeping. We will stop for breakfast and let him run around before getting back in the car and finishing the drive.

If you are leaving at midnight just make sure who ever is driving first gets a 2-3hr nap in before leaving. I usually start out driving then DH will take over for the 2nd half of the drive.

Re: BTDT: Road trip!!

If it's an 8 hour trip I'd time it so that you arrive in the morning, when the kids would usually be waking up.

We always drive through the night whenever we do a long road trip. I prefer to leave right after dinner when we do 10+ hour trips.

Message edited 2/13/2017 4:16:57 PM.

Re: BTDT: Road trip!!

I would leave at 4am.

Re: BTDT: Road trip!!

We've driven from FL to NY, 19 hours straight, twice now. Our kids were 6 and 2 the first time and 7 and 3 the 2nd. Our boys were amazing in the car, both times. The drive itself, miserable just bc it was so long.

Honestly, we put movies on for them almomst the whole time given that we drive 19 hours. I also pack a lot of snacks and water for them. We limit stops. One has luckily been in diapers and the other is old enough to hold it. We stop for bathroom, gas, eat quickly (we pack breakfast and lunch) and go! Lingering stops only makes it harder to have to be in the car.

Given that your drive is considerably shorter, I wouldn't stop a lot. No need to prolong the torture of being stuck in the car, it's better to just get where you are going.

We do not drive through the night bc I don't think it's safe for us to drive on little sleep plus I don't trust the other people driving out there with little sleep. We leave at 4:30AM. This way we avoid the rush hour completely. We get to NY or the reverse, FL, at around 10-11pm

ETA: an 8 hour drive leaving at 4:30m gets you where you're going at about 12:30pm with plenty of time to enjoy the rest of the day.

Message edited 2/13/2017 5:06:59 PM.

Re: BTDT: Road trip!!

I would leave between 3-4 so at least you can get a little sleep before hand. Nothing worse than highway driving when your exhausted.

A few tips If you don't have TVs built Into your car get each a portable DVD. Get a lot of movies. If you have iPads download shows/movies games that don't require wifi. Stop a lot. We actually found a McDonald's on the way to SC last year that had an awesome indoor Playground which we we let them play at for about 40 mins to burn off energy, if you can find something like that or a park let them run for a little.

Message edited 2/13/2017 5:55:53 PM.

Re: BTDT: Road trip!!

Over the summer we drove to myrtle beach. It was almost 12 hours. My kids were 6 and 2

We left here at 230am and drove until it was breakfast time. Turns out they ate what I packed (mini bagels with cream cheese or peanut butter, cheese sticks, yogurt pouches) and we didn't stop to eat. Just a pit stop for gas and bathroom.

We atopped again around noon for a quick lunch and pee stop and arrived at sc around 3. We unpacked showered and grabbed dinner and slept early to get up and go the next day

Worked out perfectly

Re: BTDT: Road trip!!

Thanks to all of you! Very helpful tips, especially about not stopping too much. Didn't even think about that. This should be an adventure!

Re: BTDT: Road trip!!

We usually leave after dinner - like 7/8ish at night so they MAY be up for an hour before they pass out and sleep through the trip.

BTDT: Road trip!!

Small cookie sheet and Melissa and Doug magnets were the best thing we brought to keep DS occupied when we drove to Hilton Head (he was 2).

Re: BTDT: Road trip!!

I would have an early dinner, get the kids in pjs and drive right after dinner.can you get a room somewhere? I would try to leave at 6 pm and drive until 11 pm. Stay in a hotel from 11-8 am and then have breakfast and get to your destination for lunch. Or one of you sleep from 6-11 and then you switch, and drive from 11-3 and the other sleeps then.

Message edited 2/14/2017 8:45:15 PM.