10 Ways to Avoid Road Trip Boredom & Battles

Planning a family road trip? Take it from me, as beautiful as scenery might be, long hours of driving can make anyone cranky. Add three teens in the back seat and you’ve got the makings of an eruption bigger than Mount St. Helen’s.

Luckily, we had few outbursts on our 7,000-miles adventure to 20 national parks. What was our secret? How did we alleviate all-out rebellion? Here are 10 tips:

1. PACK SNACKS: I don’t know about your family, but mine is always hungry, especially when there’s not much else to do. I’d like to say I kept it to healthy munchies like carrot sticks or fruit. But with my clan, it was mostly chips and candy. You’d be surprised at how much time you can pass trying to flip M&M’s into your mouth (and how many bets you can lose!) 

2. DIVVY HUMP SEAT DUTIES: If, like me, you were blessed with three kids, then you’re familiar with the race to sit “shot gun” and the way the third child often gets shoved into the middle. We made sure to play musical chairs with the back hump seat, making each (including me) take their turns. My normally broke older son even used it as a bribe, as in, “If you lend me a few bucks, I’ll sit in the middle next time.” 

3. TALK TRIVIA: With the computers we each carry (i.e., our smart phones), it’s easy and fun to look up Road Trip Trivia. You’ll find tons of factoids, such as:
   - since I just mentioned it, where “shot gun” comes from? (In the old Wild West, a gun-toting guard sat next to stagecoach drivers to protect them from bandits.)
   - what Disney movie featured Route 66? (Cars)
   - how many parts the average car has? (3,000)
   - what’s the most visited state in the US? (California)
   - what’s the most visited attraction in the US? (Times Square) Find much more at https://icebreakerideas.com/travel-trivia/ 

4. TELL YOUR STORIES: I didn’t anticipate this when we started out, but I came to cherish car rides and campfires because they offered us the power of chat. A chance early mention of the Marlboro Man while driving past beautiful Colorado ranches led to my fessing up about smoking as a young teen. My kids ate it up and this snowballed into lots of sharing on all sides, intertwining our family bubble even more. If you don’t know where to start, here are a few ideas to share about yourself: What would you buy if you won the lottery? What was your most embarrassing moment as a kid? What did you want to be when you grew up? If you could have dinner with any three people, who would they be? What superpower would you choose? See a lot more questions at https://www.liveawilderlife.com/fun-road-trip-questions/

5. COMPETE IN ROAD GAMES: Try license plate alphabet or billboard numbers, where everyone in the car is on the lookout for the next letter or number. Another good one is, “Spot the ________,” where the blank can be something easy, like “anything red,” or “hawk,” or more challenging, like “green building,” or “cell tower.” Want to make it even better? Keep score. Teens love to win! Discover more games (and game apps) at https://outdoorish.com/learn/road-trip-trivia/

6. ALLOW SOME ANTICS: We did have a couple of times where my husband pulled over, screeched to a halt, and read the riot act. But mostly we tolerated the backseat wrestling, man-spreading, and faux slaps. 

7. FIND COMEDY CHANNELS: My musical family often cranked up the tunes, but we also found hours of entertainment on Comedy Central radio. 

8. EMBRACE SILENCE: We spent long stretches each involved in our own thing, reading, listening to our own music with earbuds, or just quietly looking out the windows and admiring the amazing landscapes. At least half of our thousands of photos were taken while driving!

9. STOP PERIODICALLY: It’s tempting to power through, but stopping every couple of hours is much healthier for mind, body and spirit (unless, of course, you lock your keys in the car, delaying your journey for hours. Yes, I actually did this. You can read all about it in Eye Rolls & Awe: A National Parks Road Trip with Teens.) 

10. LIMIT DRIVING TIME: We mapped out no more than five hours of travel a day, even if it meant stopping at a mid-point hotel. This left time to “do” something before departing or at our next destination, making the day more fun. We made an exception on the stretch from Grand Canyon to Yosemite, which forced us to drive almost nine hours back-to-back. (And, surprise, surprise, they wound up being our moodiest travel days, as you can also read in Eye Rolls & Awe.) 

Any other road trip ideas? I’d love to hear them!