Travelling with children by car is not easy, but attractive and exciting. It is essential to think over everything in advance, take care of the availability of the necessary things and a first aid kit. And then the rest will go well and will be remembered from the positive side.
Pros of auto travel with a child:
Minuses:
Competent travel planning will help to avoid cons. It is essential to decide what to take on the road with a child in a car.
You can travel with children of any age. With a baby, the trip will not be difficult. If the baby is calm, he will mostly sleep. When travelling with a child two years old, you need to think about entertainment and regular stops. An older preschooler can safely tolerate travel if there is entertainment. The main thing is to think over the details so that everyone is comfortable. In general, all children are different - one cries, the other is calm.
For a comfortable journey, you can rent an SUV. It is convenient - it is roomy, easily overcomes any off-road. And most importantly, you do not have to worry about the technical condition and other little things. This is the concern of the rental company. We have compiled a rating of cars for travelling in Ukraine for you.
There are some tips to make travelling by car easier and more relaxed. The main ones are:
There are several things to take care of in advance. Think them over at the stage of planning a vacation with the whole family.
If the child sleeps during the day, you need to guess the check-out time to be 1-1.5 hours before bedtime. The kid will calmly endure them, then fall asleep for two or three hours, and there will be much less time on the way.
If the driver needs rest, you can leave him in the car and take a walk around the neighbourhood with your child for 1-1.5 hours. It is especially good if you plan a walk before his sleep to drive a little and fall asleep for a nap.
Entertainment in the car can be very different depending on the age of the child and his preferences. The main ones are:
You can also take modelling dough or plasticine with you, especially if the child is small. It will not work to blind a full-fledged figure, but adults will have time to take a break.
It is very difficult to maintain order in a road train with a one-year-old child or a preschooler. Despite all the efforts, crumbs, pieces of paper will be in the salon.
Mom may try to play a cleaning game with the child, but it is unlikely that it will last long. Just make sure you have a separate garbage bag and collect any excess during your stops.
It is advisable to divide the trip into parts. The distance on how adults can withstand is unbearable for a child, especially a small one.
It is optimal if there are big stops every 6-7 hours of the journey. The child will not be able to sit quietly anymore. That is, it is comfortable if, after 6-7 hours of travel, you stop in some city, take a walk and stay overnight. It is the driving time that is taken into account.
Additionally, you need to make small stops for 15-30 minutes. It is advisable to do them every 1-1.5 hours so that the child does not have time to sit up. The smaller the baby, the more often it takes a little time to walk and change the environment. A teenager will be able to endure the journey on a par with adults, but a three-year-old is unlikely to sit quietly for more than an hour and a half. Accordingly, a 6-7 hour trip will take a little longer.
Better to stay overnight in hostels, hotels or inns. The priority for several reasons is a lower price, 24/7 check-in, and constant access to the kitchen. Moreover, almost every hostel has family rooms with a bathroom.
It is possible to organize an overnight stay in the car if space permits. The child can be placed in the back seat or a fold-out child seat. Parents are in the front seats. But remember that the rest will be incomplete this way, and you can forget about the vigour in the morning.
Travelling with a child in a car is not easy. It is advisable to make yourself a checklist and follow it. It is important to think in advance about how to prepare food, whether you need a stroller, what to take with you and other little things.
When organizing food, an important rule applies - do not bother. Prepare for the fact that you will physically not cook the usually baked meats, salads, soups and various delicacies. In addition, a child on a trip may refuse food altogether or eat only fruits. This is quite normal, as his body reacts to stress.
For newborns who are still breastfed or formula-fed babies, the problem with food is the easiest to solve. It is enough to apply a mixture of milk porridge to the breast or dilute with warm boiled water - and the child will be full.
If the child is already on a general diet, then there are several options:
From drinks, it is worth taking water, or rather a lot of water. For the child, you need to take care of a bottle with a pacifier or a sports neck. It is advisable to put the water so that it is not in direct sunlight and, accordingly, does not heat up.
Additionally, you can take along juice or drinking yoghurt. But they will need to be drunk first so that they do not deteriorate.
Important! After any sweet and even more carbonated drinks, you will want to drink even more. Therefore, ordinary clean water without gas is a priority. Take it with a reserve, and on the way, do not forget to replenish stocks so that travelling with a child under one year of age or older go smoothly.
From clothes, you should definitely take something light, cotton, so that you can go to the car in it. There is no point in dressing yourself and your child in beautiful things, especially if they are uncomfortable. It is better to take them with you to change them later on arrival at the place.
Mandatory things:
Going to the sea by car with children is also worth considering exactly where you are going. For example, the rest of the savages requires stable and non-slip sandals, and if it is a resort town, you can choose beautiful open shoes or shoes.
There should be a lot of toys, but do not give out everything to the child at once. 1-2 is enough for the first time, as he gets tired of them, another 1, etc.
Advice! Let the kid take his favourite toy with him. Don't limit his choices.
Ideal if the toys are new. What does childlike? Cars, dolls, balls? Buy a lot of small toys and give them out periodically during the trip, when it seems that the baby is completely tired or upset. The novelty effect is a good distraction and uplifting effect.
Most parents are firmly convinced that watching cartoons or playing on a smartphone can only be 15 minutes a day. To travel comfortably on vacation, you can tone down your conscience and allow your child a little more. So you will have half an hour of a calm ride without crying and tugging at your sleeve.
Important! Mobile Internet does not always catch on the road well. Therefore, it is advisable to free up space in advance on your smartphone or tablet and pump up more of your child's favourite cartoons or games.
It is very important to take your first aid kit with you. A small child can fall, scratch a knee, get hypothermic at sea, or worse. There is not always a pharmacy nearby to quickly buy the necessary medicine. Consider the list of necessary medicines and their form for children, and it is better to take syrups rather than pills. Be sure to look at the recommended age.
A trip by car with a baby or an older toddler should take place with a first aid kit, which contains:
Important! If you or your child have any medications that need to be taken regularly, they should be taken with a margin - at least for 3-5 days.
You should definitely take a stroller when travelling with a one-year-old child or preschooler. When packing at home, it may seem easy to handle without it, and you can save space. This is not true. Be sure to bring your stroller. It will come in handy. Better not to take an extra dress or even toys.
They are a must! You will need both wet and dry.
Don't put all your belongings in one suitcase. Better to take a few bags:
Anything that cannot be urgently needed on the road can be hidden in the far corner of the trunk in a common suitcase.
In addition, you need to take with you a mask with a snorkel for diving, fins, a bucket with beads, an inflatable ring and other things for a more interesting and safe stay.
For a small child, it is important to take a small inflatable pool. It can be placed directly on the beach - it is both convenient and safe. They usually have inflatable toys, so the baby will not be bored.
If the child is seasick, you need to stop the car, go out into the fresh air. You can give a little water. You can move on only after the child's well-being returns to normal.
Motion sickness remedies will help prevent the problem. They are sold in any pharmacy and are not expensive.
When travelling with a child, you need to plan everything. Understand the route first. It is advisable to book places for the night in advance, think over in which cities there will be stops, what to see and where to go to unwind.
You need to plan a vacation project down to which of the adults carries which package, who carries the child, etc. This is a good way to make your life easier. It is optimal to plan which car you will take on a trip.
Pre-booking a car with a car seat is a good opportunity to get a small discount.
The main recommendation is not to concentrate on the cons, take care of safety, and the trip will be exciting and interesting. Such an experience will be remembered on the positive side by both you and the child, and if you take into account the above tips for planning such a trip, it will go perfectly.
