Editor’s Note: This post, while edited slightly for current times, was originally written before COVID-19. For the most part, all the advice still applies, and I felt it timely since travel may soon be relegated to road trips.
As the world begins opening up again, I am getting excited about places we can explore within Germany (and closer to home) in the upcoming months. With so much traveling to Europe’s A-list places in the past 18 months, we neglected to explore popular local destinations such as Munich, Hamburg, Dresden, Garmisch, and the Black Forest or Schwarzwald .
While only a few months ago, flying was easier than ever before, current COVID-19 circumstances most certainly will changed that. We’re hearing about increased airline prices, longer airport waits (with health screenings), and potential health risks. Most likely, these obstacles may drive families back to car trips.
Throw a few kids into the travel mix, and the road trip will quickly come back in vogue. When kids are younger, road trips are already a great way to haul all the kid gear from point A to point B and see sights along the way. It offers up the opportunity to stop when needed and get out to stretch.
As those little kids grow up, road trips become a little more complex as bodies get bigger, louder, smellier, and more opinionated.
The Road Trip Makes a Comeback
Perhaps the days are gone of crossing America in a car like my dad used to do with his entire family crammed into a station wagon. But plenty of people in other countries are loading up mini vans and SUVs with kids to drive from Germany to Spain. Like in the U.S., Europe has a lot to offer between destinations, and the roads are perfect for seeing many cities and towns in one trip.
Living in Germany, the road trip is a new reality. Frankfurt puts us in the middle of all the European action and to get most places, we need to drive. Our most recent road trip was from Frankfurt to Berlin. Since we wanted to stop at places along the way and see the German countryside, we chose to drive. Prior to this trip, our other road trip took us all through Scotland; we stopped at almost a dozen places during our two-week tour. Neither my husband nor I grew up taking quintessential American road trips so once we had our own kids, it was a new adventure for us.
Together with the experience of traveling with teens and the great wisdom of other Travel Teening parents who have discovered the secrets to peaceful road trips—like Dramamine, good scenery, and headphones, I’ve collected the best advice for road tripping with teenagers.
Minimize Complaints with a Bit of Planning
Teens get overly annoyed when things go not-as-planned. Getting lost or missing a turn can send teenagers into eyeroll and sighing overload. While a little bit of the unexpected is good to teach patience and flexibility, an entire trip of mishaps will leave everyone exhausted and annoyed.
Google Maps has changed navigation for the better (mostly). No more carsickness while deciphering a paper map. Nevertheless, have an idea of which way you are going.
Planning stops is critical. One of the great things about how Internet has helped travel is everyone can help plan. Let teenagers research the route and other alternatives. Have them choose places to eat, visit, or stop along the way so they own the journey, too. Historical markers, museums, parks, and battlefields can break up the trip, and often, these detours will yield unexpected finds. During our road trip to Scotland, we saw it all. This two-week adventure was big for us, and we made many stops along the way. Before we even left, we carefully calculated the route—rest stops and overnights. Some of the stops we made were Dunne Castle, Stirling Castle, Loch Ness, a Distillery, and a Highland Games. Many of them were long enough for a tour, boat ride, oh, and to see the Queen!
As a family, agree on the maximum amount of driving time in a day. Even though everyone is just sitting, driving is tiring and the number of hours one can spend behind the wheel will vary. Knowing how long cheeks will be in seats will also help set expectations. Similar to flying, when the pilot tells you flying time will be 4 hours and 38 minutes then everyone can mentally plan.
Related: How the Internet Made the Adventure Even Better
Car “Togetherness” Warrants More Hotel Space
For multi-day road trips, choosing a hotel is important. Days are long and kids (and parents) are tired and need space. AirBnb or “suite” hotels (Embassy Suites, Comfort Suites, Residence Inn) provide more space after being squished together in a car all day. As a bonus, those hotels/apartments usually have a refrigerator for any cooler items and a hearty breakfast. One mistake we made during our Scotland road trip was choosing a hotel with the tiniest room after the longest leg of our trip. With not even room to put our suitcases, the four of us had to spread out to the lobby and dining room to get the space needed so we didn’t try to kill each other.
If the journey is planned for more than several days/nights, consider mixing up basic hotels with a nicer one with more amenities like a pool, gym, or even an ice rink.
Related: Hotel vs. Apartment: 4 Things to Consider When Traveling with Teens
How to Pack the Car with Bigger, Louder Bodies
Bigger kids mean less space in the car. Less space leads to unhappy kids. It’s important to keep things organized, like chargers (everyone should have his/her own), water bottles, and books.
With many stops along the way, constantly getting in and out of the car requires strategy as well.
- Instead of hard or soft-sided suitcases, consider packing duffle bags which are easier to fit into a car full of larger kids. This is a great opportunity to teach teenagers the value of packing, a skill that will make them lifelong travelers.
- Keep toiletries and PJs for everyone in one duffle bag to help making unloading and loading at each stop easier. One mom even suggested having each day’s outfits for everyone in labeled compression/Ziploc bags (with Monday, Tuesday, etc.) so at each stop they only need to pull the labeled bag with the toiletry duffle. Pure genius!
Related: Want to Raise Expert Travelers? Don’t Pack Your Kids’ Suitcases
No Longer Will Goldfish or Biscuits Do the Trick
Teens cannot survive by bread alone. When we fly long distances, we relax our typical rules in order to promote harmony and ease of travel. The same goes for long distances by car. However, good food is key to happy kids, at any age. A well-placed cooler filled with healthy and “car-trip food,” which is normally not eaten at home is a good idea. Eating road side or fast food for days on end will make everyone grumpy and bloated. Packing fruit, veggies, peanut butter crackers, beef jerky, sandwiches, and nuts will give everyone some real food mixed in with the greasy stuff.
My favorite idea came from a mom of four who packs snack boxes for each of her kids to minimize the fighting. They are required to ration it along the way, so they have only themselves to blame if they eat it too soon.
Take Off the Headphones, Keep Opinionated Travelers Happy
No one in our family can agree on music. A partial solution is headphones. But hour after hour of kids on headphones seems to negate the point of a road trip—there’s no family interaction. Pull the headphones off and give these options a try:
- Give everyone a chance at playing DJ for a few song selections. Then rotate.
- Create a road-trip playlist where each family members gets to include his/her favorites and then shuffle. You might be surprised at the overlap in music preference.
- Download from the library or purchase audio books. With so many great titles, this is a great way to catch up on “reading” — everything from fantasy and science fiction to biographies and historical fiction. Long car rides are great for covering the classics and knock out some of the good ones on the road: Fahrenheit 451, Brave New World, Lord of the Flies, Call of the Wild, The Secret Garden or The Hobbit. Or go the other direction with completely fun beach reads that will keep everyone quiet and anxious for more.
- Favorite podcasts are another great way to mix in something new to music. Our family loves “Wait Wait, Don’t Tell Me.” Rick Steves produces hundreds of podcasts and likely one directly related to the city you’re traveling to. My personal favorite is Extra Pack of Peanuts which satisfies the travel nerd in me.
- Depending on how long of a drive (a couple of days to weeks), devices will only get everyone so far. Music is good. Movies will use up data, especially if traveling in a foreign land where there’s cellular data is iffy. When the car riders need something a little more interactive to perk up the driver there are always traditional car games. Games like naming the state capitals, counting up license plates from states/countries, 20 Questions, the alphabet game.
- Consider prizes for the winners which might include spending money at the destination. That will likely make it competitive enough that people will actually play.
Let’s Remember this Moment Forever
After hours of togetherness in car, I expect some humorous and memorable conversations will occur. Consider starting a travel journal. Lengthy travel entries aren’t required. However writing down funny things along the way will spark memories for years to come. Just like with childbirth, the journey may be painful, but in a year, no one will remember being crammed in the car. And the funny antics that happened along the way will be fun to recount.
Photo by Dino Reichmuth on Unsplash (Van Photo)
Photo by Kevin Erdvig on Unsplash (Girl in car)
