Is your family headed on a
road trip this summer? We have some great tips for
eating on the road. If you have additional road trip snack ideas, please leave a comment to share your ideas with other Kids Activities Blog readers.
Road Trip
Road Trips are my family’s favorite way to travel. And whether we are doing a day trip or an extended vacation, we want to be smart when it comes to eating on the road. It’s very easy to grab snacks at the gas station or pull into a fast-food restaurant while driving, but it isn’t always the healthiest alternative.
Eating on the Road
We have some great ideas for Road Trip Eating & Snacking for all ages:
- Know your Family! Be prepared and pack what snacks they like to eat. My family loves beef jerky and we only eat it when we are on the road. Now is not the time to try something new.
- Individual Portions! Buy snacks in pre-packaged portions (or make your own in little baggies). This is a great way to ensure children are not over eating and limits the mess a big bag can make.
- Pack Smart! Find a container that works for you. We have used everything from a soft-sided cooler to a plastic bin for our snacks. It really is a personal preference and what fits best in your vehicle. Just make sure you have created one central location in the car for the snacks to go. Preferably accessible to who you want it accessible to.
- Include Drinks! If you have dry snacks, it is always best to include drinks. Personally, the only drinks we allow in the car on road trips is water. It’s just so much easier to clean up a water mess over juice or soda.
- Keep your hands clean! If children are eating snacks with their hands, they really should have some way to clean them. We prefer hand sanitizers and they are all over the car when we travel.
- Trash bags/bins! We always pack a stash of plastic garbage bags in the bottom of our snack bin. So many uses for them other than just a place to hold trash.
Road Trip Snacks
The list could go on and one, but here are some of our favorite snack ideas:
- Individual cracker/cookie snacks
- Pre-portioned grapes
- Cutie/clementine oranges – put them in their own baggie to put the peels in – makes the car smell GREAT!
- Pre-portioned baby carrots
- Boxes of Raisins
- Pre-portioned popcorn
- Beef Jerky
- Trail Mix – I take my kids favorites and mix them together (think M&Ms, dry cereal, nuts, raisins, dried fruit, crackers, etc.)
- Peanut Butter Crackers
- Dried fruit
Snacks for the Road
I like to always include a “surprise snack” that my kids don’t expect – their favorite candy, pastry, cookie, etc. – its always a fun treat for them to discover.
So take the time to plan ahead on your next road trip with a few of your favorite snacks.
More Kids Activities
What is your family’s favorite Road Trip Snack? Do you have and tips and tricks for surviving eating on the road with kids? For more great kids activities and road trip ideas, take a look at these ideas before you pack up the minivan:
Love this!I always make sandwiches. I usually pack more than we need, but we still end up stopping somewhere anyway, just to get a break from the car.
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Also a great thing to take is a small container of Peanut butter (if there is no allergies of course), Jelly or Honey and a small loaf of bread or take sandwiches already made. Just incase of no good stops for meals. This way too you can have an impromptu picnic and get some wiggles out of the little’s.
I also love a good road trip! We always pack a bag of snacks – saves a ton of grief when we are on the road. Plus, if there isn’t a good place to stop for lunch or dinner, it can definitely save the day (and our moods!). I typically pack fruit and veggies, cheese and crackers. I recently did a post on one of our other favorite road trip snacks – a simple trail mix: http://behealthybehappywellness.com/2013/06/make-your-own-trail-mix/