I love a family road trip. Even with six people in our family, I can’t resist the lure of loading the whole family up and going on a road trip. Since we live in Colorado, we’re pretty centrally located for a lot of great attractions and have a bunch of family road trip experience. Here are some of the things we have learned. 
Plan ahead, but not too much. We like having a basic idea of where we are going and where we would like to stop each night. We have a camper, so we don’t always have to worry about planning accommodations. Still, if we’re visiting a city or somewhere without a lot of campgrounds, we will go ahead and make plans to stay certain places each night. Having a destination without a plan makes the whole family road trip a lot more fun. You’re able to take side trips or visit roadside attractions that you otherwise might not be willing to stop for if you were on a schedule. My oldest son, Matthew, loves to share pictures from strange attractions with his friends, so whenever we see billboards for things like the museum of questionable medical devices (in Minneapolis) or the Pez memorabilia museum in Burlingame, California, we can’t wait to stop.
Bring fun for the little ones. Jake is 6 and Rachel is 2, and they don’t enjoy the long family road trips as much as the rest of us quite yet. It’s important to have games and activities on hand for the little ones so they won’t get too bored. I like to load up a big beach bag with coloring books, play dough, little games, maybe some toys from the dollar store, stickers and other fun (and quiet!) things that will keep them occupied, at least for a few hours. Because we don’t have a concrete schedule most of the time when we’re on a family road trip, we’re able to make a lot of stops. We’ll stop at a park that looks promising and run around for a little while, or pull over in a cute downtown for an ice cream and a stroll around. This lets us see a part of the world we might otherwise have flown right past, and it’s good for all of us to stretch our legs.
Bring Snacks for Everyone. When you don’t have a plan, you might end up in some places where good, healthy meals are few and far between. Make sure you pack plenty of granola bars, fresh fruit, bottled water, trail mix and other snacks your family likes. A great way to save money on a family road trip is to skip breakfast at a restaurant. If you aren’t staying at a motel with a continental breakfast, bring along breakfast goodies like bagels and peanut butter (which don’t need to be refrigerated) to get your troop off to a good start.
Document Your Discoveries. Whether you start a family blog where each family member can write about your travels or have a family road trip scrapbook for each outing, you’ll want to find a way to keep track of your pictures, memorabilia and stories from each vacation. This is a fun activity to work on during your vacation, especially if a rainy day threatens to ruin your good times.
Bring along paper, markers, crayons and stickers for the little ones to draw their favorite parts of the experience. Older kids and grownups can write journal entries, but don’t resist the urge to doodle a little if you want, too. When you get home you can combine everyone’s efforts into a scrapbook with your pictures for a family road trip everyone will remember fondly.
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