Car Trip Packing and Survival About This Page:

[Mossketeer]

We are three days away from our first drive to WDW with our 3 little angels (girls ages: 8 yrs.,5 yrs.,3 yrs.) who I'm sure will not cry or complain a bit throughout the fascinating 22 hr. drive!LOL

I will be picking up my DH in Midtown on Thursday afternoon and the fun begins! We hope to get to Southern VA or further by late Thurs. eve spend the night somewhere, and get to Northern FL by Friday night,spend the night and on to POR by early Sat. morning.



Here is my car ride list:



GameBoys and Games

DVD, headphones, splitter, movies

Crayons and paper

Etch-a-sketch

Travel Light Brite

Magnetic games

Garbage bags

Cooler

Maps and Trip Tix

ZipLock Baggies

Gum and mints

Pillows, Blankets, stuffed friends



I thought it might be helpful to have the windows treated with Rain Ex??



If you have any other ideas on packing, fun places to stop or passing time on the car ride, please let me know.

[OffKilter_Lynn]

I commend your adventurer spirit!! The furthest I've traveled with my 2 is 6 hours to Williamsburg Virginia (from outside Philadelphia). Two words... NEVER AGAIN!!

The only thing I'd add to the list is some Motrin for Mom!

Just take lots of breaks to stretch the legs (maybe bring a ball, frisbee or jump rope). Happy travels!

[allgiggles]

I'd make sure to have baby wipes/hand wipes for inevitable messes and sticky fingers. I also pack an old towel or two (actually, I always keep a few in the car) in case of spills or unexpected messes. As far as activities, I like the Crayola Color Wonder markers -- the kind that will only write on special paper. And they now have Color Wonder Fingerpaints that only work on the special paper (no color on the hands). I plan to buy the fingerpaints for our 4 & 5 year olds when we make the trip (by car!) to WDW in June.

[Fortissimo]

I'm going to make this a sticky because it is an awesome thread!

[Taleena]

We make sure we have a ziploc bag with toll change (coins and dollars), my camera (I'm a picture-taking fiend!) and our cell phone & charger. Those are always the last things to go in the car other than ourselves.

[Cameron's mom]

Sounds like you're really organized! Just back from our 18 hr drive to Disney and back (back is the hard part) I'd say you've thought of just about everything.
Inevitably at least once we've stopped at a restroom that's not up to my standards on cleanliness. I've started packing anti-bacterial hand gel and handi-wipes.

[Mossketeer]

Love the jump rope and frisbee idea! What a great way to burn off restlessness and get some needed exercise! I've got to look into the color wonder finger paint!

Also dont want to forget the EZ-Pass!

[helen]

i have bought window markers for my trip in sept. I also have a twenty or so hour drive and figure writing on the windows might keep them occupied for a small amount of time lol. i also made up disney and personalized puzzles and some journals for the kids.

[DisneyMom23Boys]

Hi!

Last May, 2003 we made our first 17-hr family driving adventure to WDW (from NW of Philadelphia). We'd always flown in the past, but the $$$ was just getting way too high for the five of us (self, dh & 3 boys-11, 9, & 5). It wasn't that bad!! It only cost us about $250 in gasoline as opposed to the $1,000+ in air fare!!

I did also drive down with my sister when the two oldest were 6 & 4, taking my grandmother along, too. Those were the longest trips down & back ever!!

The difference? In 1998 we drove mostly during the DAY and in 2003 we did most of our driving at NIGHT. In 2003 we left home around 5:30 pm and drove straight through, arriving at WDW at 10:00 am. (We even drove through rain straight from D.C. through North Carolina!!) We missed ALL of the rush-hour traffic! After checking in we spent a few hours at the pool before a fun-filled day at the MK, Chef Mickey's & Pin-Trading!! I was hoping to get some zzzzz's, but I guess I was too excited to sleep!

Returning Home: Our original plans were to leave WDW on Friday evening at 9:00 pm, drive to the FL-GA and stay in a motel overnight and drive the rest of the way home in the morning (which would have taken ALL day). Thursday afternoon while riding Splash Mountain we decided we were having way too much fun & decided to leave Saturday afternoon instead!! (It was WONDERFUL to be able to do this & not have to leave to catch a plane!) After a full day at Animal Kingdom we left at 5:30 pm to head for home, again straight through, and arrived home at 9:30 am. After unloading the necessities dh & I slept most of the rest of the morning.

Dh and I would drive 2-3 hours while the other slept & then trade places.

The boys watched DVD's on our laptop computer (which fit perfectly between the front seats of our Ford Excursion) for most of the trip. I do think that I will give the boys Dramamine before we start our journey this October, though.

We have a luggage carrier, but we didn't use it on our past trip. We have decided to pack as much as possible in there on our next trip to give us more room in the Excursion to stretch out, leaving down only the cooler, blankets, pillows, the laptop, some travel games (Disney Trivia on CD-Rom!), Pin-Trading backpacks, camera & fanny pack with AP's, etc.) We also used a plug-in cooler that was a life-saver for keeping drinks & snacks cold. This will involve a little strategy in packing the luggage carrier, though (make sure that our overnight bag for our 1-night stay at the Contemporary is right on top!)

Do you plan where you're going to fill up for gas ahead of time or do you "hit" gas stations as you see them along the way. The only problem is that you may travel a mile or two out of the way!

I can't wait to hear your car trip packing & survival ideas!

[goofy4goofy]

We just made the loooong trip from PA to Florida and back with a 2.5 year old. I thought it would be awful, but it turned out great! The portable DVD player is a lifesaver!!! Be sure to take plenty of snacks and drinks. (we bought Disney themed fruit snacks, goldfish crackers, fresh fruit and granola bars) We packed all the luggage on the rooftop carrier and had plenty of room to stretch in the minivan (four adults and one toddler). I'd also recommend those reading lights that clip onto books if you are traveling overnight. We took a lot of breaks, trying to stop at the different welcome centers for the different states. These tended to be cleaner and had more room to run around than your average rest area.

Kelly

[happyhedgehogs]

My DS (almost 3) loves his little magnetic dry erase board during car trips! (It was very inexpensive at Wal-Mart, and just the right size for a toddler lap.) I collect various flat magnets in a baggie, and have one or two markers for him, as well as tissues to clean it off. He spends hours arranging and rearranging the magnets and drawing on the board. We'll even play games with it: I'll draw a picture or letter and he'll try to name what it is, or he'll "draw" something for me to guess. (Obviously, DH is driving at that time!)

For stretch breaks, you can't beat bubbles! DS loves for us to blow bubbles for him to chase, or vice versa. We usually take a small "non-spillable" bubble tub and a bigger container to refill from. Bubble play gives everyone a chance to stretch and move, and get out some of the pent-up energy.

I've also had a lot of luck with taking a LeapPad. If you have one (or whatever LeapFrog system is appropriate for your kids) or know someone who does, bring it and a few extra books. It's entertaining _and_ educational, so I don't feel so bad about using it as a "traveling babysitter"!

I also couldn't live without our plug-in cooler, as someone else mentioned. It keeps drinks and sandwiches cold, and also keeps candy and such from melting if we leave it in the hot car during a mall stop or stretch break. You will probably want to turn it off if the car will be off for any amount of time (to save your car battery), but we've found that it holds its cool very well.

Sounds like we'll be there the same time as you! We leave Friday and arrive on Saturday evening. Maybe we'll see you there!

-Bonnie

[BigDogDad]

Don't forget plenty of batteries for the GameBoy and also the recharger if you have one. This keeps our boys busy on the road and in the room when we travel. The Disney games for the GameBoy are great!

[Fortissimo]

Welcome, BigDogDad!

That is a great tip - life wouldn't be fun if the Game Boy batteries ran out.

[BigDogDad]

Hello Fortissimo!

Our "Battle Plan" so to speak for our drive... From NY to WDW also includes a portable DVD player for what else... DISNEY movies!!! I see you are a Harry Potter fan too! We (Sons 7, 4 and ME!) can't wait until it is released too! May as well pack the HP DVD's!!!

[DisneyDreaming]

I agree with the plug in cooler. It has helped and saved us a bunch. It paid for itself on one trip for us.

Another thing you can do for kids is get on the puzzle websites and make Disney type puzzles for everyone. that way you can go by interest and ages etc. You can also go on Disney web sites and print off some pages to color too.

There are also Disney fruit snacks in individual packages that make it fun to hand out for treats.

Marylee