Packing the car for a family holiday road tripYou’ve got the pram. You’ve folded up the travel cot. You haven’t forgotten the toys. There’s plenty of food for the drive. The clothes and shoes are packed away.

Excellent. Are you good to go? Did you remember to leave room for the kid?

Are you reminiscing about the pre-children road trips when you’d throw your toothbrush and a few T-shirts in a bag, pick up a bottle of water and a packet of Minties at the petrol station then drive off towards a week of fun and games? Well, those days sure are over!

Packing a car for a road trip with a baby or small children is no game – although it does feel a little bit like Tetris.

Here are some extremely helpful tips on packing the car from our friends on the Bub Hub Facebook page!

13 clever tips for packing the car for a family holiday

Jamming things under seats works well as do those seat pockets for all the kids’ knick-knacks.

  • When you’re packing clothes roll not fold!
  • Pack light, layer clothing, and use space-saver bags, decide if you really need a pram or if a carrier will be OK!
  • Place blankets and sheets in the travel cot before you fold it. Also put a plastic bag inside each nappy so that you don’t have to search for them when needed to get rid of smelly ones.
  • Put as much as you can into bags or use boxes as they are easy to stack. Soft luggage will be more flexible and will take up less room. If you’ve got hard luggage make sure it is filled to capacity to make the best use of space.
  • Pack specifically and strategically. It’s like a jigsaw puzzle when packing the car, but remember to pack the things you might need the most along the way, last, so they are easily accessed.
FORUM: Chat to other parents about travelling with babies and young children
  • If it doesn’t fit … too bad.
  • Put your pyjamas and a change of clothes in separate bag so if you are staying somewhere for one night as you travel, you only have to grab that bag plus the nappy bag.
  • It doesn’t hurt to practice playing Tetris for a few hours beforehand. Just to get into the right frame of mind!
  • Set your priorities before you pack. If it isn’t absolutely necessary then it stays behind. Stick with the basics!
  • Pretend you’re traveling by plane with a baggage limit, helps to weed out the excess items.
  • Buy a cheap stroller that folds very compact for the car and holidays.
  • Make up a separate little bag with a few changes of clothes, nappies, wipes etc and put it in last in a spot where you can easily get to it for stops along the way.
READ: Worried about how to entertain the kids? Check out our article on Car Games for Kids

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *