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Ah, the teen years. Gotta love ’em.
My teen and I do our fair share of traveling. Most of the time, we are up in the air traveling from one part of the country to another. During the past year, we have also partaken in a few road trips too. Taking the car means that we can get around comfortably once we get to our destination while not having to spend extra dough on a rental.
This year we’ve road tripped it to both Chicago and Memphis. We managed to do so without stress or bickering because I am one rocking mama! I have mastered the art of road tripping with a teenager, and now I want to share with you a few gems on how to road trip with your teen without going crazy.
Bluetooth is a must
My daughter loves to share with me her favorite songs and jams, so she likes to connect her iPhone to my car stereo. My 2016 Kia Optima EX allows me to have 5 devices synced to the Bluetooth, so her phone is number 2 on my list. I pretend to like her music as she sings and sways to her fave tunes, which makes for a fun time.
Charger, please
Because your teen is busy double tapping photos on Instagram, a lengthy road trip calls for the ability for them to keep their devices charged. Make sure you have charging capability in the car you are taking on the road, preferably in the backseat for easy access for your teen.
Car backpack
My thirteen-year old always carries a special backpack especially curated for the car trip with snacks, gadgets, a blanket, and other necessities. This helps cut down on stops and makes it as comfy as possible for her.
Points of interest
Try to incorporate a few points of interest that your teen will enjoy during your car journey. Before the trip, plot down the route you will take and try to find places to visit that the will get a kick out of.
Audiobooks
Something my daughter and I have been doing for years is listening to audiobooks while we are in the car. These are family friendly books that she and I both like to partake in while riding and helps to make the time go by faster. We love listening to Harry Potter audiobooks as well as the Twilight series.
I hope you’ve found my How to Road Trip With Your Teen Without Going Crazy useful. When traveling with little, smaller people, make sure their car seat is installed safely.
We’ve got a holiday road trip in the works where it will be just me and our son. I’d love to add audiobooks to our ritual too!
Thanks for commenting. I actually started the audiobooks tradition with my son, who was coming up during peak Harry Potter years. We listened to them in the car faithfully, even when we weren’t traveling. I miss those days 🙂
You make a lot of good points, Danyelle.
What I realized later was that taking my own snacks ended up being a great idea. The stuff I’ve seen in many gas stations during a long trip was terrible – awful selection, overpriced, and bad for you. (I prefer something a lot better and healthier, too!)
I’d also recommend a few things, too, in case people haven’t thought of them:
– The external battery packs for charging phones & tablets when you don’t have power nearby
– A nice BPA free water bottle, maybe 32oz for example. They’re great.
– You can rip YouTube videos or music for free from the web using one of many free programs to enjoy on the way
Good quality headphones that don’t hurt your ears after a long time are definitely a must!
Thanks. 🙂
Interesting points in the articles. I personally like the Audiobooks point because I found that listening to interesting podcasts help us find common interests & have more talks after that.