No road trip is complete without car games and snacks! Download this Road Trip Scavenger Hunt Printable and see how easy it is to make road trip snack boxes!
Road Trip Scavenger Hunt Printable
Do you have memories of summer vacations from your childhood?! Because of my dad’s job (he was in the military), we didn’t get to have the “family vacations” as many families did. No family trips to Disney World, or a week on the beach, and not many road trips to little-known places. My dad was often deployed or getting ready to deploy during the summer and into fall so those kinds of trips just never really worked for our family.
When he was home for the summer, we would often take trips back to the Midwest to see my grandparents and extended family. Those trips hold the best memories because they filled my spirit and character with more things than any theme park ever could.
I don’t want that to sound like we never had any fun – because we did. To be perfectly honest, my dad would bend over backward to make sure we could go on the school trips to Kennedy Space Center, Disney World, Sea World, Daytona Beach ….. and countless drill meets all over the state of Florida. We just never had the opportunity to go to all of those places as a family.
Road trips
Back when I was a kid (and maybe they still do it), we would go to St. Augustine on PAL Day. I’m not exactly sure what it is, but it’s like an appreciation day for service members. Or at least that’s what I remember of it! We could get into many of the attractions for free.
My brothers and I loved seeing Castillo de San Marcos, Ripley’s Believe It or Not, St. Augustine Alligator Farm, the Fountain of Youth, Potter’s Wax Museum, and of course, the Colonial Quarter and St. George Street.
I’m sure St. Augustine has changed a lot since the last time I was there, but it holds many fond memories for me. St. Augustine was close enough to Jacksonville for a day trip, but far enough away to make it feel like a real trip. My brothers and I would pass the time in the car by playing I Spy or slug bug. Mostly, slug bug! ?
On the drive home, it would often be dark and I remember sitting in awe at the number of stars in the sky. Being a city kid, I never realized how much the city lights would drown out the stars … until we drove out in the middle of nowhere without the city lights! There were billions of them.
Of course, with any trip, you have to have snacks! Back in the day, my brothers and I loved to stop at the gas station for Nehi Sodas – peach was my favorite! My mom would always pack a cooler full of food and drinks – but that Nehi soda was special because we only got them when we went on road trips!
Now that I have kids of my own, I like to stay away from gas station food and drive-thrus too. Depending on the trip, I pack a cooler with food and drinks. However, if it’s a short trip (like to gramma’s in Southern California or a day trip around Arizona), I like to give my kids their own little boxes that they can snack on throughout the day. Of course, everyone gets their own so there is no complaining about so-and-so ate all of the (fill in the blank).
Road trip scavengers
My kiddos like playing I Spy, but instead of playing slug bug (they don’t even know what that game is!!), my kiddos like to do scavenger hunts! I made a printable for my kiddos and I am sharing it with you! It’s a great way to keep the kids occupied on the drive to grandma’s house or to the theme park – or wherever the road takes you! I like to put our sheets in sheet protectors so they can be reused over and over! If you have a laminator, that is even better!
You know back-to-school time is just around the corner! I found some little tackle boxes (yes, like fishing tackle boxes) in the sporting goods section that were the perfect size for holding each of the kids’ snacks! You could just as easily use any similar size container. The boxes came in various sizes, but we didn’t’ really need big boxes!
Click the link below to print the color printable:
How do you occupy your time on road trips? What snacks do you love while traveling?
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I'm pinning this post to use when Miss Em is older – great ideas!!
This is such a cute idea!! I will for sure use this when C is older!!
Super duper cute idea! And I love it with the fruit snacks as markers!
This is such a fun way to keep kids occupied while traveling, and those snacks are just great!