30 hour roadtrip with two kids: WWYD?

[EthiopianFood]

Or rather, HOW would you do it? We have two drivers. Dh will get home from work at 4:30 PM on a Friday. The nine-day event begins Saturday, so we have to be late, but I really hope to get there as soon as possible so I don't miss too much. When would you leave, and how long would you be willing to drive a day? We will likely have to set up a tent when we get there, but it will be mid-July, so it will be light out fairly late.

 

Yes, I am crazy. The event is really important to me, and won't ever happen again. :)

 

ETA: It's camping on a mountain, so no, I'm not stupid in addition to the crazy!

[staceyobu]

What's the event? I'd do 4:30-12:00 Friday. Plan for a long day Saturday (12 hours maybe). Then finish Sunday?

[MyLittleWonders]

How old are the kids (in other words, how often will you need to stop for bathroom breaks)? We did some really late nights when we road tripped in '11, but that was mostly because we started late or took side trips. My oldest (almost 10 at the time) was much better with long stretches of driving than the 5 year old at the time. Long hours in the car got really old quickly, but we tried to keep bathroom breaks to gas stops, had a lot of food in the car, and made sure we had a couple car chargers for electronics. I loaded up the iPods before we left with movies and TV shows, and that helped tremendously, if you have that option. Audio books would also be good (we are planning on that the next time we road trip) as the help pass the time without the possible car-sickness that can come from staring at a screen for too long.

 

Personally, I hate being in the car once I'm past tired, so I'd probably plan on stopping at midnight to sleep somewhere and wake at the crack of dawn and get back on the road. If you can do a really long day on Saturday and then sleep somewhere that night, you could probably make it mid-morning on Sunday (and then you won't be pitching a tent in the dark on Saturday night). I just think for everyone's sanity, sleeping in a hotel/motel on Friday and Saturday night might help everyone enjoy the rest of the event you are attending.

[EthiopianFood]

What's the event? I'd do 4:30-12:00 Friday. Plan for a long day Saturday (12 hours maybe). Then finish Sunday?

 

 

I did a semester-long college... thing... in Oregon. They recently sold the property to alumni after running it for over 30 years. It's an old logging camp on a mountain where you can get away, discuss ideas with intelligent people, etc. They are having a reunion for all alumni for a last chance to be there how it was the first time around. The professors are now in their late 60s and early 70s, and this could be the last chance I have to see them again. I have no idea how I will come up with gas money, but I will always regret it if I don't go, and flying costs as much as gas, so might as well make it a family trip.

[EthiopianFood]

Five and thirteen. They are both good in the car, although the longest trip we've taken was years ago, and only eight hours. I was thinking about the benefits of driving overnight on Friday, to have less awake in the car bored time. I also worry I might have too much energy to sleep that night anyway... but worry I will crash before Saturday evening.

 

How old are the kids (in other words, how often will you need to stop for bathroom breaks)? We did some really late nights when we road tripped in '11, but that was mostly because we started late or took side trips. My oldest (almost 10 at the time) was much better with long stretches of driving than the 5 year old at the time. Long hours in the car got really old quickly, but we tried to keep bathroom breaks to gas stops, had a lot of food in the car, and made sure we had a couple car chargers for electronics. I loaded up the iPods before we left with movies and TV shows, and that helped tremendously, if you have that option. Audio books would also be good (we are planning on that the next time we road trip) as the help pass the time without the possible car-sickness that can come from staring at a screen for too long.

 

Personally, I hate being in the car once I'm past tired, so I'd probably plan on stopping at midnight to sleep somewhere and wake at the crack of dawn and get back on the road. If you can do a really long day on Saturday and then sleep somewhere that night, you could probably make it mid-morning on Sunday (and then you won't be pitching a tent in the dark on Saturday night). I just think for everyone's sanity, sleeping in a hotel/motel on Friday and Saturday night might help everyone enjoy the rest of the event you are attending.

[besroma]

We drive as long as the kids are doing well (whether or not they are sleeping).

 

On many trips, we have driven the bulk of it the first day (say, 10 hours), thinking the next day would be a breeze because we only had four hours left to drive. Then, eight hours later we would arrive due to all of the stops we had to make for the kids. Sonow, when all is well, we keep driving!

[EthiopianFood]

We drive as long as the kids are doing well (whether or not they are sleeping).

 

On many trips, we have driven the bulk of it the first day (say, 10 hours), thinking the next day would be a breeze because we only had four hours left to drive. Then, eight hours later we would arrive due to all of the stops we had to make for the kids. Sonow, when all is well, we keep driving!

 

 

What if we/they "crash" at an inopportune time? :eek:

[happi duck]

If it was possible...I'd be tempted to start the trip on my own and then have dh meet up with us along the way via bus if it wasn't too expensive. That way I'd do 7-8 hours a day. However, this adds cost for staying overnight somewhere. Maybe churches along the way would let you crash?

 

Is the Amtrak train a possibility?

[jar7709]

IMO, don't psych yourself out about it. Try to maintain an attitude of a grand adventure. :) We love road trips here, and I find that the kids really feed off DH and my attitudes--if we're positive, they are more likely to be positive too. That said we try to stay flexible because sometimes the crankies will strike. We can drive a LONG way in the day if we stop when it feels time, and have a sit-down meal for lunch and ask a local to recommend a nearby park is so the kids can burn off some energy. We usually take along a frisbee and ball to play with them and encourage activity if it's not a playground-type park. It's amazing how an hour-long recharge can really get your spirits back up...plus, it's fun to see the variety in parks!

 

I also like to have a couple options in mind ahead of time where we might stay over night...say you think you're going to drive 12 hours the first day, scope out a couple potential campgrounds that might be 10, 12, 14 hours down the road. So if you're still going strong at 12 hours you can gain a little time, or if you're all beyond hope at 10 hours you don't have to stress (too much) about what you're going to do. Just a few ideas. :)

[Reya]

I'd start out with DH driving until he couldn't, then me. I'd go straight through if DH could handle it.

[besroma]

 

 

 

What if we/they "crash" at an inopportune time? :eek:

 

"Crash" meaning fall asleep, or fall apart?

[EthiopianFood]

If it was possible...I'd be tempted to start the trip on my own and then have dh meet up with us along the way via bus if it wasn't too expensive. That way I'd do 7-8 hours a day. However, this adds cost for staying overnight somewhere. Maybe churches along the way would let you crash?

 

Is the Amtrak train a possibility?

[Hen]

we've done straight 22 hour trips twice now - with dh and I taking turns driving. 22 hours was really pushing it though, we couldn't have done more. I would drive to break it up into maybe 15 hours each with a sleep stop somewhere in the middle or something close like 18 hrs/12 hr split. We had 4 kids and a dog on the last trip. Both times we have left around 9 or 10 at night so the kids would all sleep for a real long stretch. We had books on tape to listen to and made lots of stops. We would drive until we got tired and then we would switch.

[Pippen]

If getting there ASAP was the prime goal, I'd plan to drive to around midnight that first night (only brief stops--bring along dinner) and then split the remaining time over the next two days. When we were kids my parents always preferred to get up and leave at the crack of dawn so you'd find us rolling out of a campsight or hotel at 4 or 5am. We found our kids did better when we slept, had breakfast, and maybe swim for a bit, then drive later into the night. Usually we'd book the first night in advance and then call ahead each day for reservations when we had an idea of where we'd end up for the night.

 

Have fun--your kids are old enough that this is easily do-able. You might check out what sites are on main routes to the event so you can plan some stops there and back.

[JFSinIL]

No option to ship camping stuff in advance or rent it once there, and FLY? Are you talking 30 hours in EACH direction?

[JFSinIL]

If it was possible...I'd be tempted to start the trip on my own and then have dh meet up with us along the way via bus if it wasn't too expensive. That way I'd do 7-8 hours a day. However, this adds cost for staying overnight somewhere. Maybe churches along the way would let you crash?

 

Is the Amtrak train a possibility?

 

Yeah - could YOU leave early in the morning with kids/stuff and drive all day to a place close to an airport and have hubby fly in to meet you that night to help finish driving?

[AdventureMoms]

I think it is doable. I'd get going when your dh gets off and take turns driving until you can't anymore. Scope out some potential hotels for that first night but if your kids can sleep on the car you may be able to push through. If you can't make it to sat evening, stop Saturday afternoon.

 

We drove 14 hours with 3 kids under 4 last year. Your trip is longer but your kids are much older and probably don't need to pee every hour anymore. (Like my 3yo last year) And they probably won't insist on pooping in their diapers 5 minutes after a stop either (my 1yo twins)

[Beth S]

Is it 15 hours each way or 30? I hate to discourage you, but I think you will be just too exhausted upon arrival to enjoy it.

Can you consider just flying out there yourself, and leaving the kids with friends or family while dh works?

Can you "carpool" with another old friend, and meet halfway or something?

 

I'm guessing you will get lots of good suggestions here! :)

[catz]

We just got back from a road trip that was 27 hours one way. Longer on the way back due to sightseeing. We do 1 or 2 long road trips a year for the past 4 or 5 years. A cooler and grab and go food/snacks are big. As well as keeping on top of the garbage situation. I pack a bunch of plastic shopping bags and we get rid of them when we hit a gas station. Almost every small town in America has a Subway we've discovered!

 

The electronics, audio books,etc are life savers in our vehicle. We never drive all the way through the night. We all do better if we can get a decent night's sleep and stretch our legs. I might drive until about midnight the first night. And do a heavier day on Saturday. Some flexibility is a good thing too. The last few trips my DH has paid for 4G on his iPad which was extremely useful in scoping out what was coming up. We do not have smart phones or a navigation system.

[NotSoObvious]

Ooh! We love road trips. We are in the middle of a 15 hour each way one and we are considering driving across the country and back this summer for a camping family reunion.

 

We don't drive at night either. We need our sleep. We use hotels.com so every tenth night is free. We stay at Hamptons if we don't have the dog, Doubletrees if we do. We like to know we'll get a clean room and good sleep between driving days.

 

We try not to shoot for more than ten hours a day on a long trip (12 on a short trip). We take our iPhones and find local places to eat. Those are some of our best memories. We stop for either lunch or dinner, then usually fast food the other. We stop at all state line welcome centers. We've never regretted stopping to see something,never if it adds an hour to our trip.

 

My girls read in the car, luckily, so they bring their books. They also knit or play with those wiki stick things. Ahead of time, I make them each a folder of maps, information, and activities about where we are going or what's along the way. They LoVE this. There is always something for them to color. I put it in a three pronged folder. We also do audiobooks.

 

I would rather drive than fly, honestly. Especially if we were camping. But that's just us. We love driving.

 

I'd also get your oil changed before you go. We had to leave an hour late for this trip while the car got new tires. :(

 

***oh! Most importantly, we always try to get to the hotel with enough time for the girls to swim for at least 30 minutes. It tires them out so they sleep better.

[UrbanSue]

We love road trips and we've done some crazy ones in tiny cars with little kids who won't sleep. These are mostly repeats but our survival strategies are below. These prioritize arriving with sanity intact and not getting there early. Honestly, in your situation, I'd see if I could leave four days before the start time, do "easy" 8-hour days, fly just dh out and have all of you drive home together when you either a) have more time or b ) can just lie on the couch recovering for a couple of day after because you bombed home.

 

Here are our road trip tips:

 

1) Try to pack lunches from home or from grocery store stops and then eat in a park or those park-like rest stops that some roads have. This lets the kids run around and lets you not go crazy from feeling like you've been living in travel plazas your whole life.

 

2) Try to plan either a really good dinner or a really good breakfast. We do some research in advance and try to have one meal a day to look forward to. If the budget doesn't allow eating out, pack some special things from home. Dh and I have brought beer for the hotel lots of times :) (For the dinner we usually get take out for the hotel but every restaurant will do take out now so it doesn't have to be fast food)

 

3) Practice very fast bathroom breaks for your stops other than lunch time. Keeping momentum going will help everyone's attitude.

 

4) When planning activities, keep the car clutter to a minimum. Maybe it's just me but I want to scream by the end of day three of every trip when there are toys and books and crayons everywhere. We have not gone the videos in the car route, yet. We're sort of afraid to open that can or worms. But if you already do that or think it's a great idea it, at least, has the great advantage of not taking up space! Ditto, audiobooks. Something interesting to listen to makes watching the scenery even more fun. I've been whittling down how much entertainment we bring for years and every year I still think I brought way too much.

 

5) Pack for everyone a pillow and small blanket or sweatshirt. Even in summer, the AC can get cold when you are sleepy, but the driver might need it to stay awake.

 

Good luck!

 

ETA: With regard to #2 above, we always plan stops in advance. It helps us push on when we get tired of the car and then we're sure we have a decent place to stay and someplace to eat. But we also don't have smart phones or even a gps so you may be able to be more flexible.

[kroe1]

If I had two drivers, then I'd drive straight through. With one driver, I'd drive straight through, also, it just takes a really long time because I pull over a lot for cat naps.

[catz]

Ooh! We love road trips. We are in the middle of a 15 hour each way one and we are considering driving across the country and back this summer for a camping family reunion.

 

We don't drive at night either. We need our sleep. We use hotels.com so every tenth night is free. We stay at Hamptons if we don't have the dog, Doubletrees if we do. We like to know we'll get a clean room and good sleep between driving days.

 

We try not to shoot for more than ten hours a day on a long trip (12 on a short trip). We take our iPhones and find local places to eat. Those are some of our best memories. We stop for either lunch or dinner, then usually fast food the other. We stop at all state line welcome centers. We've never regretted stopping to see something,never if it adds an hour to our trip.

 

My girls read in the car, luckily, so they bring their books. They also knit or play with those wiki stick things. Ahead of time, I make them each a folder of maps, information, and activities about where we are going or what's along the way. They LoVE this. There is always something for them to color. I put it in a three pronged folder. We also do audiobooks.

 

I would rather drive than fly, honestly. Especially if we were camping. But that's just us. We love driving.

 

I'd also get your oil changed before you go. We had to leave an hour late for this trip while the car got new tires. :(

 

***oh! Most importantly, we always try to get to the hotel with enough time for the girls to swim for at least 30 minutes. It tires them out so they sleep better.

 

 

We stay at hotels on the road usually too, even if we're camping at our destination. We often get the kids in the pool for a little bit, even if we roll in at 9 or 10 pm. We've gone to a policy of not pitching the tent unless we're going to be somewhere at least 2 nights.

 

For this last trip, we packed a bunch of canned coffee. It isn't great, but it got the job done and often it tasted better than the coffee we could get in say rural Utah.

 

And the kids had head phones for their technology too - very important for sanity. :)

 

I absolutely agree with DON'T DRIVE IF YOU'RE TIRED.

[elfgivas]

fwiw, what we do:

 

i have car packed. dh gets home and he starts driving. i nap. he drives until he's too sleepy. then i drive, he naps. when i'm too sleepy, we switch OR we throw down a tarp, and sleeping bags and sleep out. at sunrise, we start driving again. dh starts, i nap. and so on.... everyone goes to the bathroom at gas stops whether they think they need to or not. we take kindles, ds's, books, games, etc. when youngest was 5, she also took barbies and ponies and played thru the states :)

 

only once did i scare myself trying to drive when i was too tired. i didn't fall asleep but i was having trouble. we were driving south and wanted to get out of snow before stopping to dry camp that night. dh and i must have switched every twenty minutes the last two hours until finally it was warm enough to sleep out. windshield wipers set on intermittent have the nice advantage of surprising me every time they go off.... and that delightful noise of wiper on dry windshield helps the staying awake factor, too.

 

15 hours each way is easily doable. 30 hours one way will be much harder. if you drive in 10 hour batches, that's three days/nights. if you drive in 15 hour batches, with a sleep in the middle, that's 38 hours, which is just shy of two days. so if you aim to be there sunday night, you can divide up the miles as it makes sense, kwim? but if you want to not arrive and sleep for two days recovering from the journey, you might want to decide to just arrive a bit later and do three sane 10 hour days. i reckon that's what i would do if i wanted to have a good time once i got there. so i'd drive til 2am saturday morning, then sleep. then i'd drive another 10 saturday and then sleep. then another 10 sunday and you are there.

 

fwiw,

ann

[Susan C.]

What if we/they "crash" at an inopportune time? :eek:

 

I haven't read what is after the above quote, but consider going by yourself and fly. You will be rested and will enjoy it much more. This is a once in a lifetime event, and tired cranky sick kids (and car breakdowns) can get in the way of it. And if you are tired, you won't even care if you are there.

 

OR you can fly one way, have dh and the kids drive out while you are there, and then do fun things and drive back together.

[brla]

We did a 15 hour each way with 5 kids 11 and under last summer. We drove straight thru both days and found, if we split it up about 4 times between us, it was VERY doable. Even the kids did fine. Now it took a little longer than the 15 hour drive time, since we stop 3 times to stretch, get stuff out of the coolers, clean up any messes, re-situate everyone (we made the 2 middle kids swap sides of the van a few times so they could stretch a different way), and go to the bathroom. I took lots of pre-made food between the cooler and the big bag of fun snacks and we had 2 gallons of water that I used to refill their sports cups that fit down into their cup holders (this is important that they FIT into the cup holders - lol). We re-supplied at the Walmart on the other end before coming home. We also found that the Welcome Centers in every state we passed thru were very decent (some more than others). Most offer snacks for free, great brochures for homeschooling projects later, playgrounds for the kids or open dog-free spaces for kids to run around and play tag (we do this with the kids to move around). We also have found that Quick Trip is a pretty decent bathroom stop and decent coffee and $.89 drinks for when you just need something different. Also, our overnight lodging - we pick a place that has free full breakfast (eggs, bacon, etc) so we start out full and had a decent meal.

 

So, my thoughts are to do 2 -15 hour days and stay in a hotel 1 night on the road and one night in the town near where you'll be camping. Then the day of your camping excursion, you can sleep in some, eat breakfast and check out by 11 (most places). The kids can swim in the pool that morning before your camping and all around ya'll just relax.

 

activities on the road: with the ages of your 2, you need some type of separate dvd player or movie playing device with downloaded movies. We did ebooks and ebook lights for all the kids with pre-downloaded books (we had a few books on tape as well, for when they were tired. The youngest (3) had audio picture books on his. Drawing supplies in a little portable thingie for the little ones and the big ones had clipboards. We allowed each child to take their backpack with their personal toys for the trip and craft supplies in it. Several road games (those magnetic portable ones) for the bigger kids. They all had mp3's (inexpensive ones) since their ereaders didn't have that function. I even took my computer and did all sorts of things that were non-internet related. We found this adapter thing that converts for your car lighter at Best Buy and it worked well (it's loud, fan sound but it was fine).

 

Every state we went through, we had a challenge - 1 fascinating fact from everyone (we got those at the welcome centers from the brochures - everyone gets brochures that interest them and we compare notes in the car after we get back on the road) and 1 thing per person that we've either never seen before or don't see where we live.

 

Hope you have a good trip!

[JennifersLost]

I'd do it a little differently. Drive to 11 pm the first night and set the alarms for 5:30 am. Get up and roll your kids into the car and start driving. Bring along breakfast food and eat in the car while driving - that' a great time killer. Take turns doing 2 hour shifts during the morning with your dh and sleep when you're not driving. You'll make up for lost sleep over the course of the morning. Drive until 10 pm that night and try to get a hotel with a pool open to 11. TAke a really quick swim, everyone shower and then to bed. Set your alarm early again and finish off the trip on Sunday. You should arrive mid-afternoon.

[EthiopianFood]

If it was possible...I'd be tempted to start the trip on my own and then have dh meet up with us along the way via bus if it wasn't too expensive. That way I'd do 7-8 hours a day. However, this adds cost for staying overnight somewhere. Maybe churches along the way would let you crash? Is the Amtrak train a possibility?

 

My tablet is letting me type tonight, yay! Amtrak would be way too much money. Plus, it would be much less enjoyable to be there without a car, and a rental is, again, too expensive.

 

 

 

IMO, don't psych yourself out about it. Try to maintain an attitude of a grand adventure. :) We love road trips here, and I find that the kids really feed off DH and my attitudes--if we're positive, they are more likely to be positive too. That said we try to stay flexible because sometimes the crankies will strike. We can drive a LONG way in the day if we stop when it feels time, and have a sit-down meal for lunch and ask a local to recommend a nearby park is so the kids can burn off some energy. We usually take along a frisbee and ball to play with them and encourage activity if it's not a playground-type park. It's amazing how an hour-long recharge can really get your spirits back up...plus, it's fun to see the variety in parks! I also like to have a couple options in mind ahead of time where we might stay over night...say you think you're going to drive 12 hours the first day, scope out a couple potential campgrounds that might be 10, 12, 14 hours down the road. So if you're still going strong at 12 hours you can gain a little time, or if you're all beyond hope at 10 hours you don't have to stress (too much) about what you're going to do. Just a few ideas. :)

"Crash" meaning fall asleep, or fall apart?

[EthiopianFood]

Wow, or not. :( I'll try to hit everything.

 

Thirty hours EACH WAY! :laugh: Actually, I was planning on swinging by Colorado on the way home to see family, so 33 going home. ;) We could allow an extra day for that leg, though.

 

Regarding psyching myself out, it's more that my husband doesn't really want to go, and I'm trying to figure out what I can realistically ask of him. At the same time, when I mentioned that my aunt was nice enough to offer to drive with me, he said he didn't want to miss out on a shared experience.

 

Dh doesn't feel comfortable with me driving alone, and I can barely afford the gas, let alone a separate plane ticket. Does anyone have any magic ways to find a cheap one-way from Minneapolis to Portland in July?? I mean, in a perfect world, I could leave days earlier with my aunt, then meet up with dh later.

 

I didn't want to pay for a hotel more than one night there, but even if I'm crazy optimistic, I can't imagine being able to drive past 6 PM Saturday if we get on the road at that time Friday. We would get there earlier if we stopped, ironically.

[Joker]

We road trip a lot and it's become easier as the kids have aged (they're now 13 and 10). We drive anything under 15 hours straight through. My mom lives at the 14 hour mark and we just leave early and get to her place around midnight. We do not plan to drive straight through on the way home though. Going is always easier than coming home.

 

We pack drinks and snacks and make sure the iPods are charged. We also pack a lot of games. The kids are usually excited about getting to the destination so are excited on the way there.

 

I would not plan on driving until tired and then switching because it can get hard to be the only one awake in the middle of the night. You also want to enjoy yourself when you get there.

[EthiopianFood]

I appreciate hearing everyone's perspectives and stories. When I was a kid, my grandparents drove with me to Florida, 24 hours away, with only a catnap at a rest stop, because they didn't want to spend money on a hotel. Dh was raised to be less frugal. LOL He only gets 10 days of vacation time this yeat, plus the adjoining weekends if he takes it right, so the timing of all of this isn't really ideal. I just don't want to be away from my five-year-old all that time. :( We will also likely have very few family vacations over all, so I hate to throw this chance away, even though it's not perfect. Disney might not ever happen. Colonial Williamsburg homeschool week might not happen. I don't want to live for a maybe that might not happen.

[LucyStoner]

Sadly, drinking and taking sedatives would be out of the question given the need to operate a motor vehicle.

 

At least your kids are old enough that they won't be having potty accidents or needing diaper changes in the car.

 

Books on tape are a hit in the car for long trips here. Something that all ages can enjoy.

 

I can't sleep in a moving car except for random nod-offs and my husband is seriously liable to underestimate his need for a break and end up falling asleep at the wheel so driving straight through would be out of the question for me.

 

3 days would be very doable with plenty of stops and either camping or staying at a motel for the nights, but if the event is 9 days, that makes it a 15 day trip.

 

2 days is doable, with 1 short night at a campsite or motel.

 

If money is seriously pinched, you can always sleep in the car at reststops. Most have a 4 hour time limit but usually no one will shoo you off if you stay a bit longer.

 

If you can/do drive straight through, be safe. Take the breaks you need. Stop and walk around/stretch your legs (blood clots do happen). Keep the car clean enough to not lose your sanity. Don't drive dangerously fast. Drink lots of water. Don't overpack the car so much it is too uncomfortable/hard to sleep in a moving car.