A stress-free guide to travelling with kids
Have you tried leaving when they're sleepy?
Lebogang Mogashoa
Pic: Images24
Article originally in
GoTravel24
Taking a break with the whole family can be lots of fun. But the
actual process of getting to your destination with more than one child
in the backseat can get wearisome, especially if the journey is more
than an hour long. The fighting and the whining is enough to ruin any
vacation. But worry not, the next time you and the family drive down
along the N3 from Jo’burg to Durban, remember this stress free guide
we’ve compiled for you.
Encourage the kids to learn about the places you pass
Fill
them in on the history of transport beforehand. Then stop over in the
small town of Heidelberg and visit the Heidelberg Transport Museum. It
was built in 1975 by the Rembrandt group as a service to the community.
Now it can be a service to your sanity. If you’re into something
edgier, visit the Old Jail. That might just frighten them enough to
keep quiet for a while.
Stop for a picnic and let them get rid of excess energy
The
town of Villiers in the Free State is an ideal spot for an en-route
picnic. Considered to be one of the province’s most beautiful towns,
its varied gardens have made it a regular winner of the Administrators
Floating Trophy. You could also enjoy your open-air lunch at the nearby
Vaal Dam.
Bring out the games in Harrismith
The popular I
Spy game is ideal for travelling. One person would for example say, ‘I
spy with my little eye something beginning with a W….’ Everyone else
has to guess what it is and the one who gets it right chooses their own
object for the new game. Harrismith is a small and charming town with
the oldest golf course in the country, gardens of indigenous and exotic
flowers, factory shops, war sites and blockhouses. There’s enough to
spy on, so get them cracking.
Make them tick
Write
a list of all the towns you’ll be passing through en route to Durban.
If the kids are still rowdy by the time you get to Lady Smith give them
the list and ask them to tick them off. This can also be a great time
to bring out the colouring-in books, paper and crayons.
Night Creatures
If
you don’t have the time to plan your Durban vacation and the necessary
road-trip activities, try travelling at night. Pack their blankets,
pillows and favourite toys. Then hit the road in the evening or the
early morning - but make sure it’s when they’re most likely to sleep.
Do you have any tips of your own to share?
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