Tips for a road trip to Italy with children

A road trip to Italy with children can be a fun or challenging experience, depending on how you prepare. In the back seat are some excited and super holiday-ready children, and you've already heard the first "are we there yet?" before you've even backed out of the driveway. Ahead lies a road trip to Italy of over 20 hours.

You might think that a road trip to Italy with children will be a test of patience of epic proportions, but don't worry, we've created a guide with 10 tips that will make the road trip to Italy more fun for the children (and you).

1: Tips for a road trip to Italy with children

If you think a road trip to Italy is long, imagine how such a trip feels for a child who is not used to sitting still for many hours at a time. Although it would be much more efficient to just do the trip in one go, it's a good idea to take into account that there are children in the car who are not yet old enough to just look out the window and enjoy the changing landscape whizzing by. They will certainly be happy that you have planned some entertainment for the trip (and since happy children in the back seat are significantly better company than grumpy children, you will undoubtedly thank yourself afterwards), and it doesn't have to be activities that require a lot of planning from home. Read our tips for a road trip to Italy with children here.

2: Audiobooks for the road trip to Italy**
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A good audiobook brings calm to the back seat and at the same time sparks the children's imagination. Audiobooks are a really good alternative to tablets and other forms of electronic entertainment, and you can, for example, use the many hours on the motorway to introduce the children to some of the classic fairy tales you love yourself. With tons of stories by, among others, Astrid Lindgren, H. C. Andersen, the Brothers Grimm and many others, it's just a matter of getting started from one end.

3: Small gifts with activities shorten the road trip**
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Small surprises along the way can also help make the road trip more fun for your children. For example, you can buy small gifts with activities that they receive one every hour. It doesn't have to be anything more than a small coloring book or a deck of cards. Knowing that something new to do is coming soon can really lift the mood on a trip that might otherwise quickly seem quite trivial. There are many small strange and fun activity gifts in stores such as Tiger and Søstrene Grene.

4: A fun stop on the trip to Italy**
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No matter how well prepared you are with fun games and activities, it's a good idea to plan regular pit stops on your road trip to Italy. It doesn't have to be anything special, but it takes the edge off children's restlessness if they can get out and move around for 20 minutes once in a while. A trip to a playground can do the trick. The most important thing is that the children get out of the car and burn off some energy – and also take the opportunity for a toilet break. Here are the best breaks on the German autobahn. Many families with children on a self-drive holiday to Italy choose to stop for the night in Southern Germany, so your children will naturally also have the opportunity to move around and think about something other than when you will arrive.

Also read this article about self-drive holidays in Italy. There are tips for car trains, buying a vignette, etc.

5: Group singing in the car**
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From Åh abe to Let it go – group singing in the car, where everyone sings along at the top of their lungs, is always a party. How about putting together the perfect playlist with all the favorite songs with your children in advance? There are plenty of instrumental versions of Disney songs online. So if you're up for it, you can take group singing to a new level and instead go wild with karaoke.

6: Mini-whiteboard for drawing (for older children)

If you have slightly older children with you, we can recommend buying a small whiteboard and some markers. This provides unlimited entertainment, as you don't run out of paper and can easily erase and start over, making it ideal entertainment for a road trip. Unless you don't mind marker getting on both the child and the car, it is, as mentioned, best suited for older children who know where they are allowed to draw – and especially where they are not allowed to draw.

7: Guessing games during the road trip to Italy**
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Whether it's "20 questions to the professor", "guess a person" or "the plant kingdom, animal kingdom or mineral kingdom" is irrelevant – children love guessing games, and it can keep them occupied for a long time. The concept is simple: one of you thinks of something, and the others have to guess what it is by asking questions that narrow down more and more until one of you has a guess as to what or who the person is thinking of.

8: Comics

When was the last time your child read for pleasure? In an age where electronics are increasingly filling children's daily lives, it's important to remind children that good, old-fashioned reading can also be fun and should not be underestimated. Since 1949, Donald Duck has entertained children and adults alike, and after the temperamental duck's debut, many other good comics have emerged. Perhaps you even have some lying around from your own childhood and youth? However, comics and other reading material are of course not optimal if the child is prone to car sickness.

9: Tablet

We cannot deny that it is effective to hand a tablet to your child if you really just need some peace and quiet. Remember to download several different apps so that the children have something to choose from and don't get bored too quickly – once they know that there is unlimited screen time, the entertainment value, funnily enough, decreases faster. What types of apps you should download, of course, depends on the child's age, but it is definitely an extra bonus if they can develop, for example, creative, linguistic or logical skills at the same time. Alt for damerne has created a list of fun and educational apps for children of all ages.

10: Snacks -- food in the stomach helps with car sickness

Salted almonds, peanuts or rice cakes
Finger fruit and vegetables in a plastic container with a lid. Popular green snacks can be melon, cucumber, bell pepper, carrot sticks, raisins or similar. Remember wet wipes (they are always good in the car!)
Possibly small boxes with some sweets, but be aware that sugar is an energy boost and can be a bad combination with a long car ride. Instead, it can be a small carton of cocoa or fruit juice – there is sugar in it, but in smaller quantities.
A bottle of water is best when the car ride is long.

11: Remember bedtime rituals -- even when driving long distances

When you drive in the evening/night, you naturally take a break for dinner – remember to get your legs moving with a quick "Tag game" or "Who can jump up and down the curb the most times". The journey is now well underway and everyone hopes that the night traffic won't cause problems. As bedtime approaches, it can be a good idea to make another stop a couple of hours after dinner. Here, the children put on their pajamas, brush their teeth, are tucked in with a blanket/duvet and find their teddy bear. Remember the pacifier, if they are small children.
Bedtime rituals are also good to take on holiday. The children know that it won't be long until they have to sleep. Maybe they should be allowed to watch a little more TV or play a little in the car. But the preparations for sleeping ensure that calm falls over both children and adults in the car.

12: Remember to maintain a good tone (also between adults)

Our last – and perhaps most important – piece of advice is for adults to remember to maintain a good tone with each other. The GPS might be acting up, one person might have thought the other had filled the tank, or it turns out the sunglasses aren't in the glove compartment as expected – but no matter what frustrations arise along the way, it's important to maintain a good tone. Sour faces breed sour faces, and the risk of irritable children is greater if the two role models are arguing in the front seat.
If it's your first holiday in Italy, you might find this guide useful, which I have written based on the many questions I have received over the years.

If you have driven on holiday with children in the back seat, you have undoubtedly gained some good experience. I would love to hear what tips you have for a long car trip with children.
Also read this guide to self-drive holidays in Italy with more specific tips on car trains, distances, buying a vignette on the way down.
If you haven't booked accommodation in Italy yet, we have some wonderful child-friendly holiday homes in Italy.

If you are in doubt about which one to choose, please contact us.