9 Affordable Family Road Trip Hacks

Planning a family road trip with kids? Great news! It doesn’t have to be as messy and stressful as you may be thinking. These nine affordable road trip hacks will make your trips go so smoothly, you’ll want to take one every weekend. Okay, maybe not EVERY weekend… but it definitely won’t be as dreadful to plan!

1.) Use a shoe organizer on the back of the seats.

This will keep all the baby wipes, toys, etc. corralled in one location and easy to access for both you and the kiddos.

2.) Carry cupcake liners with you.

This may sound weird at first, but you’ll thank me when you realize how much trouble this saves you. If you stop and get something to eat that is on a stick or a cone, easily use this to put under to catch the mess so it doesn’t end up on your seats or on the floor. You can also put them in your cup holders to keep them clean in case of a leaking drink!

3.) Use cookie trays as backseat desks.

Cookie Trays make great hard surfaces to write and draw on. The best part? No lost crayons, pens, or pencils – the lip of the cookie tray catches them!

4.) Use a cereal container for a garbage can.

Buy one of those plastic cereal containers you can get at most stores, line it with a small garbage bag, and put the lid back on and you have yourself a contained garbage bin.

5.) Turn empty creamer bottles into spill-proof snack containers.

Those empty coffee mate bottles make perfect spill-proof holders for small snacks like goldfish crackers, cheerios, etc.

6.) Add vegetables to a half full peanut butter jar.

This will keep the peanut butter in the jar so there is no mess!

7.) Use a shower caddy for fast food organization.

Set your burger in one compartment, fries in another, and drink in another. This will organize the food so it doesn’t end up spilling all over the back seat.

8.) Keep quarters in a plastic mini m&m container.

If you are stopping at several rest stops your kids will most likely want something at the vending machine. This will keep your quarters handy so there is no digging in purses and pockets! This hack also works well for traveling through toll roads.

9.) Download entertainment ahead of time.

Whether it’s music, audiobooks or even kid-friendly podcasts, be sure to download enough entertainment to last the entire car ride. You don’t want to hit a dead zone and be stuck listening to the same song on repeat until you find cell service again!

With just a few simply tips and tricks, you can turn your ordinary trip into a trip to remember!