The key to a long car ride with little kids isn’t finding enough entertainment to fill five hours—it’s planning around when your kids will actually be awake.
We drove five hours with our 3- and 5-year-old twice on a family work trip to San Antonio, where we stayed at the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa. We handled the two drives completely differently. That trip was also our second family work trip—and a very different experience from our first.
On the way there, we left around bedtime and planned for sleep. On the way home, we had a busy morning, lunch, and a long nap before they woke up for the final stretch.
Both worked.
The difference wasn’t having more activities. It was thinking about the drive as sleep + awake time + snacks + one stop + getting there.
So before you pack the car, figure out when your kids are most likely to sleep. Then plan just enough for the awake stretches around it.
In a rush? You don’t need five hours of activities. Plan around sleep, pack for the awake stretches, bring familiar snacks, and plan one stop. Looking for the packing list? Skip to [What Should You Pack for a 5-Hour Road Trip With Toddlers?].
We Tried Two Completely Different Strategies
Here’s what our two five-hour drives looked like:
On the way there:
Dinner → Pajamas → Drive → Awake time → One stop → Sleep
On the way home:
Active morning → Lunch → Drive → Nap → Awake time → Arrive
Neither required a car full of toys or a new activity every hour.
We just planned around the time our kids were most likely to sleep.
First, We Set Expectations
Before we left, I told the girls it was going to be a long car ride and that we would make one stop about halfway through.
They also already knew that we don’t typically do screens in the car.
That didn’t magically eliminate the:
“I’m boooored.”
“Mamaaaa.”
“How much longer?”
But they knew what to expect.
The goal wasn’t to make five hours sound exciting. It was to make the experience predictable.
Strategy #1: Use Bedtime When You Can
For our drive there, we left around 6 p.m.
We had dinner, gave the girls showers, put them in pajamas, and headed out.
They didn’t immediately fall asleep, so we had an awake stretch to get through first.
We played a few simple games together:
- Fortunately/Unfortunately: Take turns building a silly story, alternating between “fortunately” and “unfortunately.”
“Fortunately, we are going on beach!” → “Unfortunately, I forgot my swimsuit!” - Copycat Clapping: One person creates a simple clapping pattern and everyone copies it.
Clap-clap → pause → clap → clap-clap. - The Grocery Game: Take turns adding items to a pretend grocery list while repeating everything that came before.
“I bought apples.” → “I bought apples and bananas.” → “I bought Apples, bananas, and cereal…”
We also brought familiar snacks, portioned into individual stainless-steel spill-proof containers instead of disposable bags.
I liked having each girl’s snack contained and ready to go without dealing with tipped-over bags or open packages.
One Simple Activity Was Enough
My older daughter is learning to write, so I picked up an activity book and some markers for her to use on the trip.
I got the same setup for her younger sister.
And they actually used them.
That was important to me because I wasn’t interested in packing ten activities just because we were going to be in the car for five hours.
We also put on Disney stories through Spotify.
The girls could listen without us needing to constantly come up with something for them to do.
Around 8 p.m., we stopped at Buc-ee’s about halfway through to get a little stretch time.
The girls were excited because they love seeing Buc-ee, and I was happy about the clean bathrooms.
After that stop, they slept for the rest of the drive.
The dinner, shower, and pajamas helped make that transition pretty easy.
We didn’t have to solve five hours. We just had to get through the awake portion.
Strategy #2: Plan Around Nap Time
Our drive home looked completely different.
There was no bedtime to work with. Instead, we planned an active morning with swimming, walking around the property, and lunch before getting in the car.
Then the girls slept for about two hours. That meant we had a much shorter awake stretch to manage once they woke up.
It wasn’t some brilliant road-trip trick. We just happened to have tired kids.
But it taught me something I’d absolutely repeat:
The hours before you get in the car can matter just as much as what you bring into the car.
If your kids aren’t going to sleep at the beginning of the drive, thinking about their energy level before you leave may be just as useful as packing another activity.
What Should You Pack for a 5-Hour Road Trip With Toddlers?
Honestly? Less than I originally thought.
For our long drives, I’d bring:
✓ Familiar snacks
Individual portions in easy-to-manage containers.
✓ One simple activity per child
Something they already enjoy or can do independently.
✓ A few easy games
Nothing that requires a lot of setup.
✓ Something to listen to
For us, Disney stories through Spotify.
✓ Comfort items
Whatever helps your child settle in.
✓ One planned stop
Bathroom, stretch, snacks—and a chance to reset.
That’s really it.
You don’t need an activity for every hour.
A Few Things We Actually Used
These are the things that earned their space in our car:
Stainless-steel spill-proof snack containers — I liked having individual portions without relying on disposable plastic bags.
Activity books + markers — My older daughter was already interested in writing, so this wasn’t a random travel toy. It was something she already enjoyed.
Affiliate links may be included in this section. I only recommend products that I genuinely think are useful for our family and relevant to the experience I’m sharing.
And Yes, They Still Got Bored
Even with snacks, games, activity books, stories, good timing, and a planned stop…
They still got bored.
There was still:
“I’m bored!”
And:
“MAMAAAA!”
I didn’t immediately need to solve every complaint.
Sometimes they played.
Sometimes they listened.
Sometimes they ate.
Sometimes they looked out the window.
And sometimes they slept.
The goal wasn’t to make five hours fun. It was to make five hours manageable.
And Yes, the Car Was a Complete Mess
Because real life.
There were snack containers, cups, shoes, markers, activity books, random pieces of things, and probably crumbs everywhere.
But I’ll take a messy car and a manageable five-hour drive.
Every time.
What I’d Do Next Time
I wouldn’t spend days preparing activities.
I’d start with timing.
Before packing the car, I’d think about:
When will they probably sleep?
What can we do before getting in the car to use some energy?
When will they eat?
Where will we naturally need to stop?
Then I’d pack a few things for the awake stretches.
That’s really it.
After doing the same five-hour drive twice, I don’t think the answer is finding enough stuff to keep toddlers entertained for five hours.
It’s figuring out how much of the drive actually needs your attention.
And for us, that was a lot less than I expected.
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