Travel Activities
Printable Car Games
Print out activities to bring along on your trip such as Car Bingo, License Plate game, tic-tac-toe, lines and dots, scavenger hunt and more. You can find these activities and many more printable car games here.
Make a Map
How many times have you heard from the back seat "Are we there, yet?" or "How much further?" To help alleviate that stress on both you and your children, print them out a map with your route on it. Google and Mapquest are perfect for this - you can plot your route and have it for your kids. Draw in or add markers to way points so you can announce “We are at the town of So-and-So!” and the kids can grab the map. (For younger kids that don't read yet, use shapes and colors). This is great fun for the whole family..
Listen to a Book
Books on CD are a great way to pass the time of a long car ride. Most public libraries have Books on CD that you can check out.
Make a Memory Book
This is a great way for your children to not only to keep busy but to also have something to look back on and share with their friends. All you need is a spiral notebook, pen (crayons for younger kids) and tape. Each day of your trip journal about where you went and what you did. You can also draw pictures, tape in tickets and momentos. Almost everywhere where you go there are free brochures and they make a perfect addition. (P. S. this makes a great show and tell item)
Give your kids a Daily Allowance
There is a lot to do in Port Aransas, and that includes plenty of gift shops. To help with the headaches of the “I wants”, give your kids a daily spending budget. Put the allotted allowance in a specific envelope with their name on it (you hold onto the envelope) and money for each day, For example, if your child's budget is 2.00 per day, be sure to have singles and so on. Each day give them their money out of the envelope. Tell them that this money is for snacks, treats, souvenirs etc. Help them learn to budget their money and make good choices.