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You’re off on holidays and as much as you’re looking forward to hanging out at the destination, the three hours on the road is enough to fill you with dread.

Not only will you have to deal with the whining, fighting and ‘are we there yets?’ but if your kids are prone to motion sickness, it’s even less fun!

Try these tips below on how to stop car sickness happening in the first place:

Get children to look outside the car

They’re more likely to get motion sickness if they focus on books, games or other activities inside the car (yep, that iPad might need to go away).

Ask them to look for trees, animals etc to keep them focussed on what’s out the window.

Travel while they sleep

See if you can time your travel for their naptime. It reduces the time awake when they could get sick and also reduced the whining and fighting.



Keep the meals bland

Pack crackers, water and other bland food. This is not the time to give them fried food or anything too spicy, sweet or heavy.

Crack the windows

Fresh air can help keep motion sickness at bay and also expel any smells that might make them nauseous (two hour old McDonalds smell anyone?)

Also plan breaks when the children can get out of the car, stretch their legs and get some fresh air.

Use distractions

Depending on their age there are different games you can play.

Singing songs is good for all ages, older pre-schoolers can count how many red cars, blue houses or trucks you pass. I spy is a classic; or use those hours to invent your own game.

Consider medical aids

Sea bands are good if they are small enough for your child’s wrist and if your child is over two, your pharmacist can recommend some medication.

Despite all this it still pays to have back up as sometimes you can’t prevent the inevitable.

Pack a carsick kit

An empty (large) ice cream container is your best friend. Fill it with the following and you’ve got all you need to quickly clean up:

  • Wipes
  • Hand sanitiser
  • An empty plastic bag
  • Spare clothing
  • Small bottle of water

You simply tip out the contents and use the container as the ‘receptacle’. The plastic bag is for any dirty clothes so the smell doesn’t permeate the car.

Do you have any other tips to add that work for you and your family? Please share in the comments below.

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  • A worthwhile read and great suggestions.

    Reply

  • We stop about every 2 hours, to get out and move about, go to the toilet, and have something to eat and drink if we need to…..and sometimes swap over driving too.(usually at the second break if we don’t swap earlier). We put more petrol in the car at one of our stops. Depending on where you are travelling remember it could be a long way to the next service station.

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  • My daughter used to get really bad travel sickness on planes. She power spewed on the men sitting in front of us one trip :/ We got moved, but they didn’t, I can still smell that vomit

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  • cheers bronwyn for these great car travel tips

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  • I always try and plan my car trips when it’s my kids nap times makes it so much easier!

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  • Great share. I get travel sick. I hate it. I hope my son doesn’t get it.

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  • we all hate being car sick

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  • There are some great helpful tips given!

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  • Some helpful tips thank you

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  • I used to keep a couple of icecream containers under the car sets just in case. I also had the lids – loose under the seats in case there was nowhere we could pull over. One of my nieces was car sick a couple of times. Sucking lollies with ginger in them helps some people. I have felt nauseus and apparently gone as white as a sheet in my face but not vomitted. You can get special tablets from the chemist. I used them when travelling on very twisty roads when doing a coach tour in Tas. The Coach Captain was very helpful and would warn us which days the roads were worst and the time of day which would be worst so I could adjust the amount I used. I never over-dosed. I only took the full recommended once. There were a few others who felt off colour that day. If you have a station sedan make sure the window in it is shut tight. Exhaust fumes can accumulate in your vehicle if you don’t.

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  • I always had a bagful of the kids things in the car, for every trip, mine weren’t car sick but the eldest as soon as we got in the car and 5 minutes down the road she needed the toilet, every time we went anywhere…

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  • ‘Pack a car sick kit’ – I think rather than ‘pack’ one, just leave one in the car ALL the time! I’ve actually never thought of this. I usually just throw the packet of wipes in the nappy bag and pray!

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  • yep give them lots of entertainment! i am lucky that my kids don’t get car sick

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  • Very handy tips. Wish I’d known these when I was a kid and got car sick, haha. Thanks for posting!

    Reply

  • Encourage looking out the front window. Never do any activity that requires looking down especially where your eyes need to focus on small items such as reading. Fresh air sometimes helps.

    Reply

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