16 Family Road Trip Essentials, According to a Mom of Five (2024)

This week, my family of seven—five children, my husband, and I—are embarking on a road trip that will see us stuck in the car together for over 32 hours.

And while this may be no big deal for some travel-savvy families, it feels like a big deal to me. Our kids range in age from 3 to 15, so we have a lot of different needs, personalities, and bodies in one small space.

I’m looking forward to the trip and the memories, of course, but I've also found it helpful to prepare by picking up a few road trip essentials, like noise-reducing ear plugs for me, an extendable tablet holder, a Melissa & Doug sticker book, and more, starting at just $3.

Macally Car Headrest Mount Tablet Holder

Our car doesn’t have a built-in DVD player or screen, so I bought this tablet holder that can install on one seat headrest and extend so it sits between two seats, allowing multiple kids to watch. Genius, right? It’s compatible with iPads, Nintendo Switches, and phones, and can rotate 360-degrees to hit different angles.

Reserwa Car Backseat Organizers

Many other car seat organizers I found were much more expensive, so this two-pack for under $15 is a great deal and has all the features I was looking for: multiple pockets, a clear pouch to hold an iPad to watch, and water bottle holders.

Telena Leather Belt Bag

I did, in fact, purchase the real Lululemon belt bags for my daughters’ birthdays, which coincide with our trip, but as for me? I could care less about that name-brand badge of pride. I just wanted something I could use on our trip easily and this leather belt bag you can wear crossbody, over the shoulder, or as a fanny pack (all of which I have already used it for!) fit the bill.

Smart Liner Custom Floor Mats

I’m embarrassed to admit I went four kids before I realized that you could buy floor mats for your car from Amazon. The amount of puke I have scrubbed out of my minivan carpet would bring you to tears.

We just upgraded our minivan to a Suburban in preparation for this trip and you bet your puke bucket I ran and bought these floor mats as fast as I could. They’re so much more affordable than I thought they would be and they’re 1,000% worth it for driving anywhere with kids.

Loop Quiet Ear Plugs

I struggle with getting overstimulated by the noise of five children and when we’re confined to a car for 15-plus hours, I can’t imagine it will get any better for me. So I scooped up these Loop Quiet Ear Plugs I’ve seen all over social media.

I tested them during the after-dinner clean-up madness the other night and they have really helped—they provide enough noise reduction that they take the edge off, but still let me hear enough to safely keep an ear out for the kids.

Translucent Shoe Bags

We’re traveling for a wedding, which means I had to bring everyone’s wedding shoes, along with everyday shoes, beach shoes, and rehearsal dinner shoes. In short, it’s a lot of shoes. To keep track and keep the germs of dirty shoes away from everything else, I picked up this 12-pack of see-through shoe bags so I could both see whose shoes are whose and keep them separate.

Funky Monkey Women's Comfort Slides Double Buckle

Speaking of shoes, I grabbed a few of these sandals to double as easy shoes to wear in the car and slide in and off for rest and bathroom stops—and as a bonus, they double as both beach and casual shoes to cut down on the number of shoes I need to pack.

Melissa & Doug Puffy Sticker Activity Books Set

I will fully admit that my main plan for entertaining the kids on this road trip is screens, screens, and more screens—but even the most tech-loving kid will need a break now and then. So I picked up this pack of puffy sticker books from Melissa & Doug because it was on sale and included three different scenes to allow my daughters to dress up princesses, mermaids, and more.

Sterilite 66 Qt. Clear Plastic Latch Box

You know those 10,047 little things you need to pack outside of just clothes and toiletries when you’re traveling with a family? Well, I bought this storage box with a latching lid to take care of those—I threw everything from sand toys to lifejackets to slippers and my sister’s wedding gift in there so we can just toss it in the car with no worries about anything getting squished or ruined.

Hefty Disposable Plastic Cups

A fellow mother of five once told me that the secret to road trips is bringing along a big ol’ bag of disposable cups and I have to say, even after a few multiple-hour trips, she was right. Stashing a few cups in the car gives me the instant ability to dole out snacks, have a built-in crayon or marker holder for car seats, or keep the toddler’s special toys safe. I always make sure to have a stash before we travel now.

YumEarth Organic Fruit Flavored Pops

One of my favorite comedians, Jim Gaffigan, once described suckers as “kid muzzles” and I don’t think he’s wrong. But I always buy the YumEarth organic suckers when we travel so at least I feel a little bit better about myself and my kid muzzles.

Build Your Own Cupcake Sticker Activity Book

This adorable build-your-own cupcake sticker book is toddler and preschool-size and features 38 reusable cupcakes and 83 stickers so they can safely decorate a cupcake with their choice of sprinkles, chocolates, fruit, and even birthday candles.

Case for AirPods and Chargers

I picked up three of these so each of my teens and I could have one—no more fighting over lost chargers or wondering where that stray headphone went. They come in multiple colors, so you can keep everyone’s tech items separate and organized, and the hard shell case will stand up well to several family members stuffed into one car.

Oyifan Leather Backpack

In packing up everything for the six other members of my household who are not me, I realized that I don’t have a travel bag of any kind for myself. Although my diaper bag days are over, I still love the convenience of having a backpack that I can easily throw on my back to help a toddler go to the bathroom, run through an airport, or take for a weekend away that requires a lot of walking.

I chose this option because it has wider straps for comfort, features a classic leather design, and can fit a 14-inch laptop.

High-Speed iPhone Charging Cords

I have no idea how these things work, but they are downright magical. They can give our iPhones a full charge in less than 10 minutes. They’re a game-changer, especially when you desperately need that phone juice on the road and don’t have hours to wait.

Oh, and as one final parting word: if you’re wondering why I didn’t include a dedicated car trash can for a trip with this many people, let me assure you that I did consider it and I have picked up one in the past, but the truth is, my kids never used it and it ended up empty and kicked around.

So I gave up that fight and am just bringing a huge roll of garbage bags. If you can’t beat 'em, join 'em.

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