10 Great Snacks for Long Car Journeys with Kids

As all parents know, travelling with children requires good planning and lots of patience.

It doesn’t seem to matter if you are going out for an afternoon, a day or a whole week, you end up packing for every “just in case” scenario.

And when you do, a long car journey is much easier if you are prepared.

And for me, being prepared means having a good selection of snacks to fend off boredom/tantrums/delays/moaning/squabbling and yes, even hunger!

5 Tips for long journey snacking:

1. The trick is choosing the snacks that don’t require a trip to a valet after the journey!  Stay away from cheesy wotsits, melted chocolate buttons and definitely say NO to anything sticky
2. If you have more than one child in the back – it’s a good idea to have snacks that can be shared easily!
3. If you are travelling through a lunchtime, prepare a lunch box each to tuck into en route….call it a picnic!  This can be a great way to pass a bit of time in the car and avoid having to make a pit stop that just adds to the journey time
4. The easiest way to keep mess to a minimum is to pre-prepare finger food in child size portions.  It doesn’t have to be complicated or unhealthy
5. Here’s a few of the snack attack strategies the mums in the Tots office use to keep kids happy and quiet(er!) for long journeys

 

10 Best snacks for long trips with children

1. Carrot, cucumber & pepper batons in a small airtight container
2. Finger sandwiches with simple fillings.  Try cutting them into fun shapes with cookie cutters.  Or slice pitta bread into strips
3. have a great range of healthy snack food, why not try their or try their new , tasty treats, free from all  the yucky stuff.
4. For a younger baby starting on solids – banana, peach, mango, and avocado are all ideal to pop in your bag along with a fork and little tupperware bowl.  If you get delayed or caught in traffic it’s a no fuss, quick and easy way to refuel baby when hunger strikes en route.  Just mash it up with a fork for a tummy filling and nutritious puree.  Or go for one of  Plum Baby’s new range of snacks for toddlers on the go in convenient pouches
5. Raisins and other dried fruit pieces are good alternatives to sweeties…(although they do find themselves wedged down the side of the car seats long after arriving home!)
6. Breadsticks – we like the mini ones in a tub as they’re not so messy and also last longer!
7. Twiglets – tasty and satisfying and not quite as naughty as crisps ….although not ideal for dribbly babies!
8. Cheese cubes and cream crackers
9. DIY snack pots, I find a dollop of Philadelphia in a small pot with breadsticks to dunk works wonders! (not to mention a lot cheaper than some of the pre-packed varities available.
10. Fruit pots of halved grapes, blueberries, orange segments, melon or any other favourites

More healthy snack ideas:

• Snack size vegetable crisps
• Bannana bread
• Dehydrated fruit
• Snap peas in a pod
• Celery sticks
• Cereal in a box
• Hard boiled eggs

 

If you’ve got any ideas or favourite snacks for long car journeys to share with us we’d love to hear about them!