Advise for toddler entertainment on roadtrips...

ckred27

Im debating getting something for the car that would enable the munchkin to mayebewatch a movie during roadtrips ( we are talking 5-6 hours) We usuallly leave around 7 or 8 so he will sleep the majority of the time, but now that he is getting older, that doesnt always work out. We are thinking of getting a portable dvd player or maybe a tablet. If a tablet then im worried abotu him touching the screen and stopping the movie and having to fix it all the time..if a dvd player then your limited to just movies, no games or internet browsing for mom once he goes to sleep What do you all think? Or any other ideas?

gingerfamily

You can get this for an ipad.  https://www.amazon.com/Snugg-iPad-Headrest-Mount-Holder/dp/B0041GKBXU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337797312&sr=8-1 

 

ckred27

oo that is kinda awesome...def makes me lean toward the tablet/ipad route

PinkPhotog

We're taking a 8-9 hour road trip in a few weeks with our four year old and two year old in a few weeks.  When my sister and I were little, my grandma packed a big package of presents for each of us.  We'd get to open one thing every 100 miles or so.  We plan on doing this for our big trip coming up!  I plan to pack things like snacks (fruit snacks, pretzels, animal crackers, trail mix, etc.), crayons and a new coloring book, Magnadoodles,  "driving" toys with steering wheels or fake car keys, a new baby doll/action figure/stuffed animal, a new Leapster game for DS and fake jewlery or makeup for DD, a new movie for the DVD player (from the $5 WalMart bin), a new book, and miscellaneous $1 toys.

mrs.kapow

mrsh0606:

You can get this for an ipad.  https://www.amazon.com/Snugg-iPad-Headrest-Mount-Holder/dp/B0041GKBXU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337797312&sr=8-1 

 

This is our plan.

DD gets one of our phones on shorter trips to watch cartoons when we hit the 2 hr mark (her limit), but she constantly turns it off, so I know we'll need something different for the longer trips.

Plus, the tablet is then way more useful than an in-car or portable DVD, IMO. 

fadsmama

We have a portable DVD player. DS still interrupts movies by hitting buttons. Personally, I would lean towards a tablet.

OSUWifey09

I got an iPad last year and uploaded games/movies to it for my 3-year-old; we had a portable DVD player before that, but that definitely went out of use after I got the tablet. My mom now has a 3G iPad, which we use to stream Netflix [they have lots of Sesame Street, Thomas the Train and Dora the Explorer episodes that he likes to watch]. I'd definitely lean more towards a tablet as well.

Jenelle101

OMG...we got a portable DVD player when we had a 5-hr trip. It was a life saver!! I have never heard her so quiet in the car (she's usually miserable in the car!).... I am so, so, so glad we got one. Totally worth the $$$.

Jenelle101

fadsmama:

We have a portable DVD player. DS still interrupts movies by hitting buttons. Personally, I would lean towards a tablet.

I guess it depends on how easy it is for your toddler to reach it. The one we have is far enough away from DD that she can't touch it. She tries to with her feet, but she's not tall enough ...yet! 

terri_doula2010

We have a DVD player and it kept a 2 year old and a 3.5 year old (not mine) happy for a 12 hour day of driving (that is with stops added in). It has a headphone jack, so you could watch a movie of your own if you wanted. I just use my phone for internet-ing.

I like that the DVD player is a designated device in a hanging carrier, though I've seen some since buying ours that have two screens and let them both watch the same DVD or two separate ones at once. That is awesome.

Other things to entertain: FOOD!

Jennifer Ruth

Our car has a built in Dvd player but our 20 month old is still RFing. We bought a bracket for the ipad and it works great!