We’ll soon be traveling to Vancouver Island, British Columbia for a week of fun and adventure mostly centered around the towns of Victoria and Tofino. It’s hard for me to believe and sort of embarrassing to admit that I wasn’t more organized, but until just recently, I was writing out a new packing list for EVERY SINGLE trip we took! Often I would copy or use a previous packing list as reference, but what a waste of time!

I’ve finally compiled all the notes and scraps of paper, from over 4 years of traveling as a mom, into an organized road trip packing list. Now, I can just quickly print off the list, add items specific to the particular trip we are taking at the time, and start packing!

Just like our cabin camping packing list, for a road trip I also like to think in categories. I’m less likely to forget things if I cover all the bases of our needs. As a family with two young kids that’s the following:

Sleeping (I always go through our home routine & pack items to mirror those rituals)
Food & Drink (mostly for the car, but also consider special cups & utensils for the destination)
Clothing and Accessories (always weather dependent)
Activity Supplies (things needed for the activities you’ll be doing on your trip)
Toiletries (essentials like diapers & wipes, but also certain medicines & remedies)
Personal Items (somethings like identification might seem obvious, but I always write it down!)
Forgettables (everyone has things that they DO NOT want to forget or are prone to forgetting…you can put reminders here)

Road Trip Packing List for Families with Babies and Young Children Printable

Sign up for our newsletter, and receive our free road trip packing list printable! After signing up (name & email), we’ll send you the special password to our resource library where the printable is located. We’ve listed all of the essentials for road trip travel with babies and young children, and left room for extras unique to each family. The newsletter goes out every Wednesday, and in addition to updates from the blog, subscribers receive an extra dose of inspiration in the form of travel tips, deal alerts, and how-to’s for adding more travel and adventure into their lives!