How to Survive Holiday Travel As a Kid

It’s the holidays. Time for food, fun, and the joy of obligatory holiday travel! 

A trip to Grandma’s house. A Christmas vacation somewhere warmer. A stop at the world’s largest ball of rubber bands. Wherever your holiday journey’s taking you, we know you’re gonna have a fabulous time. Unless you’re allergic to rubber bands.

But you already know that reaching your destination isn’t always pain-free. It’s your family after all. You love them, but you wouldn’t tell your friends about it. That’s why you came to myFirst!

We’re deeply passionate about making innovative tech for cool kids just like you. Our devices promote exploration, not restriction. myFirst is committed to adding creativity and fun to every situation! That’s why we’re THE place to go for help surviving holiday travel. We’ve got the best tips and tricks because we’ve all been there. We know what works!

The Beginning

No turning back. Well, you can, but you might get car sick.

At myFirst, we know what it feels like to be crammed inside the back of a minivan next to your sister while she projectile vomits watching the 2000 film, The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas. In her defense, it’s terrible. 

One of the biggest hurdles in being ready for holiday travel is that, like vomit, it catches you off guard.

Listen, the first part of the trip feels exciting! But that’s where it tricks you, lulling you into a sense of complacency. It feels like an adventure. You pack up all your travel supplies, put on your coziest clothes, and get ready for the trip of a lifetime. Questions run through your head.

 “Wow, what kind of food are we going to get on the road?” 

 “Are we going to see planes take off from the gate?”

 “Will we pick up a charming yet slightly threatening hitchhiker?” 

The possibilities are endless, and there’s so much opportunity for family bonding time. Your sibling looks downright interesting right about now. Then the reality sets in. This isn’t some fleeting experience of laughs and sightseeing; this is a marathon. A tragedy in a million parts….

Wait, just a minute now. Don’t get too discouraged! After all, myFirst always has your back. 

Try this sweet hack out!

Counting Cars! Have you ever tried counting how many silver or blue cars you pass on the road? It’s a blast. The fun never stops! One, two—oh, you’re bored already? That’s fine. It totally wasn’t a cherished memory from our childhoods or anything…

Well, we’ve got a great one for when you’re stuck at the airport!

Nobody wants to be at the airport three hours early. Once you’ve walked around the gift shop once, that’s it. There are only so many times you can pretend to be interested in print media. Your Dad insisted on getting here early, and now you’ve got two more hours to spend averting eye contact with all the traumatized backpack Lababus.

So why don’t you play I Spy? There are so many different things to see at an airport! This game works wonderfully in the car as well. All you have to do is describe something you see to your—oh, you want to take a break from speaking to your family? That makes sense!  Why not take out your Sketch Pro Neo instead? Create whatever you like without needing any paper or markers. No charging or parental input required.

The Sketch Pro Neo is a travel must-have! If reading in the car makes you nauseous, just don’t sketch anything that looks like words! Or use it on the plane and try to draw the guy sleeping across the aisle—in full color. If you want to get creative, try to illustrate what he’s dreaming about. You’ve just got to focus really, really hard! 

No Sketch Pro Neo on hand? No problem! We’ve got all sorts of ways for you to pass the time.

Here’s a tip if you’re trying to liven things up. Start a fight! What bothers your sibling the most? Talk about that. The bickering and raised voices can distract you from the monotony of your current predicament. At myFirst, we can estimate that this petty disagreement can take up to eight minutes. Twelve if you do one of those apology fake outs. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee that this will keep you entertained more than once.

There is always the chance that you and your sibling get along (our condolences). In that case, bring your Insta 20 . The myFirst Camera Insta 20 was built for moments of travel desperation like this! Take turns snapping wacky photos of each other, things you see while at a rest stop, or Dad’s bald spot. Customize your snaps with emojis and show your silly selfies to your other bored family members.

The Middle

What’s that smell? You don’t wanna know.

Mom and Dad’s podcast about the Industrial Revolution is incredibly enthralling, if you’re a ghost. Lucky for you, myFirst knows the best way to enjoy your own easy listening. The Carebuds MAX are an excellent choice for some of your catchiest tunes, like the Backstreet Boys or whatever other music groups kids are into these days. 

It’s easy to wirelessly connect to your other devices for music or video. And they’re comfortable! Too warm in the car? Put on the cooling ear pads. A bit too cold? Try the fuzzy ones. 

Is music listening not an option? That’s tough. But this next tip might be one of our best. It spent months in R&D (that’s research and development). 

Tell a lie! Make up some kind of story that seems really outlandish, but believable enough to maybe be true. Trust us, you’ll have the whole car (or plane) completely enthralled. Whenever you want to stop is up to you…

You already knew myFirst was the place to go for travel tips and tricks, so you must know about our Fone R2! It’s our newest and coolest wearable smartwatch. Photos, Videos, Phone Calls. All the freedom of a smartphone, plus myFirst’s commitment to safety. Your parents can always track you with the myFirst Circle app. So, you can probably get them to let you wander around a bit at the gate or maybe a sketchy McDonald’s!

It’ll look awesome with your totally rad fit, fam. 

The myFirst Fone R2 has room for up to 15000 songs and can easily connect to your wireless Carebuds or Carebuds MAX. You can even send messages and selfies to all your trusted myFirst Circle contacts.

“So much fun on this road trip!” 

“Can't wait to board the plane to Bali, Aunt Phyills!”

“Mom wouldn’t let us stop for roadside fireworks.”

And don’t forget the emojis!

So, you’ve already used all our tips and tricks, and you’re still wondering what to do with yourself. Have you ever tried meditating? Neither have we!

The Last Leg

We’re really proud of you for not trying to change your name and run away.

You’ve followed all our tips, tricks, and travel strategies, but there’s STILL another hour to go! There’s only one more piece of advice we can give you: Sleep. Yup. Give in to the lack of control. You can’t choose when this ends or when you get there, except if you possess powers over space and time. In which case, good for you.

Yes, sleep. Like cousin Steve in the back seat. Or the guy across the aisle from you. Dream of a time when you weren’t trapped on a trip with your family… even though you love them.

The greatest gift this year will be the relief you feel when you wake up, and you’ve made it! See, that wasn’t so bad. Plus, your parents will be absolutely thrilled that you chose the very last part of the trip to finally fall asleep.

Then you get to do it all over again on the way back!