Entertaining a toddler on journey Cheshire to Whitby

[dancecaller]

We usually go to Whitby from Cheshire via the M62,A1(M), A64 (York bypass complete with traffic jams), Pickering and over the moor.
A journey of more than 3 hours plus stops and delays.
Google maps suggests M62, A1(M), Thirsk and coming to the North of the moors. Also over 3 hours
This year my daughter is bringing her 2 1/2 year old who gets restless after an hour in the car.
Has anyone any suggestions of suitable stops? On their trip to N Wales they found the Colwyn Bay Zoo handy at 1 hour from home. But a park with playground equipment not too far from the route would do. Our usual stop on the M62 at Hartshead is fairly bleak, and the cafe on the York bypass has grass but not much else I can think of.
What toys do you find useful for car journeys?

[bagpuss63]

not a driver-but toys/games-the old ones worked on coaches with my son, eg hangman/rubic cube i spy.or a cheap colouring book at that age-doesn't matter about going over the lines-blame the car.Or how many mustard fields/churches/cows/dogs can you see on this bit of road, etc. Hope someone finds some parks for you

[flump1]

Hi there, when my nephews were smaller we would play spot the yellow car ( what ever colour you like , yellow is popular ) and maybe minis to include some recognition play. A car identified means one point , and while it is a game of luck the one who has most points wins that journey .

[dancecaller]

thanks, but those some a bit old for him at two and a half.

[redcrx]

music, singing, looking for different animals on the way, chatting, making up stories.

[TopKat]

My son was the same at that age and music was really helpful. Bring a CD/tape with his favourite music and be prepared to hear it over and over! Also, if at least one of the adults is willing to sing, there are lots of song which you do hand movements to which help distract and pass time (The Wheels on the Bus, If You're Happy & You Know It etc). Good luck!

[annie0000]

We used to play eye spy even at that age but used colours e.g. I spy with my little eye something blue - and keep it simple. Will he not just go to sleep? We always timed journeys for over a sleep time - if we kept them entertained for the first half hour to an hour then ignored them, they would go to sleep for as long as you kept driving and just wake up when the car stopped. they would also play happily with a couple of small cars or if you are really desperate get a portable dvd player and shove a film on!

[boxtops]

agree with annie, some fellow travellers on holiday had a DVD player and loads of films to keep the kids entertained on the plane. Headphones would have been useful too though, so we didn't hear all the dialogue!

[Terino00]

Taped stories. Usually cheap old ones in Oxfam or similar. Also your library (unless they have closed it) will have taped stories for all ages.