Children take 27 Minutes to get bored

This actually made me rather nervous for our trip to Durban on Friday!!

~ In the run-up to school holidays, TomTom investigates the reality of family car journeys ~

JOHANNESBURG, July 2012 – As hundreds of families are currently enjoying school holidays and starting to plan the December holidays, TomTom shares the road trip realities of 5,000 moms from around the world. An independent study reveals that it takes on average just 27 minutes for children to get bored on long car journeys. Of those countries surveyed, children in Australia get bored the quickest at 23 minutes and children from New Zealand appear to be the most patient, with boredom kicking in at over 34 minutes.

The study suggests that the average holiday car journey lasts around five hours. With so much time spent in the car, moms are resourceful at keeping their children amused. A total of 74% think of games to play, 52% offer treats and rewards, and 24% admitted that they lie about the estimated time of arrival to make the journey seem shorter.

“Whilst we can’t stop children from getting bored, we can make sure family journeys are the best they can be,” says Daan Hendericks, Country Manager of South Africa. “From avoiding endless hours spent in traffic jams, to finding the best places to stop en route, TomTom is an ideal travel companion for a family road trip.”

Whilst 60% of moms said that “being together as a family” is the best part of a family trip, they also found it could be stressful. Some 41% of respondents thought that being in the car with their children is far more stressful than being in the office and 36% said they are likely to argue with their partner during the journey.

TomTom aims to make family journeys better by reducing the time spent in traffic and by offering driver-friendly content and services to help families make the most of their time together. It is proven that drivers with TomTom HD Traffic reach their destination faster than anyone else on the road, whilst new TomTom Search & Go features help families find and navigate to recommended places such as restaurants and play areas along the way.

Average time for children aged 2-8 years old to get bored on a long car journey:
Australia 23 minutes
UK 24 minutes
Spain 25 minutes
Italy 26 minutes
Netherlands 27 minutes
US 30 minutes
France 30 minutes
Germany 31 minutes
New Zealand 34 minutes

The average time taken for children to get bored was calculated based on feedback from 3000 mums with children aged 2 to 8 years old and based on journeys over 30 minutes in length, where children had no form of amusement such as a DVD player in the car. This sample was chosen out of the total interviewed women.

The survey was commissioned by TomTom and conducted by the research company Ipsos MORI in the period 1-19th of March 2012 in the UK, USA, Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Italy and Spain. A total of 4,113 women were surveyed with children ranging in age from 2 to 8 years old. An additional survey was carried out in New Zealand by HorizonResearch.

About TomTom
Founded in 1991, TomTom (AEX:TOM2) is the world’s leading supplier of in-car location and navigation products and services focused on providing all drivers with the world’s best navigation experience. Headquartered in Amsterdam, TomTom has 3,500 employees and sells its products in over 40 countries.
Our products include portable navigation devices, in-dash infotainment systems, fleet management solutions, maps and real-time services, including the award winning TomTom HD Traffic.
For the world’s most up-to-date route planner, including live traffic information, go to www.tomtom.com/livetraffic

For further information, please visit www.tomtom.com