The Wiggles have launched a new initiative with a rental car company designed to make road trips with young kids less of an ordeal and amp up the fun.
Released on Thursday, 'Backseat Bandmates' is an in-car song and activity pack starring the 'Hot Potato' hitmakers for customers of Thrifty, a car rental company that competes with the likes of Avis, Ezi and Hertz in Aotearoa.
Lachlan 'Lachy' Gillespie, the Purple Wiggle, told Newshub he's looking forward to using the packs with his own family on their road trips around Queensland.
"What I love most about this is that it is interactive," said Lachy.
"We've tried just putting the screens up in the back of the car and the girls do like watching some videos. What's nice about this is that it gets the parents involved too, so it keeps the driver alert. You interact with your kids, talk through the booklet and listen to great music at the same time.
"It encourages singing, looking out the window for things and using your imagination, rather than just having the kids stare at a screen for a trip to keep them quiet."
A survey conducted on behalf of Thrifty Car Rental found, "Are we there yet?" is asked over 17 times on average per road trip in Aotearoa, while 11 percent of Kiwi parents say they have threatened to end the road trip altogether to avoid meltdowns.
The Backseat Bandmates packs are intended to ease such drama.
"It'll be so much fun for parents and for kids," Lucia Field, Blue Wiggle and daughter of founding Wiggle Anthony, told Newshub.
"It offers an alternative to all the snacks and the phone screens and tablets - they're drawing, they're listening to music and also talking to you, the adults, as well.
"When I was a little girl myself I would have loved this, travelling to different venues and places with my dad. It would have been very exciting, so I'm very excited for this collaboration to be released for kids now."
Eoin MacNeill, vice president at Thrifty NZ, said they hope the packs turn road trips into enjoyable, "lasting memories for families".
Backseat Bandmates packs are available for free from May 23 from Thrifty Car Rental sites across Australia and New Zealand.
The Wiggles are returning to Aotearoa in September for a tour with concerts in Auckland, Christchurch, Hamilton and Wellington.
