Our Tried and Tested Road Trip Games to Keep Kids Entertained!
If you are planning on a road trip with kids there are a few things you will need to pack. In my experience, some fun games for kids that parents will also enjoy, can make that journey pass a lot quicker with a lot less ‘Are we there yet?’ I’ve also included some free printables along with some of our favourite activities to keep them entertained.
(For some more specific travel toys ideas for babies and toddlers see this post)
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Car Games Requiring NO Preparation.
Great for school age and older kids who know corresponding sounds age 6+
1. The Alphabet Game
Players attempt to find words starting with every letter of the alphabet, going in order from A to Z. for anything they spot outside of the car.
A great travel version of this game, which is more for older kids, is where each player has to finish the sentence using the specific letter for a country or city.
So Player One could say,” I’m flying to Australia and the other players respond with, “what will you do there?’ and Player One answers, ” I’m going to look for ant -eaters.
Great for school age from 5+
2. Connections
With Connections, one person begins with a single noun eg horse and the next person has to say the first word they think of which is related to a horse, eg, stable or animal.
Then the next person, continues with another connection, eg, hay or goat and so on as everyone takes turns. This elaborated version of the animal name finishes when no one can connect a word or the drive has ended! For younger kids, you may want to set a time limit.
Great for toddler and preschoolers
3. Rainbow Spotto
Print this out before the car ride. This is one we all love and is super easy for little ones. All players work together and start with the colour red to find 5 red things, and then 5 orange things and so on, until they complete the rainbow. When they find the item, eg a red car, they need to say, ‘Spotto, red car! and can mark a circle off with a crayon. A great twist on a counting game and scavenger hunt which is great for preschoolers.
Great for school aged kids 5+
4. Twenty Questions
For Twenty Questions, players take a turn to think of an object, person or animal. The other players have 20 questions to work out what or who it is. The answers can only be yes or no.
Great for school aged kids 6+
5. Add-on Storytelling Game
One person begins a story, with just a sentence or two, but stops mid sentence.. The next person continues the story in their own words, and repeat with each player for an often hilarious tale. Your family’s answers, especially with a mix of ages make this super fun.
Great for school aged kids 5+
6. Memory Test
The first person says, ‘A is for ___’ and fills in the space with any noun beginning with ‘A’, the second person continues with B, eg banana but must also recall what was said for A, eg, Armchair, Banana..
Great for school aged kids 6+
7. Three Words
Someone in the car chooses 3 words for the player, who then has to make up a story including those three words.
Great for toddlers and preschoolers and above
8. Cow on My Side
Print the cow sheet before the journey. This simple kids’ car game is perfect for little ones to join in when you are driving through the countryside. When a player sees cows on their side of the road, they then yell “Cows on my side!”
Each player get a point for each time you spot cows . If you spot cows on the opposite side, you can yell “Cows on your side!” and steal a point from your opponent. Passing a cemetery?
The first person to yell “Ghost cow!” steals all the other side’s points.
Great for toddlers, preschoolers and school aged kids
9. I – Spy
You can play I-spy the classic way with the, “I spy with my little eye, something beginning with..” or change it to a color for younger players. We also have a free printable version for i-spy road signs for the U.S.A and U.K. Just click on the images above to download and print for your longer trips.
Great for school aged kids 6+
10. License plate game
Print the sheets about before you go. Write down the list of the states and then look for license plates from every state. The first player to complete all is the winner, but to make it easier and quicker for kids so they don’t get bored, the first person to find 10 usually works best. For trips in Europe you can spot number and license plates from different countries.
Great for all ages from preschoolers and up
11. Rock, Paper, Scissors
The classic Rock Paper Scissors that everyone can play, where you hide a hand behind your back and then at the same time reveal with a scissor shape with your fingers, a rock with your fist, or flat hand as paper. Paper trumps a rock, a rock trumps scissors and scissors trump paper.
Great for preschoolers and beyond kids 4+
12. Would you Rather aka This or That
Ask fun questions with two choices (e.g., “Would you rather fly or be invisible?”), and everyone can explain their answers.
The classic game of choice, usually two bad things like; would you rather eat dirt or a pie made of worms!
Great for school aged kids 5+
13. Tic-tac-toe
You’ll need a pencil and paper for this classic of naughts and crosses.
Great for toddler, preschoolers, school aged kids 6+.
14. Car Karaoke and Name That Tune Sing-along
You can make this for younger kids with nursery rhymes
15. Two Truths and a Lie
Each person takes turns saying three statements about themselves—two true and one false. The others have to guess which one is the lie.
16. Animal Sounds
One player picks an animal and makes its sound. Others have to guess the animal. You can switch it up with categories like “farm animals” or “wild animals.”
17. The Rhyming Game
Start with a word, and each player must come up with a word that rhymes with it. Continue until someone can’t think of a rhyme.
Activity books and printables are also available, offering a variety of puzzles, coloring pages, and word searches specifically designed for car journeys.
Some alternatives to keep in the car
Melissa & Doug Flip to Win Travel Hangman
A take on the retro with no pieces to lose and great for readers aged 6 and up. This travel-friendly wooden word game includes an erasable whiteboard, a self-storing dry-erase marker, and eraser.
Fat Brain Toys Coggy
Keep kids busy and less likely to ask, “Are we nearly there yet?’ with Coggy by Fat Brain Toy Co. This sensory travel activity is designed as a single strand of connected patterned cogs, which players match to a series of corresponding pattern cards. It’s ideal for kids aged 6 and up
Briarpatch I SPY Travel Card Game for Kids
You can play the game with the normal, I Spy with my little eye, something beginning with…. or something the colour of… for younger players making it one of the easiest car games for toddlers. Alternatively, try the I Spy Travel Card Game. This is suitable for ages 4 and up and contains 48 jumbo cards with simple pictures and corresponding text.
Educational Insights Travel Blurt! Word Game
A great fast paced word association game where you hear a definition and need to guess the word ! The first player to “Blurt” correctly moves ahead on the game board. The first player to reach the top of the scoreboard wins! Travel Blurt is for three to four players, ages 10 and up.
Melissa & Doug Flip to Win Travel License Plate Game
A U.S.A License Plate Game for two players which helps kids learn the name and location of all fifty states. You can identify states by their license plate design or simply plot your trip by flipping the states along your route. A spin on car bingo.
Interstate Highway Travel Bingo Set
Includes 4 reusable car bingo cards that provide hours of entertainment for families at home or on the road.
Skillmatics Card Game – Guess in 10 Cities Around The World
It’s the just like the Game of 20 Questions, but guess in 10 instead. In ‘Guess in 10-Cities Around the World’, players draw clue cards and, through the process of elimination, make guesses to identify a locations. Clues may be about food, landmarks and more which are associated with the world’s most famous cities, from New York to Paris. This s ideally for players ages 8 and up.
Take N Play Anywhere Bingo
For ages 4-8 years.
Bingo can range from numbers or pictures to cover meaning they are ideal for a range of ages. This magnetic bingo game is easy and quick for those little times you need to fill perhaps whilst waiting for dinner or for a quick wait at the departure gate as they are easy to pack away too.
Magnetic Hangman
An old favourite but without the need to rustle around in the bottom of your back for a scrap of paper and a working pen (why do we needlessly carry around so many that don’t?!). Great spelling practise with the added fun of body parts to add to your magnetic hangman.
The Purple Cow Magnetic Travel Snakes & Ladders
The best bit about this being magnetic means no more losing the dice with any overzealous throws with this magnetic snakes and ladders!
Story Cubes
Have a set of dice with pictures on them (or use an app) to create stories based on the images rolled.
For magnetic travel games for toddlers and preschoolers, these suggestions may prove useful too! We hope these idea help you with how to keep kids entertained in the car.
Need more ideas? How about animal alphabet, bingo, counting cows, spot the car or guess the movie?
- Busy bags – make a busy bag for each child using a ziploc bag. We pop in a fidget toy, a small snack, an activity book with a pen, and a toy. If it’s a long journey I make 2 for each child but only give the second one half way through. These little surprises help kids get through the longer car trip! These are particularly good for preschoolers.
Further reading and more trip ideas:
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