car trip activities

40 Free Printable Road Trip Games & Activities

By: Author Jacquie Fisher

Posted on Published: June 29, 2024

Categories Travel Fun

Grab these free printable road trip games & activities for your next car trip and keep the kids busy!

We are gearing up for a HUGE family car trip this summer and I’m on the look-out for some road trip activities to keep the kids off their phones & busy en route 😉

40 Free Road Trip Activities & Games for Kids

Since we love to travel, I’ll be sharing a handful of posts over the next few months with lots of tips & ideas for family travel!  We’re also sharing many of our favorite travel items along with affiliate links to each so you can see if they’re a good fit for your family too. (Be sure to see our 40+ Road Trip Essentials & Car Organization Items too!)

Here are a few of the ways we get ready for a trip:

• Keep the car organized with these 27 Track Hacks & Road Trip Tips
• If your kids enjoy audio books, movies or educational apps, be sure to sign up for the Amazon FreeTime Unlimited FREE Trial before you go!!
• Have ad-free on-demand music for your trip: Try the Amazon Music Unlimited 30-Day Free Trial
• Grab this FREE Printable Road Trip Planner: 10 Things to do Before Your Next Road Trip
• And check out these NEW ideas — 15 Road Trip Printable Games & Travel Activities !!

The trip is going to be much longer than we thought — 10 days through 11 states covering 2600 miles!!

I know – crazy!  But we’re really looking forward to it — we believe that family travel is a great way for kids to learn all kinds of things.

It’s going to be a monster of a trip with lots of overnight stops and quite a few hours in the car.

Soooo …. time to start planning on how to keep everyone busy, happy and fed 😉

Printable Travel Games for Kids

It’s the age-old question — how to keep kids busy and engaged on long car rides?!  The first thing I always tackle is putting together a binder for the trip that’s chocked full of fun (& free) printable activities.

I’m telling you — this little binder has been a huge help on our trips!

The fact that our kids have had something to look forward to each morning when we load up the car is incentive enough for them to not drag their feet when we have to pack up.  And it’s been wonderful to have a way to keep them writing and reading using fun activities on our trips.

I’ve included links below for each of the resources we’ve found including affiliate links for items that will help you put together your own road trip binder.

Tips for Making a Road Trip Binder

I have three goals when I create a car trip binder for kids, tweens or teens:

1.  Include surprise activities they can do both on their own & with others in the car

2.  Find fun things that will keep them off the tech for a while

3.  Get the kids interested in the places we’re visiting on our trip — because that’s one of the reasons we travel, right?!

First, print off a variety of travel games & activities!

I search for games they really enjoy (for example, Mad Libs are a big hit with us right now) and fun pages like coloring or design printables.

We also play the license plate game as a family every summer so that’s a big one for us too!

I look for maps & activities that highlight places on our travel route, worksheets that share fun facts about the states we visit and anything that gets them writing — like some fun travel journal pages.

Printable Road Trip Games for Kids, Tweens & Teens

Here’s a huge selection of printable road trip games & activities to make things easier for you!

Just choose the ones that fit your child’s age and ability! Or if your short on time, check out the 15 printable road trip games & travel activities in our Road Trip Pack!

• All for the Boys has some wonderful car activities — 12 pages of mini games & puzzles the kids will love!!
• Enjoy some fun family discussions with this free set of 20 Questions to play with your kids !
• I love this Travel Battleship game from Mothers Home!
• Play the License Plate Game with this free printable state map.
• Have kids try this challenging Road Trip Maze game .
• Enjoy these 5 printable car games from In the Playroom (for US & UK travel).
• I Heart Organizing has some wonderfully colorful Road Trip BINGO and Alphabet I-Spy to keep the kids entertained.
• And you know how much we adore Scavenger Hunts!  Here are a few gems:
• Road Trip “Find It” for Tweens from Carla Schauer
• City, Suburb & Rural Scavenger Hunts from Mom’s Minivan
• Make & Takes has a fun coloring scavenger hunt too

If you need more ideas, browse all the Printable Road Trip Activities and Games on Etsy too!!

And if you happen to be heading to Disney World or Disneyland, check out this set of printable Disney Games & Activities for your trip!!

Car Games & Travel Printables for Kids

Try these Kids’ Travel Journal pages that are perfect for encouraging a little writing & recording the trip while on the road!

For some great state-by-state learning, visit Education.com and print out the State Puzzle Sheets for each state on your trip.

I like to include a Kids’ Road Atlas or map with the binder too.  We get ours free with our AAA membership and it’s a great for kids to learn map reading skills!

Activity Idea: Have your kids highlight the route you’re taking in the atlas and they can follow along as you drive.

Younger kids might enjoy driving a Hot Wheels car along the route as you travel.  Older kids will be intrigued to see what interesting places you might be passing en route.

More Kids Activities for a Road Trip

If your kids have a cell phone or camera, print this FREE Photo Scavenger Hunt for them to complete on the trip!

Enjoy this Hotel Scavenger Hunt from Moms & Munchkins if you’re spending the night on the road.

Picklebums has these cute and open-ended Road Trip Drawing Prompts.

Doodle Art Alley has a set of Summer Coloring pages that can be used individual or as a family coloring activity.

Target has some great movie coloring pages too for free!! Check out the printable Despiciable Me 4 Activity sheets and more than 20+ printable Disney coloring pages for movies like Inside Out, Onward, Coco, Up, Monsters Inc, Cars and more!!

How to Organize Road Trip Games & Activities

Next, I organize all the printables into a Road Trip binder!

One thing that works well for us is to sort the pages by travel day. This way, I know that each morning of our trip there will be new activities for our kids to do!

I separate the printables using manila folders (which is great in case we want to pull out the items for one day).  Then I use a 3 Hole Punch with all the printables & manila folders and insert them into the binder.  Each set is labeled with the date so it’s easy to see.

In addition, I include a 3-Ring Pencil Pouch with the following items:

• a nice set of Colored Pencils ,
• a regular pencil & pencil sharpener,
• and an eraser.

We don’t bring markers in the car ( I learned why the hard way ).  And crayons tend to melt in the summer heat. So when we travel, we’ve found that a set of colored pencils is the way to go 😉

We also love to have these Storage Folding Lap Desks so the kids have an easy place to read/write during our trips!

I also put their summer reading logs (see all the FREE Summer Reading programs here!) in the back of the binder. We do a lot of reading & audio books in the car ( grab a copy of this free Summer Reading Log to use on the trip !).

Last, I created a fun cover for the binder along with an autograph page for the back of the binder. It’s fun to have when you’re visiting a lot of family so everyone can sign a fun note.

Here’s a front & back cover for the road trip binder you can download for FREE!

There you go — step 1 in preparing for the Ultimate Summer Road Trip!

More Road Trip Ideas:

15 Printable Road Trip Activities & Travel Journal for Kids & Tweens

The Ultimate Road Trip Guide: Why Getting There is Half the Fun

10 Things to do Before Your Next Road Trip {with free printable checklist!}

More Summer Ideas:

20 Amazing Summer Scavenger Hunts

105 Activities that Make Awesome Summer Memories

25+ Free Road Trip Printables for a Truly Fun Family Car Trip

Categories Family Road Trip , Activities for Kids , Family Fun , Free Printable , Frugal Vacation , Roundup , Saving Money , Travel

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Our last road trip activities for kids post has been read more than 50,000 times! And it’s been shared more than 8,000 times.  Wow – people really liked our ideas! It was full of the ideas we came up with to survive travelling with kids on a long road trip.  I’ve got a new tool in my family travel arsenal: Road Trip Printables!

Our last real road trip was 5 years ago and as we plan our next long road trip I’m happy to reread the former one and remember the tips!  

I don’t know how I forgot some of them – I’m adding aluminum foil to my list right now. 😜

This year our kids will be older: 11 and 13.  We expect our ride to be smoother than last time – for one they’ve both got bigger bladder capacity now.   (This time I don’t expect our son to need to publicly urinate in front of state troopers .)

But this time around we are spending more total hours in the car travelling from Ontario to Calgary, Alberta and back.  Dang, Ontario is big – it’s going to take two days just to get to the border from home!

We need some new ideas to keep our family amused during these extra long hours in the car.

I decided to find a whole bunch of free printable road trip car games and make a huge folder of them to spread out over the drive.  

I plan to also bring some plastic sheet protectors and low odor dry erase markers to reuse the best games.  ‘Cause I ain’t bringing a printer on this trip with us.

It would seem like a waste to just amass such a great list for ourselves when we can share them all with you!   So here’s a list of 25+ great free road trip printables – games worth printing for your long drive ahead.

Also, check out our kid-approved list of more  family fun road trip activities and games !

25+ Free Printable Road Trip Games

Don’t miss our kid-approved list of more  family fun road trip activities and games !

New! Save money on your road trip food! Check out:  Travel Recipes: 20+ Meals to Make in a Hotel Room Microwave or Kitchenette 

Robin and Ed are a DIY-loving couple with over 25 years of design and build experience. Also, Robin is a Nutritionist and former Registered Dietitian and Ed is an award-winning Business Educator. We share strategies for living a rich life on a DIY budget: creative money-savvy ideas for a stylish home, healthy meals and family fun. Our work has been published in the pages of Do It Yourself, Farmhouse Style and Better Homes & Gardens magazines.

Sunday 1st of May 2022

this stuff is great!!!

28 Fun Car Road Trip Games For Kids And Families

By: Author Nakia Pullen

Posted on Published: September 29, 2023  - Last updated: March 23, 2024

It seems that family road trips are making a comeback, especially for people who are interested in seeing the country from the ground instead of the air.  

We all have the advantage of knowing how kids can start to feel antsy during road trips because we have experienced it ourselves as children.  

Having a list of things to do during road trips is helpful for the entire family.  The miles go by much more quickly for a child who is busy and parents have the joy of happily entertained children.

With all the things you already have on your to do list for going on trips (which includes packing for pretty much everyone!), we thought you would appreciate some assistance with the in-car entertainment!

These games do not have to be complicated at all. 

For most of them, you only need your imagination and the optional piece of paper, so there is no worry about overpacking the car with a ton of activity related paraphernalia.

Keep this list at the ready for that time (probably within the first hour of your trip) that you hear the words dreaded by most parents….”I’m bored!”  or, my personal favorite, “Are we there yet?”

You will be able to quickly change the vibe in the car by introducing any of the fun road trip games we have listed below.  Best of all, you might all have a ton of fun and be at your destination before you know it!

Road Trip Games For Kids

1. Play Road Trip Bingo

I remember looking at road signs a lot when I was on a long road trip as a child.  Younger kids would love playing road trip bingo to make the miles go by faster.

A great way to help supplement this game is with this colorful and fun  road trip BINGO printable .  Playing this game will help the kids keep their eyes on what is outside instead of spending hours on screen time!

2. Have A Road Trip Scavenger Hunt

One of the best ways to pass the time is to have the kids have something to look for.  

Our  road trip scavenger hunt printable  will help set you up to get started with fun ideas for your next road trip.

The kids will be on such good behavior because they will be so busy looking for all the of items of their scavenger hunt!  

For an added bonus, the winner could have the first choice of a treat at a fast-food restaurant!

3. See Who Can Find More Of Each Color Car

This next option is a road trip classic!  It is a great game especially for kids who are getting more familiar with colors.   

Everyone looks to see how many cars of each color they are able to find along the way.

To help keep track of the cars, we have this cute  car color find printable  to help keep track of everything.  

You could also include bonus points for unusual colors, interesting designs or trucks with different store logos on them!

4. Spot Items Of The Alphabet

Starting with the letter A, spot items on your trip that start with corresponding letters.  This is definitely a game that can include the entire family. 

 If you have little ones, it may be better to take turns and help them so they do not get lost in the shuffle of competition.  

5. Ask Each Other Fun Questions

Road trips are great ways to get to know each other even better than you already do!  Asking each other different questions can really give you a new insight into each member of your family.

The sky is really the limit with what types of questions you can ask.  Sometimes the easiest way to start on these questions is to ask some that make your kids laugh.  

A funny example of this would be  gross would you rather questions !  In addition to gaining instant interest, these questions will also get everyone laughing.

If your road trip happens to be during the summer, you can try out some great  summer would you rather questions  to celebrate the season of sun and fun!

Other questions that will get your kids chatting include  fun questions to ask kids  and the ever entertaining  this or that questions .  

You will definitely be surprised at the variety of answers you get as well as the priceless insight you may get into the personalities of the people in your family! 

The most important thing is to listen and take in the answers from your little ones!

6. Tell Funny Jokes

There is nothing better than hearing jokes from little kids!  It’s one of my favorite car activities.

If your joke bank is running low, we have you covered with  jokes for young children .

If you have kids that have outgrown their car seats and may have a more sophisticated sense of humor, we have also included  jokes for older kids .

Leave room for your kids to bring up jokes they have heard or even better, jokes they have made up by themselves!

7. Play Sevens

Each person in the car takes turns counting and anytime the number is a multiple of 7 that person has to say BUZZ or else they are out.

If you need to modify this game for younger kids, you can start with multiples of 2 and maybe work in teams so that an adult can help.

8.Play Cows And Graveyards

Each person in the car counts the number of cows they see, but when you see a graveyard, it cancels everyone’s cows. Designate one person to keep a tally of cows and graveyard losses.

The person with the most cows at the end wins.  

9. Play Hey Cow

If you spot a herd of cattle, one player rolls down their window and YELLS “Hey COW!!” as loudly as they can. You get one point if the cow looks at you.

10. Play I Went To The Market

The person who starts says “I went to the market and bought (something that starts with A- apple, maybe). The next person has to remember apple and add something with B.

This memory game will give everyone’s brain some needed exercise!

11. Play The License Plate Game

Who knew that you could use license plates to help teach your kids about United States geography?  That is precisely what this classic game is all about.  

Print off a map of the United States for each family member.  The maps will be used as score cards for everyone- kind of like a bingo card.

During the long car ride, each person keeps an eye on license plates of the cars on the road.  If the license plate is from the state you are in, it counts for zero points.

If the license plate is from a state touching the state you are in, it counts for one point.  Every state that touches a one point state is worth two points and so on.

When someone spots a license plate, they must call out the state to get the point for themselves.  This is a perfect way to help your kids learn about different states and their locations!

At the end of your long trip, you can tally the points on each score card to declare a winner!

12. Play Guess The Animal

This is one of the best games to keep everyone busy and learning at the same time.  

One person thinks of an animal and everyone takes turns asking only yes or no questions to figure out what animal that person chose.

For young kids, your best option is to keep answers and questions more simple to meet them where they are in their animal knowledge.  

However, the entire family will be surprised at how much your kids really know about animals!

13. Play Name That Person

Select a person in a passing car and make up their life story.  The story can be as silly and magical as you want.  

Make sure you give them a good backstory and a lot of side characters to follow the main character on their life story journey. 

14. Play The Strange And Unusual Game

Each time someone sees something strange or unusual, they get a point.  

15. Play The Counting Game

One person in the car starts with 1, then someone else (randomly without being signaled) says 2. If two people say it at the same time, you start back at one. The end goal is to get to 20.

You will be amazed at how much this will make everyone laugh!

16. Play Name The Song/Artist

Playing this game is such a good way to have your travel music playlist work double duty for you!  

It is also a one of the better road trip activities to take part in for those of us who experience motion sickness and have a challenge looking at things inside the car while it is moving.

There are a few variations of this game.  You can play the beginning of the song to see if people can guess it.  

You can also have someone say the lyrics to a song and everyone guesses.  

Make sure you have a kid safe playlist that has songs that kids of all ages can identify!

17. Play Triple Threat

Someone says three random nouns and the other people in the car have to tell a story about the three items.  

You could either have one person tell the tale, have each person tell a different story, or have everyone take turns and be involved in the same story.  

No matter what you choose, this game will score high in the creativity and fun category!

18. Have A Rock Paper Scissors Tournament

Among some of my favorite road trip games has to be rock paper scissors!  Make sure you go over the rules: rock beats scissors, scissors beats paper and paper beats rock.  

If there is a tie, the people who tied get to go against each other again until there is no tie.  The people who lose could wash the car windows on the next stop or help get snacks for the winners.  

The tournament could resume after each car stop.

19. Play Punch Buggy

Also called Slug Bug or Punch Bug, this game consists of looking for Volkswagen bug vehicles.  Make sure the kids are clear on what one looks like before you begin!

When someone spots a bug, he or she lightly punches the person next to them and says “Punch Buggy!”.   A variation of this can be to include the color of the bug vehicle that was spotted.  

You can designate a person to keep a tally of each family member’s finds.  Designate one point for a found bug and take away a point for each time punch buggy is called in error.

Go over the level of punch with your kids to start or you can change the rules to have them tap each other.  Sometimes the excitement of the game can lead to and overexcitement in the punch category!

That being said, keep the game light and fun and give each other kudos for their finds.  The only out of bounds area for this game is when passing by a Volkswagen dealership, or else mayhem may ensue!  

The winner can be declared the bug champion of the trip!

20. Play Mystery Phrase

It’s like telephone, but you spell the phrase out in a person’s hand.  To help ease the guessing a little bit, you could come up with themes, like summer items, animal names or shapes, for example.

This game is sure to get the laughter going in the car!

21. Play Fortunately, Unfortunately

This storytelling game will help you all create a story with tons of exciting ups and downs!  

The first person says something like:” Fortunately, I remembered to bring sunscreen”, and then the next person says something like “but unfortunately, it made my skin green!” and so forth while telling a silly story.

Every sentence starts alternately with Fortunately or Unfortunately, thereby changing the story for better or worse with each sentence.  Kids will enjoy the general silliness of this game!

22. Play Mad Libs

These road trip-themed Mad Libs are perfect for your next trip!

If you would like to reuse stories, depending on the length of the drive, you can put them in clear pocket folders and use erasable markers to fill in each blank.

23. Play I Spy

Each person starts their turn with the phrase “I spy with my little eye….”  and then they give some form of description about an item they happen to see out the window of the car.

For example, someone might say “I spy with my little eye something green” and then everyone else in the car starts guessing items outside that are green until someone guesses correctly.

24. Play The Quiet Game

For the times when things have gotten too loud and rambunctious (especially in the back seats!), this game will help chill things out, at least for a while!

As the name suggests, the point of the game is to stay quiet.  The last team or person to stay quiet the longest, wins the game.

While I can not guarantee that this game will last long, it will give at least a short break and most likely end in laughter!

25. Play The Category Game

One person chooses a category and a letter (for example, animals and the letter G).  Then each person takes turns naming items in this category that start with the chosen letter.

So for our example we would have gorillas, goats, giraffes, gerbils, etc.  The first person who can not think of a word for the category is out and gets to pick the next letter.

The remaining players continue to name items in the category, but now using the next letter that was chosen.  You continue to play the game this way until everyone but one person is out.

The winner gets to choose the next category and letter for the next game.

26. Play The Name Game

The first person in this game starts off with the name of their choice.  Then the next person has to figure out a name that starts with the last letter of the first name and so on.

For example: Adam, Mary, Yolanda, Aiden.  Anyone who can not think of a name or repeats a name already used is out.  The last person left at the end wins the game!

27. Play Two Truths and a Lie

One player tells everyone two things that are true and one thing that is a lie.  Everyone else has to guess which of these is the lie.

This can be quiet challenging since you are most likely traveling with people who know you pretty well!

28. Play Tic-Tac-Toe

For this simple game you can use a piece of paper and pass it back and forth.  If you want to do something a little different, you can find tic-tac-toe magnets and use a small cookie sheet to stick them to.

For a bonus, you can add other fun magnets with pictures of the alphabet that can encourage some independent play as well!

We sincerely hope that this list will help ease some of the pressures that can come with a long road trip.  

Time together with family can be wonderful, but it can also feel like a lot when you are all crammed in a small space for hours at a time!

While not every minute has to be life changing and amazing, it is good to have a plan to keep the kids (and adults!) busy and happy.  

Remember that it is also ok for the kids to do their own thing at times as well.  While it is nice to do things together, you also need a break every now and then and that is definitely ok!

Have fun and enjoy those sweet moments where you are all enjoying yourselves and laughing so hard that your eyes are watering!

Happy trails and as always, you’ve got this!

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What an incredible post about fun car road trip games for kids and families! I absolutely love the idea of "See Who Can Find More Of Each Color Car." It's such a fantastic way to engage everyone in the car and keep them entertained while enjoying the journey. "Play Name The Song/Artist" is another brilliant game that brings the joy of music into the road trip experience. And let's not forget about "The Quiet Game" – a classic game that can provide some much-needed tranquility during long drives. Thank you for sharing these fantastic ideas! They really make car journeys more enjoyable, memorable, and filled with laughter.

Brenda Kosciuk

Thanks for the appreciation!

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[…] a bunch of these car games for kids and car activities for 2 year olds, 3 year olds or 4 year olds ready to go will help you to not […]

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21 easy children’s Car Games & Road trip activities for kids

Looking for the best games for children to play in the car on a road trip? Want ways to keep them entertained, quiet or playing nicely? Here are some ideas for the best car games and road trip activities for kids of all ages.

*We work hard to make this the best motorhome travel blog and road trip website possible, full of helpful content for you. The website is supported by our readers, so if you buy through links on this site we may earn a commission- at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain our own .

If you find this post useful, you can also treat us to a coffee – we promise to enjoy it while creating more useful content like this- we might even indulge in a biscuit (or two!)

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Car Games for Kids

Hands up if you have ever been stuck on a road trip with children under the age of 15?

I’m so sorry.

(If you haven’t, and that’s why you’re reading this, err…. good luck! ?? )

Kids struggle with road trips. Even if, like our daughter, they’ve spent a lot of time travelling, they still struggle with the concept of ‘how far there is to go’, sitting still for long periods and changes in their routine.

Children’s Car Games – What NOT to Do!

I remember one memorable trip with our toddler about 15 years ago. I was woefully unprepared and didn’t have any children’s car games handy.

I improvised and created the infamous road trip game “Can you see the Monkey in the tree…?”

Not familiar with it? Every time we drove past a tree, ANY tree, I had to ask “Can you see the Monkey?”

Our beloved daughter would look at the tree, ponder the question thoughtfully as she stared at it, then declare “YES” really loudly.

I should point out that we were in Northern England. There were no monkeys. But, if I forgot a tree, she started to cry because “I’d missed the monkey in it.”

So, I was stuck.

We played this game, non-stop, for two hours on our car drive. TWO HOURS. Yes, that warrants excessive use of capital letters.

It also warranted a double vodka when we arrived…

I won’t tell you what I was thinking. It certainly didn’t give me any mother-of-the-year points.

So, to help you avoid the same pain and misery, here are some better ideas for road trip toys, games & activities for children. They’re mostly quiet (you’re welcome) and generally EASY and suitable for kids of all ages.

(You can also find ideas for baby toys for road trips.) Good luck with your trip!!

Fun Driving Games for Kids

Many of these car games for children can be played without any extra accessories. However, did you know you can buy ACTUAL i-spy packs or Road Trip bingo wipeable sheets??

If you do a lot of road trips, or are enjoying van life with kids , you’ll be glad you have wipe-able ones!

Depending on the age of your kids, this may not be the best road trip game; once you start you might get the word ‘sky’ 17 times in a row. We play the rule that the object has to be visible at all times (no “there was a sheep back there!”) and also that you cannot repeat a word.

Another option for younger children (where spelling is an issue) is to do i-spy with a colour. “Something coloured… blue” (yep, it’s sky again)

If you prefer, one of these amazing i-Spy books might be just the thing, especially if you’d like a break. You can various ones, covering road trips, animals, vehicles etc, or get one like this which covers everything.

Pink/ Yellow Childrens Car Game (adults can play too!)

This car game is strangely addictive for all the family.

In a nutshell, you’re looking for yellow and pink cars.

You get one point for a yellow car, two points for a pink car (I’ll allow your judgement on what is pink and what is red!) If you see a car of either colour, the first to shout it out wins the points.

Keep track of the score and play until a set point or until a certain score. For us, we play the first to 50 points chooses dinner. Or gets first bathroom break. Or the loser has to do the washing up!

License Plate Game

Depending on which country you’re road tripping in, this can work in several ways. You can print off a map and get the kids to colour it in as they spot licences for each country or state.

This works best somewhere like Europe or the USA, not the UK- we don’t have such a large range of different countries. (In Europe, you’ll be spotting the EU badges)

If you are road tripping in the UK, try and go through the alphabet- find licence plates with an ‘A’ on it, then ‘B’ etc. (Just a note, we don’t use ‘I’ or ‘O’… don’t try to find those!!!

Another option is ‘Mapominoes’. Best played with plenty of space, this is a great way to encourage kids to learn more about the countries you’re visiting.

Ah, road trip bingo. It was one of my favourite car games when I was a child. I’m pleased to say it’s evolved a bit now.

You can get some brilliant printable free for various car bingo activities. Print them off, give everyone a pen or pencil (ideally on a string around their necks!) and let Road Trip Bingo commence. It’s surprisingly fun! Alternatively, buy a wipeable, reusable pack.

I like the fact that the game is played with road signs and animals- makes it easier to spot things for younger children. If you want to make it harder, only the first to see and shout gets to mark it down.

Best Board Games to Play in the Car

If you’re going to play board games in a car with children, prepare yourself for things to get lost on the floor or tantrums. BUT, board games are a way to pass the time and there are some great ones without many loose pieces!

Some of our favourites include:

Guess Who Travel Car Game

Did you know you can get Disney, My Little Pony and many other editions of this popular childrens car game? It used to keep me and my brother entertained for hours!

Skillmatics

Great fun and learning for kids, that will keep them entertained while on your road trip!

Battleship- Easy Travel Game for Kids

Another perfect kids car game with very few moving pieces. Battleship is also a great car board game for adults to play with a single child on their own in the back.

Pop-up Car Board Game for Kids

We used to call this ‘Frustration’ when I was a kid, but now there are many versions available. It’s a great board game for car journeys- the dice is contained so can’t roll under the seat or fall down a gap. And the pieces are pretty large, so not easily dropped.

Quiet Road Trip Activities for Kids, Tweens & Teenagers

Once the initial excitement wears off, it’s a good idea to have some quieter activities for them to get on with by themselves.

READ NOW: More quiet activities for kids – perfect for both at home and while travelling

Magnetic Drawing Board

These are brilliant! Allow your little one to draw again and again- without running out of paper or dropping their pencil. Hours of entertainment!

Tell me I am not the only person who remembers these!?! I can’t believe they’re still going. I used to play with my Spirograph for HOURS when I was younger (like, last week…)

Sticker Books

These were a godsend when Jade was younger. We’d buy her a couple of sticker books and let her stick them in as she liked. Just expect stickers on your car doors- Princess Jasmine is destined to be in your car forever!!

Puzzle Books

My daughter has no patience for puzzles, but I used to do them for HOURS when I was young. (Still would, if I had time!)

I love ones like the Puzzle Quest range, where the puzzles are interconnected to create a story for them to solve.

I’ve only recently discovered Perplexus – but they keep ME entertained for HOURS. It’s a giant maze inside a ball which you have to get a metal ball through. It’s ridiculously addictive… just what you want from a road trip game. They come in different age ranges- there is even a Star Wars and Harry Potter version!!!

Best Children’s Audiobooks for Travel

We’ve tried all sorts of audiobooks and podcasts and there is a HUGE variety out there. My absolute favourites are the Harry Potter ones read by Stephen Fry – if you enjoy Harry Potter this is one for the whole family to listen to.

You can get them (and many other kids audiobooks) FREE as part of Audible – the audiobook subscription service which allows you to rent audiobooks for an unlimited time; each child could pick their own to enjoy.

If you only listen to one book a month, it’s already paid for itself! Try Audible FREE for 30 days . It’s also full of great books for adults so you can get something for everyone.

Best Travel Activities for Kids- Books for Road Trips

If your little ones enjoy reading, books are a great way to keep them entertained. There are LOADS of children’s road trip books on Amazon. 

Alternatively, make use of your local library if you’re only away a short time- it’s a great place to get new books each trip.

Colouring Books

If your kids will colour quietly, this is a great idea. There are plenty of free printables you can print off and let them enjoy. They might even enjoy a map of the route so they can see where they’re going. Maybe you could get them to write notes and make a small journal for the trip! But you can also get colouring in packs if you don’t have a printer at home. Just add a car tray to avoid dropped pens!

Childrens Car Games and Road Trip Activities- Make Them a Surprise Toy Bag!

I LOVE this idea. Pick up some cheap toys and put them in small bags (or even wrap them in foil) to be unwrapped at certain stages in the journey (first fuel stop, first 100 miles, first toll etc.) This gives them something to look forward to. You can also include some travel-friendly snacks, and some funny jokes to keep them amused

TOP TIP: Keep one toy back as a surprise in case of dire emergencies!

Best Car Games for Kids Online

Nintendo switch.

I’m a Tetris girl myself (and now I’m humming the music!!) but a handheld game console like a Nintendo Switch is a great children’s quiet car activity. There are a HUGE range of various games, for all ages and level of ability. Some of them are even educational.

Just insist they play either without the sound or with headphones on- or the beeps will drive you crazy!

Disney Now – Best Childrens Car App

Put Disney Now on an iPad, put their headphones on and enjoy a little quiet time. There are hundreds of shows to choose from- just remember you either need Wi-Fi or a way to stream if you haven’t downloaded anything in advance.

Get a seat organiser for the back of the seat, let each child pick a movie to watch. If you want to save your sanity, get wireless headphones that they can listen to at the same time. Hang an iPad on the back of the chair and turn the backseat into a movie theatre. (Popcorn optional but likely to end up on the floor!)

Road Trip Activities for Kids- Tips to Help Your Road Trip Go Smoothly!

I may have only had one child to deal with, but I remember road trips when I was a kid- and how my favourite activity was torturing my little brother! So, your most important job is to stop squabbling. This only happens by setting firm, clear boundaries, ideally before the road trip starts.

If something goes under the seat , it is lost until the next break. We had to be very careful what we dropped (hence the string around the neck!) In the same vein, make sure their portable travel car seat is secure and approved- they will be doing a LOT of wiggling and squirming!

Try not to put things where kids can see them but can’t get to them – this will only lead to tantrums. Give them a few things to play with and hide everything else. You can change the toys at each rest stop.

A lot of these activities will depend on your little (or big!) ones. From the age of about 12, Jade would sit quietly with her headphones on, listening to music she’d downloaded. The only meltdowns came when she realised she was out of battery and/or wifi.

Plan breaks in advance – ideally somewhere with a park for them to let off some steam. If they know how far they have to go between stops, it can help them mentally prepare. Just add some extra time in case of traffic!!

If you are going hiking or camping with kids , make sure you have enough food, drink and changes of clothes; wet, tired and hungry kids are worse on the way home!!

I hope these tips helps keep your road trip go smoothly! Eventually, everyone gets sick of sitting in one place and kids are no different. The tantrums seem to happen just when you’ve had enough too!! Keep smiling – the adventure will be worth it! 🙂

More ideas you might find useful:

Found this list useful? Looking for more gift ideas? You might also like:

• 20 Funny and comfy  motorhome & campervan t-shirts
• The BEST campervan and motorhome mugs  for every occasion
• Awesome  campervan and motorhome stickers
• PERFECT  gifts for friends going travelling
• 40 perfect  motorhome gifts  (that owners will LOVE)

Browse ALL of our  motorhome & road trip gift ideas here

Kat never planned to buy a motorhome. She also never planned to quit her job as an air traffic controller, go touring around Europe in said motorhome, start one of the UK’s largest motorhome travel websites… or get a cocker spaniel.

Find out how she went from stuck in the rat race to being a digital nomad and inspiring thousands of people to have their own epic adventures here.

If you’d like to connect with Kat, send her an email or follow her adventures on social media.

Last update on 2024-09-27 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

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Amazing.. This article has very interesting ideas for road trips. I just love your ideas and will share this article with my groups. Thanks a lot for these great ideas!

We used to play ‘Legs’. You spot a pub first and get one point for each leg in the pub name. “The White Heart” == 4, “The rose and Crown” == 0, etc. “The Kings Arms” was an interesting one as the ‘Arms’ are not actually body parts!

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40+ Car Activities For Kids

by Michelle Pratt | Jul 26, 2023 | Big Kid , Infant , Mom Life , Tips , Toddler , Travel | 0 comments

Long car rides with kids can be a fun, memorable experience, or it can be pretty miserable. No matter how much your kids love to ride, it’s a good idea to have some boredom-busters ready to go. When they’re busy, you can stay focused on driving and just enjoy your long road trip or a quick errand.

However, keeping your kids busy in the car safely isn’t as simple as it may seem. Many toys and entertainment systems can become projectile risks in a crash . This includes tablets, hard plastic toys, metal die-cast cars, and more. So, to keep your kids safe in their seats, ensure your child’s car entertainment is safe and screen-free! Below, we have dozens of fun and safe car activities for kids of all ages: 

Car Activities for Babies

Touch and feel books.

Board books can be projectile risks, but soft, crinkle, or touch-and-feel books are perfect for car rides! They’re easy for your infant to hold and manipulate, and they don’t flop on the floor easily. So, consider grabbing some touch-and-feel books special for the car. 

Winkel Ball

Winkel balls are one of the most popular baby toys out there. It’s high contrast, makes noise, doubles as a teether, and is easy to grip onto even with really young babies. And to prevent dropping, you can attach it to your baby’s outfit with a pacifier clip!

Teether Toys

Speaking of teethers, your infant can find teethers both entertaining and soothing. We love these easy-to-hold teethers because they’re much less likely to end up on the floor. This Haaka palm teether is also a great choice! 

Suction Spinners

These spinners are another popular car seat toy option! Baby can twirl and manipulate the spinner, and when they get older, they can stick them on the windows to keep on spinning. 

Rattle Socks

These rattle socks can go on your baby’s wrists or ankles for endless kicking and punching fun. You’ll love these because they can’t don’t fall off or fall on the floor. Your child can play and play, and the socks will stay within reach since they’re safely attached to your baby. 

A nap could be the best thing for a car ride with an infant. If they don’t like sitting in the car seat, try to aim for trips around nap time. But before you do, read this post about babies sleeping in car seats . It’s a must-read for safe travels!

Car Activities for Toddlers

Soft-sided busy boards.

Busy boards made from soft-sided material will definitely keep your toddler busy. They can play with velcro, zippers, pockets, buttons, and more, all while staying entertained and learning valuable fine motor skills. This fire truck one works great for younger kiddos, but this multi-page one will keep older toddlers and children focused even longer! 

Fidget Pop Tubes

These might be a little annoying for front-seat passengers, but they’re fun for your toddler! These dog pop tubes aren’t projectile risks in any way, and they offer hours of fidgeting fun. 

Indestructible Books

These books are awesome! They’re inexpensive, safe for the car, and indestructible . That’s right, your destructive toddler won’t be able to rip these books apart. So they can flip the pages for hours. 

Buckle Toys

Buckle toys are great for fidgeting and learning. Like busy boards, they can help develop fine motor skills and basic life skills. This owl and turtle are both good options. 

Here’s another fidget toy! Toddlers are entertained by these, but so are older kids and even adults. Keeping a few of them in your car will ensure you always have something to entertain bored car riders, whether they be your children, your spouse, or yourself! 

Sing-Alongs

Does your child like to sing along to Disney songs or Ms. Rachel’s nursery rhymes? It might be a good idea to create a playlist of your child’s favorite songs to jam out on the way. They’ll love singing along with you! 

Small die-cast cars made of metal are a no-go. They’re a projectile risk, and they can cause serious injury if they hit someone! However, these soft-sided cars are completely safe, easy to hold, and appropriate for multiple age groups. 

Felt Boards

A felt board is an open-ended toy that’ll encourage your child to be creative. We love this bifold design because it’s easy for children to manipulate, and clean-up is as easy as closing a book. 

Spot the Color Game

A toddler is too young for most road trip games. However, they can play a version of “The Alphabet Game!” Instead of looking for the next letter in the alphabet, you can call out a color, and they can search away until they spot it. Then, your toddler shouts out the color and moves to the next color. This is a fun game the whole family can participate in, too. 

Car Activities for Preschoolers

Window clings.

Depending on the vehicle, your child may or may not be able to reach the window next to their seat. If they can, window clings are a fun way to pass the time. 

Reusable Sticker Pads

Reusable sticker pads can consume hours and hours of a trip. With lots of pages and infinite sticking possibilities, reusable sticker pads may be your road trip best friend. Trusted brands like Highlights and Melissa and Doug both have sticker pads we love! 

Water Wow Books

Even washable markers can feel like too much of a hassle in the car. Instead, try Water Wow books ! You simply fill up the pen with water, and the ink magically appears on the paper for your child. It’s 100% mess-free. But if you’re thinking about adding a travel tray for easier coloring, don’t! Trays are not approved by car seat manufacturers to be attached to the seat or child in any way. A pillow on your child’s lap can work just as well for a little extra hand support.

Coloring with Color Wonder

Color Wonder sets are also mess-free coloring alternatives that use special markers to create works of art on the given coloring pages. They even have a “magic” light brush painting kit that is a big hit with road-tripping kids! 

Lacing Boards

Lacing boards require fine motor skills, focus, and a lot of time. It makes them perfect for preschoolers on long car rides.  

Downloading some kid-friendly audiobooks can be another effective way to engage your child while driving. You can listen to stories together and discuss what’s happening. It’ll be like a family book club. 

Dry Erase Coloring

These may be a little messy, but your preschool-aged children can likely handle dry-erase markers! These placemats are perfect for the car because they’re sturdier than standard paper. Plus, the included markers have erasers on the cap, which is really helpful! 

Post-It Notes

All kids love Post-Its. Give your preschooler a stack and let them go crazy.

Quiet Books

Quiet books often have a series of learning activities for preschool-aged children. The word “quiet” comes from the fact that they’re not made out of hard materials and include no sound effects. They’re made mostly of felt, so they won’t be a dangerous projectile in a crash. 

Discovery Bags

This one is a great idea for long drives. You take a few brown paper sacks and fill each one with a different activity or a few toys your child hasn’t played with in a while. On certain milestones of the trip, you pass a new bag back to your preschooler. It’ll feel like Christmas to them to rip open a new bag of surprises every couple of hours! 

Preschoolers are a sponge for new information. They’re learning letters, colors, numbers, shapes, and more. Consider getting them flashcards to flip through. Also, if there’s an adult in the passenger seat, they may be able to participate in the learning process, too, quizzing your child throughout the trip. 

Cereal Beading

For another engaging activity for preschoolers, grab some pipe cleaners and Cheerios . Your child can sit for hours threading and unthreading cereal and then have a tasty treat after. 

Car Activities for Older Kids

Scratch art.

Crafts always keep kids busy, but it’s difficult to find ones that work in the car. Scratch-art only requires a couple of tools, and it’s open-ended, which makes it ideal for a moving vehicle.

Gone are the days of iPods and MP3 players. Now everything is on our phones and tablets. As we discussed, though, big tablets aren’t safe for the car, and most of us are looking for screen-free road trip activities, anyway. 

The Yoto Mini is the perfect solution! It’s a kid-friendly audio player with no screen and hours of activities. Kids can listen to books, music, trivia, and more. So, these will definitely help your older kids pass the time! 

Tic Tac Toe, Dots and Boxes, and Other Pen and Paper Games

Classic pen and paper games are still great road trip activities! The whole family can play, laugh, and compete together in a variety of games like Tic Tac Toe, Dots and Boxes, Hangman/Snowman, MASH, and more. However, if you don’t want to bring along actual paper and pencils, try out these LED drawing tablets ! 

20 Questions

20 Questions is a simple game where one player thinks of a person, place, or thing, and everyone else in the car asks yes or no questions in an attempt to uncover the secret word. The other players have to guess before 20 questions are asked, or they lose! This is a classic family road trip game that you can do with elementary-aged kids and adults alike. 

Alphabet Game

This road trip activity for kids uses the letters of the alphabet to create a scavenger hunt. You start with the letter A , and everyone works together to find something outside of the car that starts with A . Once an item is located, the players move on to the letter B. This continues until the alphabet is complete! 

License Plate Game

For the “License Plate Game,” players are competing to see who can spot all 50 states on license plates first. Every time a new plate is spotted, the player gets a point. No states can be counted twice, and no two players can claim the same license plate. This one is perfect for long car rides! 

Road Trip Scavenger Hunt

For a road trip scavenger hunt, you can use these premade Scavenger Hunt Cards or make your own list! If you curate the scavenger hunt list yourself, try making it specific to your trip. Include things that you’ll see while driving when you stop at destinations and when you pull off into a rest stop. This will keep your children occupied for the whole drive if done right! 

Interstate Highway Travel Games

These classic travel bingo cards are so much fun. They can stay in your car all the time, and your older kids can pull them out whenever they’re bored, whether it’s a quick trip to the store or a long road trip. 

Origami is another easy craft to do in the car. It doesn’t require anything but a few sheets of paper, so it’s mess- and hassle-free. 

Magnet Toys

Magnet toys work well in the vehicle because they stay in place despite the car’s jostling. Try these magnet blocks , men , or dress-up dolls for your next trip.  

Puzzles aren’t always a car favorite because the pieces can easily get lost. And, with puzzles, one lost piece sort of ruins the entire experience. However, this animal-shaped puzzle has a tin to hold the pieces and actually includes dozens of different puzzle combinations. If that’s a little too juvenile for your older child, these jigsaw puzzles are magnetic , which makes them much easier to assemble in a moving car!

Wikki Stix Activities

Wikki Stix is an adhesive stick that can bend and stick to make all sorts of projects. This set includes an activity book that can be used and reused over and over again. It’s a smart choice for long rides! 

Journalling, Drawing, and Coloring

Simply having your child color, draw, or journal can be a fun road trip activity. You can store the crayons or colored pencils in a zipper pouch or a soft-sided lunch box for easy access. Then, they just need a notebook, sketchpad, or coloring book for endless entertainment. So, if journaling is something your child is interested in, definitely check out these kid-friendly travel journals that allow your child to document every road trip and outing! 

If you can take the giggles, Mad Libs are a fun game for the whole family. One player keeps the book, and the rest fill in the unknown blanks. This is also great grammar practice if your children are learning the parts of speech! (Between grades 3-6, usually.) 

Pipe Cleaner Crafts

Give kids pipe cleaners, and they’ll stay focused on projects for hours. They can twist and bend to their heart’s desire, then redo it all the next road trip. It’s a super cheap activity that provides a lot of entertainment! 

Window Markers

Crayola Window Markers wipe off easily and can turn your back seats into an art studio and your windows into canvases. You can even make cleaning off the markers afterward an activity for your young riders too. 

Make road trips easier with these entertaining car activities!

Going on long drives with your family can be a memorable experience or a dramatic experience. Bringing plenty of road trip activities can help keep everyone relaxed (and keep the driver distraction-free ) while you head to your destination. Road trip snacks may be in order as well, but read our post on eating in the car before you make the call. For more road trip tips and vehicle safety information, check out the Safe in the Seat blog . 

Affiliate links are included above. Safe in the Seat earns a small commission when you purchase through these links with no cost to you. We so appreciate your support.

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52 of the Best Creative Road Trip Car Games and Activities for Kids

• October 1, 2020
• travel , Uncategorized
• Comments Off on 52 of the Best Creative Road Trip Car Games and Activities for Kids
• by Amy Lynn

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Keeping kids happy in the car while you’re on a family road trip is no easy feat, and often so daunting of an idea that many people don’t even attempt to hit the road with their kids. Having a list of road trip games and activities for kids in your pocket can do wonders to make your drive run more smoothly.

Earlier this fall I released a free Ebook with 52 screen-free activities for your kids to do during your next road trip . 

With road trips being the main mode of any travel happening this year, I want to empower you to hit the open road––whether it’s just for a day or an entire week––and find expansiveness in going on an adventure with your family.

I’ve been road tripping with my kids since they were infants and toddlers, and I took my first big solo road trip with kids as a divorced mom just a few years ago. At the end of that trip I was absolutely fed up with devices and ready to throw them out of the car!

From taking turns, to running out of batteries, screens became a nightmare instead of a godsend during that trip. I had driven thousands of miles to the Rockies and back, and my patience was depleted. I was so fed up that we had a hiatus from screen time for about a month after our trip. 

I know I’m not the only mom out there with kids who get cranky after being on screens too long. And chances are yours have been on a lot more this year with distance learning, like mine have. I also know that a lot of mamas (and dads) out there find keeping their kids entertained in the car the most intimidating part of taking a family road trip.

The memories I’ve made with my kids have been well worth the hours on the road, so I’ve learned how to think creatively when it comes to keeping everyone happy in the car (myself included!). 

How do I entertain my kids on a road trip?

The best thing you can do to entertain your kids in the car is plan ahead. And if you do it right, they’ll be entertaining themselves ––which is what most parents focused on driving really want, isn’t it?

I absolutely love putting together little car ride goodie bags for my kids (yes, even my teenagers!) when we’re gearing up for a long road trip. I’ll include everything from candies, to new coloring pencils/crayons/markers, to a new book handpicked just for them. Along with their goodie bags, I’ve amassed an arsenal of road trip games for kids that we’ll alternate playing throughout the drive.

What are some fun road trip games?

The best family road trip games are ones that you can all play together, in my book. But it’s also nice to have a handful they can play solo or without your help while you focus on driving, too. Some of the games below require nothing but the imagination, others good ole pen and paper, and some are better played with a few car-friendly supplies.

Road Trip Games for Kids

• One-word story game
• Alphabet game
• License plate game
• Road trip bingo
• Tic tac toe
• Rainbow game
• Would you rather
• Rhyming words game
• 20 questions
• I’m going on a road trip
• Cat’s cradle
• Rock Paper Scissors
• Photo scavenger hunt
• Magnetic checkers or chess

My favorite supplies for car ride games

Road Trip Activities for Kids

• Read a book
• Listen to an audiobook
• Listen to a podcast
• Make funny faces at passers-by
• Write a story
• Use a coloring book
• Use a puzzle book (think crossword puzzles and word searches)
• Listen to your favorite songs
• Create their own playlist
• Sketch what they see
• Color in a map of your trip as you go
• Start a Junior Ranger packet before your National Park visit
• Sew on souvenir patches
• Draw on the windows
• Get passing trucks to honk
• Keep a road trip scrapbook
• Write postcards or letters
• Solve a Rubik’s Cube
• Learn how to tie knots
• Blow bubbles
• Fold origami animals
• Finger knitting
• Make friendship bracelets
• Explore the landscape with a pair of binoculars
• Write haiku
• Keep a diary or journal
• Mini watercolor kit
• Make up a secret code
• Buy or DIY a kaleidoscope
• Paper dolls
• Embroidery or needlework project
• Thumbprint art

My favorite supplies for road trip activities for kids

My top road trip audiobook picks for kids

Take all 52 road trip activities and games for kids on the road with you!

Inspired by these ideas for your next road trip? Take the entire list––along with instructions for each––on the road with you! You can download my free Ebook and enjoy picking your favorite road trip activities for kids without the need for a wifi signal! Have a road trip game or activity you’d add to the list? I’d love to know!

Find more road trip inspiration in these related posts:

Visiting the Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo with Kids

Traveling to Colorado with Kids | A Texas Family Road Trip

How to Take Great Travel Photos with Your Phone

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Home » Blog » Travel » Ultimate Road Trip Activities for Kids: Printables, DIY, & More

Ultimate Road Trip Activities for Kids: Printables, DIY, & More

With summer there is usually lots of time spent in the car, and if you have little ones, you’ll want to keep them entertained. If you’re likely gearing up for plenty of travel—visiting family, summer camps, and vacations with the kids, check out these Ultimate Road Trip Activities for Kids, featuring printables, DIY, & more.

Introducing: The Best Road Trip Games and Activities for Kids!

While my kids would happily watch movies non-stop during our road trips, I prefer to use this time for learning, bonding, and creating lasting memories. With the engaging road trip games and activities below, a little preparation goes a long way in keeping kids entertained for hours, all while having fun and learning along the journey.

1. Road Sign Scavenger Hunt

Thanks, TripSavvy!

This was my favorite road trip scavenger hunt printable that I found, but there are hundreds more if this isn’t what you are looking for. This will keep the kids paying attention, talking, and will for sure strike good friendly competition up in the car!

Plus, this is one that all ages can do. You do not have to be able to read to be able to do this! Just match!

2. “Find That Thing” Scavenger Hunt

Thanks, Carla!

Here is another road trip scavenger hunt game that I found, but this one is only for readers. It is a little more advanced, but the objects are a little harder to find! I would suggest this one for your 4th – middle school-aged kids! They will love this.

3. Make Face Magnets

This is one of the best road trip games for toddlers! They will LOVE this game!

Just find pictures of faces online or even use pictures of your own family member’s facial features and allow your child to build whatever face they want! All you need to do is put a little magnet on the back of each paper and you are good to go!

Thanks, TheIowaFarmersWife.com !

4. Cookie Sheet Chalkboard

This one is so fun! All you need to do is go out and buy some chalkboard paint , paint your cookie sheet, and hand your child some chalk ! They will be entertained for hours on end just drawing away.

This is a super inexpensive way to entertain your kids and you won’t be wasting paper on coloring books! You can just erase and draw over and over again!

Thanks, SunnyWithAChanceOfSprinkles.com

5. Alphabet Pictionary

This one is awesome for any little kid just learning their ABCs but can honestly be used with kids of all ages. All you have to do is print out these printables , put them in a binder , and hand them out to each kid! Let them bring along crayons , pencils or markers and draw away!

Hours will have passed by the time they draw something for each letter . Once everyone finishes, Mom or Dad could judge the drawing and give out a winner for each letter!

Thanks, Lalymom!

6. Travel Memory Game

All you need to make this awesome road trip game is some felt , scissors , glue , and cardboard ! After a little prep, your child will be able to play either with siblings or by themselves, all day long.

This is SUPER easy to make and will last a long time . Not to mention how cheap these supplies will be! Your kids will adore this handmade memory game set.

Thanks, Kids Activities Blog!

7. Truck Spotting/Car Spotting

This is a huge hit in my house for little boys! All you need to do is print this out, hand them a pencil, and see who can spot the most trucks first. Your boys will love this!

Some of these trucks are a little dated and you won’t see too often (like the TV van with the satellite on top) so I would suggest just having a timer and seeing who can get the most in the specific amount of time!

Thanks National Post! 

iSpy is one of my favorite go-to car games but sometimes it is hard to think of things to SPY! I found 2 lists that were perfect for car rides! They are suited well so that you will be able to find everything right from the window of the car.

This will take up a good 30-60 minutes and can be played over and over again!

Thanks, A Pretty Life in the Suburbs & Live Laugh Rowe !

9. License Plate Game

All growing up I played this will my siblings and my kids still play it today!! This awesome printable will help your kids keep track of all the license plates they’ve seen throughout the trip.

I would suggest this one for the longer road trips that go across multiple states . If you’re stuck in one state the entire time, you might not see too much diversity!

Thanks, TheSuburbanMom!

10. ABC Spelling Game

I love this idea! It’s a road trip game that’s fun and educational . And we all know how it goes when a little one is learning to read and write. They are all so eager to learn and this is such a fun way to help them improve their spelling.

All you need is a metal lunch box , magnetic tape , and alphabet letters ! Give your child the lunch box and tell them which words to spell!

You could be sitting in the front seat saying, “dog” “meow” “purple” “truck” and they could be in the backseat spelling away! Or, you could give their sibling little flashcards with words to help quiz them along the way!

Thanks, As the Bunny Hops!

11. Roadtrip Bingo

Bingo is an awesome option when you have a car full of kids! What I love to do is simply give them a book or a notepad, let them set their board up, and simply use fruit snacks or goldfish as markers!

The first one to get a bingo gets to call out the objects the next time. My kids could go on and on for hours with this! I’m sure yours will too!

Thanks, Everyday Reading!

12. Travel Journal

A travel journal is a great way for your kids to pass the time, practice their writing, and write down all the fun memories they make while on family vacations . You can find many different options of printables for a travel journal but I like the one above because it is good for all ages.

Maybe attach a blank piece of paper to the other side and have them draw their favorite part of the day and write a paragraph about what they loved the most about today! Your kids will love to look back on this once the trip is over.

Thanks, Voluntown Housewife!

13. Word Search

Word Searches are fantastic ways to pass the time while in the car. What I love to do is put them in sheet protectors , hand them a dry erase pen , and let all your kids have a try!

This way you will only have to print out one puzzle and they will all get to use it. All they need to do is wipe off their writings once they are done!

Thanks, iHeartNapTime!

14. Would You Rather?

This game looks amazing! I haven’t tried this one yet, but I am going to totally make this for our next road trip. All you have to do is print out the questions and make the book! You will then have dozens of questions for your kids.

This will entertain them for such a long time and they will love it! And if you’re planning a Disney vacation , this is even more perfect.

Thanks, GetAwayToday!

15. Racetrack Binder

I love this idea. You could fill up a little 3 ring binder with word searches, puzzles, games, and maybe even their journal and then add this little race track to the end . You’d then have an entire binder full of road trip games.

With this one, your little kids will love pretending to drive their race car all around as you are on your road trip. Just head here and print out the printable! All you have to do is put it in the sheet protectors and you are good to go!

Thanks, Design Dizzle!

16. Ticket Time

If you have kids that love to ask, “Are we there yet?” This is the game for you!! All you need to do is determine how long your trip will be. If it will be 6 hours, give each kid a baggie with 12 tickets in it (one ticket for every 30 minutes).

After 30 minutes go by, they can hand you a ticket. If they ask, “are we there yet?” they don’t get to turn in a ticket. Once the trip has ended all the kids who have given back all the tickets can get a treat!

I love this simple idea! It helps the kids know how much longer they have left without even having to ask!

Thanks, Crafting Chicks!

17. Car Ride Presents

This idea takes a little prep, but I love the concept of this. This sweet mother decided that she would make a hand-made gift for her kids each time they went on a road trip. Whether it was a journal, a doll, a bracelet, etc… she wrapped it up and took it on the trip with them.

I think this would be an awesome motivator to help your kids be on their best behavior. Tell them that if they behave, they can open their present in the last hour of the trip!

Note: This doesn’t have to be extravagant or expensive.. just give them a handmade treat that they would love! Check out these Homemade Gift Ideas Perfect for Any Occasion for ideas.

Thanks, Grey Luster Girl! 

18. Brain Quest

My kids love these games! Their cards are awesome and will get your kids thinking. There are different decks for different ages and they will keep your kids entertained forever .

The deck is full of questions that your child will quickly need to answer. This can be played with siblings or with you leading it! Whatever works! If you’ve never tried this game, you need to! It’s the greatest.

Check it out here!

19. Geography Quiz

Make it a competition and your kids will love it even more. I even have a little prize sometimes for the winner.

20. Dry Erase Activity Book

This is one that can be 100% customizable . All you need to do is gather a bunch of printables that your child can use over and over again. I found word searches, essay prompts, coloring pages, and crosswords.

All you need to do after is laminate them! You can either go to a store to get this done or do it yourself! Afterward, punch holes in the paper and let your kids draw away. This book will last forever because all you’ll have to do is erase the markings and start over after every road trip.

Thanks Simply Kierste!

21. Hangman

This is the perfect game for road trips. It is a wooden slab that has letters that you can flip over and a dry erase marker. All you need to do is throw this in the car and it is there ready for them to play. My kids love this and it keeps them occupied for hours and hours. 

22. Road Trip Grab Book

I decided to put this as the last homemade game because it is the perfect way to combine all of the other road trip activities and games I have mentioned above. All you need is a 3 ring binder and some pencil cases .

Once you have those, all you need to do is fill each pencil case with different activities. You can put coloring pages, legos, treats, cards, etc. Honestly, anything you want! All you have to do is fill it up and hand it to each child.

You can customize each binder and fill it with things specific to them OR give everyone the same thing . I like to put all the same things in each binder just to avoid the fighting!

Thanks, MamaPapaBubba!

23. Premium Scratch and Sketch Art Notes 2 Pack

This is the perfect item for any of your children that love to doodle. This pad will eliminate crayons, markers, and pens because all the colors are already there under the paper! Once they draw, the colors will appear. Your kids will love these.

24. Travel Scavenger Hunt Card Game

This game is perfect to play in the car. All you need to do is put it in the pocket of your car and let it sit there. Whenever your kids are bored, they can pull it out and use it! They will love having it around to keep them entertained on long rides.

25. Games on the Go

If you’re looking for a bunch of simple road trip games in a compact format, this Games On the Go product is perfect. It has 50 games and can fit right in your pocket!

Final Thoughts

I hope that you found some car games that struck your attention on this list! Give a few of them a try on your next road trip and let me know how it goes.

I know that sometimes as moms we just DREAD long trips in the car, but with the right preparation, you can have the best road trip ever!

What road trip activities do your kids love doing in the car? Comment below! I can’t wait to find out.

Essential Road Trip Item:

This would be awesome on the back seat of your car to keep snacks and supplies off the ground! There is nothing I love more than squished fruit snacks or crackers ALL OVER THE CAR 😉 and this will prevent that from happening!

Plus it will keep your kids energized while they play all the road trip games above. Check it out on Amazon here .

This post was insanely helpful. Thanks for all your hard work putting this together.

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30 Best Road Trip Games That Will Make Your Drive Go By in No Time

Your crew won't ever want to get out of the car!

Every item on this page was chosen by a The Pioneer Woman editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy.

Summertime is road tripping time! And we hope you're planning yours accordingly, because the warm weather makes such an adventure too good to pass up! Even Ree Drummond takes a road trip every now and then, and it's cool to see all the places she's been to. (Remember the time she drove 500 miles to Texas and back?!) Whether you're staying within your state or driving to a location that's hundreds of miles away, planning a road trip can be a fun family vacation. What makes an occasion like this even better is good company, road trip snacks , and of course, some fun games to play along the way.

Road trip games are one of the easiest ways to make the miles fly by in the blink of an eye, and if you used to take road trips when you were little, you likely have several car games that you still love today. Perhaps you’re heading out with your whole family in tow or going somewhere fun with a group of gals or your main squeeze (talk about a cute summer date idea !). No matter what type of trip you’re taking, road trip games are a must. The nice thing about road trip games is that they don’t require a ton of items to bring along—just your brains, a few rules to follow, and plenty of giggles. If you’d like to tuck away those smartphones and kick it old-school, turn to these 30 boredom-busting road trip games.

Here are some destination ideas for your next road trip:

• How to Visit Ree's Hometown in Pawhuska
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Just one round of the map game is enough to keep the crew busy. Have the driver think of a a few specific locations on a map. Afterward, the driver gives the non-driving passengers hints to what the location is by describing other points on the map near it. The participating passengers then stick a pin into the location they think is right and the driver confirms the accuracy of the pins at the end of the drive.

Guess Who Said It

This one is simple, but oh-so fun! One person will look up quotes from famous speeches and/or lines from popular movies and songs. This person then recites the chosen quote, and the other participating members must guess who said it. For example, the one who chose the quote could say this notorious line from The Hunger Games : "I volunteer as tribute!" If the players guessed "Katniss Everdeen / Jennifer Lawrence from The Hunger Games, " they would get a point!

Who's Most Likely to...?

Each person in the car takes turns proposing different questions in the style of "who in this car is most likely to do XYZ?" The blank is filled in with a random scenario. Then, the group takes turns offering their opinion on who they think in the car would be the most likely to do the proposed action. This one is fun, and you'll really get to know what your family and friends think of you!

Guess the Time

This one works if your road trip is especially long. Take a look at your route, and jot down a list of cities and towns you're sure to pass through along the way. Then, have everyone guess the specific times they think they'll drive through each city. The player who is closest each time wins!

A game of Mad Libs is more than likely to solicit some laughter. You'll need a printable that has a wacky story written out with some blanks in between sentences that call for nouns and verbs of the crew's choice. Once those blanks are filled out, read it aloud for a hilarious personalized story!

SHOP MAD LIBS TEMPLATES

While You Were Sleeping

It’s not just a favorite movie from the ‘90s! For this game, one person will be asleep (which happens pretty frequently on road trips). Once they’re asleep for at least five minutes, the ones who are awake will start making up a story, and each person will take turns adding to that story. After the person wakes up, the group’s job is to make them believe that it’s a true story. If someone starts giggling, they’ll lose a point. But if each one tricks the sleeper into believing the story, every person gets three points.

The Singing Game

This is for the family and pals who love to bust out a tune! One person in the car will start singing a song. The next person will pick up a lyric from that song and will link it up with another song (i.e. “Should I stay or should I go…” can link to “…your own way, go your own way.”) The words can connect to one another going round and round until someone can’t think of a new lyric or sings the incorrect words.

This might be one of the most classic car games of all time. You know the rules: someone in the car will spot something by the road and say, “I spy with my little eye, something that is…” and then will give a hint, whether it’s a color or general direction. The other players will ask questions until someone discovers what it is.

20 Questions

One person will choose a noun (a person, place, or thing) and the other players will get 20 questions to find out what it is. Simple and fun!

License Plate Game

A game that’s always a favorite! The aim of this game is to spy all 50 states on license plates throughout your journey. You can keep track on a piece of paper, a phone, or you can use a board with markers for each state.

SHOP LICENSE PLATE GAMES

Scavenger Hunt

Similar to “I Spy,” a road trip scavenger hunt involves bringing along a list of items that are typically seen along the road. Your pals or little ones will spot the items, like stop signs or blue cars, and check them off the list. The first one to check them all off wins.

Two Truths and a Lie

For this, one player will make three statements, and one of them will be false. The other players will try to guess which one is the untrue one. It’s a great way to discover new things about a friend or family member!

This game is great for older kids and adults. Focusing on compound words, each person will link to the previous word and keep going around until someone can’t come up with anything. For example, notebook, bookstore, store-bought, etc.

Never Have I Ever

Each player will start a statement by saying, “Never have I ever…” Then they’ll finish the statement by saying something like, “Fallen asleep in class,” or “Flown on an airplane.” The rest of the crew has to decide if it’s a true statement or not.

Road Trip Bingo

It’s just like the bingo you play at home, except this game has a road-trip spin. Bring along some bingo cards (you can even purchase ones that are road trip-themed) and look for all the items on the board. The first one to get BINGO wins!

SHOP ROAD TRIP BINGO CARDS

The Name Game

This game is all about naming as many “names” as you can, but you’ll each only have three seconds to answer! There are lots of ways to play: focus on first letters, go with last names only, etc. Or change the category to dog breeds, books, types of flowers, or anything else you can come up with.

Story Starter

Here’s a classic game. One person will start a story but won’t finish the sentence. The next player will finish that sentence, but won’t finish it, and so on. By the end, you’ll probably have a pretty funny story going!

Alphabet Game

This is a game to play when you know there will be a lot of signs and billboards along the way. Starting with “A” and so on, players will find words on the route that start with each letter of the alphabet. You can play with the letters in order, or you can cross them off as you see them.

The Grocery Game

The first player will come up with an item they would buy at the grocery store. Without telling anyone, the rest of the car will take turns asking questions to discover what it is. Is it red? Can it be found in the produce department? It’s an apple!

Name That Tune

This one goes out to the music lovers out there! For this game, someone will start playing music on the radio or on a smartphone. In only five seconds, you have to guess what song it is. The first person to answer gets a point!

SHOP SMARTPHONE SPEAKERS

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Prepare Yourself Mentally for a Family Road Trip

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…about Laurel “Road Trip Mom”

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Dear Readers,

My family went on a lot of road trips when I was a child. I can remember playing lots of these games on the road. …That is, of course, when I wasn’t beating up on my little brother.

What you have is time. Lots of time with each other. Time to spend together without all the distractions of everyday life. Time to talk, sing, read to each other and play games. Time for making memories. It’s precious, so don’t waste it. Read more of “ Prepare Yourself Mentally ”…

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60+ Fun Road Trip Activities for Kids

Road trips are a time-honored part of the American family summer- from a few days to weeks on the road, they can make memories to last a lifetime. Wondering how to keep kids entertained on a long car ride or even a cross-country road trip? Here are more than 60 road trip activities for kids to keep them occupied and make your family road trip fun!

We’ve spent many hours road-tripping with our two girls- from long cross-country drives to two-week loops through several National Parks. We’ve learned which road trip activities keep the kids engaged for a long stretch of time, and which things make a big mess, and are not worth the clean up.

These road trip activities are traditional activities (no game consoles) geared for kids ages 3 and up, but many of these are fun for adults too!

We’ve divided these up by type of activity- group games, solo games on paper, etc. You can mix these up and modify them to fit the age of your kids. At the bottom of the post, you’ll find our top tips for keeping kids entertained.

This article may contain affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission if a reader clicks through and makes a purchase. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. All our recommendations are independent and are in no way influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative.

At the bottom of this post Download your free copy of the License Plate Game! Be sure to print out one copy for each kid before you hit the road!

Don’t miss our post on road trip essentials, we cover everything from safety checks to cleaning supplies.

Lodging: Booking.com Flight Deals: Skyscanner Rental Cars: Discover Cars Airport Transfers: Welcome Pickups

Digital SIM Cards: Airalo eSIM Travel Insurance: SafetyWing

Table of Contents

60+ Best Road Trip Activities for Kids

There are endless activities for kids on a long family road trip, including tablets and other electronics. There are lots of apps that are fun and educational, and we all need to take a movie break once in a while!

However, we do try to limit electronic time in the car (and our iPads only work with WiFi), so here are our suggestions for classic, unplugged activities for the whole family to enjoy on a long road trip.

Classic Road Trip Games

These classic road trip games involve seeing things outside the car as you are driving. There is no limit to how many people can play, you can play as a team or assign prizes to winners.

1. The Alphabet Game

There are two ways to play this, the first involves finding anything outside the car that starts with each letter of the alphabet, in order. You can work together as a team, or see who can complete the alphabet first.

For example, you could see an Airplane, a Bus, and then a Cat on a road sign… be prepared for arguments over what counts, and feel free to make your own family rules.

The second version of this game involves finding each letter printed on something that you pass, in order. It could be a street sign, billboard, store, or the side of a bus. The word must START with the letter. Feel free to make family exceptions for hard letters like X!

2. The License Plate Game

Keep track of how many license plates you can spot from different states! Work together or keep your own tally depending on the ages involved. See if you can spot them all!

Make your own family rules, like whether cars parked in rest stops count, or if they have to be moving.

(psst… there’s a free printable at the bottom of this post to play the License Plate Game!)

3. Road Trip Bingo

This is a game you’ll need to print out before you leave. Download a Road Trip Bingo card and have each kid circle things as they find them along the way! This can also be formatted as a Road Trip Scavenger Hunt and modified to different age groups if needed.

4. The Color Car Game

Each player chooses a color of car, and you agree on how many you must see to “win”. So for example, the number is 10, and child one picks “Red” and child two picks “Blue”, you then watch the road, shouting out the numbers for your color car, whoever sees 10 of their color first wins!

Need to rent a car for your road trip? Check out Discover Cars – their pricing is always clear upfront, no surprises!

5. Can You Spot…

This one takes a little creativity from the adult in the front seat. Look at what is coming up and say “Can you Spot…” The Capitol Building? The Railroad Tracks? The Mississippi River?

If you prefer, you can make it a competition to see who can spot things first. You can also come up with more obscure things like “A Car or Truck with Two Colors” and see how long they spend looking!

6. The Counting Game

Pick something to count for one minute, then everyone guesses how many you’ll see. Count those items, and see who was closest!

Favorite things to count include telephone poles, dogs in cars, and construction trucks. Feel free to modify to a longer time period or add your own rules!

7. Counting Cows

Counting Cows is a specific version of the counting game- you count cows continually until you pass a cemetery, then you “bury the cows” and start over!

This is a great game for when you are in more rural areas and there aren’t a lot of other vehicles or road signs to keep you occupied.

This one can be tricky while you are moving, but it is a current favorite in our family! The “I Spy with My Little Eye” must be something either inside the car, or that everyone can see outside the car for long enough to be fair. So, for example, “Something Blue” being “the sky” is fair, but “Something Red” which is a bus speeding by, is not.

9. Padiddle!

This classic car game used to involve hitting your sibling on the arm and yelling “PUNCH BUGGY”. These days, it means whoever spots a car with only one headlight first yells “PADIDDLE” and wins!

Word Games to Play Together in the Car

These games don’t involve anything around you or outside the car and can easily be modified to be challenging for older kids or to include the youngest travelers. These word games are classic boredom busters for long car rides.

10. Who Am I?

In the traditional version of this game, each person is trying to figure out who they are by asking yes or no questions. This can be played as a “headband” game, where they wear the answer so everyone else can see it.

In the car, this can get a bit complicated, so it’s best if each person picks a person and character, and the rest of the car guesses who they are. They can be anyone from cartoon characters to someone you all know.

11. 20 Questions

In 20 Questions, one person thinks of anything they like- a person, place, or object, and the rest of the car has only 20 questions to figure out what it is with yes or no questions.

12. Would You Rather

Would you Rather is a fun game of “this or that”- and everyone in the family can play! Print out a list of questions before you leave, or take turns making up your own!

Examples include: Would You Rather be a Dragon or a Unicorn? Would You Rather Eat Bugs or Worms?

Check out our post on bucket list family travel for a free Download of Would You Rather- World Edition!

13. The Questions Game

This is a game of questions to get to know each other better, where the answers are more nuanced and introspective. Table Topics make decks of cards with great questions or make up your own before you leave. Examples include: If you could have dinner with one famous person, who would it be and why? If you had a million dollars what is the first thing you would buy?

Buy Now: Table Topics Family Conversation Cards

For more emotionally introspective questions, check out the Best Self Little Talk Conversation Cards . These are specifically designed to get families communicating. Questions may include thinking of something you’re proud of accomplishing, or things you wish mom or dad would do more of.

Buy Now: Little Talk Conversation Cards

14. The Alphabet Game

This version of the alphabet game involves starting with “I’m going on a trip and I’m bringing…” the first person adds something that starts with A, the second person repeats item A, and adds B, and so on through the alphabet. You can make up other versions of this where you can only bring songs, animals, or foods.

15. G-H-O-S-T

GHOST is a game for older kids and adults since it involves spelling. The goal is to avoid finishing the spelling of a word. The first person says a letter, the second person adds a letter, and so on until a word is spelled.

You have to be able to prove that your letter actually makes a word. So if the first letter is “Z”, the second letter can’t be “K” unless that person can prove there is an existing word that starts with “ZK”.

Each time a word is spelled, that person gets a letter in the word GHOST. When you get all five letters, you lose!

Team Road Trip Games on Paper

These road trip games take more than one person and need to be played on paper, or on a dry-erase board.

16. Tic-Tac-Toe

Tic-Tac-Toe is a classic game my kids can plan for an hour. It teaches basic strategy (defense!!) and takes only a pencil and paper!

17. Mad Libs

We have so much fun doing mad libs together on family road trips. This is a classic game where you fill in the blanks with silly nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc. then read the complete story back. The more ridiculous the better!

There are lots of free versions online, or you can pick up this book of road trip-themed mad libs . Plus they help the kids learn the parts of speech!

Buy Now: Road Trip Mad Libs

18. Snowman

This is the modern version of the game “hangman” that many of us played as kids. One person makes up a word or phrase and draws lines to represent the missing letters.

As players make guesses, correct letters are filled in. For each incorrect guess, a part of the snowman is drawn- three round balls, two arms, a top hat, two eyes, and finally, a frown means the guessers have lost!

19. Connect the Dots to Make Squares

This game starts with a page full of dots. The players take turns drawing a single line connecting two dots. Each time a player closes a box with their line, they put their initials in the box and it counts as one point. The player with the most points wins!

Road Trip Card Games

Card games can be a great way to pass the time on a long road trip, but you’ll need to stick to games that don’t need a lot of cards laid out flat. It can be frustrating when a pile of cards goes sliding to the floor!

Uno is a great road trip car game as it can easily be played with two people and only involves a draw and a discard pile. Use a box or a tin to keep the cards from sliding around.

21. Spot It

Spot it is lots of fun for all ages. You flip over two cards, and the first to “spot” which two items appear on both cards takes them and adds them to their pile. The player with the most card at the end wins. This game is great because even pre-readers can play along!

Buy Now: Spot it Card Game

Played with a traditional deck of cards, War is a simple game of flipping two cards, with the higher card winning the pile. The player with the most cards at the end wins! More luck than strategy, kids can play this endlessly!

A family-friendly version of Bull*hit! With a traditional deck of cards, take turns placing cards face down, calling out what you are placing “Two fours”, the next person must put down fives, and so on.

If you think someone is cheating, call “Cheat!”. If you are correct, the cheater takes the whole middle pile, if you are wrong, you take the pile! The first one to get rid of all their cards wins.

Solo Games on Paper for Road Trips

These are road trip activities and games that can be done quietly by one person, on paper. Kids of the same age can help each other, but two people are not necessary. A lot of these activities can be found in booklets at the dollar store, either combined or separately.

24. Crossword Puzzles

Crossword puzzles come in a variety of skill levels and are a great way to pass the time! Kids can read out a clue and ask for help when needed. Great for building vocabulary.

25. Word Searches

Word searches are a great way to practice letters and spelling skills. These are a great road trip activity for kids as they also come in a variety of skill levels to keep everyone entertained.

Mazes are another fun road trip activity for kids! I’ve taught our kids to start from the beginning and the end and try to meet in the middle. That’s fair, right?

27. Find the Hidden Picture

These are drawings with little pictures hidden throughout the illustration. You find each hidden picture and then can color in the whole illustration.

We often get these in our Highlights magazine. both girls love searching for all the hidden items and coloring them in!

28. Connect the Dots

Connect the dots books can be simple or quite complex- draw a line that follows the numbers to create an illustration, then color it in!

Quiet Road Trip Activities on Paper

These quiet road trip activities involve drawing, coloring, or writing on paper. These will require supplies like pencils, colored pencils, crayons, and washable markers. Make sure not to leave crayons in a hot car or you will have a melty mess.

29. Coloring Books

Coloring books range from very simple pictures to complex adult versions that are great stress relievers! There are tons of options, from unicorns to favorite cartoon characters.

This Girl Power coloring book looks amazing, or you can get this one all about bugs with cool facts alongside the illustrations.

30. Sticker Books

Sticker books come in all sizes and shapes. There are reusable vinyl stickers that you can use to make endless scenes (which also stick to car windows), jumbo stickers books that provide a place for all the stickers to go, and everything in between. These Paint by Sticker books are really fun!

Buy Now: Paint by Sticker Activity Book

31. Rainbow Scratch Paper

Rainbow scratch paper has a bright rainbow or glittery base, then a layer of black on top that you scratch off with a stylus to reveal the color beneath. Kids love the surprise color, and the mess is minimal.

You can buy blank sheets for the kids to draw their own designs, a hidden pictures version where they reveal a picture beneath, or a guided activity scratchpad.

*Update, I do NOT recommend this activity for the car. We had two scratch booklets that the kids loved, but that left our black leather car seats coated in pink dust. The stuff they scratched off got caught under the car seats and is not easy to clean.

Maps are a great road trip activity for kids! Print out maps of your route or the states you will be passing through and let them follow along and color!

This is a great way to teach map reading skills, learn about cardinal directions, as well as state capitals and facts about each state. There are great free printable maps of the US here.

33. Water Wow or Imagine Ink Books

Water Wow books by Melissa and Doug use a water-filled paintbrush to color in reusable thick pages. These are great for ages 3-6, and provide a lot of entertainment for no mess.

Our kids got a Martha’s Vineyard-themed book and loved it. You will have to be prepared to refill the brush, and we found that the brush didn’t stay with the book very well, so bring a rubber band or plan another way to store it.

Buy Now: Water Wow Activity Book

Imagine Ink books use a special marker that only marks on its book, revealing the image or colors beneath. These are not reusable, but they are no mess, and there are enough pages in the book to keep kids occupied for a long time.

34. School Workbooks

Our girls will do their schooling mostly online, but they will also have paper workbooks to work on their handwriting and creative writing skills. Road trips are a great time to practice some of these skills.

For E, heading into PreK-4, we got this book to practice letters and numbers. For S, going into 2nd grade, we got this fun book of creative writing and drawing prompts to encourage her writing.

35. Blank Journals

Both girls also have journals to record what they do each day and how they are feeling about it. We will try to create some time each day specifically for journaling.

E will need our help to write things down, but she can also draw pictures. Some kids may also like to glue in ticket stubs or things they’ve saved from the day. I think journaling is a really healthy habit to build as the girls get older. There are many options out there, we chose this one and this one .

36. Activity Books 

There are so many fun activity books out there, from Road Trip Activity Books to books focused on unicorns (S would love this one ) or even space !

Most of these involve some reading and writing, they are generally geared toward ages 4-9.

Buy Now: Road Trip Activity Book

37. Junior Ranger Packets

If you are visiting National Parks, be sure to pick up Junior Ranger packets for the kids to work on! They have to complete a certain number of pages based on their age as well as a few other activities, and then can be sworn in as a Junior Ranger, complete with a wooden badge!

Some parks are offering downloads of their Junior Ranger packets online that you can print before you go, so look for them.

We loved taking advantage of these on our cross-country road trip and our American Northwest road trip . Don’t miss our full section on National Parks !

38. Postcards

Postcards are a great way to combine staying in touch with family and friends and practicing handwriting skills. Kids can work on writing their messages on the road in between stops. Grandparents and friends love getting these in the mail!

Arts & Crafts Road Trip Activities

Arts and crafts that are not messy make great road trip activities for kids. A mix of creativity and keeping hands occupied is a win for everyone during a long car ride.

39. Wikki Stix

Wikki Stix are bendable, twistable, waxy playthings that can do everything pipe cleaners can do and more. They’ll stick to most surfaces, and themselves, with no mess left behind. These are also sometimes called “wax craft sticks” or “monkey string”. These make a great road trip activity for creative kids- especially younger kids.

Buy Now: Wikki Stix

40. Play-Doh or Silly Putty

Some people prefer silly putty to Play-Doh, as it’s easier to clean (though don’t let it mix with hand sanitizer or it gets gooey). We are a Play-Doh family- we love the many bright colors and have lots of molds and stamps and cutters to make it exciting.

41. Gel Window Stickers

Gel window stickers are a fun, mess-free way to decorate (and redecorate) your car windows. You can find them in a variety of holiday or seasonal themes at the grocery store, Target, or dollar stores.

42. Window Markers

Window markers take decorating the car to a whole new level. You can draw, or write as much as you like, then wipe off with a wet wipe when you are ready to start fresh.

43. Dry Erase Board and Markers

A small dry-erase board and dry-erase markers can provide hours of entertainment on the road. Stray socks make great dry-erase markers. Play endless rounds of tic-tac-toe or snowman, or draw a family portrait!

44. Stamp Sets

A small stamp set and blank paper will keep little creative hands busy for hours! Make sure the stamp ink is washable.

45. Embroidery or Needlework

Road trips are a great time for kids to learn or practice new craft skills! Embroidery or needlework kits are great to take on the road, they tend to be very self-contained and keep hands busy while listening to music or a story. This embroidery kit is great for beginners!

Buy Now: Beginner Embroidery Kit

46. Knitting or Crocheting

Knitting and crocheting take very few supplies and can be very rewarding! Kids can start small with simple projects like a scarf, and move into more advanced skills like cable knits or a winter hat.

47. Friendship Bracelets

Pack up your embroidery thread, friendship bracelets are the perfect road trip activity for kids! Send the finished bracelets home to friends or make one for everyone in the car!

Not sure you remember all your bracelet knots? This easy kit from Klutz has you covered.

Buy Now: Easy Friendship Bracelet Kit

48. Origami

The Japanese art of paper folding, origami is a great quiet road trip activity for kids 6+.

This fun animal origami kit includes stickers to give your creations eyes and mouths, or try this neon kit with 60 pieces of paper!

Buy Now: Neon Origami Kit

Things to Read on a Road Trip

All ages can find something to read or look through on a family road trip! Be aware that some kids may experience motion sickness from looking down at a book, especially one with small type. (Psst… motion sickness bands are one of our top road trip supplies )

Smaller children can bring along picture books to look at, older children can spend time quietly reading to themselves. I Spy or Hidden Object books are a great way to pass the time.

50. Magazines

Kids love magazines! Highlights is a favorite for ages 6-7, Ranger Rick or National Geographic are great choices as well.

51. Catalogs

My kids can spend hours looking at catalogs and marking the things they want for their next birthday or Christmas. Favorites in our family include the Amazon holiday toy catalog, LEGO, and the latest American Girl catalog.

52. Read Alouds

We like to spend the morning reading out loud a bit about what we will be seeing or doing that day. This helps set the expectation for the day and means we start our activity with a little bit more background knowledge.

Plan to bring along some books to read aloud that are age-appropriate for the whole car. Reading a chapter or two of a book that you are all engaged in, is a great afternoon activity that keeps the kids engaged but calm.

Things to Listen To on Your Family Road Trip

Connect your device to the car radio and play a variety of things to keep everyone quiet and entertained! Make sure your kids have a good pair of kids headphones .

53. Playlists

Make a series of playlists for your trip- a quiet instrumental, songs the kids like, upbeat classic road trip songs, etc.

54. Audio Books

Audiobooks are a great way to pass the time! Play one chapter at a time- the kids can color or craft while they listen. Your library may have resources for audiobooks or try a subscription to Audible .

55. Podcasts

There are so many podcasts out there! Download a few to your device so you don’t have to worry about cell service. Our family favorites are Molly of Denali, and Grandpa’s Globe (by Purple Rocket). We are also going to try Stories Podcast, Earth Rangers, Live from Mount Olympus, and the Alien Adventures of Finn Caspian.

Or latest podcast favorites are: Eat Your Spanish (basic beginner Spanish phrases) and What Will She Do Next, about inspirational women from history.

56. Family Road Trip Sing-a-long

When in doubt, start a family sing-a-long! Depending on the age of your kids, this could range from some Raffi songs to 1980s classics. This might be a great time for the kids to learn the words to American Pie!

57. Road Trip Jokes

Your phone is your friend for this one- look up some jokes to keep the family laughing! Knock Knock jokes are big in our family right now, but you can tell all kinds of jokes!

Here’s a road trip joke to get you started: What did the Pacific Ocean say to the Atlantic Ocean? Answer: Nothing, it just waved.

You can also tell riddles: What travels around the world but stays in one corner? Answer: A Stamp!

58. Tell a Road Trip Story

Tell stories! They can be real or made up. Kids love hearing stories of when their parents were little or even how their parents met!

You can take turns each telling a real story, or start a longer fiction story where each person tells a line or two before passing it to the next person in the car.

“Three Words” Version: For adults or older kids, limit each person to three words before the story passes to the next person.

“Object/Problem” Version: One person names an object and problem, the storyteller then gets 2-3 minutes to make up a story around those. Then that person names the object and problem for the next storyteller.

Toys and Travel Games

A few toys and travel-sized games can help fend off boredom on long car trips.

59. Etch-a-Sketch

This classic toy comes in a travel size and is a great (quiet) road trip activity! We prefer this “magnetic drawing board” which uses a stylus, instead of the traditional “all in one line” technique.

Buy Now: Magnetic Drawing Board

60. Magnetic Play Sets

Magnetic playsets are nicely self-contained- this camping set will have kids dressing and playing for a while. You can also bring along sets of magnetic tiles for more three-dimensional play- you’ll need a sturdy tray or lap desk for these.

61. Travel Sized Games

Travel-sized, often magnetic, versions of classic board games are great for cross-country road trips. You can play Connect4 , or sink each other’s ships in Battleship . Purple Cow makes a magnetic version of checkers and 26 other travel games! The pieces are quite small and then, so these are recommended for ages 5+.

Buy Now: Magnetic Travel Games

62. Fidget Poppers or Fidget Spinners

Fidget Poppers come in all sorts of fun colorful shapes. Kids pop the bubbles back and forth on these- think of it like bubble wrap that never ends! Similar to the popular Fidget Spinners, it helps kids settle their minds by keeping their fingers busy.

This four-pack of rainbow poppers should have something for everyone. If your kids prefer the traditional spinners, this one is extra cool with LED lights!

63. Dolls or Stuffies

We let each girl choose one doll or stuffed animal to bring with them in the car. They can spend hours caring for and making conversations with their chosen travel buddy.

64. Glow Sticks or Bracelets

Driving at night? Glow sticks or bracelets make a fun surprise! You can usually pick up a pack at dollar stores. But don’t expect the kids to go to sleep until these wear out!

65. Quiet Time

Quiet time in our house is leftover from “nap time” when the kids were younger. We find that a bit of quiet time away from each other (or in the case of a small car, simply not touching or interacting with each other) means we all can reset mentally, and come back together in a more positive way.

Adults need this too! I need 30 minutes of not hearing “mamma, mamma” coming from the back seat! We like to announce “Quiet Time” just after lunch, but figure out what works best for your family.

Top Tips for Keeping Kids Entertained on a Long Family Road Trip

Worried about keeping the kids occupied, and entertained? We understand! Bored kids become whining, “poking their sibling” monsters, so you need a game plan! A good road trip plan includes a couple of key elements:

Create Variety

No one wants to do the same thing over and over for hours (or days!) so you’ll need a plan to mix it up. Vary solo activities with team games, switching between quiet activities and louder more boisterous ones to keep the kids entertained for hours.

Especially for younger kids with shorter attention spans, you may need to pull out new toys or activities at intervals. Don’t pull out all your best games and songs during the first few hours!

The Dollar Store and the $1 bin at Target are great for creating a bag of small surprises before you leave. Mini coloring packs, new crayons, window stickers, can all be part of this. Fun snacks count too! Bonus points for wrapping items individually- the toddler group especially loves to unwrap.

Set Expectations

Make sure you set expectations for the trip. The amount of entertainment I can provide (and surprises I can pull out) for a nine-hour road trip is very different than what I can maintain for a 60+ Day epic cross-country road trip . Make sure the kids understand how long they’ll be in the car overall, and what is happening that day.

We like to focus on the next stop- for example, “2 hours until our fun lunch stop with a carousel”, or “We won’t get to the hotel until after it’s dark”. These types of statements really help minimize the inevitable “Are We There Yet?” questions!

Maps are great for this- show them where you are going, and where you’ll be at the end of the day. Print out a map of the states you’ll be driving through for them to color.

Don’t Forget Snacks!

Snacks help keep everyone’s spirits up and break up the boredom. Plan for lots of snacks! Our full post includes over 40 of the best snacks fo road trips and includes ideas for easy breakfasts and lunches as well.

Plan to Take Breaks

Food breaks, bathroom breaks, and just “stretch your legs” breaks are important for everyone. Don’t forget to stop and get some exercise. It breaks up the mood in the car and you can start fresh when you head out again.

Need more tips about traveling with kids on a road trip? We compiled our best tips for travel with kids .

There You Have It: Best Road Trip Activities for Kids

Over 60 road trip activities for kids to keep them happy and entertained during a long family road trip. We’ve covered everything from classic road trip games to arts and crafts, to small toy sets. Did we miss something? We always love hearing your suggestions.

Cynthia Matthews von Berg is the founder of Sharing the Wander. She is a passionate traveler, mom, and travel coach specializing in long-term travel and family travel. She and her family embarked on a Family Gap Year in 2021, and haven't looked back.

Download Now : Our FREE 30 Minute Weeknight Dinner

Car Games For Road Trips: 25+ No-Prep Screen-Free Activities

Are you ready to REALLY enjoy a family road trip without listing to kids whining about being bored? Well, with these car games for road trips , you can! Try these must-play road trip car games to keep the kids entertained so the entire family can enjoy hitting the road.

It’s part of the American dream, right? Hitting the road on a family road trip is all about the adventure and making memories together.

Whether the entire family piles into an RV or the car, you get to enjoy the excitement of seeing different parts of the country together up close and personal.

These are the kinds of trips that kids talk about for years.

But one major downside for parents on those trips can be bored kids.

Use Car Games For Road Trips To Avoid Boredom

Have you ever tried getting out on the road hoping for all those laughs and warm fuzzy feelings that it seems like families have on road trips – only to be deeply disappointed when the kids get bored after 15 minutes?

Because once that happens you’ll be subjected to a constant stream of questions and whining. “When will we get there? Are we there yet? I’m hungry! I’m bored!” etc

Once that happens, no fun will be had by anyone in that car!

But I’ve discovered a way to prevent that!

We have taken several long road trips now, so we have some experience in keeping kids happy, and entertained, and building those happy memories.

It’s all about playing car games for road trips. 😁

The right road trip car games are the key to keeping everyone smiling and laughing as the miles whiz by! What kind of games? Well, good ol’ fashioned games that don’t require a screen, of course!

Are you ready?

Best Road Trip Games For The Entire Family

Whether you’re hitting the road to go see grandma or just out exploring the country, prepare yourself with this list of car games for road trips. Then, when anyone gets bored, you have some games “up your sleeve.”

Need other activity ideas so the kids can keep themselves entertained and you can enjoy the open road? Don’t forget to grab this Road Trip Activity Set for more ideas!

1. Twenty Questions

This was one of the main games we played when I was a kid, and we played it A LOT because my parents LOVED road trips!

My husband and I play it with our kids – it gives the kids a GREAT outlet for asking a bazillion questions at the appropriate time!

How To Play This Road Trip Car Game:

One person is “it” and thinks of a noun. Then other players take turns asking yes-or-no questions. The questions aren’t random – they should target the information needed to guess what the item is that the chosen person is thinking of.

Twenty Questions Car Games For Road Trips Tips:

• After a player asks a question and receives an answer, they have an opportunity to take a guess at what the mystery item is. Get it right? They win! Guess wrong? It’s the next player’s turn.
• If no one has guessed the mystery item after 10 questions , the “it” person can give the guessers a clue about the item (optional). We didn’t do this at first, but then we got tired of the kids picking totally obscure items that no one could guess!
• If no one guesses the mystery item after 20 questions, they lose.

2. The License Plate Game

Here’s an old reliable road trip game! I definitely played this when I was a kid on road trips with my family. 

Note : most of the time your kids probably won’t find all the states. However, if you hit a popular national park like Yosemite or The Grand Canyon, you can probably find all the states plus some cool bonuses (think: Canadian provinces, Mexico, or Native American Nations)!

How To Play This Road Trip Car Game

Have the kids mark down all the different states from which they see license plates on your travels.

They can just write a list (and then practice alphabetizing them) or grab my Road Trip Activity Packet and color in each state they spot a license plate for on the map.

3. Would You Rather?

My son is the king of this game. He loves to play it even when we aren’t on a road trip, so it’s a perfect fit for our annual 13-hour road trip drives!

The questions become pretty outlandish, so you’re pretty much guaranteed a few laughs with this game!

Each person takes a turn asking far-fetched questions with two different options to the family. Examples might include, “would you rather be able to fly or be able to swim without needing to come up for air?” or “would you rather bike for 50 miles or run 20 miles?”

4. Name That Tune

Pull this one out for music lovers! I love games that can be adapted for different ages and played in different ways so that it never gets boring – and this game fits the bill.

How To Play This Road Trip car Game

Players take turns singing song lyrics or humming a tune. The other players try to guess the name of the song. Another option is to guess the singer. If anyone guesses both the song and singer, they get bonus points!

Adapting this game for kids of different ages is simple. When you play with younger kids, use familiar kid songs. When playing with older kids, go for popular radio songs.

5. Alphabet Memory Game 

Here’s a way to practice those letter skills – with an added bonus. This A-Z alphabet game challenges players’ memories in addition to their alphabet skills!

Decide who plays in what order then follow this method. The first player starts with “A is for…” and completes the statement. The second player repeats the process with the next letter, saying “B is for” but must repeat what the player says for “A” first. So they should say, “A is for…B is for…”

Repeat this same process through the complete alphabet. It will get harder as you get further through the alphabet! If anyone gets all of the items for all the letters right by the time you get to “Z,” they win!

NOTE : When playing with young kids, keep in mind that both their alphabet skills and memory skills may not be up to the task of doing the entire alphabet.

A good way to play with younger kids is to choose a letter to stop. Depending on how old your kids are, they may be able to do 4 or 5 letters, or they may be able to get to “L” or “M”.

6. The Alphabet Race

How about turning sibling rivalry into a friendly competition with a positive purpose? Grab a piece of paper and work on letter and spelling skills.

One person looks at the left side of the road while someone else looks at the right side of the road. Each player looks at trucks, signs, license plates, anything to find the letters of the alphabet.

Whoever finds every letter of the alphabet is the winner! There’s just one small catch: the letters have to be found in alphabetical order.

7. Story Telling

Here’s a game to boost creativity! You can do this activity in a couple of different ways, which reduces the fatigue factor and makes the time pass faster.

Choose a storyteller. The chosen storyteller comes up with a story on the spot. The type of story doesn’t matter – it can be any completely fictional story.

This activity can be highly entertaining and even funny – and it works on building storytelling skills at the same time. Help your kids build good storytelling skills by asking for any missing elements you would expect in a good story: beginning, problem, how to solve the problem/climax, and resolution.

This activity will likely be short and sweet with younger kids, while older children will be more likely to weave creative tales that will hold your attention.

Grab my Road Trip Activity Packet and continue the fun as you travel miles down the road without one single complaint!

8. Mad Libs-Style Story Telling

If you’ve been through a few rounds of storytelling and want to change things up, add a twist by turning the stories into Mad Libs stories.

Instead of having one person tell a story from beginning to end, this will be more round-robin style.

One person begins the story by saying “Once upon a time…” and introduces the main character. Each person takes a turn adding the next sentence of the story.

Keep going through the family until the story naturally comes to an end. If you have a family member who can drag things out until it’s just not enjoyable anymore, create an ending point. This might be a set number of sentences each person can add or a time limit.

9. Road Trip Bingo

I’ve never been around kids playing Bingo who were bored! Doubt me? Just download and watch kids playing my:

• Halloween Bingo
• Christmas Bingo
• Valentine’s Day Bingo

There’s no doubt bout it – Bingo is tons of fun and will keep kids occupied for quite a while as you head down the road. But to play it, you’ll need these free Bingo boards , which are part of my comprehensive Road Trip Activity Packet .

Give a Bingo card to each player. Then every player watches for items on the card as you drive. As players spot items, they mark out the corresponding picture on the cards.

The first player to find all the items in a row wins! The row can be horizontal, vertical, or diagonal wins!

Turn those whines into gales of laughter with this free car-friendly Road Trip Bingo game !

10. Cloud Shapes

I love this game for kids who get motion sickness because they won’t get sick when looking at the clouds. It’s also GREAT for encouraging kids to use their imaginations as they try to find common shapes in clouds. Prepare yourself for lots of laughs as everyone tries to see the same shapes!

Each player looks at the clouds in the sky from their own window, trying to find and identify everyday shapes like objects or animals.

Once a player finds a shape, point it out to the other players and give them a chance to see if they can identify the same object that you see in the clouds.

11. I Spy Car Games For Road Trips

This is one of those games that works well with kids of a variety of ages. If your family has a mix of kids that can and can’t read, try playing I Spy!

With older kids, you can spot things inside and outside the car. However, with younger kids, you may want to choose items that are inside the car and easier for kids in car seats to see.

Choose an “it” person who spots the item. That person picks an item and says “I spy with my little eye…” and fills in the end of the sentence. Examples could be “I spy with my little eye something blue” or “I spy with my little eye something small and gray.”

12. What Color Is It?

Car games for road trips don’t get simpler than this! Let an adult list a series of things that are the same color until the kids can guess what the color is. The first kiddo to guess correctly wins that round!

For example, you might say “grass, leaves, moss, Jake’s room” and the kids guess “Green!”

13. Basic ABC Categories

Here’s a great game that can break up other games. We also tend to play it when waiting in lines!

This car game for road trips starts by choosing a category (desserts, animals, famous people). Then you go through the family with each family member naming something in that category that starts with the next letter in order.

Keep going until you reach the end of the alphabet or someone gets stumped.

For the category “desserts:”

A pple pie B lueberry cobbler C réme brulé D ark chocolate silk pie

14. Category ABCs (First Last Version)

Here’s a variation we like to play on Category ABCs to change things up.

As with the “normal” version, someone chooses a category. In this version, there’s no need to go in alphabetical order. Instead, they can start with any letter they want.

Strategy comes into play when the next person has their turn because they name something in the same category. The catch? The item every subsequent item named must start with the last letter of the previous word.

For example, if the category is “games,” the first player might say “catch.” Then next person to go must name a game that begins with the last letter in “catch”, which would be “h.” In this example, the next player might choose to say “hide and seek.” And so on from there until someone gets stuck.

15. In My Suitcase

Here’s a fun memory car game for road trips that makes great memories as a family! It follows a similar A – Z process that the ABC Categories game does.

The first person starts by saying, “I’m going on a vacation, and I packed…” Then they finish the sentence with an item that starts with the letter “A.”

The next person takes their turn and first repeats what the previous player is bringing. They then add an item that starts with the letter “B.”

Follow the format as you work your way from A to Z. The round is over once someone forgets an item!

“I’m going on vacation, and I packed an avocado.” “I’m going on vacation, and I packed an avocado and a ball.” “I’m going on vacation, and I packed an avocado, a ball, and a cracker.”

16. Car Trip Scavenger Hunt

Grab my Road Trip Activity Packet and use the printable scavenger hunt card included inside!

17. Name The Most

Ok, this car game for road trips is a bit like ABC Categories. But this road trip car game is for the competitive family (although you can play it like ABC Categories for a less competitive version)!

Someone names a category. The other players bet on how many items in the category they can name. Once a player thinks they can’t do better than the other, they issue a challenge to “Name them!”

The opponent now has their turn. I suggest setting a time limit of no more than 10 seconds, but that’s optional. If the second player is successful, they receive 1 point for each response they gave. If they fail to reach their goal, nobody receives any points!

Here are a few great places to start:

• US Presidents
• European countries
• All the books in a book series
• Characters from a certain movie or show (like Star Wars or Disney)
• Names of constellations

18. What am I Counting?

I’ve only played this guessing game a couple of times, but it’s quickly becoming a family favorite!

One person starts verbally counting something as they spot it. The catch is that they don’t tell anyone what they are counting.

The other players guess what the first person is counting, but there’s a strategy to it. Are they counting signs that whiz by on the highway? Is the counting quick or spread out?

19. 20 Math Questions

Here’s a numbers-based 20 Questions car game for road trips.

Let an adult think of a number between 1 and 100. Then the kids ask yes-or-no questions that are math-related.

Examples could include “Is your number even? Is it greater than 25?” and so on. The goal is to have the answers to the questions help you figure out the number.

It’s ok to keep track with pen and paper – but calculators are against the rules!

20. Six Degrees – Movie Edition

It’s the idea of Six Degrees of Separation – that everything is connected with six degrees of each other. Warning: this game can go on for a while!

Have one player name an actor/actress. The next player names a movie that the actor appeared in. Then the fun begins… the next person names someone  else  in the same movie that hasn’t already been named.

And the players continue to follow the process as they go back and forth until someone can’t answer.

Julia Roberts –> Wonder –> Owen Wilson –> Night At The Museum –> Ben Stiller…etc.

21. Sing-Along String-Along

Here’s a fun road trip car game for music lovers (that’s us!)!

To begin, one person SINGS a line of a song (just ONE line), then the next person picks up where the first left off and connects that song with a lyric from another song using the final word from the line before.

Play stops when someone messes up or gets stuck.

“Show me how big your brave is…” “Is there life out there…” “There once was a ship that put to sea…”

22. (Un)fortunate Storytelling

Get ready for some laughs as you enjoy a new original wacky story!

One person begins by telling a simple opening sentence. The next person continues the story by saying something fortunate that happened, “Fortunately…”

Then Person 3 jumps in to add an  unfortunate  event to the situation. Continue person-to-person, adding alternating fortunate and unfortunate situations.

I learned how to wakeboard! Fortunately, we had a fast boat. Unfortunately, the boat started going too fast. Fortunately, the boat pulled me out of the water easily so I could wakeboard. Unfortunately, it was going so fast that I started flying through the air instead of riding on top of the water. Fortunately….

23. Miles of Smiles

Inspired by a road trip games book with the same name,  Miles of Smiles , this game is easy breezy to play.

Everyone in the car smiles his or her biggest grin at passing drivers. Waving is ok, but silly faces are not.

Keep count of how many people smile back – maybe make a goal of getting to 20 people before the game ends or something similar.

24. Get ‘Em To Honk

This game is similar to Miles of Smiles, but you’re trying to get drivers of 18-wheelers to sound their horns.

When you pass an 18-wheeler, get in the window of your car and hold up your hand like you’re pulling down a handle from the roof. Pull it down a couple of times and see if the driver pulls down their horn to sound it off!

25. A-Z License Plate Game

The license plate game is always a fun one, but you can try some variations to KEEP it fun.

Try working as a team or as teams opposing one another to search for the letters A-Z  in order on license plates. Once you find that, then try finding numbers 0-9 in order . 

This idea is online because, let’s face it, Mama needs a break from time to time (and at least it’s an educational, thinking game)! Sudoku is a logic-based number puzzle game that typically consists of a 9×9 grid divided into nine 3×3 sub-grids.

While often that seems like a math problem, Sudoku is actually an entertaining puzzle. The objective of the game is to fill in the grid with numbers from 1 to 9, ensuring that each row, column, and sub-grid contains all the numbers from 1 to 9 without any repetitions.

The game typically starts with some numbers already filled in as clues, and the player must use logical deduction to fill in the remaining numbers. Sudoku is a popular game that can be played on paper or online, and it is known for its ability to exercise the mind and improve logical thinking skills.

How To Get The Most Out Of Car Games For Road Trips

My husband and I like taking road trips, and we’ve taken several with our kids. Through the school of hard knocks, we’ve learned a few helpful tips:

• Have lots of car games for road trips ready to go. The last thing you want to do is try to come up with an idea when the kids are squabbling with each other.
• Plan for each game to take about 30 minutes. We tend to get tired of any game after that long.
• We find it helpful to alternate between playing an individual road tip car game, a family car game, and take a break for a podcast or a quick snack.

More Screen-Free Road Trip Games And Fun

Phones and video games are a huge draw for kids. -and will keep them quiet. But if you’re seeking activities that will keep them QUIET AND OFF DEVICES, try these ideas!

• The 28 Best Podcasts For Kids That Parents Will Love Too
• 17 Laugh-Out-Loud Mom Podcast Options That Every Mom Needs
• 20 Best Family Games To Play On A Road Trip

I hope this list of ideas for fun car game for road trips helps your family enjoy hitting the road on an adventure! The key to success with family road trips is to bring along some variety. My Road Trip Activity Packet is an EASY way to help you get ready.

Happy Travels!

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Nice and helpful guide that families can follow through for their next road trips. Thanks for it.

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【Road Trip】Discovering the United States: Your Ultimate Self-Driving Tour Itinerary

1. Regional Overview

Preparation, app recommendations, essential items, driving tips, 1) classic route, 2) off-the-beaten-path route, food recommendations.

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Region Description

The United States, a bustling center of the world and a symbol of modern civilization, boasts a highly developed economy, technology, and culture. With its vast territory, the U.S. encompasses a variety of stunning landscapes, making it a perfect destination for a road trip. Here, a self-drive trip offers a unique experience of freedom and individuality. From the bustling, illuminated cities to the vast, uninhabited deserts, and from sunny beaches to majestic canyons, experiencing America's natural beauty and cultural charm is another way to realize the "American Dream" on your self-driving tour.

Geographical Location

The United States is located in the central part of North America in the Western Hemisphere, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the Pacific Ocean to the west, Canada to the north, and Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico to the south. It spans almost the entire North American continent, including Alaska near the Arctic and Hawaii in the Pacific equatorial region. It ranks fourth in the world in terms of area, following Russia, Canada, and China. The U.S. consists of 50 states and one district (District of Columbia), with Washington, D.C. as the capital. Planning a road trip through these diverse states is an exciting adventure.

Topographical Features

The U.S. has a complex terrain, generally characterized by "high on the sides and low in the middle." The West Coast is dominated by the towering Rocky Mountains, dividing the mainland from south to north. The East Coast features coastal plains, broad in the south and narrow in the north, with rolling foothills extending to the Appalachian mountains. West of the Appalachian Mountains lies the Central Plains, relatively flat, with the terrain rising west of the Mississippi River, leading to the expansive, featureless Great Plains in the central U.S. A road trip planner can help you map out these scenic routes effectively.

Scenic Overview

The vast U.S. landscape nurtures diverse natural wonders. From the warm beaches of the state of Florida to the icy regions of Alaska, and from the endless prairies of the Midwest to the towering Rocky Mountains, the U.S. is home to globally renowned sites like The Grand Canyon, one of the seven natural wonders of the world, and Yellowstone National Park, known as a unique natural wonderland. Additionally, the U.S. offers captivating cultural landmarks, including the Statue of Liberty, Universal Studios Hollywood, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the Empire State Building. Each destination is a great stop for your self-drive tours USA.

Cultural Customs

The U.S. is a highly inclusive immigrant nation, welcoming people of different colors, races, beliefs, and genders from around the world. This cultural diversity creates a vibrant melting pot. However, American customs differ significantly from those in China. During a self-drive trip, it's important to adapt to local customs. For example, most Americans are Christians and avoid the number "13" and "Friday." Tipping is customary in restaurants. Additionally, be cautious with political and religious topics, especially regarding racial issues.

2. Pre-Trip Tips

Car Rental Documents

- Main driver's original driver's license (held for at least one year; check age restrictions with the rental company).

- Original driver's license + notarized translation.

- Original driver's license + rental company translation.

- Original driver's license + translated copy.

- Original passport (must match the driver's license issuing country/region).

- International credit card in the driver's name (Mastercard/Visa, with a credit limit of at least $1,000; some companies accept debit cards but not for one-way rentals).

- Printed rental confirmation (provided by the booking platform).

- Auxiliary translation documents.

- Google Maps: A commonly used navigation app in the U.S., allowing route planning and real-time views.

- Roadtrippers: Ideal for long road trips, helping plan stops along the way.

- WiFi Map: Provides access to free WiFi, even without a phone signal.

- USA Rest Stops: Offers information on nearby rest areas and service plazas.

- GasBuddy: Provides real-time gas prices at over 150,000 stations nationwide.

- YELP: The largest review site in the U.S., useful for finding restaurants and accommodations.

- Credit Card: Ensure the main driver's international credit card (VISA or MASTER) has sufficient credit.

- Car Phone Mount: Necessary for hands-free phone use while driving.

- Child Seat: Required by U.S. law for children, available for reservation with the rental car.

Traffic Rules

- Drive on the right: The U.S. follows the drive on the right. All passengers must wear seat belts. Children must use appropriate car seats and those under 12 cannot sit in the front.

- Right of Way: Yield at "YIELD" signs and stop for at least 3 seconds at "STOP" signs.

- Overtaking: Use the left lane for overtaking. Do not overtake in the following situations:

- On the solid side of a double yellow line.

- When a school bus is ahead.

- When the vehicle in front slows or stops at a crosswalk.

- Traffic Lights: Right turns on red are allowed unless a "No turn on red" sign is present. Slow down at yellow lights to avoid rear-end collisions. In California, a flashing yellow arrow means the direction will soon be prohibited.

Common Signs

- Toll Roads: Most U.S. highways are free, with toll roads mainly in the east. Payment is primarily electronic, with some accepting cash or credit cards.

Fueling and Parking

- Gas prices vary by state. Both full-service and self-service stations are available, accepting cash and credit cards. For self-service, pump the gas, then pay inside.

- Parking is generally free outside major city centers. Display parking tickets on the dashboard. Avoid parking in disabled spots or near fire hydrants to avoid fines.

In conclusion, planning a self-driving tour in the USA offers endless possibilities. Each road trip provides an opportunity to explore diverse landscapes and cultures. Whether you're traveling through national parks or bustling cities, your adventure will be unforgettable. Don't forget to utilize a good road trip planner to enhance your journey!

3. Self-Drive Routes

California State Route 1

California’s Highway One, also known as the Pacific Coast Highway, connects San Francisco to Los Angeles, winding along the stunning western coastline. Its dreamlike coastal scenery makes it a "golden route" for self-drive enthusiasts planning a memorable road trip. Embark on a ten-day journey with this guide for an unforgettable self-driving tour!

San Francisco → Monterrey → Carmel → BigSur → Solvang → Santa Barbara → Malibu → Los Angeles

DAY 1: Pick up a car in San Francisco — Fisherman's Wharf — Palace of Fine Arts — Lombard Street — Golden Gate Bridge

DAY 2: Union Square — San Francisco City Hall — Twin Peaks

DAY 3: San Francisco — Monterey Bay — Old Fisherman's Wharf

DAY 4: Monterey Bay Aquarium — 17-Mile Drive — Carmel

DAY 5: Explore Carmel

DAY 6: Carmel — Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park — Solvang

DAY 7: Solvang — Santa Barbara

DAY 8: Santa Barbara County Courthouse — Santa Barbara Waterfront — Malibu Beach —Los Angeles

DAY 9: Beverly Hills — Getty Center — Santa Monica Beach

DAY 10: Universal Studios Hollywood — Griffith Observatory — Hollywood Walk of Fame

Total Distance: Approximately 840 miles

Recommended Duration: About 10 days

Suitable For: General public, cultural enthusiasts

Must-See Attractions

- Golden Gate Bridge:

A majestic symbol of San Francisco, spanning the bay like a sleeping dragon.

- Old Fisherman's Wharf:

California's first wharf, offering sea views, seafood, and a rich history.

- 17-Mile Drive:

A photographer's paradise with stunning coastal views.

A picturesque town with historic cottages, offering a poetic escape.

A Danish-style village with unique architecture and a fairy-tale atmosphere.

- Malibu Beach:

A beautiful beach near Hollywood, perfect for sunbathing and surfing.

- Universal Studios Hollywood:

A theme park and movie studio offering thrilling experiences.

West Coast Scenic Tour

The U.S. West Coast is a favorite among travelers. A self-drive trip is the best way to explore its epic landscapes and unique culture. Let's hit the road and enjoy the freedom of the West Coast breeze on your self-drive tours USA!

Los Angeles → Palm Springs → Arizona → Las Vegas → San Francisco → Santa Barbara →Los Angeles

DAY 1-2: Pick up a car in Los Angeles — Universal Studios Hollywood — Griffith Observatory — Hollywood Walk of Fame

DAY 3: Los Angeles — Desert Hills Premium Outlets — Grand Canyon National Park

DAY 4: Hermit Road — Desert View Drive

DAY 5: Grand Canyon — Antelope Canyon — Horseshoe Bend

DAY 6: Las Vegas Strip — Bellagio Fountains

DAY 7-8: San Francisco — Chinatown — Union Square — San Francisco City Hall — Twin Peaks

DAY 9-10: Fisherman'sWharf — Palace of Fine Arts — Lombard Street — Golden Gate Bridge

DAY 11: San Francisco — Santa Barbara

DAY 12: Santa Barbara — Disneyland Park

Total Distance: Approximately 1,900 kilometers

Recommended Duration: About 12 days

Suitable For: General public, nature and culture enthusiasts

- Griffith Observatory:

Offers panoramic views of Los Angeles and the universe.

- Grand Canyon National Park:

Features breathtaking cliffs and adventurous activities.

- Horseshoe Bend:

A magical view of the Colorado River encircling a red rock formation.

- Lombard Street:

Known for its winding path and vibrant flowers, challenging drivers' skills.

- Santa Barbara:

Offers sailing views, sea lions, and a relaxing atmosphere.

National Park Nature Tour

If you're tired of modern cities like New York and Los Angeles, consider a self-drive trip to America's national parks. These parks are treasures of natural, cultural, and historical heritage, offering a window into America's stunning landscapes. This route is perfect for those looking to plan a road trip that connects with nature and explore the best of self-drive tours USA.

Las Vegas → Arizona → State of Utah → State of Wyoming → Yellowstone National Park

DAY 1: Pick up a car in Las Vegas — Hoover Dam

DAY 2: Grand Canyon National Park

DAY 3: Antelope Canyon — Monument Valley

DAY 4: Goosenecks State Park

DAY 5: Canyonlands National Park

DAY 6: Arches National Park

DAY 7: Grand Teton National Park

DAY 8-10: Yellowstone National Park

Total Distance: Approximately 1,866 kilometers

Suitable For: Nature enthusiasts

- Antelope Canyon:

A world-famous slot canyon with mesmerizing light and shadow.

- Canyonlands National Park:

Known for its eroded sandstone towers and canyons.

- Arches National Park:

Home to thousands of natural sandstone arches, resembling a fantasy world.

- Yellowstone National Park:

Features diverse landscapes, including geothermal wonders like the Grand Prismatic Spring.

- SanFrancisco: Clam chowder, red wine oyster mushrooms

- CityofLosAngeles: Fried chicken waffles, burgers + beer

- New York: Buffalo wings, bagels, pastrami on rye, bacon egg cheese sandwich

- Boston: Clam chowder, Boston lobster, oysters, Boston cream pie, cod

- Las Vegas: Shrimp platter, buffet, cocktail shrimp

- Washington: Roast beef sandwich, roast chicken leg, cedar-smoked salmon

- Hawaii: Poke, fish salad, luau, hotcakes, ginger ale

- New Orleans: Shrimp gumbo, corn salad, red beans and rice

- Chicago: Jibarito sandwich, Chicago-style bacon, Chicago-style pizza

- Seattle: Seafood chowder, crab feast

- Orlando: Grilled sweet corn, Apalachicola oysters, backyard burger

This self-driving tour of the U.S. offers countless adventures, whether you’re along the stunning coastline or exploring the breathtaking national parks. Don't forget to use a road trip planner to optimize your routes and make the most of your journey with self-drive tours USA!

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