Planning to spend a few hours in the car? These fun (and completely free!) road trip games will keep your kids entertained on long drives. If you’re considering to “sell my car” after a trip, make sure it’s a memorable one with these engaging activities.
Road trips with children can often be challenging, filled with endless repetitions of “Are we there yet?” But they don’t have to be! The next time you’re venturing out on the open road, try these 21 fun car games to keep your young crew entertained.
When they’re distracted by these car games, your kids will (hopefully) behave in the backseat, making the drive more enjoyable for the adults, too. You’ll feel less stressed when you finally reach your destination, whether it’s Grandma’s house, Legoland, or anything in between.
And an added bonus? Engaging car activities give kids the cognitive, social, and emotional benefits of play. A real win-win.
1. The License Plate Game
Make a group effort to spot license plates from all 50 states. Whoever spots and calls out a state first gets a point. Bonus points for the first person to spy a Canadian plate! The family member with the most points at the end of the drive wins.
2. Trivia Questions
Before the car ride, prepare a list of trivia questions about your kids’ specific interests, whether it’s Disney characters or American history. Ask them throughout the drive to get their brains pumping.
3. Story Time
Get creative inventing a family fairy tale! The first person starts with “Once upon a time…” and offers a complete sentence, then the second person adds to the story with their sentence. Take turns adding sentences until the story reaches a conclusion. Consider recording the story on your phone and having someone transcribe it afterward, so you’ll never forget it.
4. Questions
There aren’t many distractions in the car, so it’s the perfect opportunity to bond with your children. Get them talking by asking some fun “get-to-know-you” questions: What is the most adventurous thing you’ve ever eaten? What do you like daydreaming about? What are three things you want to do this summer?
5. The Alphabet Game
One person chooses the right-hand side of the road, and the other gets the left. Then, each looks for letters of the alphabet that appear on signs or license plates on their side. The object of the car game is to point out all the letters of the alphabet in order, from A to Z. The first person to spot the entire alphabet wins!
6. The Animal Name Game
To start this fun car game, one person names an animal. The next person then has to name another animal (no repeating!) that begins with the last letter of the previous animal named (for example, “elephant” ends with “t,” so the next person might say “tiger,” after which the next person might say “raccoon,” and so on). The game can go on forever, and kids like that no one wins or loses.
7. Twenty Questions
One person secretly thinks of a person, place, or thing. The other players then take turns asking yes-or-no questions, such as “Can it fly?” or “Does it grow in the ground?” A round ends either when a player uses one of their questions to correctly guess the answer, or when all of the players have asked 20 questions and the answer is revealed. Each player gets at least one turn being “it.”
8. Telephone
Designate a storyteller. The storyteller whispers a story to someone else in the car. That person whispers the same story—getting as close as they can to recreating it word-for-word—to a third person, and so on. The last person to hear the story repeats it out loud so everyone can hear. The resulting garbled message usually inspires a good laugh.
9. The Theme Song Game
One person hums the tune to a favorite TV show, and everyone else tries to name the show as fast as possible. Then, the first person to guess correctly hums the next song and starts the car game again.
10. Name That Song
Someone in the car can sing a single line of a song. The other people can guess the singer or title—bonus points if they get both! This car game works best for older children and teens.
11. Scavenger Hunt
You’ll need some advanced planning for this one. Before the trip, make a list of items you’re likely to see on the road—a blue billboard, cows, a motorcycle, etc. Your kids can be on the lookout for these items, keeping track of what they see. If they find everything on your list, they win a prize.
12. Memory Test
Looking for challenging games to play in the car? Try this one! The first person says, “A is for __,” filling in the blank with any word beginning with the letter “A,” such as “apple.” The second person comes up with a word for the letter B, such as “book,” but must also repeat the “A” word: “A is for apple, B is for book.” Continue through the alphabet, each person taking several turns and reciting more letters and words. By the time you reach the letter “Z,” that player will have to recite the whole alphabet and each letter’s corresponding word.
13. Secret Place Race
One person looks at a road map and finds a small town, village, lake, or river. That person announces the name of the place they have chosen. A second player has 60 seconds to look at the map and try to find the secret place.
14. Restaurant Race
Each player chooses a fast-food restaurant, such as Burger King, Taco Bell, or McDonald’s. Players earn points by spotting their restaurant off the road, on a billboard, on exit markers, on food and fuel signs, or by hearing it mentioned on the radio. Impose a time limit—say, 20 minutes—then add up the points.
15. Healthy Competition
To offset the sedentary nature of the journey, have kids compete in athletic challenges at rest stops. See who can do the most sprints, push-ups, or jumping jacks in a minute, then stage a 20-yard dash.
16. Would You Rather?
Start a round of “Would You Rather?” with everyone getting a turn to ask far-fetched questions to the family. For example, “Would you rather eat chocolate or pizza for an entire day?” or “Would you rather have the ability to fly or become invisible?” Your family’s answers may surprise you!
17. Categories
Choose a broad category, such as cities, movie titles, or dinner foods. Then, players take turns naming items within the chosen category in alphabetical order. For example, if you chose cities, you could say Athens, Boise, Charleston, Detroit, and Edinburgh. If a player doesn’t state their answer within 10 seconds—or doesn’t travel down the alphabet correctly—they’re out. The last player standing wins.
18. Word Association
The first player states a random word aloud. The next player quickly says another word associated with the first one. These steps repeat, cycling through all of the players. (Here’s an example: mustard, hot dog, barbecue, Fourth of July, fireworks…). The game ends if someone takes too long to answer, provides an answer without a clear association, or repeats a word.
19. Watch Your Mouth!
Choose words or phrases that are “off-limits” in the car—for example, the first names of family members or “Are we there yet?” If someone says one of the off-limits words, they get a point. Whoever has the fewest points at the end of the drive wins the car game!
20. Counting Cows
Whenever you pass a cow, yell out “cow!” or “moo!” The first person to spot the cow and say the word gets a point (no repeats!). Whoever racks up the most points is declared the winner.
21. Road Trip Riffing
The first player starts by singing a few lines of a song. Then, another person jumps in to connect the lyrics with another song (the last lyrics Player One sings should be the first lyrics Player Two sings). Here’s an example: “Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you….” “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy…” “Happy birthday to you!”
By keeping these car games in your back pocket, you can make long drives more enjoyable for everyone. And if you ever need to “sell my car,” you’ll have great memories to take with you!
