With the summer approaching and the kids getting out of school for break, there’s an increased chance you and your loved ones will be spending an extended period of time in the car. Whether it’s a full-blown road trip or just a couple hours longer than usual, things can get pretty boring and tempers can start to flare. In our modern world filled with smartphones, tablets and DVD players built into cars, there are lots of options for keeping the kids (and yourself) entertained during a long drive, but there’s something classic about road trip games that a digital device can’t recreate. Playing a game together in the car can be a nice change of pace and a great opportunity to get in some screen-free bonding time. Here are some games you can play with your family or with friends on a longer-than-usual car ride.
I Spy – This is possibly the most common and well-known of all road trip games. I Spy is fun for kids and adults. If you’ve never played, one person spies something and gives the other players a clue. For example, “I spy with my little eye…something red!” The other players then take turns guessing what the other player spied. This works well for young children and can keep them entertained for hours.
20 Questions – This is another well-known game that’s great for kids and adults. One player thinks of a person, place or thing and the other players get to ask up to 20 yes-or-no questions (you can also play without a numerical limit on questions). The player who guesses correctly gets to be the one who picks the next person, place or thing for the other players to guess.
I’m going on a picnic… – This game is really good for kids, teens and adults. The first player starts by saying, “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing…” followed by something that begins with the letter A (like apples). The next player repeats what the first player said then adds his or her own starting with the letter B. For example, the second player would say, “I’m going to a picnic and I’m bringing apples and bananas.” The next player after that adds something that starts with c…and so on and so forth until the entire alphabet is complete! The I’m going on a picnic game is great for a car ride with just adults too. A few years ago I took a road trip with some friends and we played a more mature version of the game (“I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing alcohol.”) that had all of us cracking up towards the end. It was a great way to bond with friends and put down our phones for a while.
Animal Name Game – One person names an animal and the next person uses the last letter of the previous player’s animal for their own and so on and so forth. For example, if the first player says “parrot”, the next player can say “turtle.” There’s really no winner or loser in this game either, so it’s a good educational exercise for younger kids. Also, there is no need to limit this game to animals, especially if you’re traveling with an older crowd. When I was a teenager, my friends and I would kill time on field trips and long drives by playing this game with names of bands.
Storytelling – This is another oldie but goodie. One member of the car starts a story by saying one complete sentence, and then the next member of the team adds on another sentence. This can go on until the story is complete or things just get too silly!
Two Lies and a Truth – This game is especially great for adults and older kids. Each member of the car thinks up two lies about themselves and a truth. They then say them aloud and the other members guess what statements are lies and which one is the truth.