The iPad was introduced three months after our daughter Kate was born, so my husband and I like to joke that we family planned around Steve Jobs’ release dates. It’s not true, of course, but those little tablets and gizmos and gadgets sure do make life easier – especially when it comes to family road trips!
As much as we all love to rely on videos and apps to pass the time as we drive past those mile markers, consider powering the devices down and spending some quality time together with these road trip games and questions!
These 15 road trip games can be played just for the fun of it, or grab a pen and some paper to keep score. Consider bringing along little prizes (like candy) to award the winners, or think of one big prize that can be claimed once you reach your final destination, such as winner gets first dibs on choosing a bed or winner gets to choose the place for dinner.
15 Road Trip Games
- Bring a box of Trivial Pursuit cards to quiz each other and learn a little bit a long the way.
- The License Plate Game: Look for license plates from all 50 states. If you’re traveling with little ones, print out a map of the United States before leaving on your road trip and have them color in each state to keep track of the license plates they find.
- Road Trip Scavenger Hunt: Create a list of things each person has to look for out their window along the way. Take into account what you’ll expect to see along your route, such as farm animals, water towers, yellow taxi cabs, flashing signs, parking ramps, etc. The first person to find all of the items on the scavenger hunt wins. Make this game even more fun for kids by having them photograph each object on their scavenger hunt list!
- I Spy: Select an object everyone can see and say “I spy with my little eye, something that begins with the letter…” or describe the object by color. The person that guesses correctly gets to go next.
- Create your own license plate acronyms. For example, “CPP” could be “crazy purple penguins.” See who can think of the funniest ideas!
- Play “Count the [insert object here].” Choose something that is somewhat common on your route (e.g. barns, car dealerships, etc.) and have each player count how many they see (out the side of their window only) within a certain amount of time.
- Find the Alphabet: Each player, looking out their side of the window only, has to find each letter of the alphabet in order. Letters can be found on billboards, store signs, license plates – anywhere. The first person to make it through the entire alphabet is the winner.
- “Yes, And” Story Time: The first person begins a story by saying any sentence. The next person then says, “yes, and…” and adds to the story with another sentence. Continue taking turns around the car with each person saying, “yes, and…” to build onto the story. Get as creative with your story as you’d like!
- Going on a Picnic: The first person starts by saying “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing…” and then names an item that begins with the letter A. (Ex: “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing and apple.” The next person repeats the previous list of items and adds onto it with an item from the next letter of the alphabet. (Ex: “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing and apple and a blanket.”) Continue taking turns repeating the list and naming additional items for each letter of the alphabet. See if you can make it all the way to Z without forgetting any of the items you plan to bring!
- Name That Tune: Hum a song and the first person to guess it correctly scores a point. This game can also be played by trying to guess the name of songs that come on the radio. The first person to correctly state the name gets a point.
- 20 Questions: One person (the “answerer”) thinks of an object and writes it on a piece of paper, making sure the other players cannot see what is written. The other players ask yes or no questions trying to guess the object within 20 questions. If the object is guessed within 20 questions it is the next person’s turn to be the answerer. If the object is not guessed within 20 questions the answerer gets to go again by choosing another object.
- Pick a category (movies, animals, countries, etc.) and take turns naming something from that category that begins with each letter of the alphabet, working your way from A-Z. (Player 1 starts with the letter A, player 2 thinks of something that starts with the letter B, etc.)
- Pick a category (movies, animals, countries, brands of shoes, etc.) and go around in a circle with each player having to name one of the items within 5 seconds. The person who cannot think of something to add to the list within 5 seconds loses. Make the game even harder by assigning a letter to each response! (Example: Movies that start with the letter C.)
- Two Truths and a Lie: Each player makes 3 statements about themselves – two statements are true and one is false. The other players have to guess which statement is the false one.
- Would You Rather?: Think of the funniest, most interesting, thought-provoking, or most outlandish scenarios and have each passenger respond with which of the two they’d rather do. (Example: “Would you rather…be without your car for a month or be without the internet for a month?”)
Reconnecting or getting to know your car mates a little bit better is another great way to pass the time on a road trip. Here are 25 questions – applicable for adults and kids – that make great conversation starters:
25 Road Trip Questions
- If you could have lunch with any famous person, who would you choose and why?
- What accomplishment are you most proud of so far in life?
- If you won a free plane ticket to anywhere in the world where would you go?
- Who was/is your favorite teacher in school, and why?
- If you could live someone’s life from a TV show whose would you choose?
- What is your favorite meal your mom makes?
- What is your dream job?
- If you were a super hero, which super power would you choose?
- If you found a $100 bill on the sidewalk what would you do with it?
- What is your favorite quality about yourself?
- If you could re-name yourself which name would you choose?
- If you could travel back in time to change one thing, what would it be?
- Who in your family are you most like?
- What is the best gift you’ve ever received?
- For adults – What did your childhood bedroom look like? For kids – what would your dream bedroom look like?
- What is your favorite family tradition?
- What was/is your favorite thing to do during school recess?
- What is your favorite book?
- What is one thing you’d love to learn how to do?
- What is something you think should be taught in school that currently isn’t?
- If you were in a karaoke contest, what song would you sing?
- How do you think your friends would describe you?
- If you were making a soundtrack of your life, which songs would you include?
- What is the bravest thing you’ve ever done?
- Which actor or actress would you want to play you in the movie version of your life?
These games and questions are available as print-outs for your convenience! Simply click the links below to open a printable PDF document:
15 Road Trip Games
25 Road Trip Questions
What are some of your favorite ways to pass the time on a road trip? We’d love to hear them!
Dusty Rogers is the blogger, mother, maker, decorator and drinker of the wine at All Things G&D - a lifestyle blog where home décor, DIY and organization, healthy meals and kid-friendly snacks, party planning and entertaining all happily play together in the sandbox. Dusty lives in Madison, WI with her husband Greg and their daughter Kate, and she spends her days balancing high maintenance tendencies with a desire to keep things simple.
