Car rides can feel long, but doing something fun can make it so much more enjoyable! One thing you can do to prepare for your trip is to make sure you have a collection of road trip games to play in the car!
If your kids are younger, I will be writing another post soon about car games that I like to play with my 4 year old and 1 year old, so stay tuned for that!
10 Of Our Favorite Road Trip Games
Mental Dominos
This road trip game is one of our favorites to play with new car ride companions because of how easy it is to grasp.
How to Play:
In this game, one person will say a word, and the next person will say a word related to it. It is a simple game and takes fairly little brain energy, which is why it is a favorite! It is also easy to play with younger kids.
Example:
Person 1 : “Goat”
Person 2 : “Goats Milk”
Person 3 : “Cheese”
Person 4 : “Macaroni”
My Cows
This road trip game is played the entire trip. Points are accumulated based on the amount of animals and graveyards you drive by. It is particularly fun to play with kids!
How to Play
- Teams are divided into the “left side of the car” and the “right side of the car.
- If someone sees cows on their side of the car, they can yell “My Cows!” and their team gets 1 point.
- If someone sees an exotic animal on their side of the car (ostriches, zebras, llamas, etc.), they can yell “My insert exotic animal here !” and their team gets 3 points.
- If someone sees a graveyard on their opponent’s side of the car, they can yell “Bury your cows (and whatever other unfortunate exotic animal there may be)!” and the opponent loses all their points.
- Points are counted at the end of the trip and whoever has the most wins.
ABC Sign Game
This is a classic road trip game that can bring nostalgia to a lot of people who grew up going on long car rides.
How to Play:
- Each player tries to find words, car emblems, or license plates beginning with each letter of the alphabet (in order).
- Whoever completes the entire alphabet wins.
- Once a word is claimed, no one else can use that word to fulfill their letters.
Example:
Person 1 : Arco
Person 2 : Arby’s
Person 2 : Buick
Person 2 : Costco
Person 2 : DX6GR8 (license plate)
Person 1 may not use Buick or Costco to fulfill their letters, and must complete the letter B before proceeding to the rest of the alphabet. The first person to complete the entire alphabet before the destination is reached wins. It is harder than you think!
Hinky Pinky
This road trip game uses riddles and is better suited for older kids and adults.
How to Play:
- Each player takes turns thinking of two words that rhyme.
- They give the other players a description hinting at the two words, and the other players try to guess what the two rhyming words are.
Example 1:
Player 1 thinks of the words “Blocks and Box” and gives the hint “Something we build with inside of a container”. The other players have to guess “Blocks Box”.
Example 2:
Player 2 thinks of the words “Noodle Poodle” and gives the hint “A dog breed that loves pasta”. The other players have to guess “Noodle Poodle”.
French Toast
This road trip game is similar to 20 questions. Players think of an object and the other players try to guess what it is.
How to Play:
- A player thinks of a mystery word (preferably an object). The other players take turns asking “Is it more like French Toast or _________ ?”, filling the blank with an object of their choice.
- The player who thought of the mystery word replies with which object their word is more similar to and an explanation.
- The game goes on until someone correctly guesses the mystery word.
Example:
Player 1 thinks of the word “tractor”.
Player 2 : “Is it more like French Toast or a Caterpillar?”
Player 1 : “It is more like French Toast because it is not alive.”
Rainbow Game
This road trip game is perfect for playing with little kids.
How to Play:
- Every player looks for objects of each color of the rainbow (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo (optional. Poor forgotten indigo…), and Violet).
- Whoever completes every color of the rainbow first wins. Players must go in order of the colors (red first, then orange, then yellow, etc.).
Alphabet Game (not to be confused with the previous “ABC” game lol)
This road trip game is another classic listing game.
How to Play:
- Everyone picks a category and the first player says a word that falls in the category.
- The next player says a word that falls in the same category that starts with the second letter of that word. Words may not be repeated.
- The game continues until someone fails to provide a word.
Example:
Players choose the category “Apocalypse”.
Player 1 : Zombies
Player 2 : Opiates (…. to mentally escape the zombie apocalypse??)
Player 3 : Paranoia
*Player 1 fails to think of a word and loses*
I’m Going On a Picnic
This road trip game is another fun one to play with kids.
How to Play:
- Each player takes turns saying “I’m going on a picnic and bringing ______.” Filling the blank with something that they want to bring on their picnic in alphabetical order.
- Each time a player adds another word to the list, they have to repeat every item listed before their turn.
Example:
Player 1 : I’m going on a picnic and bringing apple sauce
Player 2 : I’m going on a picnic and bringing apple sauce and biscuits.
Player 3 : I’m going on a picnic and bringing apple sauce, biscuits, and carrot juice.
Player 4 : I’m going on a picnic and bringing apple sauce, biscuits, carrots, and dog poop. (Let the kids have some fun!)
Contact
This road trip game is for older children and adults. It requires at least 3 people, some intuition, and is probably the hardest game to explain (and play). But, it is really fun and can be played for hours!
How to Play:
- The starting player thinks of a “focus word” and tells the other players the first letter.
- One of the other players gives a description of a word that they think the focus word could be.
- The starting player tries to guess what word the other players are describing until he or she gives up or gets it right.
- If the starting player gets it right, the other players can give another description of a word they want to guess.
- If the starting player gives up guessing what the other player’s word is, the two other players must simultaneously and intuitively announce what the guessing word was, without communicating to each other.
- If the two other players successfully say the same word, the starting player must reveal the second letter of the focus word. And the other players continue guessing by providing another description.
- If the two other players say different words, then the starting player doesn’t reveal anything and the other players continue guessing by giving descriptions of words they think the focus word could be.
- The game continues until the starting player’s focus word is revealed fully or guessed.
Example 1
Player 1 thinks of the focus word “book” and announces the letter “b” to the other players.
Player 2 thinks the focus word is “butterfly” and says “a flying bug”.
Player 1 guesses “butterfly” and gets it right.
*nothing happens and the guessing continues to the next player*
Player 3 thinks the focus word is “banana” and says “a fruit”.
Player 1 guesses “blueberry” and “blackberry” then says “I give up”.
*Player 2 must now intuitively guess what fruit Player 3 gave a clue of and say it at the same time as them.*
Player 1 counts down “3… 2…1…”
Player 2 and Player 3 successfully both say “banana”.
Player 1 must now give the second letter of their focus word “o”.
*the guessing continues until the full word is revealed.*
Example 2
Player 1 thinks of the focus word “computer”.
Player 2 thinks the focus word is “cat” and says “an animal”.
Player 1 guesses “chicken”, “camel”, “cheetah”, and then says “I give up”.
*Player 3 must intuitively guess what animal Player 2 thought of and say it at the same time as them*
Player 1 counts down “3… 2… 1… “
Player 2 says “cat” and Player 3 says “cobra”.
*They have failed and nothing happens. The guessing continues.*
Player 3 thinks the focus word is “car” and says “a mode of transportation”
Player 1 says “cargo ship” and gives up.
Player 1 counts down “3… 2… 1…”
Player 2 and 3 both successfully say “car”.
Player 1 must now reveal the second letter of their word “o”.
*Now Player 2 and Player 3 must guess words starting with “co-”*
Player 2 thinks the focus word is “cop” and says “someone who works”.
Player 1 guesses “contractor” and gives up.
Player 1 counts down “3… 2… 1…”
Player 2 and 3 both say “cop”.
Player 1 must now reveal the third letter of the focus word “m”
*the guessing continues*
Have Fun!
Having a collection of road trip games for long car rides is essential for anyone who travels. Playing games is a great way to connect with people and make time fly. I hope you guys give these a try!
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