The Best Family Road Trip Games
Family road trips are memories in the making…but they can also come with echoes of “Are we there yet?” from the backseat.
Like most things in life, you can get ahead of those rough moments with a little playfulness. Your kids may have so much fun that they’re bummed to finally reach your destination!
The Alphabet Game
The Alphabet game is as simple and low-maintenance as it gets. All you and your kids need are your thinking caps!
The game starts by agreeing on a category. The category can be anything: animals, bands, famous people, countries, sports, etc. Then, take turns coming up with items that fit the category, starting with the letter A. See if you can make it all the way to Z!
The Karaoke Game
Musical families will adore the karaoke game. Kick it off by having one person sing a lyric of any song of their choosing. Then, the next person has to connect their lyric to a different song. Keep the song going until someone has a lapse of inspiration!
Here’s an example combining “All The Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” with “I Will Survive”:
- “Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it…”
- “I’ve got all my love to give, and I will survive, I will survive, hey hey”
Battle of The Bands
Love music, but prefer to leave it to the professionals? Then you’ll love Battle of the Bands! This game is a battle to see who has the best song for every occasion. Take turns picking a theme; for instance, best song about summer or best song about a city. Then, each person has one minute to think of their top pick in that category.
After the minute is up, everyone gets a chance to play the song for the car, and then the whole family votes on the one they like best. Play as many rounds as you’d like. Whoever gets the most votes wins the award of best DJ!
What Color Is It?
List a few objects that typically come in your chosen color and see if someone can guess it. The first person to guess the color becomes the next person to list their objects.
For example, say you decide on the color red. You’ll start listing things like “Firetruck, stop sign, fire, Minnie Mouses’ dress,” and see if someone can guess the color. For the younger kids, it’s the perfect way to give them a little practice around their colors too.
Road Trip Scavenger Hunt
If you’re up for planning, preparing a road trip scavenger hunt is a blast for the whole family. Make a list of things you’ll typically find on the road and pass the list out to everyone in the car.
When someone sees something on the list, they call it out and mark it off. Once someone collects everything, they win! It can be fun to make a couple of different lists so you can start over once someone wins. That way, you still have plenty to do throughout the trip.
Our Old Granny Doesn’t Like Tea
This silly game will appeal to the wordsmiths in the family! It starts with the statement, “Our old granny doesn’t like tea. What we can give her instead?” Each person has to suggest a food or drink that doesn’t include the letter “t.” So you can say coffee or licorice, for instance, but not chocolate or tiramisu. The last person to think of suggestions for granny wins!
For more family-friendly tips, check out the CA Parents’ Corner blog.