10 awesome road trip games to survive the drive
You’ve got everything packed up and picked out
the perfect rental car. Now it’s time to head out on the
road for that dream vacation. Now all you have to do is keep everyone
entertained with these classic road trip games.
1. I spy
Probably the easiest game to get started on any road trip. Just
uttering “I spy with my little eye” gets everyone on the lookout to find
whatever you’ve picked. It’s good for kids, and works just fine with the
younger set. All I can suggest is to make the target something readily
available, because nothing sucks worse than trying to guess the red lettering
on a billboard from five miles back on the road.
2. 20 questions
Pick the answer and make the rest of the people in the car
figure it out. Only 20 questions to find the answer. Seems easy enough, until
you get someone that picks something obscure like Hervé Villechaize. Trying to
guess Tattoo from “Fantasy Island” might get people to starting asking “Are we
there yet?” Hey, that’s a question – 19 more to go.
3. License plate game
A car full of kids, a few pads of paper, pens and the open
highway. That’s all you need to keep the little ones happy as they search for
license plates from different states. Keep track of the tags you find on the
paper (be honest), and the one that spots the most plates wins. You can raise
the stakes by giving double points for Canadian plates. And, of course, the
game should automatically end if someone spots a Hawaiian plate on The
Mainland.
4. Punch buggy
The concept is simple enough: give a little love tap to your
neighbor in the car whenever you find a Volkswagen Beetle. But how you play it
now can be varied. There are debates on whether the classic buggies, the New Beetle or the sporty modern version should be used for the game.
But just make sure you don’t go for broke with the punches. Nothing worse than
fighting back tears after your little sister beats you down.
5. Hold your breath
You’re taking a drive into Pittsburgh and
come upon a tunnel that will take you into the city. Time to see how long you
can hold your breath. Whoever holds their breath the longest wins. It’s
probably a good idea to let the driver or person in the front passenger seat
figure out who wins. And good luck for those that try to hold their breath as
they go through the 1.6-mile long Ted Williams Tunnel in Boston.
6. Guess the time
You’re driving from Miami to Orlando for
some fun at Walt Disney World. How long will it take to meet Elsa and find out
if she wants to build a snowman? That’s where everyone in the car comes into
play. Take turns figuring out how long it’ll take to reach the destination.
Just don’t let the driver use GPS before making their guess. Or worse, let them
think they can speed wildly to beat the estimated time from said GPS device.
7. Memory game
There are a few names for this one (The Picnic Game, Casserole
Game, etc.), but they all start in similar fashion. “I’m going out on a
picnic/vacation and I’m bringing…” follow that with whatever item that comes to
mind. Then the next player has to remember that item and add something else to
the story. Get a part of the story wrong and you’re out. This one keeps the
trip fun and can last for a little bit, so long as you give the younger
travelers some leniency with their turn in the game.
8. Quiet game
What kid hasn’t had this game thrown at them during a car ride?
You’ve been fighting the entire time with your brother or sister over that Mad
Libs. Your parents have let it slide for 80 miles, but no more. “Let’s see who
can stay quiet the longest.” Yeah, the old folks wanted some peace and quiet.
But it’s good time to get creative and find a way to pick on your sibling
without any noise. Little pieces of paper straw wrappers are good for
throwing.
9. Would you rather?
Would you rather put your hand in a bowl of electric eels or
dance while roaches are poured on top of you? Neither option is particularly
pleasing, but you’ve got to pick one. That’s the premise of this road game.
Everyone takes a turn having to choose between awful and awful. Or awesome and
awesome – depends on who’s asking the question. I’ll admit his is more geared
toward the adult set, but it can easily be tailored for kids and be just as
fun.
10. Hot seat
This one is decidedly grownup, but still a lot of fun. Every
person in the car takes a turn in the “hot seat.” Once you’re in the seat, the
others in the car will ask you five questions that you must answer. Usually you
can veto one of the questions, but you can see how wild this game could go. The
only thing to worry about is giving an answer that’s going to tick off people
in the car.
Is there a game you played
growing up during road trips that we didn’t cover? Let us know below.
