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Road trip games for the car

These games are for long drives, with kids in the back or a car full of adults. None of them needs paper or a screen, and the driver can play by talking and listening. In the spotting games, the passengers do the looking.

Play now on your phone:Would You RatherTruth or DareCharadesThis or ThatMost Likely ToNever Have I EverIcebreaker Questions

14 classic road trip games

The list starts with the games most people know from childhood car rides.

1. I spy

Players: 2 or moreAges: 4 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. One player picks something everyone can see and says, "I spy with my little eye something beginning with T."
  2. The others take turns guessing things that start with that letter.
  3. Whoever guesses right picks the next thing.

Pick things that stay in view, such as the sky or something inside the car, since a barn you passed a mile back cannot be guessed. Children who cannot spell yet can spy by color.

2. The license plate game

Players: 2 or moreAges: 6 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. Passengers watch the traffic for license plates from other states. The driver keeps their eyes on the road and helps remember the list.
  2. The first passenger to call out a state nobody has found yet scores a point.
  3. Each state counts once per trip. Recite the list together now and then so nobody claims one twice.
  4. Whoever has the most points on arrival wins.

On a short drive, make phrases from the letters on a plate. RGT could be "really grumpy turtle".

3. 20 questions

Players: 2 or moreAges: 6 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. One player thinks of something and says only whether it is a person, a place or a thing.
  2. The rest of the car takes turns asking yes or no questions. The front seat passenger keeps count.
  3. A guess at the answer counts as a question. Guess right within 20 and you think of the next one.
  4. If the car uses all 20, the thinker gives the answer and goes again.

Pick things from the trip itself, such as the place you stopped for lunch or the town you are driving to. That keeps the answers fair for kids.

4. The alphabet game

Players: 2 or moreAges: 6 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. Passengers look for the letter A on signs and trucks outside the car.
  2. Whoever spots it calls out the word and the letter, as in "A in gas". Then everyone looks for B.
  3. Work through to Z in order as one team. Each sign can be used for only one letter.

Q, X and Z take the longest. Allow license plates for those three letters if the car gets stuck.

5. I'm going on a picnic

Players: 2 or moreAges: 5 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. The first player says, "I'm going on a picnic and I'm bringing" and adds something that starts with A, such as apples.
  2. The next player repeats the sentence with the A item and adds one that starts with B.
  3. Carry on through the alphabet. Each player recites the whole list in order before adding the next letter.
  4. A player who forgets an item is out. The last one left wins.

With young children, play as one team that tries to reach Z, and let anyone help when someone gets stuck.

6. Counting cows

Players: 2 or more passengersAges: 5 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. Split the passengers into a left side team and a right side team.
  2. Each team counts the cows it passes on its own side of the road and keeps a running total out loud.
  3. When the car passes a cemetery on your side, the other team can shout "Your cows are buried" and your count goes back to zero.
  4. The team with the most cows at the next stop wins.

On roads without farms, count red cars or water towers.

7. Fortunately, unfortunately

Players: 2 or moreAges: 6 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. The first player starts a story with one sentence, such as "One morning a boy found a door in his backyard."
  2. The next player adds a sentence starting with "Unfortunately", which makes things worse.
  3. The player after that adds one starting with "Fortunately", which rescues the situation.
  4. Keep alternating around the car until someone finds a good ending.

With an even number of players, the same people always get "fortunately". Have one player take two turns in a row partway through to swap them over.

8. The geography game

Players: 2 or moreAges: 8 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. The first player names any place on a map, such as a city or a country.
  2. The next player names a place that starts with the last letter of that one. Denver could be followed by Rome, then Egypt.
  3. No place can be used twice in a game.
  4. A player who cannot think of one within about ten seconds is out. The last player left wins.

With children, allow places close to home too, like street names or the town where their grandparents live.

9. Name that tune

Players: 2 or moreAges: 5 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. One player hums a few seconds of a song everyone in the car should know.
  2. The others call out the title. The first right answer scores a point.
  3. If nobody gets it, the hummer goes on a little longer, up to three tries.
  4. The player who guessed it hums next. Play to five points.

Agree on a theme for each round, such as cartoon songs or songs you have played on this trip.

10. The movie game

Players: 2 or moreAges: 12 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. The first player names a movie.
  2. The next player names an actor who appears in it.
  3. The player after that names a different movie with that actor, and the chain goes on: movie, actor, movie, actor.
  4. A player who cannot answer, or repeats something already used, is out. The last one left wins.

You can also play as one team and see how long a chain the car can build before anyone gets stuck.

11. Ghost

Players: 2 or moreAges: 8 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. Players take turns saying one letter each, building a word from left to right.
  2. Each letter must keep a real word possible, but the player who completes a word of four letters or more loses the round.
  3. If you think the last player has no real word in mind, challenge them. They lose the round if they cannot name one, and you lose it if they can.
  4. The loser of each round takes a letter: G, then H, O, S and T. Spell ghost and you are out.

Say the letters so far out loud before every turn. In a car there is nothing to write on, and it is easy to lose track.

12. Buzz

Players: 2 or moreAges: 8 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. Count up from 1, taking turns around the car, one number each.
  2. Any number that divides by 7, or has a 7 in it, is replaced by the word "buzz". So 6 is followed by buzz, then 8.
  3. A player who says the number by mistake, or stalls, is out. The count restarts at 1.
  4. The last player left wins.

Younger kids can buzz on multiples of 5, which are easier to see coming.

13. The quiet game

Players: 2 or moreAges: 3 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. Someone says, "The quiet game starts now."
  2. Everyone stays silent. Giggling and humming count as noise too.
  3. The first to make a sound is out, and the last silent player wins.

Start it about ten minutes before a stop, with first pick of the snacks as the prize.

14. Word association

Players: 2 or moreAges: 6 and upYou need: Nothing

  1. The first player says any word.
  2. The next player answers right away with the first word it brings to mind, and so on around the car. Beach might lead to sand, then castle, then king.
  3. A player who hesitates, repeats a word or cannot explain the link when asked is out. The last one left wins.

Have a passenger clap a slow beat. Each word has to land on a clap.

Games to play from one phone

Open one, pick who's playing, and pass the phone around.

Would You Rather questions for families

Pick one of two options, then see how everyone else voted.

199 questions

Truth or Dare questions for families

Choose truth or dare and the phone deals a card. Add players and it tracks whose turn it is.

271 truths and dares

Charades ideas for families

The phone shows what to act out and runs the timer. Tap when your team gets it.

402 ideas

This or That questions for families

Two words, pick one, next. Vote on each and see the split.

162 questions

Most Likely To questions for families

Read the card, count to three, and everyone points at someone.

190 questions

Never Have I Ever questions for families

Ten fingers up. Put one down for each thing you've done.

257 questions

Icebreaker questions for families

Questions that get a short story out of anyone, for meetings, classes and first dates.

112 questions

Tools for the host

Random team generatorPaste the names, choose how many teams, and get a fair random split.

Questions people ask

What games can you play in the car without anything?
Every game on this page works with no equipment. I spy, 20 questions and the license plate game are the ones most families start with. For a car full of adults, try the movie game or ghost.
What are good road trip games for adults?
The movie game, ghost and the geography game get harder the more the players know, so they suit adults and teens. Fortunately, unfortunately works at any age and gets sillier with adults. Two people are enough for all four.
Can the driver play road trip games?
Yes, as long as the game is spoken. The driver can take a full part in word games like 20 questions and the geography game. In spotting games such as the license plate game, leave the searching to the passengers.

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Updated November 2026.