Keep The Good Vibes Going
Road trips are always seen as a fun and exciting journey— for the first few hours. After the 80th mile of open road, gas station drinks, and pre-packaged sandwiches, things can start to feel a little stale. To keep yourself and your loved ones entertained on a long drive, try out one of these car games.
1. The Alphabet Game
The point of this game is simple: look out the car windows and try to find any signs that start with each letter of the alphabet. The tricky part is doing this in alphabetical order, and if you’re driving in a pretty rural area, it could be downright impossible. The most important thing is to try.
2. Contact
A known party game that requires at least three people. One person chooses a word and shares the first letter of the word with the rest of the players. The guessers then must think of clues to words that start with the same letter, and the word-chooser must try to figure out the guesser’s word. When the chooser can’t come up with a word, but the guessers can, the guessers must say “contact” and say their word at the same time. If they say the same word, the chooser gives them the second letter, and the next round starts.
3. Six Degrees of Separation
Based on the theory that everyone on earth is connected to everyone else through a chain of six acquaintances, this game requires players to pick two people and figure out how they’re connected, acquaintance by acquaintance. While you can play with people you know personally, it’s more fun to do it with celebrities.
Laurens van Lieshout (User:LaurensvanLieshout) on Wikimedia
4. Bingo
By giving each person a card with various items you’ll likely see on your journey, road trip bingo is one of those games that can be played subconsciously for the duration of your trip. The game ends when someone completes a full row, column, or diagonal.
5. I Spy
Arguably one of the oldest guessing games in the book, I Spy is an easy way to keep travelers entertained. You know how the phrase goes: “I spy with my little eye…” Then it’s up to you to pick a color or first letter, and let the guessing begin.
6. Ghost
In this word-focused game, each player must present a letter to form a word, but must not complete the word. If one person does complete a word, they lose the round and become one-third of a ghost. If they lose three rounds, they become a full ghost and are out of the game.
7. The Title Game
Similar to the many YouTube videos where you try to guess a band, movie, or title off of emojis or bad reviews, The Title Game requires one person to rephrase a title of a song, movie, book, or whatever else they can come up with. Once another player guesses the correct title, the next round begins.
8. Horse
This one is simple: you see a horse, you say “horse” and get a point. When you’re at the end of your journey, the person with the most points wins.
9. The Story Game
The Story Game requires players to work collaboratively. The first person starts with a sentence, the next person gives another sentence, and so on and so forth. This can lead to some pretty silly or unexpected turns, and can lead to a lot of laughter.
10. Going On A Picnic
The person “going on a picnic” must decide a rule for said picnic, such as all food must be a specific color, or words that are five letters long. Then the guessers must ask if certain items can go on the picnic, and the picnic-goer must answer yes or no. Once guessers have correctly guessed the rule, the next round can begin.
11. French Toast
This guessing game requires someone to choose a secret item, and players must start the game by asking, “Is it more like French toast, or is it more like…” and say whatever word or phrase they’ve come up with. The judge can only answer with one of the guessed words or phrases, and the game keeps going until the guessers have gotten the right answer.
12. Two Truths And A Lie
This game is especially fun when you’re playing with people who know each other very well, as it also incorporates an element of acting. You know the drill: you tell the group of guessers two truths and one lie, and the other players must guess what the lie is.
13. License Plate Game
If you’re based in North America, this game is a fun one to play throughout your trip. Played together or individually, players must try and find a license plate from all 50 states while they’re on the road.
14. Black Stories
This clue-esque game gives players a prompt that leads into a dark story, and the goal is to figure out what crime occurred through yes or no questions. This game can be played with an app, playing cards, or, if you have a very imaginative storyteller in your midst.
15. While You Were Sleeping
When the inevitable car nap happens, those who didn’t fall asleep (hopefully the driver) can come up with a realistic lie to tell the sleepers when they wake up.
16. Fortunately, Unfortunately
This improv game requires a player to start a sentence with the word “fortunately”, and follow it up with a statement that starts with the word “unfortunately.” Then the next player must take a “fortunately” statement based on the information of the previous player's phrases.
17. Guess The Song
For the music lovers out there, you can make your very own guess about the song game with your music library. Pick a theme, make a blend, or play a YouTube video out of your car’s Bluetooth speaker and have a blast.
18. Did You Hear That…?
Similar to two truths and a lie, players must share a piece of news or pop culture information by starting with the phrase “Did you hear that…” Then other players must say, “That didn’t happen,” or “Tell me more.” If players guess correctly that the statement is false, they get two points; if they guess incorrectly, the person who said the statement gets three points. If the players say “Tell me more,” points are doubled.
19. The Counting Game
All players must try to count aloud, but only one person can say a number at a time. If two or more people say a number at the same time, the group must start back at one.
20. The Silent Game
For any parents with particularly chatty children, the silent game is an easy way to get some peace and quiet. If someone talks, they lose.
