11 Classic Car Games for Kids (No Preparation Required)

Whether you’re driving fifteen minutes across town or 67 hours across the country and back, these 11 Classic Car Games can be your go-to move to help make your travel time an enjoyable experience for all. Best of all, you can play them anytime because they do not require any preparation.

We would work all day, cleaning the house and packing up.  We would get everything ready to go so that when Dad got home from work, we could climb in the car.  Then we were off!

Every summer we went to visit my grandparents or drove even further to visit cousins.  We saw the Grand Canyon and other incredible National Parks.  We visited Disneyland and the ocean.  With six youngsters, the minivan was the way to go.  I have vivid memories of these road trips.  The excitement of where we were going was only part of the fun.  I actually enjoyed the driving part too!

Traveling with kids can be challenging. It definitely requires patience from everyone. However, it can also provide tremendous opportunities to bond with our children and make lasting family memories. Talking, reading, and playing games are some of the things that made our road trips so fun.

We played a lot of car games on our road trips. Now we play them with our kids on drives both long and short. They are an ideal way to pass the time and have some fun.

So here are eleven games you can turn to on your next drive.

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11 Car Games for Kids

1. “I’m going to Grandma’s House and I’m packing…”

The first person starts by completing the phrase.  For example, “I’m going to Grandma’s House and I’m packing my swimsuit.”  The next person repeats what the previous person said and then adds something to the list.  “I’m going to Grandma’s House and I’m packing my swimsuit and my pet elephant.”  Continue adding to the list until someone forgets what has already been packed.

2. Alphabet Search

Search for the letters of the alphabet in order.  Look on license plates, road signs, and billboards.  Surprisingly, X is always easier to find than you’d think!  🙂

3. Rhyme Time

One person pick something you see out the window. Another person try to think of a rhyming word.  (For young children, it doesn’t have to be something they can see, but instead, simple words can be chosen.)  Sing the little ditty, filling in the blanks with your two rhyming words:  “_______, _______, these words rhyme.  _______, _______, these words rhyme.  _______, _______, these words rhyme, so rhyme along with me.”

4. Once Upon a Time

One person starts a story with “Once upon a time…”  They tell as much of the story as they want and finish with, “And then…”  The next person continues the story where the last left off.  See your kids creativity take-off with this one!  You may need to set parameters about how long a person can go (if others are getting impatient waiting for their turn) or about how many times a person can die (if the story keeps heading in the same direction. 🙂

5. Concentration 64

This is a classic partner hand-clapping game.  For car play, kids can play in the back or you can skip the partner part and just use the words, as follow.  * stands for a clap.

“Concentration*** 64***No Repeats***Or Hesitation***I’ll go first.***I’ll go second.***Category is***________.”  A different category is picked each time such as names, vegetables, movies, colors, etc.  Players take turns naming something in the category until one repeats or misses the beat. Lots of laughs are sure to ensue when nobody can think of a new name out of the millions available.  That beat is sure to get you!

6. National License Plates

The first challenge is to write down the names of all 50 states. Warning: The first 47 are easy.

Next, see how many license plates you can find from different states.  This game is the most fun to play on longer trips that span several states or in high tourist destinations.

7. I Spy the Alphabet

Work together to find something beginning with each letter of the alphabet in order.  If it’s not your first time playing, try to get creative!  A can be for Animal or Accord or…?

8. Musical Chain

Sing a line from any song.  The next person has to sing a line from a song that begins with the last letter of the previous line.  For example, Player One: “Row, row, row, your boat, gently down the stream.”  Player Two:  “Mary had a little lamb, little lamb, little lamb.”  Player Three:  “Bring back, that lovin’ feeling, whoa that lovin’ feeling.”

9. Alphabetical Categories

Pick a category.  Think of something in that category that begins with each letter of the alphabet in order.  You can work together or take turns on each letter.  Example:  Category is Food-Apple, bread, cheese, donut…(Ready for a rest stop yet?!)

10. “I Spy with my little eye…”

“I spy with my little eye something that is __________.”  One person completes the phrase with a color.  Everyone else tries to guess what the thing is.  Encourage your young travelers to spy something inside the car.  🙂

11. 20 Questions

This is probably our family’s all-time favorite.  We have spent HOURS playing this game.  One person thinks of a something.  Everyone else asks yes or no questions to try to figure out what the mystery thing is.  You can limit it to 20 questions, or as we do, you can call it 20 Questions and sometimes need 100 questions to figure it out.  Watch out, the more you play, the more difficult the mystery thing will become.  Instead of dog and car, your kids will be thinking of oxygen and Abraham Lincoln!

Road trips are great opportunities to bond with our Littles. I hope these car games help fill your travel time with fun!

Related: 12 Road Trip Activities for Kids

Is life feeling a bit too crazy on this road trip or in general?

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