Long car journeys can be challenging for children, particularly when the excitement of the destination makes the journey feel even slower. Tablets, films and games can certainly help, but screens don't need to provide all the entertainment.
“Are we nearly there yet?”
It's one of the great traditions of family travel.
Sometimes it arrives after two hours on the motorway.
Sometimes it arrives approximately nine minutes after leaving home.
Long car journeys can be challenging for children, particularly when the excitement of the destination makes the journey feel even slower. Tablets, films and games can certainly help, but screens don't need to provide all the entertainment.
Some of the best car games require absolutely nothing.
No equipment.
No preparation.
No batteries.
They can involve the entire family and turn an otherwise boring motorway journey into part of the day out.
Whether you're travelling 30 minutes to a zoo or driving across Britain for a family holiday, here are some of the best car games for children.
I Spy
We'll start with the classic.
“I spy with my little eye, something beginning with…”
One person chooses something they can see and gives everyone else the first letter.
The other passengers take turns guessing until somebody finds the answer.
That person then chooses the next object.
I Spy works particularly well when you're travelling slowly through towns or countryside where there are plenty of things to see.
Motorways can make it slightly harder because objects disappear quickly.
Try choosing something inside the car when you're travelling at speed.
For younger children who don't yet know their letters, play using colours instead.
“I spy something that is red.”
Best for: Ages 3+ with the colour version and around 5+ for the traditional letter game.
The Number Plate Game
Number plates provide endless entertainment on UK roads.
There are several ways to use them.
Older children can take the letters from a number plate and try to create a funny phrase.
For example, a plate ending in BDT might become:
“Big Dancing Tiger.”
Everyone creates a phrase and the funniest wins.
You can also challenge children to spot registrations containing particular letters or numbers.
On long journeys, see whether you can find every number from 1 to 20.
Best for: Primary-school children and older.
Make Words from Number Plates
This is a slightly harder variation.
Choose the letters from a registration and try to make words containing those letters in the same order.
Alternatively, give each letter a category.
If the letters are KLM, children might need to think of:
K – an animal.
L – a food.
M – a country.
Change the categories each round.
It combines entertainment with a little thinking without feeling like homework.
Car Colour Challenge
This is excellent for younger children.
Everyone chooses a colour.
Then count how many cars of that colour you see during the next ten minutes.
Red.
Blue.
Black.
White.
Green.
For an extra challenge, choose unusual colours such as yellow, orange or purple.
The person with the most vehicles wins.
You can reset the scores at service stations and start again.
Best for: Ages 3–8.
Spot the Car Brand
Children who love cars may be surprisingly good at this.
Choose a manufacturer.
BMW.
Ford.
Tesla.
Audi.
Volkswagen.
Toyota.
Everyone tries to be the first person to spot one.
Once somebody finds it, choose another brand.
Older children can make the challenge harder by looking for specific models.
Finding a Ford is easy.
Finding a particular sports car may take considerably longer.
Supercar Spotting
Give different cars different points.
For example:
Porsche – 1 point.
Aston Martin – 2 points.
Ferrari – 3 points.
Lamborghini – 5 points.
McLaren – 5 points.
You can create your own scoring system before leaving home.
Just don't let the driver become so enthusiastic about spotting a Lamborghini that they stop concentrating on driving.
Passengers should do the spotting.
Lorry Spotting
Lorries are excellent for younger children because they're easy to see.
Choose different types.
Car transporter.
Tanker.
Supermarket lorry.
Construction vehicle.
Livestock transporter.
Recovery truck.
You can award points or simply see how many different types you can find.
On motorway journeys, this game can last surprisingly long.
Spot the Emergency Vehicle
See who can spot a police car, ambulance or fire engine first.
You can expand the game to include:
breakdown vehicles
motorway maintenance vehicles
tractors
buses
coaches
motorcycles.
For younger children, create a simple list before leaving and let them tick off each type of vehicle.
The Alphabet Game
Try to find every letter of the alphabet in order.
Look at road signs, shop names, vehicles and advertising.
Find an A.
Then a B.
Then C.
Continue until Z.
The first few letters are usually easy.
Q, X and Z can keep everyone occupied considerably longer.
For a simpler version, allow letters to be spotted anywhere rather than requiring them in order.
Best for: Children learning letters and older.
Alphabet Categories
Choose a category.
Animals, for example.
The first person says an animal beginning with A.
“Alligator.”
The next person needs one beginning with B.
“Bear.”
Then C.
“Cat.”
Continue through the alphabet.
Try different categories:
foods
countries
names
football teams
film characters
places
things you find at the beach
things you find at a zoo.
Some letters will require creativity.
The Memory Game
The traditional version begins:
“I went on holiday and I packed…”
The first person adds an item.
“I went on holiday and I packed a toothbrush.”
The next person repeats it and adds another.
“I went on holiday and I packed a toothbrush and a hat.”
The list continues getting longer.
Anyone who forgets an item is out, or you can simply help each other and see how long the family can make the list.
For younger children, keep the objects sensible.
Older children often make the game considerably more entertaining by packing ridiculous things.
“I went on holiday and packed a toothbrush, a dinosaur, a trampoline and the King.”
Would You Rather?
This can entertain older children for ages.
Ask two ridiculous questions.
“Would you rather have a pet elephant or a pet giraffe?”
“Would you rather live in a castle or on a pirate ship?”
“Would you rather be able to fly or become invisible?”
“Would you rather travel to space or explore the bottom of the ocean?”
Everyone chooses an answer and explains why.
The explanations are often much more entertaining than the questions.
Older children and teenagers can invent increasingly difficult choices.
20 Questions
One person thinks of a person, animal, object or place.
Everyone else gets up to 20 yes-or-no questions to identify it.
“Is it alive?”
“Is it bigger than a car?”
“Would you find it in Britain?”
“Can it fly?”
The challenge is learning which questions eliminate the most possibilities.
For younger children, choose a category first.
“I'm thinking of an animal.”
This makes the game easier.
Who Am I?
Think of a famous person or fictional character.
Everyone asks questions.
“Are you real?”
“Are you alive?”
“Are you in a film?”
“Are you a superhero?”
“Are you British?”
Keep going until somebody guesses correctly.
Adapt the choices to children's ages.
For younger children, use familiar characters from books, films or television.
Guess the Animal
One person thinks of an animal.
The others ask questions.
“Does it have four legs?”
“Does it live in water?”
“Is it bigger than a dog?”
“Would we find it at a zoo?”
Younger children often find animals easier than the unrestricted version of 20 Questions.
If you're travelling to a zoo, make the animals ones you might see later.
Animal Sounds
This is wonderfully simple for toddlers.
One person makes an animal noise.
Everyone else guesses the animal.
Moo.
Woof.
Roar.
Quack.
As children become older, make the animals more difficult.
You may discover that nobody in your family knows what noise a giraffe makes.
Guess the Sound
Expand the animal game to everyday noises.
Make the sound of:
a train
a helicopter
a vacuum cleaner
a racing car
a doorbell
a dinosaur
a robot.
The stranger the sound, the funnier the game usually becomes.
Finish the Story
One person begins a story with a single sentence.
“Once upon a time, a dinosaur got onto the motorway.”
The next person adds another sentence.
Then the next person continues.
Nobody knows where the story is going.
After ten minutes, the dinosaur may be driving a bus to Scotland while being chased by a giant chicken.
That's the point.
This is particularly good when you have children of different ages because everyone can contribute.
Fortunately, Unfortunately
This is another storytelling game.
The first person says:
“Fortunately, we found a treasure map.”
The next person says:
“Unfortunately, the map was inside a crocodile's mouth.”
Then:
“Fortunately, the crocodile was asleep.”
Then:
“Unfortunately, Dad sneezed.”
Continue alternating between good and bad events.
Children usually become increasingly ridiculous as the story develops.
The Yes and No Game
Choose one person to answer questions.
Everyone else tries to make them say “yes” or “no”.
“Is your name Oliver?”
“Do you like pizza?”
“Are we in a car?”
The person answering must avoid the forbidden words.
They might respond:
“That's my name.”
“I love pizza.”
“We certainly are.”
Set a time limit.
If they survive one minute without saying yes or no, they win.
This is surprisingly difficult.
Don't Say the Word
Choose a common word that nobody is allowed to say for ten minutes.
For example:
car
yes
mum
road
holiday.
Everyone deliberately tries to trick each other into saying it.
If somebody uses the forbidden word, they lose a point.
Choose words that are likely to appear naturally in conversation.
Categories
Choose a category and take turns naming something that belongs to it.
For example:
Animals.
Lion.
Tiger.
Elephant.
Giraffe.
Nobody can repeat an answer.
Continue until somebody can't think of another.
Try:
countries
football clubs
foods
films
car manufacturers
dinosaurs
sea creatures
theme-park rides
things found in a kitchen.
Older children can handle much narrower categories.
Name Five
Give somebody a category.
“Name five animals beginning with S.”
“Name five countries in Europe.”
“Name five things you take to the beach.”
They have ten seconds.
Counting down dramatically makes the game much more entertaining.
Adapt the difficulty according to age.
The Rhyming Game
Say a word.
“Cat.”
The next person needs a rhyme.
“Hat.”
Then:
“Bat.”
Continue until nobody can think of another.
Choose another word and begin again.
For younger children, don't worry about perfect rhymes.
The objective is entertainment rather than an English examination.
Word Association
One person says a word.
“Beach.”
The next person immediately says something connected with it.
“Sand.”
Then:
“Castle.”
“Knight.”
“Horse.”
The chain can move in completely unexpected directions.
You can either allow unlimited thinking time or make everyone answer within three seconds.
Guess the Song
Hum a song without singing the words.
Everyone else tries to identify it.
Children's songs work well for younger passengers.
Older children can choose current music, film themes or television programmes.
If humming proves impossible, allow “la la la”.
This game can quickly demonstrate that some members of the family are significantly better singers than others.
Finish the Song
One person sings the beginning of a familiar song and suddenly stops.
Another passenger has to continue with the next line.
Use nursery rhymes for young children and popular songs for older ones.
Remember that the driver's primary job is driving rather than performing an entire musical.
Family Quiz
Create a quiz during the journey.
You don't need to prepare anything.
Ask questions appropriate to your children's ages.
“What is the capital of France?”
“How many legs does a spider have?”
“What planet do we live on?”
“What animal is the tallest in the world?”
Children can then ask the adults questions.
This often becomes much more competitive than expected.
Destination Quiz
Make the questions relate to where you're going.
If you're visiting a castle:
“What did knights wear?”
If you're visiting a zoo:
“Which is faster, a cheetah or a lion?”
If you're visiting a science museum:
“What planet is closest to the Sun?”
This can build excitement before arriving.
Guess How Long Until We Arrive
Everyone predicts the arrival time.
The driver can provide a rough estimate from the navigation system without revealing the exact answer.
Whoever guesses closest wins.
For long journeys, repeat the competition after each major stop.
This can also help older children understand journey times.
Motorway Services Challenge
Before a long motorway journey, ask everyone to predict something you'll see at the next service station.
A dog.
A coach.
A red car.
Someone eating chips.
A family with a pushchair.
When you arrive, see whose predictions were correct.
It adds a little entertainment to an otherwise ordinary break.
Spot the County
For journeys around Britain, see how many counties children can identify from road signs, destinations and landmarks.
Older children can keep a list.
On long road trips, this becomes a simple geography lesson without feeling like one.
You can do the same with towns and cities.
Holiday Bingo
Create bingo cards before travelling.
Include things you're likely to see:
tractor
motorbike
bridge
horse
church
wind turbine
caravan
river
castle
sheep
yellow car
ambulance
service station.
Children cross off items as they spot them.
The first person to complete a row wins.
For younger children, use pictures rather than words.
The Quiet Game
Every parent's favourite.
Who can stay completely silent the longest?
No talking.
No noises.
No deliberately making somebody else laugh.
The last person remaining silent wins.
Will this occupy the children for the next two hours?
Probably not.
But even three minutes can feel surprisingly peaceful.
Games for Toddlers
Keep car games very simple for children aged roughly two to four.
Good choices include:
spotting colours
animal noises
finding lorries
counting buses
simple I Spy using colours
singing nursery rhymes
spotting animals in fields
finding tractors.
Don't expect a toddler to follow complicated rules for long.
Switch games frequently.
Five minutes of entertainment is still useful.
Games for Primary-School Children
Children aged around five to eleven have the widest selection.
Try:
I Spy.
Alphabet Game.
20 Questions.
Would You Rather?
Memory Game.
Number Plate Game.
Categories.
Car Bingo.
Guess the Animal.
Story games.
At this age, children can also begin creating their own games.
Let them invent the rules occasionally.
Games for Teenagers
Teenagers may initially respond to the phrase “family car game” with understandable suspicion.
Make the games more competitive.
Try:
music quizzes
Would You Rather?
general knowledge
number-plate phrases
20 Questions
guess the celebrity
spotting unusual cars
geography challenges.
Allow teenagers to create quizzes using their phones for everyone else, provided they're passengers.
You may be surprised how quickly adults become competitive.
Don't Play Games That Distract the Driver
Car games are supposed to make journeys easier, not more dangerous.
The driver needs to concentrate on the road.
Avoid games requiring the driver to look at phones, read cards, search for objects away from the road or repeatedly turn around.
Passengers can handle scoring and spotting.
If children become extremely noisy or argumentative, stop the game.
Safety comes first.
Mix Games with Other Entertainment
You don't need to play games continuously.
For a long journey, divide the time.
Perhaps start with conversation.
Then play a game.
Listen to an audiobook.
Stop at a service station.
Watch something for a while.
Play another game.
Have a snack.
Alternating activities makes the journey feel shorter.
It also prevents children becoming bored with one form of entertainment.
Let the Journey Become Part of the Day Out
Parents often think of the car journey as something that must be endured before the fun begins.
It doesn't have to be.
Some of the funniest family memories can happen while travelling.
A ridiculous story.
A completely impossible round of Would You Rather?
A fierce competition to spot the first Lamborghini.
An alphabet game that takes 40 miles because nobody can find the letter Q.
Car games give families something increasingly rare: time to talk and laugh together without needing much else.
And when somebody eventually asks:
“Are we nearly there yet?”
You can always begin another round of I Spy.