Remember when everyone actually talked during long car rides — you know, before portable DVD players and iPads?
I do, and that’s the kind of road trip I’m determined to have with my own son. In fact, I can’t wait to teach him some of the fun car games I grew up with. (Yes, he’s just a baby, so I have a little time to plan, but still…).
I was the master of Road Trip Bingo, so I am sure he will be a natural at that one. But, there are so many other cool games that we can play, from some variation of “I Spy” to activity boards that we can DIY together before our trip. I’m getting inspired with this round-up of fun car games. Check it out and try a few during your next road trip!
Felt sets are great for the car, because they are soft, easily contained, and stick together (so they don't make a big mess). With this one, your kids can play ice cream shop in the back seat. See the project on At Home With Natalie This is an awesome little set for an "I Spy" game. Give the kiddos a set of alphabet cards and have them race to see who can find an object that matches all the letters first! See the project on Handmade Charlotte Take the volume down in the back seat with these little fabric mazes, which are a great quiet time activity. Sew them together, and then let your littles track a marble through the fabric maze. See the project on Twin Dragonfly Designs All you need is a long piece of wool and you can teach your kids all of the classic finger string games. Cat's Cradle and Jacob's Ladder were a couple of my favourites. See the project on If You Love To Read I love when people turn small candy or mint tins into travel games. This one uses magnets and buttons to create a tiny checkers game. See the project on A Girl and A Glue Gun Pre-make a bunch of paper doll kits, and the kids can make a whole paper fashion show in the backseat. See the project on Grey Luster Girl This is a cute little booklet of questions, all about Disney. If you run out, or don't want to bring a little booklet, you can always make up the questions on the fly. See the project on One She Two She Here's a crafty way to use cotton buds. This tutorial teaches you to make three fun travel games using supplies from your medicine cabinet. See the project on PBS Kids These beautifully designed cards make an awesome little travel game. Everyone picks a card and the first person to spot their item on the road wins that round. Alternatively, you can print out two copies and play Go Fish with a travel theme! See the project on The Art of Simple This creative activity takes tangrams to the next level, with kids creating intricate patterns and shapes using magnets. Plus, it is all in a self-contained book. See the project on Say Yes Have your littles work on their visual recognition skills by making mini matching games out of stickers. See the project on Tinker Lab Build them a mini lego workstation by turning a tin lunchbox into a travel lego kit. They can build their creations right onto the lid. See the project on Mama Papa Bubba Another variation of an "I Spy" game, Road Trip Bingo has you print out bingo cards and mark off what you see along the road. First person to see all the items in a row wins. And, with this version you can keep it all together with magnetic buttons and pie tins. See the project on Rhapsody of Cacophony Help your toddler work on her handiwork by giving her a button snake. She can train her little fingers to get all of the flowers over the button and onto the snake. See the project on Kids Activities Blog This is an awesome round-up of all the verbal games you can play in the car, from I Spy to License Plate Hunts. See the project on This Reading Mama This is a great game to help your littles learn their colours and work on their matching skills. Give them a stack of paint chips and a bag of matching pegs and let them work out the puzzle. See the project on One Little Project Turn some craft sticks into building blocks with a little bit of velcro. Then let your kids make shapes in the backseat. See the project on Desert Chica I Spy bags can keep a kid busy for hours. They get a picture with all the items in the bag and then have to move the rice around to find everything on their list. See the project on Things For Boys A great way to help kids learn their letters, take some paper plates and write the alphabet around the edges. Then when your kid finds a word that starts with that letter, he can fold down the letter. See the project on No Time For Flash Cards This is a roundup of a bunch of different friendship bracelet braiding techniques. Give the kids some thread and let them make as many as they want. See the project on BuzzFeed Rubber bands and small peg boards make for a fun shapes game. You can give them specific shapes to make, or they can just be creative. See the project on Testy Yet Trying Mini magnetic fishing game! So cool and clever. See the project on Doodle Craft Blog These easy to make puzzles are great for littles and are super easy to store and travel with. See the project on Motherhood On A Cent These sewing card templates are adorable and will make them yearn for summer to come around again. See the project on Kids Activities Blog Make some magnetic peg dolls to play with. Have the kids help you design them and then they can play with their mini family on the drive. See the project on Buzzmills Mini memory game can be great fun, and if you use magnets, you can play on a cookie sheet in the backseat and never lose a piece. See the project on Dandee Designs These brilliant file folder packs from Mr. Printables put really fun games all inside a single file folder. Print them out and your kids will love them. See the project on Mr. Printables Take your favourite board games on the road with you. Print out the mini board games and use magnets for pieces. If you need dice, put them in a tupperware container and you can roll them without losing them in the backseat. See the project on Choose To Thrive Keep your kids doodling with a to-go container of crayons and sticky notes. See the project on Family Fresh Meals Kids will love playing with a little tin bedroom set. It's like a DIY Polly Pocket! See the project on Tea Rose Home One more felt game for the road, these memory game pieces are great for travel. Felt tends to stick together well, so the pieces won't go flying everywhere on a sharp turn. See the project on Kids Activities Blog
Ice Cream Felt Board Activity Set
The Great Alphabet Race
DIY Fabric Maze
Cat's Cradle
Checkers Tin
Paper Doll Kits
Would You Rather?
cotton bud Travel Games
Printable Travel Game
DIY Magnetic Patterns Book
Matching Sticker Game
Portable Lego Kit
Pie Tin Bingo
Felt Flower Button Snake
Car Games Roundup
Paint Swatch Game
Velcro Crafts Sticks
I Spy Bag
Learning Letters Plates
Friendship Bracelets
Geoboards with Patterns
Magnetic Fishing Game
Craft Stick Puzzles
Sewing Cards
Magnetic Peg People
Miniature Memory Game
File Folder Games
Travel Board Games
DIY Travel Colouring Case
Tiny Tin Bedroom
Felt Memory Game
More ways to play: