Some of my favorite memories with my family were spent on the road for a family adventure. Fortunately for me, those trips happened pretty often. The most memorable trip being with my great-grandmother, grandmother, and great aunt on a drive from Albany, NY to Colorado. It took us 7 days to get there because we only drove 4 hours each day and we needed to stop at every single rest stop on the way! It was QUITE an adventure, but fortunately, we had plenty of car games to play while on the road. Below are a few games that we played!

#1: Buzzword
At the beginning of your trip, hand everyone 10-20 paper clips (or anything else small, cheap and not delicious) and choose a buzzword.  After that point, that word is banned. If anyone in the car says that word, whoever catches them shouts “BUZZ!” and gets to STEAL one of their paper clips or other precious items. Whoever has the most of the selected item wins.

#2: Twenty Questions
This game is a classic! It’s pretty straightforward and is easy enough for children, even the little ones to play. Players take turns choosing a person, place, or thing. Everyone else has twenty “yes” or “no” questions to try and guess the word and whoever gets it right chooses the next word. Try to come up with a word no one can guess. But it has to be a REAL word. Grandma, I’m lookin’ at you.

#3: Would You Rather?
Would you rather eat nothing but broccoli for 1 year or have to walk ONLY backwards for 1 year? Jump into shark infested water or walk through a hallway of spider webs? Take turns making up absurd scenarios and having your fellow passengers answer them. Get weird with it! You will learn a lot about your friends.

#4: Counting Cows
When I was very small I lived in rural Connecticut. I can’t stress enough how very rural this area was so counting cows was a very popular thing to see on our car rides. If, however, you live in a less cow infested area you can pick something you plan to see a lot of during your drive such as cats, mailboxes, gardens or McDonald’s restaurants. Compete to see whether your chosen object appears more on the left or right side of your car.

#5: Expert
This is one of my favorite games. For 10 minutes, each person gets to be the expert on a topic of the other passenger’s choosing. None of the info you say has to be true, but you need to say it with confidence. Get funny. Be silly. That’s the best part!

#6: The License Plate Game
First, coming up with the list of 50 US states is a challenging game in an of itself. Once you get that ready you’re ready to play! Every time you see a car from a new state, cross it off your list. The game might start out easy, but try spotting an Arizona plate in New Hampshire! Hint: trucks often have tags from far-off states.

#7: The Alphabet Game
Here’s your sign. No really. Start by finding a sign containing a word beginning with the letter A. Then comes B, then C, and so on. Who will spot the word Xylophone? Or Quit? Or Zoo? Who’s to say!