FREE CAR GAMES
Car trips can be fun... even with yucky baby sis or bro along. Just play some of these games and you'll see.
"21" (Ages 5 to 12)
Players must find the numbers 1 to 21 in that order on the license plates of passing cars. Each license plate can be used by only one player, and players can use only one number from each license plate. When a player spots a number, he must say it out loud. The first person to reach 21, wins.
Older kids can add up the numbers on the license plates to get a different number. For example, if a license plate says VHS 543, besides claiming 5, 4, or 3, she can say 9 (5+4), 7 (4+3), 8 (5+3), or 12 (5+4+3).
The Alphabet Game (Ages 5 to 8)
Players try to find the letters of the alphabet in order by looking at passing license plates, billboards, road signs, and all other signage. The first person to complete the alphabet wins.
Fifty States (Ages 6 to 12)
At home each player makes a list of the 50 states. Once on the road, players try to spot license plates from all 50 states. When a player spots a plate from a certain state, he alone - and no one else - can mark it off. (States on the US mainland are worth 1 point each). Alaska and Hawaii are hard to find (unless you're there), so can be worth 5 points each). The person with the most points by the end of the trip wins.
License Plate Game (Ages 6 to 12)
Kids need a map for this one. Before starting the trip, the players choose a starting point and a final destination on a map. While on the road, each player tries to spot a license plate from the starting point, and after this, one from a bordering state that is on his route. Each player continues to find license plates from states that are next to the one previous, until reaching the final destination. The first person to finish or the person who gets closest to the final destination by the end of the road trip wins.
Name that Tune (Ages 6 to 12)
Does your family like music? One player thinks of a song that everybody knows and hums its first few notes. The other players try to guess the name of the song. If they can't guess, the first player keeps humming more notes in the song until someone comes up with the right answer. There are no winners or losers in this game; it ends when everybody gets bored.
Scavenger Hunt (Ages 6 to 8)
Before going on a road trip, players make a list of ten things they can do in the car. For example, a list might include passing three cows, finding a red billboard, holding one's breath through a tunnel, hearing a favorite song on the radio, finding two out-of-state license plates, getting a trucker to honk, passing five people in hats, crossing a bridge, passing a car with a dog in it, and getting three green lights in a row. The first person to accomplish everything listed wins.
