Game ideas to entertain your children during car trips

Planning your trip home for Christmas? With a rental car or your own vehicle, you’re likely to travel many miles just to enjoy a few days of festive joy with your family. You might be content to spend that time in the car singing along to the radio or listening to your favorite podcast, but you can bet the kids won’t be. They’ll get bored, and very quickly!

To avoid boredom (and any possible tears or tantrums), we suggest a few games and activities for you all to play on your long journey home this Christmas.

For fans of Carpool Karaoke, listen to your favorite Christmas tunes

Do you have teenagers who watch Carpool Karaoke? Try organizing one yourself by making a list of your family’s favorite festive songs to sing along to while driving. You could even have a little competition and turn it into an X Factor-style contest, seeing who sings most in tune or who remembers the lyrics best. Mariah Carey, anyone?

Do you like simple, classic games? I Spy is for you

An old game, but hard to beat, I Spy is a great way to entertain the younger ones and all family members. If they’re competitive, they’ll also want to join in the action. Now we all know how to start. But the real challenge is finding something difficult to spy with your little eye. You could even theme the game to make it more interesting! Something that starts with S – Santa’s Sleigh, anyone?

Try the alphabet game with kids who have just learned the alphabet

Little ones who have just started school can have fun while practicing the alphabet with the alphabet game, which has the same principles as Categories. It’s super easy to play and should also spark their imagination. Just choose a category (how about animals, food, or Christmas?) and then start with the letter A and continue through the alphabet until someone stumbles on a letter.

If you want to challenge their musical side, try humming that tune…

You won’t need to turn on the radio or any pre-set playlist for this Christmas car game. To play, just start humming the first lines of your favorite festive songs or carols. The winner is the one who guesses the song first the most times during the game.

Want to encourage your kids to take a nap? Turn on an audiobook

Does noise distract you when driving? Discover the beauty of the audiobook. There are thousands of different stories that will capture your children’s attention and hopefully send them to dreamland…

You can choose traditional fairy tales or stick with the festive theme by finding audio versions of charming Christmas stories.

And if you really want some peace, play the silence game

Sometimes this is essential for those super long trips. Do you have kids who are competitive but a bit noisy? Now is the time to really challenge them. Who can stay the quietest the longest?

Create a bingo board for your Christmas car trip

Roadtrip bingo is a great way to keep kids attentive to things outside the window while you drive. And all it takes is a little super easy planning before jumping in the car.

All you have to do is create bingo boards for everyone before leaving home, adding objects or landmarks instead of numbers in the grids. The first person to complete a whole line wins the game. You can even add some Christmas items like a Christmas tree or someone dressed as Santa Claus, you’re sure to see a couple of them on your festive journey.

Look for yellow cars for a game that will last the whole trip

This game will keep the kids on the lookout for yellow cars for hours! All they have to do is look out the window and keep track of how many yellow cars they see on the trip. The person who sees the most before reaching their destination is the winner.

When was the last time you saw a yellow car? Exactly. We heard a rumor that Santa’s elves often travel in yellow cars. Imagine if the kids saw one of those. They’d be thrilled.

Want a game that both kids and adults will love? Play 20 questions

Want to involve the whole family? Everyone will get on board with this car game. To play, someone chooses a famous or fictional character in their head and must answer up to 20 yes or no questions. The person who guesses the famous character first will be the next one. Why not make it Christmas-themed by allowing only characters from festive movies or stories? “Am I a jolly man in a big red suit?” Yes, of course, you’re Santa Claus!

Want more inspiration for Christmas trips? Discover our expert tips on how to drive home for Christmas, plus some magical ideas on where to go in Europe for fantastically festive experiences.