If you are looking for an electronic free car ride on your next family road trip, I got you covered.
Road trips are a great way to build strong family connections. Plan the trip entertainment well and you can start making memories before you even arrive.
Screen free entertainment isn’t just for young kids, these ideas would be great for adults as well. These activities also allow for the driver to participate in the fun!
You do not have to be screen free to
Magnetic Travel Games
There are a lot of sets of magnetic games available online. My favorites are TicTacToe and Checkers.
Grab a few of these magnetic games and play with your family.
If you want to make it more exciting, create a bracket style game tournament.
Many of these games have a lot of small pieces, so I would store them in a drawstring bag or gallon sized ziploc so the pieces can be contained.
Read Aloud
Audio books are a very popular way to stay entertained on the road, but if you want to completely avoid electronics, try reading aloud to one another.
Pass the book around and enjoy the story together.
May I suggest:
Sarah Plain and Tall
All of a Kind Family
A Wrinkle in Time
If you want more suggestions there is no one better than Read Aloud Revival. This site will have book suggestions for interests and age levels. You could also join some Facebook groups and get LOTS of book suggestions.
Knit or Crochet
Teach everyone to make Granny Squares and then you can piece them all together later to create a family blanket!
I love this idea because it is easy to just do a few squares over time and it will make a great memory for the trip.
Here is a simple tutorial if you have never done a granny square:
Finger Looms
If knitting and crocheting is too complex for your family, try finger looms.
We grew up driving 12 hours to Maine every year and we used to create massive chains of finger loom loops.
It is very easy to learn to knit with finger looms and they are very inexpensive. If you grab this bag of green loops you could throw it up as a garland.
These are the loops that can be used to make pot holders on a loom. Be careful to store these away from little feet.
Pass the Story
This game is where someone starts telling a story then stops abruptly, another person picks up the story where the other person left off.
My family loves this game, but my kids are very young. I think this is great for the elementary aged crowd.
This game can be adapted for older players by creating a theme or starting with a problem and have each player try to solve the problem.
This card game would be great if you can keep all those little cards organized in the car.
Family Journal
We keep a blank notebook to record family memories and experiences.
Everyone in the family can write in the journal and everyone is encouraged to add memories or thoughts that they had on the family trip.
I like this for the trip home.
Pass around the notebook and ask everyone to write a bit about the trip from their perspective. This is a great way to keep a record of your family adventures and a beautiful thing to look back on. It also gives everyone a chance to share their thoughts and experience. Great communication builder.
This is my favorite thing we do and I wish we did it more often.
I use this notebook to record birth stories, family memories and struggles. This is the alternative to baby books in my house.
Telephone Pictionary
Telephone Pictuionary is a great game to play in the car! Grab some clip boards from Dollar Tree so everyone has a writing surface.
Each player starts by writing a simple sentence at the top of a piece of paper. They pass the paper to the next player and the second player draws a picture of the sentence then folds the paper to hide the original sentence.
The paper is then passed to the third player who tries to guess the original sentence then folds the paper to cover the drawing.
The paper is passed to the fourth player who draws a picture of the new sencance.
So it is like telephone and pictionary combined.
I love this game, give it a try.
Epic Playlist
A road trip playlist is a classic way to entertain yourself on a long drive.
How about posting a list of songs on the fridge and let everyone add their favorites.
The goal is for everyone to share their favorite songs, you can get to know each of your passengers a bit more.
Write a Book
This is for the ambitious families only.
Grab a blank notebook or two and write out a story. Work together to brainstorm the outline, describe the main characters, setting and conflict.
This conversation could be deep and interesting.
Imagine the imaginary world of the characters and start getting a big picture and meaty details of a story, then start writing.
If you enjoy this you can post the book on Amazon and maybe fund you next vacation!
I know this one is a bit out there and not for everyone, but it could be a really cool memory and you may even sell a few copies if you are into that.
Spelling Bee
This could be a fun event for passengers of all ages.
Scripts has put out a Words of Champions resource that lists the official study guide for spelling bee champions.
Challenge your spouse, kids, or friends to spell these challenging words.
The words are leveled so you can keep score and give everyone points for the words they spell and have your own spelling bee in the car!
MASH and Fortune Tellers
Old fashioned Fortune Tellers and MASH games can be a great screen free way to entertain yourselves on a road trip.
If you like folding paper, other origami projects would also be a great skill to learn while rolling down the road.
If you never learned the art of the fortune teller, here is a video with great clear instructions:
Priorities and Ideas
Spending time together is the goal of most family vacations, so squeeze out some memories while on the drive as well.
I think these ideas would be engaging for a big range of ages. You may be surprised what sticks and what is interesting to your family.
We also like to keep magnetic drawing boards in the car for any longer drives. These are inexpensive and my kids really enjoy them.
I prefer them over a notebook for my small kids because they are neater and produce less waste.
I have an incredible mom friend who allows no paper in the back seat because her kids just love tearing it into tiny pieces and throwing it on the floor. These make a great drawing alternative.
I hope you are able to use some of these ideas on your next trip for yourself and your family.
