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Rooooooad Trip!
Classic "car games" for kids
Alphabetical Trip
One person starts with the letter "A" and says, "I'm going on a trip, and I'm going to bring ____ " and names something that begins with the letter "A." The next person repeats what the first person said, and adds something that starts with a "B." The next repeats what they said, but adds a "C" item, and so on until someone can't remember the whole list. For small children, don't repeat and just let them add a new item that is the next letter of the alphabet.
License Plate Spelling Game
Select a car from a distance that you are about to pass. Everyone attempts to make a word from the 3 letters on the plate. The word must begin with the first letter, have the second letter in the middle, and end in the last letter. Longest word wins the total of the number of numbers on the license plate... if they add it right.
Variation for older kids: words must have 2 or more syllables. They must multiply the numbers on the plate together to get the score.
Variation for little kids: have the alphabet in upper case printed out before you go. They just have to try to find each letter.
Early reader: Has to come up with a word that either starts with the first letter, or has the middle letter in it, or ends in the last letter.
States
Print out a copy of a map of the USA (or other map) for each player. Leave your own state white. Color the states that border your state yellow, the states that border those states orange, the next out red, the next purple, and all the rest blue.
Look for cars with out-of-state license plates. The scoring goes as follows:
1 pt - Yellow
2 pt - Orange
4 pt - Red
6 pt - Purple
8 pt - Blue
Hawaii and Alaska are 10 points, unless you live there. Hawaiians and Alaskans get 10 points for Florida and Maine.
Only the first person to spot an out-of-state license plate gets the points for that sighting. They must find a license from another state before they can get any more points from the state they just found.
You can decide ahead of time when the game will end. Set a time limit and whoever has the most by then wins. Or set a point limit, and the winner is first to get that many points. Or as soon as one person has 10 sightings, scores are added, and highest score is the winner.
Counting Cows
Teams on left and right side of the car count cows throughout the day on their side of the car, while trying to distract the other team from actually seeing any cows on their side. If you pass a cemetery (or boat) on your side of the car, you lose all your cow points.... provided the other team sees the cemetery (or boat) and catches you! Variation: seeing a white horse after a cemetery (or boat) and you get your lost points back. Winning side gets whatever they want to eat at the next stop.
Hug Bug
If you see a Volkswagen "bug" you get to give one other person in the car a hug... or throw them a kiss. It's much more soothing than the "punch bug" version we grew up with.
Twenty Questions
"It" thinks of a person, place or thing and announces they are ready. Others ask questions that can be answered by "yes" or "no" by "It." With strict rules, only 20 questions may be asked. "It" keeps track on his fingers and wins if the others can't guess it.
The Theme Song Game — Just silly & fun
One person hums the tune to a favorite TV show. The one who guesses does the next song.
Surprise Packages
Prepare ahead with paper bags of items to be given out every 25, 50 or 75 miles — marked on a map with the location. It takes a little bit of preparation to do this but it REALLY helps young children, and the bigger kids will get a kick out their "surprises" too. In each bag put a wrapped item — usually a small toy. Then in some of the surprise packages you can add juice or a snack, stickers and a piece of paper, or something pertaining to the trip that you can talk about.
Travel Tickets
Use some colored construction paper to cut out some "tickets" for your trip. Give your child a pre-counted baggie full of tickets. Every half hour (or every 30 miles) they can turn in one ticket to you. When their tickets are gone, the trip has ended! This really helps young children get an idea of how much time is left on the journey.
Pipe Cleaners
Pack a new bag of multi-colored pipe cleaners (about $1 or so) and let their creativity run wild. They can make letters, flowers, animals, chains, jewelry, twist ties in their hair, practice braiding, and by the end, just make balls of many colors.
Have a Puppet Show
Do the show in the car, in the hotel, or anywhere. Kids love puppets! Break up the monotony by having your puppet "tell" the kids what's coming up next on the trip. If they won't listen to you, maybe they'll listen to a silly puppet. Then give them a chance to each have their own puppet to "talk" to each other.
Give Your Kids an Allowance for the Day
Tell them that this money is for snacks, treats, souvenirs etc... but when it is gone, that is all there is. Help them learn to budget their money and make good choices.
Let Your Children Have a Map
Give your kids an opportunity to have their own copy of a map of where you are going. Show them how far you have come, how much further there is to go and let them mark it with a crayon. Every time they ask "How much further?” have them take out their map and see for themselves. You might also like to get a compass and show them how it works along with the map. You can buy wall maps, travel maps and travel guides. You can also try a Kids' Road Atlas if you are going to be traveling across several states!
Kids who are old enough to read can help navigate with AAA's TripTik Travel Planner. You can use this site to print driving directions along with a list of all the food, fuel and hotel options at every exit along your route. When they start getting hungry or need a break, have them check the list of what is available at upcoming exits!
MAKE a "map" of Where You Are Going
Draw your own map that has the major stops and cities, and a nice happy drawing for your final destination. Throw in a few simple drawings of landmarks you'll see along the way, such as a big bridge or a mountain tunnel. A home-made map is easy for kids to follow and gives them a clearer picture of how much further there is to go. If your kids are old enough and it's a trip that you take frequently, have the kids make their own map!
Have Bubble Gum Blowing Contests
The weirder the gum the better. Get it at the rest areas and try all the different flavors.
Make a Trip Journal or Scrapbook
Give everyone a big spiral-bound sketch pad and a box of crayons or markers. Each day of the trip or for each event along the way, draw a picture of what you did, or draw a map of where you went, and write about it. You can also paste in souvenirs such as brochures, ticket stubs and other momentos. This is especially good for trips lasting more than a day.
The Rainbow Game
Call out a color and they have to find something that color. Make the older kids find five things while the 2 year old looks for one. Pink and purple are the hardest!
The Wildlife Game
On road trips through the West, the sighting of a fox, hawk, snake or coyote are all worth 25 cents. It's 50 cents for sighting an eagle. A bear or mountain lion would be worth $1.00. Deer and elk are usually worth 25 cents, but be careful in Evergreen or Estes Park — it could get expensive! This really helps kids focus on the passing scenery instead of just the video games.
We Want Your Ideas! 
Have a fun car game or snack idea we can add to the list? Send an email to webmaster@colorado.aaa.com or submit your ideas online.
Our updated list will be posted on the TripTik Travel Planner page on aaa.com.
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