The best non-technology road trip activities for kids. Note: This post contains affiliate links.
We inevitably have a lot of long days in the car on our trips and we don’t like our kids to be on the iPad or watching movies the entire time. Over the years we have found quite a few other activities to keep them (and us) entertained and occupied on those long days.
Here’s our list of 12 non-technology road trip activities for kids:
Note: This post contains affiliate links. We will receive a small compensation if you make a purchase using the affiliate links.
Audiobooks
Audiobooks are a great way to pass time while on the road. We normally pick some up at our local library. I have noticed they do tend to get picked over in the summer so you may need to reserve them a few weeks before your trip. View some of our favorite audiobooks in this post. If you can’t find any of these at your local library, I highly recommend trying the free trial of AMAZON AUDIBLE, as many of the books we suggest in our post can be listened to through Amazon Audible.
Usborne 100 Things for Little Children to Do on a Trip
Some friends bought these for us and our kids have loved them. They come with a marker/eraser but we lost ours so I replaced it with colored dry erase markers and they use a napkin or kleenex to erase.
Travel Scavenger Hunt Game for Kids
This is a fun card game to do on long car trips.
Hangman
I picked this Melissa and Doug one up at a garage sale and it has been a great addition to our non-technology road trip activities. We use the markers we have along for the Usborne cards.
Travel Bingo
We have these ever classic bingo cards, but they do get wrecked fairly easily. This Melissa and Doug one may be a good option if you want to spend a bit more. In fact, I may purchase these for our summer trip!
Alphabet Game
We also enjoy the good old fashioned alphabet game. Look for each letter of the alphabet starting with “a” on the signs and license plates you pass.
20 Questions
No explanation needed, but I linked to the rules just in case.
Podcasts
We have a list of our favorites in this post.
Mad Libs
My kids love making silly stories in the Mad Libs books, when they were younger we did Mad Libs Junior and they have now graduated to the regular Mad Libs books.
I Spy
“I spy something that is (insert color here).”
Tire Chalk Prize Bag
I remember one trip we went on when I was a kid, my mom used chalk and wrote each kid’s name on a section of the car tire (not sure how this would work if it rained, ha!). Whomever’s name was touching the pavement whenever we stopped got to choose a prize out of a bag. That was a really fun activity, I, for some reason, have never done this, perhaps because it requires extra preparation before the trip…
Music
And what road trip would be complete without some Psalty music? I still love listening to Psalty on our trips and so do the kids.
As you can see from this photo, we do let our kids have iPad time and watch some movies on our especially long days in the car, but we don’t want that to be all they are doing in the car.
What non-technology activities keep your kids busy on long car rides? Please leave a comment below, I would love some new ideas! Also, don’t miss our post on road trip packing tips.
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