Estimated reading time: 10 minutes
Car journeys can be stressful for parents. Especially if their children get bored, agitated, and start to complain or cause problems in the car! This leaves many parents thinking;” how can I entertain my child on these car journeys?”
To help answer this question, I have listed below 12 different ways parents can entertain children on car journeys! These are a combination of ideas that I either used to enjoy myself as a child, currently use myself as a parent or are excellent ideas I have seen other parents use. I hope they are useful!
1. Back Seat Movies
In the technological age we are in, it is hard to ignore the opportunities mobile phones, tablet devices and the like, present when thinking about how to entertain your child on car journeys.
So what better way to use them than turning the back of your car into your child’s very own movie theatre! This could be done by having a mobile/tablet device, headphones and maybe even a blanket to watch it under, to create the full cinema experience! However, do consider if they are able to hold and operate the device themselves for a long period of time.
If operating the mobile/tablet is an issue, you could try more of a creative idea…
As I have a young toddler, if I were to give her a phone or tablet, the chances of a movie or TV programme staying on without her accidently turning it off, are slim to none! Therefore, we instead put the device in a clear, plastic bag and hang the device from the head rest of front passenger seat. This way, the device is hanging down in front of the child like a mini TV, they are unable to touch it and turn it off and your child is free to enjoy movie time!
Have you read: 10 Tips for Support Children with Autism
2. Car Colour Game
This was one of my favourite games to play in the car when I was younger. As technology wasn’t really available for car journeys back then, my parents would rely on playing games to entertain us for car journeys.
The car colour game is simple. Each person in the car picks a colour that they think will be a popular colour for cars. Once picked, the competition begins! You keep score of how many cars pass you with your chosen colour. Everyone is competing with each other, and it is a great way to keep your children focused and entertained.
You can add your own rules to the game. For example, our main rule was the car had to pass our car directly, it did not count if the car turned off before it passed. Also, if your car or the car with your chosen colour is stationary, it cannot be counted. These little rules add some extra layers of fun, or to quote Monica from the TV show Friends, the rules “help control the fun!”.
It may sound simple, but often when I played this game with my brothers, we would end up with scores like 145 vs 120 vs 118. We would play for hours!
Have you read: 7 Ways Parents Can Deal With Sibling Rivalries
3. Guess the Theme Tune
This game can be fun for the whole family. However, you will need some one to be the DJ and pick the theme tunes!
Again, the game is simple. A theme tune from popular TV/Films that the children watch is played out loud in the car. The first person to shout out the answer gets a point. Each person is only allowed to guess once per theme tune. So if you get it wrong first time, you cannot answer again.
When thinking about how to entertain your child on a car journey, this idea can be equally as entertaining for the adults as well!
4. Bingo!
Car journey bingo is a great way to keep your children entertained during a long car journey. The game involves creating a list of things you may see on your journey. It is the child’s job to tick these things off as you go on your journey.
You can play this game just for fun, or make it competitive amongst the family, even having prizes as you go along to keep the children entertained. Car journey bingo is a great game to adapt and be creative with, with the added benefit for parents to keep their child entertained for potentially the full car journey!
Have you read: Why to Avoid Using Repeated Warnings/Threats With Your Children
5. Favourite Toys
For children of a certain age, having their favourite toys or items in the car is an almost guaranteed way of keeping your child entertained on car journeys.
It could be their stuffed animals, toy cars or their favourite TV characters. Whatever it is, consider packing a little treasure trove full of their favourite toys. You could bring them along as a surprise to the child. They can be utilised when the child becomes fussy or agitated. Alternatively, you could ask your child to pack the toys themselves, so they can pick out their favourites.
It is a simple suggestion, but sometimes the simple ideas work the best!
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6. Drawing Pads
If you child has a creative eye, using colouring books, drawing pads or even drawing apps for tablet devices, can occupy your child for a long time on car journeys.
Speaking from personal experience, our daughter loves colouring and drawing. She can spend well over an hour sat at a table colouring in or drawing on paper. However, the barrier with doing so in the car can be that constant movement and motion on the journey can make some children unwell or make it difficult to colour or draw accurately. Therefore, I personally think I would lean more towards using a tablet device for such an activity.
But I suppose this all depends on the child, the journey and what you have access to.
Have you read: 5 Steps to Deal With Your Child’s Emotional Behaviour
7. Karaoke
For many families, a collective singalong or karaoke session is the sign of a good car journey. However, this is certainly not the case for me! Nobody wants to hear my singing.
But what I can acknowledge, is that for long car journeys, finding the right soundtrack or playlist, can make or break the trip! So when picking the playlist, why not pick one that can incorporate something that the children can enjoy and join in with?
Karaoke can be used to break up a journey and may just be something you dip in an out of. It can also help some hyperactive children burn off some energy through their singing!
Have you read: Why You Need to “Catch Your Kids Being Good”
8. Eye Spy
The classic car journey game. For many, it is the tried and tested car game to play on a car journey, so I couldn’t miss it out. It is a game that I am sure needs no explanation. However, if you aren’t aware, the game involves a person identifying something they see, by only announcing the first letter of the thing they have seen. Everyone else has to guess what it is. If you are looking for how to entertain your child on a car journey, don’t forget…sometimes the classics are the best.
If you want to keep the children guessing for a long period of time, try using my favourite Eye Spy pick for car journeys:
Eye spy with my little eye, something beginning with R. You can see them both inside and outside the car, no matter where you go or where you are. Any idea what it is?
The answer is…reflections! Nobody has ever guessed it! People tell me that’s cheating, I just think I’m too clever for them! Is it genius or ridiculous? Let me know in the comments.
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9. Word Association Game
Another game that can be played in the car, is the word association game. The idea behind this is that you start with a single word and then each take a turn going around, saying the first word that comes into your head. You cannot hesitate or repeat words that have already been said. If you do either, you are eliminated. You are the winner when you are the last person standing (or sitting in this case)!
It can be a fun game to play for all and a game that everyone can join in with. A perfect family activity and something parents can use to entertain their children on car journeys.
Have you read: 5 Reasons Why Parents Need to Work Together and 3 Easy Ways of Doing So
10. Snacks and Treats
Whilst it is not a game or activity, having some tactical snacks or treats handy is another way for parents to entertain their child on car journeys. Adults are no different (well I know I’m certainly not), if we are going on a long car journey, snacks/treats and drinks are a must! So having some snacks ready, can be a big help for parents, especially if their child is getting restless or is in need of distraction.
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11. Taking Breaks
With all long trips, it is advised that regular breaks are taken. This is for the benefit of the driver, but it can also benefit any children coming along on the journey.
Planning in breaks along the way gives everyone the chance to stretch their legs, burn off energy and helps them reset for the next part of the journey.
You be creative with your breaks by giving the children a map so they can track progress and see how much closer they are getting to stopping. Alternatively, you could allow your child to have a say in where you break or how often your take a break. Either way, taking a break helps your children be more settled throughout the trip. In turn, this makes it easier for parents to entertain the children throughout the rest of the car journey.
Have you read: 10 Simple Activities to Help Bond With Your Child
12. The Quiet Game
Finally, this idea is for all the parents who just need a break and some peace and quiet in the car. My parents used to use this game all the time with me and my brothers.
The quiet game is simple, everyone must remain quiet and the first person to speak loses. It may sound ridiculous, but my brothers and I would be so competitive, that we would sit quietly in the car for over half an hour. Staring intently at each other, waiting for someone to make a noise. It may only give you a small bit of peace as a parent on the car journey, but even so, if you can both entertain your children, as well as them being perfectly quiet at the same time…is this not the perfect option?
Feel free to share your own ideas for other parents in the comments below!
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I’m sure any parents reading this will be so grateful for the hints, tips and advice here; I can imagine keeping children entertained during car journeys and road trips is quite tricky sometimes (especially with young ones). Thanks for sharing!
Thank you Molly!
Eye spy is good game to spy. It allows children to observe their environment and use different vocabulary words.
100% right, it is a great tool for learning!
My parents did all these when I was a kid. Alhamdulillah, traveling was easy.
What an ace post! Some really great ways to keep everyone entertained on car journeys, not just kids! The car colour game was a favourite of mine when I was younger too… and spotting Eddie Stobart lorries! 🙂 Sim
Thank you Sim! Haha the Eddie Stobart lorries yes!!! Like you suggest…I think I would still enjoy these games as an adult ha!
this is a super good list~! I’m sure many people will really appreciate these tips. I remember my parents allowed us to buy ONE new tape (yes it was the 80s) that we could listen to on the car trip. Surprisingly, that kept us busy and no one else needed to hear us replay the same song 10 times. 😀 Also, we had lots of coloring books, etc. This is a great post super helpful!
Thank you Andrea!
When I was a child, I love to sing in the car with my parents. I also loved to read books.
We love the car color game! My daughter makes up different patterns to search for to make it more interesting. We also try to figure out what the license plates say. Thank you for sharing!
Yes, the license plate game is another great one haha!
These are some interesting ideas for keeping the kids entertained while traveling. I wish I would have had some of these ideas when my kids were growing up.