Finding screen free road trip activities for kids can be damn near impossible. If you want to avoid screens on your next road trip, check out these activity alternatives!
First, there is nothing wrong with entertaining your kids with a screen while on a road trip – or anywhere at all, really. But if your kids are like mine (overly anxious, get car sick, etc) and can’t handle the screens for too long, then this post is for YOU.
Going on a long road trip can be exhausting. What’s even more exhausting is dealing with the screen hangover that comes with being in a car for hours and sitting on a screen. Or cleaning up puke because your kid can’t handle the screens and ends up losing their lunch in their car seat.
We have been on a few road trips so I wanted to share some of our favorite products and some cool products I’ve found while researching.
Disclaimer – I try my hardest to keep my kids the safest in the car. That being said, I do not use the trays that you can find on Amazon. It’s an extra thing attached to your seat and can become a projectile in the event of a crash. That is why I don’t recommend them.
Please also note that if you find yourself a victim of car sickness, please, please, please read your manual before washing your car seat! I cannot stress that enough.
How do you entertain kids on a road trip?
Besides tossing them a screen (which IS super helpful but some kids just can’t handle this), there are a lot of things to keep your kids’ attention during road trips. You have books, activity books, drawing pads, audibooks, coloring books, etc.
Road trip activities for kids
- Road trip activity printable
- Fidget toys
- LCD drawing tablet
- Activity books
- Bingo cards
- “50 Cool Things to do in the Car” game
- Magnetic hangman
- Minecraft Magnetic travel puzzle
- Guess in 10 game
- Wipe off games
- Matchbox cars
- Hidden picture books
- I Spy books
- “Would you rather” books
Road Trip Activity Printable
This road trip activity printable straight from my Etsy shop is 16 pages of activities for your kids ages 5 and up.
Activity books
My kids love these different activity books. You can find an activity book for literally any topic! We particularly love Unicorns and Harry Potter.
Bingo cards
These bingo cards are great for the car because you don’t need little markers that will fly all over the place. The markers are a part of the card and can’t go anywhere.
Fidget toys
Fidget toys are a huge hit in our house and especially on the road. They’re great for keeping kids’ hands busy in the car and when you stop for food and are waiting patiently for it. You can find groups of them geared towards many different interests – like sports and unicorns.
LCD drawing tablet
Drawing tablets are great for road trip activities because the pen is attached to the tablet and it isn’t a screen. Kids also have an endless amount of “paper” because they can draw and erase over and over again.
“50 Cool Things to do in the Car” game
This game is so neat. It is filled with 50 cards with different quick, fun, goofy activities you can easily do in the car.
Magnetic hangman
Magnets are the way to go with road trip activities. The letters and the little hangman stick right to the little board so you aren’t losing pieces.
Minecraft magnetic travel puzzle
Again with the magnets! Magnets can be total lifesavers on road trips with kids.
Guess in 10 game
We love these Guess in 10 games. They’re super simple and only require a few cards to be out at a time, making them perfect for road trips. It’s essentially 20 questions (but 10 questions) and each game is a different topic. Guess in 10 Animals is our favorite.
Wipe off games
Melissa & Doug to the rescue – this wipe off game is great because you can reuse each page/game as much as you’d like while on the road.
Matchbox cars
Who doesn’t love cars? My twins can play with cars for a long time so that makes them perfect for road trips as well. They can have 2 at a time and zoom them around their lap or a cookie sheet.
Hidden Picture Books
Hidden picture books are a huge hit at our house and in the car. They’re also really great for restaurants and any place you need to go that requires waiting. There is a lot to look at on each page!
I Spy books
Like the hidden picture books, I Spy books keep my kiddos busy for quite some time. They love to look for each item and even sometimes think of their own items to find.
“Would you Rather?” books
These are great because each “would you rather” question can spark even more conversation – unless our family is just weird and we like talking about very strange things – ha.
What are your favorite road trip activities for kids? Tell me below or tag me on Instagram when you share yours! @mostlyundercontrol.
Related posts/helpful resources
- Road trip car packing list – check out this road trip car packing list to help you pack the car for your next road trip
- Card games for toddlers
- Toddler I-Spy bag
- Toddler movement songs
