Fun Travel Games for Children

"Over the river and through the woods" can be a long, boring trip, whatever your destination, when you're traveling with a carload of kids! Playing travel games can give you all some mental exercise and make the trip seem shorter, and gives us parents the opportunity to spend some quality time with our kids.

When I was young, one game we like to play was the classic "Alphabet Game" where the players try to spot words on signs that began with each letter of the alphabet, in order from A to Z. Our rules were: Each player had to spot their own words; two players couldn't use the same word off the same sign. The first one to the end of the alphabet was declared the winner. The game gets to be a challenge when you're looking for words beginning with X's and Z's.

My husband and I still enjoy playing travel games, even if it's just the two of us. When the grandkids are along, these travel games help us sneak in a little education and mental exercise without the kids being aware of it! Playing travel games with your children or grandchildren gives them your time and attention and keeps them from acting up in the back seat because they are bored.

Math Contest Travel Game
This is a good game to encourage your young children to commit their math facts to memory instead of counting on their fingers. Bring along a set of math flash card appropriate for your childrens' ages and education level. Display a card, and whichever child gives the correct answer first gets the card. Whichever child has the most cards after you've gone through the pack is declared the winner. If your kids are at different skill levels, bring a pack of flash cards for each child and take turns asking for the correct answers. If you don't have flash cards, just make simple problems up out of your head, and keep score on a scrap of paper.

Grocery List Travel Game
This game helps improve your child's memory skills. The first person begins, "I went to the grocery store and bought..." and then names a grocery item that begins with the letter A. Let's say the child says "apples." The next player says, "I went to the grocery store and bought apples and...." and then names a grocery item that begins with the letter B. The third player continues in turn, naming both grocery items in alphabetical order and then one that begins with the letter C. Play until someone reaches the letter Z, then the player after the one who had the letter Z has to repeat the whole grocery list. If a player can't recall one of the items, they are out of the game. We don't throw players out, though, when we play, we remind them of the items they can't remember because everyone gets to continue with the fun and mental exercise. That way everyone wins!

Zoo Travel Game
This game is similar to the grocery store game, except that we use the names of animals. "I went to the zoo and saw a/an ..." The animals named don't necessarily have to be zoo animals; the names of domestic animals are also acceptable when we play.

Song Titles Travel Game
This travel game probably doesn't teach anything except how to pick one's own brain, but we play it often. Try to name as many song titles as you can that contain a certain word. For instance, when we recently drove through the mountains we tried to come up with as many songs as we could with the word "mountain" in the title, and when we ran out we started thinking of songs that just mentioned mountains. You can take turns and count someone out if they can't think of a title in a reasonable amount of time, but we usually just shout them out as we think of them. Our family isn't too competitive, we just play for fun. You can pick any word that applies to your vacation, or think of song titles that have names of people, or whatever suits your fancy.