Before tablets and smartphones turned every car ride into a mobile entertainment center, kids had to get creative to pass the time on long trips. The back seat was a realm of imagination and simple games that helped make those endless miles more bearable. Here’s a nostalgic look at how children stayed entertained during marathon car rides in simpler times.
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1. The License Plate Game
Spotting plates from different states became an intense competition. Kids kept detailed lists, checking off each state as they found it. Alaska and Hawaii were like winning the lottery, and finding a Canadian plate was worth bonus points.
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2. Punch Buggy
The sight of a Volkswagen Beetle meant a quick punch to your sibling’s arm. The game had strict rules – no punch-backs, and you had to call out the color. Parents eventually regretted teaching this one to their kids.
3. The Alphabet Game
Finding words that started with each letter of the alphabet, in order, from road signs and billboards. The letter ‘Q’ was always the biggest challenge, making “Quaker State” oil signs a coveted discovery.
4. Mad Libs
These fill-in-the-blank stories created hours of entertainment. The sillier the words chosen, the better the stories became. Every kid knew that “stinky” and “underwear” were guaranteed to make any Mad Lib funnier.
5. Travel Bingo
Those cardboard cards with sliding red windows featured common road trip sights like cows, tractors, and railroad crossings. Finding a motorcycle cop or helicopter was like striking gold. Everyone kept their cards for future trips.
6. The Wave Game
Trying to get truckers to honk their horns by pumping your arm up and down. Success meant instant celebrity status in the back seat. Getting multiple honks in one trip was a legendary achievement.
7. Drawing on Foggy Windows
Cold weather meant instant art galleries on car windows. Tic-tac-toe games, funny faces, and messages to passing cars were popular creations. Parents weren’t thrilled about the fingerprints left behind.
8. Count the Railroad Cars
Getting stopped by a train meant an impromptu counting competition. Finding the caboose was the ultimate goal. Bonus points for spotting unusual cargo or graffiti along the way.
9. Twenty Questions
This classic game could eat up hours of travel time. Animal, vegetable, or mineral were the standard categories. Clever players learned to pick obscure items to extend the game.
10. The Sleep Contest
Who could pretend to fall asleep first? This game usually ended with real naps, much to parents’ relief. The challenge was staying “asleep” when passing interesting sights.
11. Color Car Counting
Each kid picked a car color and competed to spot the most. Red was usually claimed first, while brown was considered the hardest challenge. Yellow cars (not school buses) were worth extra points.
12. Road Trip Storytelling
Creating stories where each person adds one sentence. These tales usually became wildly outlandish, featuring passing landmarks and vehicles as characters. The best stories were retold on future road trips.
