Easy-to-play games that liven up your drive
A fun road trip or a drive on the way to hang out.
At first you’re excited about the destination, but as the time in the car gets longer, you start to get bored, right?
In this article, we’ll introduce fun games you can enjoy during long drives.
They’re perfect for keeping kids entertained and for getting closer with friends or your partner!
These games are easy and convenient for anyone—from adults to children—so be sure to try them out the next time you’re in the car!
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Easy-to-enjoy games that liven up your drive (11–20)
License Plate Calculation Game
When you’re driving, what really catches your eye are the license plates of the cars in front of you or coming the other way.
How about turning the four digits on those plates into a quick mental math challenge? Add, subtract, or, if you’re confident, try multiplying and dividing! There are lots of ways to enjoy it depending on your ideas.
In addition to the large four-digit number, license plates also have a slightly smaller three-digit “classification number.” You could make use of that too.
It’s even a great learning activity for elementary school kids!
Who am I?
A popular game with kids too: the “Who am I?” game.
The key is to give hints by personifying the answer.
You offer clues in the form of “I am ___,” and compete to see when someone gets it right.
If you’re not sure what to choose as the answer when making a question, you can narrow it down to a specific category, or pick something you searched on your phone or spotted while driving—it’s easy that way.
Depending on how you give the hints, the game can be easier or harder, so people of all ages, from children to adults, can enjoy it.
Guess the car features game
If you’re driving with your kids, this could be especially exciting.
While you’re on the road, you pass oncoming cars.
This guessing game is about predicting features of those cars—like “What color will the next car be?” or “Will the next driver be a woman or a man?” Since it’s based on intuition, even small children can join in easily.
But guessing the features of oncoming cars isn’t necessarily pure luck.
For example, if you just passed a construction site, the next vehicle might be a large construction truck.
It might turn into a surprisingly strategic battle!
High-speed shiritori
The longer a drive gets, the more you feel like doing something, right? That’s when I recommend the high-speed shiritori game.
With shiritori, you don’t need to prepare anything—you can start right away, which is super convenient.
Unlike the relaxed version, high-speed shiritori has you clapping a rhythm and coming up with the next word immediately, so it’s full of thrills.
When you try to answer in a hurry, you end up blurting out words that make you wonder if they even exist, and you can’t stop laughing.
The driver shouldn’t participate, though, since it would be dangerous.
Games of all ages and places
When it comes to the classic “Around the World” game, it’s a staple rhythm game that’s fun with a big group! You pick a theme, then take turns answering with something related to it while keeping the beat.
If you can’t come up with an answer or you fall off the rhythm, you’re up for a penalty! Even with easy themes like “things sold at convenience stores” or “animals at the zoo,” your mind can go completely blank once the game starts.
Since this game tests your calm and quick thinking, it’s perfect for car rides—no risk of everyone dozing off and leaving the driver struggling to stay awake!
No-Katakana Game
It’s a game where you’re not allowed to say any words written in katakana during a conversation.
In everyday chats, you actually end up saying a lot of katakana words without thinking.
When it comes to food, most Western dishes are written in katakana, and the titles of the most popular music right now are often in katakana too… totally possible to slip up, right? But staying silent because you absolutely don’t want to say one is not allowed! The point is to keep a “normal conversation,” which makes the game more fun.
One strategy is to deliberately ask questions that tempt katakana words.
A variation like a “no English words” game could be fun too.
Riddle game
You’ll surely come away with even greater respect for comedians and rakugo performers who can toss off riddling wordplay in a flash! This is a pun-riddle game that throws everyone into a panic when put on the spot.
The rules are simple: given a prompt, you “link” it to another word, and when asked, “What’s the heart of it?” you explain the reason behind the connection.
Watching the longtime cast of the TV show Shoten or the comedian Nezucchi answer so smoothly makes it look easy, but in reality it’s surprisingly hard to come up with good ones.
Why not experience firsthand, together, just how amazing these masters of laughter really are?
Mozzarella Cheese Game
How about trying a delightfully insane game where simply saying “mozzarella cheese!” sends everyone into fits of laughter? The rules are simple: multiple players take turns saying “mozzarella cheese.” The only condition is that each person has to say it with more enthusiasm than the person before them.
It’s a hilariously vague game where the criteria for “clearing” it is left up to the players themselves, but when you’re on a drive with close friends, even the silliest things can be a blast.
Give it your all and give it a try!
No-casual-speech game
If you’re getting bored with the usual games, try adding a “no casual speech” rule! When you’re playing UNO or cards with a big group, it’s easy to let casual phrases like “All right!” or “So close!” slip out.
Especially when you’re with classmates or friends you don’t normally use polite language with, you might not even notice when someone speaks casually.
Once the casual-speech chain reaction starts, your ordinary drive is sure to become a blast! Be sure to prepare some punishments too, like a paper fan smack.
Bamboo Shoot Gnocchi
The Takenoko Nyokki game starts with the cue, “Takenoko, takenoko, nyokki-kki!” After the cue, players thrust a hand into the air and call out in order: “One nyokki,” “Two nyokki,” and so on.
Anyone who speaks at the same time as someone else, or who ends up going last, loses.
It’s tricky: you might shout with too much enthusiasm and overlap, or hesitate to read the room and wind up last.
Try it with a large group for an extra challenge!