[For Adults] Exciting Bus Recreation
When traveling by bus, you often end up sitting for long periods with nothing to do.
Your options are limited because you can’t move around much, and even if you bring games, they can be over quickly.
Before you’ve even reached your destination, you may already find yourself slipping into boredom…
In this article, we’ll introduce a bunch of simple, adult-friendly activities that can liven up those dull bus rides!
There are plenty to choose from, so mix and match a few and keep everyone entertained during travel time!
- Fun games that liven up bus recreation activities
- [Bus Rec] No boredom on the bus! Fun activities and games to liven things up
- Games you can play with just conversation. Classic and popular activities you can enjoy without any props!
- Team-based recreational activities for adults that are fun even with large groups
- [For Adults] Fun recreational games. Perfect for short breaks too!
- Games you can play in the car! Fun activities to liven up drives and traffic jams
- Fun bus activities: bus recreations that liven up field trips and school excursions
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- [Simple Games] Recommended Indoor Recreational Activities for Adults
- [Play Right Away!] Exciting Recreation Games Recommended for Elementary School Students
[For Adults] Engaging Bus Recreational Activities (21–30)
Magical Banana
A classic recreational game, “Magical Banana,” originally comes from a popular TV show from the 1990s called “Magical Zunō Power!!.” It starts with “Magical Banana—when you think of banana?” and players continue by linking words through association.
If you miss the rhythm or your word isn’t a valid association, you’re out.
Balloon Bomb Game
Let me introduce a “Balloon Bomb Game” using balloons.
Inflate a balloon and stick lots of pieces of cellophane tape all over its surface—some short, some long, placed at random.
Then pass the balloon around, and each person takes turns peeling off one piece of tape.
When the balloon pops, the game ends right there.
If you prepare a fun penalty for the person who pops it, the excitement ramps up.
All you need are balloons and cellophane tape, so it’s easy to bring along on a bus without taking up space—another plus.
[For Adults] Exciting Bus Recreations (31–40)
The Don’t-Say-30 Game
It’s a game where players take turns saying numbers from 1 to 30, and the person who says “30” loses.
You can say a single number or multiple numbers, up to three at a time.
It’s simple but oddly exciting.
If there are many players, it ends quickly, so you can change the target number.
Tongue Twister Challenge
Prepare a tongue-twister script and challenge yourselves to see how many seconds it takes to read it! Announcers and voice actors use this as enunciation training, right? If you search for “tongue twisters,” you’ll find plenty, and you can also create your own.
Add furigana to the kanji so that even first-time readers can read it.
The person who reads it the fastest without stumbling wins! Tripping up, getting stuck, and struggling to say it will get everyone excited, and if you can say it smoothly, you’re sure to draw attention!
Guess the arrival time!
When traveling by bus in a group, you’re usually given an itinerary or schedule in advance, or at least told things like what time you’ll arrive at each place and when to meet up, right? This is a game where you guess the exact arrival time.
You’re usually told an approximate arrival time, but try to guess the exact minute the bus will arrive.
Since it’s hard to answer out loud, it might be better to write your predicted arrival time and your name on a note, then reveal them after arriving, or after setting off for the next location.
A game where everyone matches their answers
This is a game where everyone thinks of an answer to a given prompt and tries to match those answers.
Since the prompts allow for multiple correct answers, your teamwork in aligning responses will be put to the test.
If you can discuss too thoroughly, it becomes easier to match answers, so it’s recommended to set clear boundaries for how much discussion is allowed.
It’s not only about testing whether your thoughts align; progressing with strategies—such as choosing to match a specific person’s answers—may also be important.
Do Not Laugh: Rapid-Fire Comedy Contest
Instead of just playing an ogiri (comic improv) game, we’ll add a twist: a rule that you must not laugh at the ogiri answers.
Ogiri is all about everyone coming up with funny responses, but not being allowed to laugh when you hear them actually creates a kind of tension.
It’s surprisingly hard when you’re not free to laugh.
The “No Laughing” series by Downtown that airs on New Year’s Eve is really popular too, right?