Long road trips with kids don't have to mean endless rounds of "Are we there yet?" This free printable road trip scavenger hunt is one of our favorite screen-free travel activities and has become a must pack every time we hit the road.
This free printable road trip scavenger hunt game is perfect for family road trips or car rides with little ones. It is a great way to pass time on a long car ride and is so easy to play.
Quick Look: Road Trip Scavenger Hunt
- ⏱ Prep Time: 2 minutes
- 🚗 Activity Time: Play throughout your trip
- 📄 What's Included: 1 free printable road trip scavenger hunt with 27 picture clues
- 🎯 Ages: Preschool through elementary
- 👌 Difficulty: Easy, just print and play!
- 💡 Why This Works: Picture clues make it easy for even non-readers to participate, encouraging kids to look out the window, practice observation skills, and stay entertained without screens.
SUMMARIZE & SAVE THIS CONTENT ON
I originally created this scavenger hunt before a family road trip that included over 40 hours in the car with our three boys. I knew we'd eventually reach the point where everyone was ready for a break from coloring books and snacks, so I wanted a simple activity that would get everyone looking out the windows instead of at a screen.
There are some classic travel games like the USA license plate game and the A-Z scavenger hunt (we call it the alphabet game) that we love. However, this scavenger huntIt was such a hit that it's now something we pack for every vacation. Whether you're driving across the country or heading to Grandma's house for the weekend, this printable is an easy way to keep kids engaged while making the journey part of the adventure.
If you are looking for other ways to pass time on your trip here are some of my favorite screen free travel activities as well as my tips and tricks when taking road trips with kids.
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Why You'll Love This Road Trip Scavenger Hunt
There are plenty of road trip games out there, but this one has become one of our family's favorites because it's:
- Perfect for preschoolers and elementary-aged kids
- Uses pictures instead of words so young children can play independently
- Encourages observation and attention to detail
- Easy to pack and reuse
- Great for long vacations or short drives
- A fun screen-free activity the whole family can enjoy
Supplies You'll Need
One of the best parts about this activity is that you only need a few supplies:
- Printed scavenger hunt
- Pencil, crayon, or dry erase marker
- Laminator or sheet protector (optional)
I highly recommend laminating the printable or slipping it into a dry erase pocket. We used ours over and over again throughout our trip, and it's now tucked into our travel bag for future adventures.
How to Play
This game is easy to adapt for the ages of your kids.
Cooperative Version (Our Favorite):
- Give everyone a scavenger hunt card.
- As someone spots an item, everyone marks it off.
- Work together until you've found everything on the page.
Friendly Competition:
- Give each player their own card.
- Everyone searches independently.
- The first person to find all 27 items wins!
For younger kids, we like to celebrate finishing with a small surprise, lollipops have become our traditional road trip prize!
Road trip games are more than just a way to pass the time. As children play, they're practicing:
- Observation skills
- Visual discrimination
- Concentration
- Patience
- Vocabulary
- Turn-taking
- Family teamwork
About This Road Trip Scavenger Hunt
This printable includes 27 picture clues, making it perfect for children who aren't reading yet.
Kids will search for things like:
- Airplane
- Road signs
- Camper being towed
- Train
- Water tower
- Bridge
- Tractor
- Semitruck
- Red car
- Blue car
- Construction cone
- Pig
- Cow
- School bus
...and many more common sights found on road trips!
Because everything is illustrated instead of written, even younger siblings can play independently.
Your Free Printable Road Trip Scavenger Hunt
Once you fill out the form above you will be subscribed to our newsletter and the coloring pages will be sent to your inbox (make sure to check all of your folders if you aren't finding it!). Please note that the email with the PDF template can take a few minutes to send.
This game is for personal use at home or in your classroom. For the best results, print in color and laminate if you'd like to reuse it on future trips.
Road Trip Scavenger Hunt FAQs
This printable is designed for preschoolers through elementary-aged children. Because it uses pictures instead of words, younger children can play independently.
Absolutely! Laminating it or placing it inside a dry erase sleeve allows kids to reuse it on every road trip.
Yes! We originally created it for a family trip with more than 40 hours of driving, and it kept our boys engaged throughout the journey.
More Road Trip Activities Kids Will Love
Planning a family vacation? Here are a few more screen-free favorites:
If you tried this roadtrip scavenger hunt game or any other activity on our blog please let us know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Hi! I'm trying to get these printables, but they are not sending to my email after signing up for the newsletter!
Hi Hannah! Thanks so much for reaching out- I just emailed the printable to you. Be sure to look in your spam or junk folder because sometimes our emails get lost in those folders. I hope you enjoy the printable!
I signed up for the newsletter and am trying to print the license plate game, alphabet game, and scavenger hunt, but I have not received the download links.
Hi Melissa! I just looked on our backend and it looks like all 3 made it to you and you were able to get the printable games, sometimes the email server can take 10-15 minutes to send off the emails with the printables. I hope you enjoy these for what I assume may be an upcoming roadtrip!