Road Trip Scavenger Hunt (+ Free Printables)

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Road trip games are always a fun way for passengers of any age to pass time in the car. Fun car games include Road Sign Bingo, the License Plate Game, Questions and Answers, and, of course, a road trip scavenger hunt!

Road trip scavenger hunts are a fun way to keep everyone in the car engaged! Just print off a list of things to see on a road trip, have everyone keep a copy and keep their eyes peeled, and then award points for who sees the most and who sees what first.

Ready to play?

The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book - Everything You Need to Have and Record an Epic Road Trip! By Valerie Bromann

Want more fun road trip games?

The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book

Enjoy fun games and challenges to pass the time on your next road trip and have a keepsake to look back on for years to come with this entertaining must-have for your next vacation.

How to Play a Road Trip Scavenger Hunt

  1. Make a list. Make a list of things you think you’ll see on your car trip. It can be as easy (a stop sign, a hotel bed, a VW Bug), as hard (a pressed penny machine, a Sinclair dinosaur), or as specific (the Wall Drug Dinosaur, a billboard for 75cent ice cream) as you’d like! Tailor your items to your own trip (including details of destinations that are on your road trip itinerary) or use the free printable PDFs below!
  2. Set up a point system. Set points for each item. It can be the same 10 point award for every item or you can mix it up giving different totals to different items, depending on how hard they might be to find. You can even use a scaled-point system where the first person to see something gets 10 points, the next 9, and so on.
  3. Play! Whenever a passenger sees something on the list they have to announce it and then can cross it off the list. Some items everyone can get credit for (there’s only one world’s largest cow after all) but other more common items (like a yield sign, a red car, a bridge) go to the first person to see it.
  4. Add it up. At the end of the road trip add up everyone’s points. Whoever has the most points wins! What they win is up to you. It can be anything from a physical prize, the biggest hotel bed on the last night, or choice of where to stop for lunch.

Bonus Scavenger Hunt Ideas

  1. Use cell phone cameras and a vacation hashtag (#SmithFamilyRoadTripScavengerHunt) to keep track of everyone’s finds.
  2. Use instant cameras to document your items and keep them in a photo album or a road trip scrapbook.
  3. Miix it up and coming up with riddles and clues that will lead you to something new!
  4. Want to continue the fun at the end of the day? Try a hotel scavenger hunt and look for all the things you can find in a hotel!

Free Road Trip Scavenger Hunt Printables

Download these free printables to play this fun find and seek game. Look for all the items you’ll see from your car and see who can get them all first!

Free Road Trip Scavenger Hunt Free Printable Game Sheet

Free Road Trip Scavenger Hunt Printable Game Sheet

Print a copy of this sheet for everyone in the car to play a Road Trip Scavenger Hunt. Which of these commonly found items can you find?

Free Road Trip Scavenger Hunt Printable Game Sheet Photo Scrap Book

Photo Scrap Book Sheet

Create a photo scrap book of your finds by printing out photo sheets to use with an instant camera. Tape or glue your instant photos to these pages and mark them with the finder’s name, the item, and the day and time the spotted the item!

Blank Road Trip Scavenger Hunt Printable

Blank Road Trip Scavenger Hunt Printable

Download this blank road trip game sheet to customize your own car scavenger hunt. What do you think you’ll see on your road trip?

Road Trip Scavenger Hunt for Adults

Road Trip Scavenger Hunt for Adults

If you need road trip scavenger hunt ideas for adults, think of some harder to find things or things that wouldn’t be as fun for kids. Treat the game more like a selfie challenge and see who can get the best photos in all the best places on the list.

Buy a Road Trip Scavenger Hunt Set

Don’t have a printer or want something reusable and sturdy that will last for many road trips to come? Buy a pre-made set online and keep it in your car for road trip fun!

Outset Media Scavenger Hunt Road Trip - Traveling Card Game for Long Road Trips - 110 Cards for Ages 6 and up

Scavenger Hunt Road Trip – Traveling Card Game for Long Road Trips

This family-friendly road trip game is designed to engage, educate, and entertain everyone in the car. With 110 cards, the game provides hours of entertainment in the car.

Briarpatch Travel Scavenger Hunt Card Game for Kids, Activities for Family Vacations, Road Trips and Car Rides, Ages 7 and Up

Briarpatch Travel Scavenger Hunt Card Game for Kids

54 playing cards let kids have fun searching for objects like a red car, a license plate with the letter ”Z,” or a stop sign.

merka Roadtrip Activites for Kids Road Trip Essentials Kids Roadtrip Games License Plate Game Road Trip Travel Scavenger Hunt Set Objects to Find On Road License Plates 96 Flashcards

Travel Scavenger Hunt Game for Kids

This travel scavenger hunt game is both fun and educational. It features 96 cards with license plates from all 50 states and teaches about US geography, object recognition, and early reading.

Regal Games - Highway Hunt Card Game - Travel Scavenger Hunt Game - for Family Vacations, Car Rides, & Road Trips - 2.75”x 4” Card Size - 54 Count - 2-8 Players, Ages 4+

Highway Hunt Card Game

With 54 scavenger hunt cards Highway Hunt is a classic search and find card game that has been re-designed for the road.

Road Trip Scavenger Hunt List Ideas

Whether you’re road tripping through Wyoming or visiting Disneyland, road trip games will entertain everyone in the car while you go. Make your own game by taking inspiration from any of the road trip scavenger hunt list ideas below, or anything else you think you might see on the way to your destination!

  • A Hotel (Hyatt, Holiday Inn, Best Western, Marriott, Hilton, Days Inn, Travelodge)
  • A Fast Food Restaurant (McDonald’s, Burger King, Subway, Popeyes, Dunkin’ Donuts)
  • A Car (Red, Blue, Pink, Jeep, SUV, Honda Accord, Volkswagen)
  • A Gas Station (BP, Sinclair, Love’s, Buc-ee’s)
  • A Natural Landform (a volcano, a canyon, a cave, a mountain, a lake, an ocean)
  • A Landmark (Statue of Liberty, Mount Rushmore, the Golden Gate Bridge)
  • A National Park (Yellowstone, Acadia, Zion, Yosemite)
  • An Animal in a Car
  • Roadside Attraction
  • Scenic Overlook
  • Vanity License Plate
  • A Personalized Souvenir
  • Neon Motel Sign
  • Giant Mural
  • Weird Museum
  • “Welcome to” State Sign
  • Local Diner
  • Road Work Sign
  • Convertible with its Top Down

Road Signs

Add any of these road signs to your road trip scavenger hunt game card!

  • Crossbuck Sign
  • Dead End Sign
  • Deer Crossing Sign
  • Dip Sign
  • Divided Highway Sign
  • Do Not Enter Sign
  • Do Not Pass Sign
  • Guide Sign
  • Interstate Sign
  • Keep Right Sign
  • Men at Work Sign
  • Merge Sign
  • Narrow Bridge Sign
  • No Left Turn Sign
  • No Passing Zone Sign
  • No U-Turn Sign
  • One Way Sign
  • Pedestrian Crossing Sign
  • Railroad Crossing Sign
  • Road Narrows Sign
  • School Crossing Sign
  • Side Road Sign
  • Slippery Road Sign
  • Slow Moving Vehicle Sign
  • Speed Limit Sign
  • Stop Sign
  • Two Way Traffic Sign
  • Winding Road Sign
  • Yield Sign
The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book - Everything You Need to Have and Record an Epic Road Trip! By Valerie Bromann

Want more fun road trip games?

The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book

Enjoy fun games and challenges to pass the time on your next road trip and have a keepsake to look back on for years to come with this entertaining must-have for your next vacation.

Pin this road trip game to save for your next car trip!

A road trip scavenger hunt is a fun game that keeps everyone in the car engaged! Print off a list of things to see on a road trip and keep your eyes peeled, and then award points for who sees the most and who sees what first. Play this fun road trip game on your next long car trip!  #RoadTripGames #RoadTripGamesForAdults #RoadTripGamesForTeens #RoadTripGamesForKids #FamilyRoadTripGames #RoadTripGamesF0rCouples #PrintableRoadTripGames #CarRides #RoadTripGamesWithFriends #DIYRoadTripGames
A road trip scavenger hunt is a fun game that keeps everyone in the car engaged! Print off a list of things to see on a road trip and keep your eyes peeled, and then award points for who sees the most and who sees what first. Play this fun road trip game on your next long car trip!  #RoadTripGames #RoadTripGamesForAdults #RoadTripGamesForTeens #RoadTripGamesForKids #FamilyRoadTripGames #RoadTripGamesF0rCouples #PrintableRoadTripGames #CarRides #RoadTripGamesWithFriends #DIYRoadTripGames

Photo by Reinhart Julian on Unsplash

Plan Your Road Trip

Valerie Bromann

Founder & ROad Trip Expert

Valerie Bromann is a a website manager, content creator, and writer from Chicago, Illinois (currently living in Dallas, Texas). As an avid road tripper who has visited hundreds of roadside attractions, Val always pull over for a world’s largest thing. Founder of Silly America and author of The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book, she visits, photographs, and writes about all the weird tourist destinations she visits and offers road trip planning advice and inspiration based on her own travels so you can hit the road for yourself.

World's Largest Mailbox in Casey, Illinois roadside attraction

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Last modified: December 6, 2023
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The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book - Everything You Need to Have and Record an Epic Road Trip! By Valerie Bromann

The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book

Everything You Need to Have and Record an Epic Road Trip!

BY Valerie Bromann

Enjoy fun games and challenges to pass the time on your next road trip and have a keepsake to look back on for years to come with this entertaining must-have for your next vacation.

The road trip you’ve been dreaming of starts here! Journal about your stops and get to know your fellow passengers with activities and exercises designed to pass the time and bring you closer together. Instead of “Are we there yet?” you’ll find yourself asking, “We’re there already?”. Complete with prompts you can turn to while driving between locations, this journal will one day be a memento of your life-changing trip.