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10 Games to play on a road trip

LONDON, England - Road trips can be frustrating especially when you're travelling with children. How do you keep your children entertained on a a long trip from Johannesburg to Cape Town?

A survey conducted by Opel in the UK revealed that 93% of  five- to 18-year-olds keep themselves busy on a long road trip with a cellphone phone or tablet.

Traditional car games such as 'I-Spy', car snooker (which is played on a laptop or tablet) and '20 questions' can still be played.

TRADITIONAL GAMES

The traditional car game has lasted


the test of time despite the introduction of mobile technologies with more than one in eight parents encouraging youngsters to play games NOT involving technology.

More than half of respondents (52%) loathed siblings fighting in the back seats and 45% disliked constant queries such as "Are we there yet?" with other deterrents including multiple requests to stop for the toilet (39%).

A third (33%) were concerned by car sickness and more than 20% found constant demands for music insufferable.

However, there are tools and techniques for surviving. The most popular - after phones or tablets are:
 • Portable DVD players (27%)
 • Snacks (22%)
 • Music (19%)
 • Games (15%)
 • Audio books (8%)
 • Toys (7%)

Top 10 games to play in the car:

1 I-Spy
2 20 questions
3 Name that car
4 Thumb wrestling
5 Number plate alphabet
6 Car snooker (playing pool on an electronic tablet)
7 Words game - Call out an automaker and players must create words beginning with the last letter of the word used (i.e Toyota - Austin - Nissan)
8 Playing cards
9 Sing-a-along
10 Story telling

On average, the longest drive with a child under one year old is four hours; for those aged 12-18-years-old, the average is six.

Click here for more car games

How do you keep your kids entertained during a road trips? Email us your thoughts or  comment in the Readers' section below.
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