15-08-2025
A road trip around Iceland is a great way to spend time with the family. The country is suitable for all ages, but despite its breathtaking landscapes and beautiful scenery, some of the drives can get a bit long, especially if you’re traveling with younger children. Finding games to play while in the car can be a great way to break up the drive and make Iceland more exciting.
Here are some ideas for fun road trip games to enjoy with your group:
One of the most popular itineraries for a trip to Iceland is driving the Ring Road. While there’s plenty to do around the country, there can be long stretches of road without many places to stop. During these longer driving stretches, having games to play on a road trip can be a lifesaver.
A successful trip is more than just about the destination; it’s also about the journey to get there. Playing road trip games is the perfect way to make the journey as memorable as the rest of the trip.
The classic car games never get old, no matter how many times you play them or what changes in society. These road trip car games will help you keep your kids entertained on the road and make the journey more fun for everyone.
I Spy is a game played by choosing an object you can see and asking the others in the car to figure out what you’re thinking of. Once you choose the object, the player states, “I spy with my little eye, something …” The blank is filled with a descriptive word like the object’s color, shape, texture, or location. The other players can ask questions that can be answered with a “yes” or “no” to figure out the answer.
When playing this game on an Icelandic road trip, choose objects or sights that are unique to Iceland to make things more fun and challenging. As the other passengers in the car ask their questions, confirm with a “yes” or “no” until they are able to correctly guess the item. The person who guesses right chooses the next object.
20 Questions is one of the best games to play while in a car because you don’t have to be able to see the item to play. It also makes the game more challenging since the object chosen generally isn’t in plain sight. The first step is to choose a category. Some Iceland-specific categories to consider include the following:
After choosing a location or a relevant topic that relates to the chosen category, the other players will ask “yes” or “no” questions to help them figure out the topic you have in mind. Players can guess as soon as they think they know the answer, but it counts as a question if they are incorrect. The person who guesses correctly goes next.
You can make this game more challenging by introducing lightning rounds, where only 10 questions are allowed, or choosing something without a specific category to make it more difficult to guess.
The License Plate Game is a fun road trip game that encourages players to look carefully at car license plates, which may be different from home. Icelandic license plates have five digits, a mixture of letters and numbers. Letters generally come first, followed by several numbers. The Icelandic flag is found on the far left of the license plate.
Icelandic license plates are the same throughout the country, which means you can’t play the version that requires finding regional variations of the plates. Instead, challenge your passengers to spot the letters of the alphabet in order. For instance, once someone spots an ‘A,’ the search for ‘B’ continues.
You can do the same with numbers or put a twist on the game by spelling out specific words. Bonus points if you choose Icelandic names or locations.
Another of the popular games to play while in the car is the “Would You Rather” game. This game involves presenting players with two scenarios and asking them to choose which one they would rather do. This game is often quite general, but you can give it an Icelandic twist to complement your journey.
To give the game an Icelandic twist, ask questions based on activities in Iceland or otherwise related to the country. For instance, you could ask, “Would you rather hike on a glacier or soak in a hot spring?” or “Would you rather walk behind Seljalandsfoss or climb the stairs at Skógafoss?”.
Each person can then answer the question and explain why they chose what they did before someone else asks another question. This can be a great game to play to decide what activity to do next or where to stop along the way.
Word Association is another general classic car game that can easily be adapted to your Iceland road trip. The first player chooses an Iceland-themed word to start the word chain, such as volcano, geysir, glacier, or anything else. The next player then says a word directly associated with the first word, and so on down the line. The game ends when someone can’t think of anything further or hesitates too long to come up with something.
Keep the game Iceland-themed by focusing on topics like Icelandic nature, towns, landmarks, language, food, geography, and more. You can also make rounds sight-based. For instance, the first word to start the chain must be something you can see at the time, such as “sheep” or “volcano.”
While classic games to play while in the car are a good start to your list of things to do along the way, there are some creative and unique road trip games you can add to your list to make things more interesting and avoid boredom.
While this game requires some preparation before your trip, it can be a fun way to encourage your kids to keep an eye on the passing landscape. Iceland Bingo requires checking off things you see along the road until you get a line of five things crossed off. Whoever gets five in any row wins the game.
To create the Bingo cards, print up enough blank Bingo cards for everyone. You may want to play multiple games through your trip, so print up some extras. Make a list of things you may see in Iceland, such as glaciers, sheep, puffins, arctic foxes, waterfalls, volcanoes, and more. Each person can then create their own Bingo card by placing items they expect to see within the squares. These squares are marked off as players see the items.
Similar to the License Plate Game, the Road Sign Alphabet Game requires players to identify letters on road signs along the way, moving through the alphabet. Don’t forget the special Icelandic characters (Á, Ð, É, Í, Ó, Ú, Ý, Þ, Æ, Ö)!
There are many road signs you can use to find the letters you need to proceed through the game. Look for signs with place names, warning signs, direction signs, and informational signs. You can give this game an interesting twist by requiring the letter to be the first letter in the word. This strategy ensures the game lasts longer.
For fans of Icelandic music, one of the most interesting games to play while in the car is Guess the Icelandic Song or Artist. This game works best for those who have already immersed themselves in Icelandic music and are familiar with artists and song titles. When a song comes on the radio, the first person to guess correctly gets a point. The person with the most points at the end of the day or the trip wins.
You don’t need to rely on the radio to play this game, either. You can come up with your own variation. For instance, one person can hum part of a song or quote some lyrics, while the rest of the passengers guess the song or artist name. This game can be challenging for those who aren’t familiar with Icelandic music culture.
Playing a game of “Who Am I?” with Icelandic myths and legends can be a great choice when traveling with teenagers or a group of adults. The first person can look up a common Icelandic myth or legend on their smartphone. Once they find one, the rest of the players will ask “yes” or “no” questions to help them figure out which myth or legend the first player chose.
There are many myths and legends associated with Iceland, including trolls, elves, and hidden people. Some popular tourist sights even have folklore attached to them. This folklore can be found on signs in the area, making them an excellent resource for this game.
For another variation of this game, the person who chooses a myth or legend can give clues about who they are. This strategy can be used in combination with or in place of the questions from the other players.
There are two ways to play this game. The first is treating it as a true or false game, assigning “true” to either glacier or geyser and “false” to the other. Players take turns making statements about Iceland, its landscape, or any other features, while the other players guess whether the statement is true or false.
For a simpler version of the game, players can make a statement that would be true of a glacier, geysir, both, or neither. The other players must then guess if that statement relates to a glacier, a geysir, both features, or neither of them.
Regardless of which version you and your group choose to play, points are awarded for correct answers. The person with the most points at the end of the game wins.
The best games to play while in the car in Iceland will vary depending on the makeup of your group and their knowledge and skill levels. Some games are easy to play for couples, while others are best played with larger groups or entire families. Some are simple, making them easy for even the younger family members, while others require some knowledge of Iceland. Here are some of the best road trip games for families, couples, and groups.
In most games of Two Truths and a Lie, individuals come up with three statements about themselves. Two of them are true and one is a lie. The more unbelievable all the statements are, the more likely it will be challenging for others to guess, especially people who know you well. However, during your trip to Iceland, you can give this game an Icelandic twist.
Instead of coming up with statements about yourself, make statements about Iceland itself, such as about folklore, landscape features, landmarks, towns, and more. You can also make statements about things you have seen or done during your trip. Like the regular version, it’s up to the other players to identify the lie among the truths.
Iceland doesn’t have a lot of native land animals, but there are plenty of sea animals and birds to make up for it. The Animal Name game can be a great way to get to know some of the species you may see during your trip. While it’s best to come up with only animals found in Iceland, you can expand to other animals if the game becomes too difficult.
To play this road trip game, the first player chooses an Icelandic animal. The next player must then come up with another animal name starting with the last letter of the previous animal. For instance, if the first player chooses “puffin,” the next player must find an animal name starting with ‘N.’ The game continues until someone can’t name another animal with the proper starting letter.
The Green, Yellow, Red Question game is a fun game that can be tailored to any skill level, making it a great game for families or groups. During the game, one person is selected to ask the questions. The others take turns choosing green, yellow, or red, based on the type of question they want to answer.
Green questions are typically simple, light, and fun, like favorite Icelandic food or naming a waterfall. Yellow questions are more thought-provoking and answer curiosities, such as what part of the day’s drive you enjoyed most or something surprising about Iceland. Red questions are more daring and challenging, like fears about the trip or whether you would do anything considered risky, like ice climbing.
Players should answer honestly, but are allowed to pass if they don’t wish to answer the question. Some groups limit how many passes a person can use.
Road Trip Trivia can be an educational game that is fun for visitors of all ages. You can tailor the questions based on the ages of the people playing and their knowledge of Iceland. The person chosen to be the quizmaster can create questions based on online searches or out of a tour book, tailoring question difficulty to each player.
Some common Iceland edition categories may include:
The questions can be about anything related to Iceland, such as the names of locations, true or false questions, definitions of terms, meanings of Icelandic words or phrases, or other basic trivia facts. Players get points for correct answers, and the person with the most points at the end of the game wins.
Another of the games to play while in the car to add to your list is the Name the Most game, Iceland style. In this game, you choose a category of things, such as waterfalls, animals, towns, or anything else that will have numerous options. Once a topic is chosen, the rest of the players take turns naming a relevant item until either someone hesitates too long or repeats an answer.
This game is easy to play for people of all ages and can even easily be played by a couple, going back and forth until someone can’t name anything further. The person who has successfully named the most in the given category wins the round and can pick the next category.
While having games to play while in the car can help make longer drives more entertaining between stops, it’s important to practice safe driving in the process. The following tips will help you and your group stay safe on the road while still enjoying road trip games.
The journey can be just as important as the destination, particularly in a place like Iceland. With so much to see or do, renting a car in Iceland and taking a road trip, whether around the country or in a couple of regions, can give you the experience of a lifetime. Having games to play while in the car can help make the journey even more unforgettable as you experience the country at your own pace.