Long car rides and road trips are a great way to vacation. What's better than seeing the beautiful landscape the country has to offer and bonding with family along the way?
Of course, a little advanced technology can make any car ride a whole lot more fun. The 2016 Buick Envision comes equipped with a three month/3 gig trial (whichever comes first) of 4G LTE with Wi-Fi powered by OnStar that provides a seamless, in-vehicle Wi-Fi experience. You can easily open and launch games on tablets and phones to keep the entire family entertained — even the driver can chime in on occasion to answer a question or two. There are interactive games that allow for a pass-and-play style competition among passengers too. Apps keep score and save games so you can resume playing after a pit stop.
Here are five apps that will change the game (literally!) on your family's next road trip:
Family Car Games, $1.99
Family Car Games is an entire game rolodex in one app. The program features a "shake" button that activates a spinning wheel that whizzes before landing on the selected game genre (singing, "I Spy", alphabet games, etc.). There are even filters that you can choose from like "Keeping the Peace" and "Under 5" for younger players. Once you've selected your game, the app shares instructions and the game begins.
Mad Libs, free
If you're up for a silly challenge, this is the game for you. A kid-friendly interface makes it easy to choose the story and interactive hints provide inspiration and speed your play along. Read the stories aloud and have everyone fill in the blanks. Save 'em and earn badges for more.
State Plate Bingo, $0.99
This out-the-window game is a classic gone digital. Can you find all 50 states in a single road trip? Learn interesting facts and figures about each state you locate and have one person be in charge of saving the state on the app. It's a game you can keep going back to and everyone can get involved in.
Road Trip Scavenger Hunt, $0.99
Let the kids decide what they want to hunt for on this road trip. They can keep an eye out for words on signs, objects, or a combination of both and choose how many points it will take to win. Red car? Found it! Cactus? There it is! Rest stop with a coffee shop? I win! Once launched, this engaging game lets them stay focused on a task while you some have peace to focus on the road.
StoryLines, free
The first player writes down a well-known phrase or starter sentence and then passes it on to the next player. Tie your trip in and start with what you hope will happen when you get to your destination or what you think will happen at the next stop. The second player draws a picture to go with the original sentence — maybe a picture of everyone jumping in the hotel pool — and then passes it along to a third player. The third player gets to write a caption for the picture. It goes on until the story is finished in rounds of three or nine. See how close your family can come to actually living the story!
Image ©iStock.com/Martinan
