We have a secret weapon when it comes to family road trips! If you are really quiet, I will whisper it to you…..audiobooks. Now, don’t tell everyone because it truly is a secret weapon to making family road trips pleasant, quiet, and fight-free.
Why audiobooks work so well is anyone’s guess. We have a minivan with a DVD player built-in, but the kids get bored quickly with movies or fight over what to watch.
But something magic happens as soon as I put on an audiobook. The kids quietly listen for hours! Not minutes, not until their devices are recharged, but for hours! I love listening to them too, and by the end of our road trip we have a book we can discuss.
Our Road Trip Audiobook Quick Picks
Not sure what to download? These are the books I’d start with.
For the whole car
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
For younger kids
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
For action-loving tweens
The Lightning Thief
For teens
Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares
Family Road Trip Audiobooks
PHoto Credit: Depositphotos
How did we pick these particular books? They are books we have listened to as a family, and everyone has found them entertaining (even the parents!).
If you haven’t read the Harry Potter series yet, your entire family is missing out! This is the story of a young, forgotten boy who finds out he is a wizard. He is admitted to Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry and enters a world of magic and wonder.
You will love the battle between good and evil, the little touches by the author that make the wizarding world feel real, and listening to one of the best narrators in audiobook history!
Our family listens to all of the books in the series fairly regularly, and we are quickly drawn back in again and again.
Why it works in our car: We’ve listened to this series more than once, and the narration pulls all of us back in every time. It gives us hours of shared listening and something to talk about when we stop.
Tip:
If you have very young children start with the first two books and then wait until they are older for the rest of the series; the books get a little more intense.
My boys couldn’t get enough of this series when they were younger! Michael Vey has Tourette’s syndrome and also happens to be able to shoot electricity out of his hands. This unique power makes him a target for people who want to harness his powers.
Your kids will love the non-stop suspense and adventures, while you will love the example of good character taught when Michael is faced with moral dilemmas.
This is one that my kids listened to a bunch of times, I will be honest I got bored by round 3, but for a single time its great!
An oldie but a goodie! If you haven’t read or listened to any of the Chronicles of Narnia as a family, start with The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe as it will hook you from the beginning.
Narnia is a fictitious world where animals talk, dwarfs live in large communities, and witches rule. Four siblings from our world happen to enter Narnia through an old wardrobe. They are thrust into the fight between the White Witch and Aslan, the Lion.
Your kids will love the action and the suspense of the story. You will love finding all of the literary themes within the book that are very apparent to an adult.
Its wonderful to listen to the stories you grew up with.
A small plastic toy is put into a magical cupboard and becomes real. This book was one of my favorites as a young child, and it was so much fun to share with my kids.
You kids will love hearing about the different toys coming to life, and you will love their exposure to some pretty great vocabulary words.
You can’t go wrong with anything written by Roald Dahl. I chose The Witches because it was one my kids talked about for a long time after we “read” it. The Witches tells the story of a young boy who discovers witches hunt small children and kill them. (It’s not as scary as it seems; bear with me!) The problem is that witches look almost like anyone else and blend into society. The young boy learns from his grandmother how to spot a witch and avoid them. This information proves helpful when he unwittingly faces an entire convention of witches.
Your kids will enjoy the scary factor without it being too scary. You will enjoy the absurdity of the entire situation in which the young boy finds himself.
Tip:
You know your kids best. If you think this will scare them, then avoid this book. I have very anxious kids who loved this book without fear.
Stanley has been sentenced to a reform camp for a crime he didn’t commit. He is assigned to dig holes- repeatedly, day after day. Stanley and the other boys are treated unfairly yet become close to each other. They start to realize that there is a mystery at the reform camp, and they set out to solve it.
Your kids will love the camaraderie between the boys at the camp, and you will love the message that life isn’t always fair and yet we can persevere. You will both love how funny the book is.
Percy Jackson is a 12-year-old boy who has dyslexia and ADHD. He is also half-mortal and the son of the Greek god Poseidon. As the book progresses, his powers begin to develop until he is able to control water, talk to fish, and breathe underwater. He ends up using his powers to stop a war between the gods.
Your kids will love the superhuman powers Percy discovers and masters, and you will love the refresher on Greek mythology!
We listen to another book in this series every time we drive to Prince Edward Island. The first time we listened, I was amazed at how well it kept my boys’ attention. I had always thought of it as a girls’ book. Anne of Green Gables is the story of a young orphaned girl adopted by a brother and sister in Prince Edward Island, Canada. She is a free spirit and has a knack for getting into trouble.
You will love the beautiful descriptions of PEI, the time she dyes her hair green, and the love that grows between Anne and her new parents.
This is the story of a homesteading family in the American Midwest in the late 1800’s. The story follows the struggles and hardships endured by pioneers helping to settle the Kansas territory. The book chronicles the Ingalls family, who are sometimes playful, overwhelmed, and overworked, but it also captures the beauty of life’s simple pleasures. My boys were as hooked as I was decades ago.
You will love the depiction of a family pulling together in difficult times; your kids will love the contrast to our modern-day life.
This is a retelling of a fairytale written by the Brothers Grimm. The story of Maid Maleen is retold in the fictitious land of the Eight Realms. When it begins, we find the servant girl Dashti and her mistress Lady Saren locked in a tower for seven years. Saren disobeyed her father by refusing to marry the evil Lord Khasar. Soon the food begins to run out…
You will love the touches added for older readers; your kids will love the bravery and kindness of Dashti. You will both root for her on her perilous missions to save Lady Saren.
Family Road Trip Audio Books for older kids and teens:
This is the story of Mark Watney, an astronaut, who is left on Mars after an accident. He has to figure out how to survive on Mars with few rations, limited space and supplies, and all alone. He figures out how to grow crops on Mars to help sustain him while he makes a plan to be rescued.
You will love the science, the dark humor of Mark Watney, and the race against time and space.
A note for parents: The standard audiobook contains frequent strong language. We enjoyed the science and humor, but I would preview it before playing it for younger kids. It’s a better pick for older teens whose families are comfortable with the language.
This book was such a fabulous surprise! We didn’t know much about it when we started “reading” it, and we all fell in love. Dash and Lily are two teenagers living in New York City at Christmas time. They start a correspondence using a red leather notebook and give each other a series of dares to accomplish. The dares range from the absurd to the impossible, and they will keep you laughing throughout!
You will love the peek inside the teenage mind, while your kids will love PG romance. You will all be laughing.
Adrian Mole is sure he must be an intellectual, but the BBC won’t publish his poetry. He writes in his diary and worries about his girlfriend Pandora, his mother’s new “friend,” and how he is doing in school. He is also quite clueless and writes about events around him while missing what is happening.
Your kids will love it because it is funny and they can relate, and you will love it because it’s hysterical and teenagers are so clueless!
These Audiobooks for a Family Road Trip are just the start!
I hope that you will find adventure, humor, and maybe even a little peace in your family road trips with the introduction of audiobooks. It has surely made a difference for us!
If your family has some great suggestions, I’d love to hear them! Just comment down below.
Where do I get audiobooks for family road trips?
We’ve used Audible for family road trips because I can choose the book ahead of time and download it before we leave. Check the current plan and trial offer before signing up; they aren’t always the same.
Your library is also worth checking. Many libraries offer audiobooks through Libby or Hoopla, which you can download to your phone for the drive. Popular titles may have a wait, so I look for our next road-trip book well before departure.
My one rule: download the entire book while you still have Wi-Fi. Finding out that only the first chapter downloaded when you’re hours from home is no fun.
Frequently Asked Questions About Family Road Trip Audiobooks
What is the best audiobook for a family road trip?
The best audiobook for a family road trip depends on your children’s ages, but Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Holes, and The Lightning Thief are universally loved picks that work for most families.
Are audiobooks better than movies for road trips?
In many families, yes. Audiobooks reduce screen fights, don’t require charging multiple devices, and create a shared experience everyone can talk about after the trip.
How long should a road trip audiobook be?
For shorter trips, aim for 4–6 hours. For longer road trips, books between 8–12 hours are ideal so you can finish the story during the drive.
Where can I download audiobooks for family road trips?
You can download audiobooks through:
Audible
Your local library (via apps like Libby or Hoopla)
Amazon or Apple Books
If you want to try out Audible, you can get two titles and 30 days free by clicking here.
It’s a great way to try out Audible and try out 2 of the titles above. To claim your free trial, simply click on the link and select your free audiobooks. Happy road-tripping!
There may be affiliate links in this post. Read my disclosure policy to learn more.
An oldie but a goodie! If you haven’t read or listened to any of the Chronicles of Narnia as a family, start with The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe as it will hook you from the beginning. 
This is a retelling of a fairytale written by the Brothers Grimm. The story of Maid Maleen is retold in the fictitious land of the Eight Realms. When it begins, we find the servant girl Dashti and her mistress Lady Saren locked in a tower for seven years. Saren disobeyed her father by refusing to marry the evil Lord Khasar. Soon the food begins to run out…
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