Travelling is often exciting and adventurous, but it’s sadly also tiring and boring at times during those unescapable periods of downtime such as when transiting on flights, buses, or trains. These pockets of idle time can simply be spent scrolling mindlessly through social media or staring blankly at airport walls and hotel room ceilings, or you can transform your travel downtime into excitement that’s as thrilling as your travel adventures themselves.

Downloading the right gaming apps can turn those boring moments into periods of actual enjoyment if you know how to choose the best mobile gaming apps that can become your trusted travel companions that’ll be right in the palm of your hand.

Whether it’s conquering fictitious realms, solving puzzles, testing yourself with trivia, or possibly even winning real money to help pay for your trip, there are endless gaming apps out there that will ensure you’ll never be plagued with boredom while traveling. Here are some of our top recommendations for current gaming apps to download before your next trip.

The Best Gaming Apps to Download While Travelling

Casino Games

Nothing passes the time quite like a few classic casino games. You can play poker, roulette, slots and more across many apps. Loads of the best non GamStop gambling sites UK seen on CasinoGam have free apps to download and thousands of games to play immediately.

One reason to consider downloading casino games on your phone or tablet while travelling is that they are often very engaging and offer fast-paced gameplay that easily captures your attention and keeps you entertained for extended periods.

Most online casinos let you play for free without risking real money, so you get enjoyment with zero risk. Even if you do end up wagering a bit of real cash, you may spend less than a lot of traditional mobile games charge to play anyway.

And the possibility of actually winning, even if only a small amount of cash, can add an element of excitement that can pass time more quickly and may even end up allowing you to extend your travel budget or paying for your entire trip if you are lucky enough to hit a jackpot.

Many casino apps even feature multiplayer options with chat rooms which adds a social dimension to gaming that can be very beneficial to solo travellers who may feel lonely or isolated during those idle periods of travel.

Wordscapes

We’re recommending Wordscapes but you can play any word game you wish while travelling from A to B. Wordscapes is so fantastic at passing the time on a long flight as it keeps you immersed and forces your brain to function. That’s precisely what you need if you’re travelling across multiple time zones and don’t want to make your jetlag worse by falling asleep.

Wordscapes is a free game that’s kind of like a crossword meets Boggle. Each puzzle gives you a few letters to use as you try and create words with them. But, the words have to fit in a crossword-style board and all match with one another. This adds to the strategic element as it’s not as simple as just using the letters to make as many different words as possible. 

Like many gaming apps, Wordscapes can be easily downloaded and played on most smartphones and tablets and can be played offline which makes it convenient when you have connectivity issues. It’s a perfect game for playing during travel-related downtime, whether you’re waiting at an airport or waiting in a lobby to check into your hotel room.

Wordscapes features thousands of levels with increasing difficulty, ensuring that you always have new challenges to tackle. This variety keeps the game fresh and exciting, preventing dreaded monotony.

Crossy Road

It might sound and look like a child’s game, but Crossy Road is another ultimate travel app to have in your arsenal. The mechanics are simple; navigate across the road as a little chicken, mad wizard, flesh-eating zombie, or one of many other so-called game mascots. The hard part is that each level includes more obstacles or things that can “kill” you. 

The game can be likened to the classic game Frogger, but Crossy Road features a modern style with a more imaginative and cartoonish aesthetic. The game may be easy to pick up, but we’ll be willing to bet you’ll find it hard to put down

You start with a simple road and one line of oncoming traffic. Timing your walk across is very straightforward. Gradually, more cars are added, faster or bigger vehicles are introduced, there are river crossings with moving logs, etc.

Gameplay is short, allowing you to easily fit in a game during brief moments of downtime, such as just before boarding a flight or waiting for your coffee order at a café. Crossy Road offers a wide range of characters, each with unique looks and unlockable features which helps to keep  the game fresh.

There’s also no definitive end to the game which means you can theoretically look to this gaming app to fill the rest of your future holidays. You can download this game on Android or Apple devices, and it looks super colourful and fun. We definitely recommend getting it on your iPad or tablet before your next holiday abroad.

Solitaire

Always a trusted favourite when it comes to handy travel games, how can we not mention solitaire, especially for solo travellers. Search for “solitaire” in your chosen app store and you’ll find dozens of games to download.

You can pick one that offers a classic solitaire experience like you used to enjoy on Windows computers back in the day. Suddenly, you’re given a game that’s nostalgic and easy to play. How can one not get addicted to trying to outsmart the computer and become a solitaire master. 

Moreover, it’s suggested that playing solitaire has numerous psychological benefits if you can believe it. It can improve your critical thinking, boost cognitive stimulation, aid in memory retention, develop strategic thinking, and calm your mind.

All of these traits are very important as a traveller; especially when needing to make important split-second travel-related decisions or if you’re afraid of flying and want to stop your brain from overthinking. Load up a few games of solitaire and you’ll be lost in strategy before you know it. 

Monument Valley

If you’re looking for a puzzle game with beautiful graphics and amazing scenery, the Monument Valley franchise is perfect. It will cost a few pounds to download, but you’ll honestly be treated to a masterclass in mobile gaming.

Each level of Monument Valley consists of gorgeous architecture graphics set in wonderful pastel colours, your task being to move different pieces of it to allow a silent princess to navigate across the level.

Guide characters through intricate mazes and optical illusions, solving puzzles that will require spatial reasoning. Trust us when we say the game’s calm and meditative atmosphere, only enhanced by its soothing and immersive soundtrack that complements its visual design, makes this game a relaxing way to pass the time.

If we’ve failed to do a good job of explaining the game or enticing you,  simply do yourself a favour and check out examples of the first game here. 

Then there’s Monument Valley 2 which can also be downloaded on your phone or tablet via the dedicated app store on your device. And if that wasn’t enough, there has also been an announcement for a Monument Valley 3, but this is set to be released exclusively on Netflix.

You should be able to play MV3 on your phone/tablet as long as you have a Netflix account, but you might need to be connected to the internet to load it up. 

Stardew Valley

This game may have “valley” in its title like our previous recommendation, but it’s a very much different game.  Yes, it may be another game that costs money to download but it’s worth it in our books. Stardew Valley originated as a proper video game that quickly got a place onto mobile devices. It looks like a classic Pokemon game from decades ago but even cuter. 

You’re basically playing a farming RPG, the goal being to set up your own farm and grow loads of different things. It sounds basic, but the depth of content goes way beyond this.

We recommend Stardew Valley if you’re looking for a cosy game to play on a long night-time flight or train journey. The music used is quite relaxing, offering a mixture of classic Nintendo-style tunes with a lo-fi twist. 

The game offers a high degree of personalisation and is quite flexible in that you can in choose to play in short bursts or for extended periods as you transport yourself into a charming virtual rural world, building relationships with local townsfolk.