10 Fun Campfire Games For A Family Camping Trip

10 Fun Campfire Games For A Family Camping Trip

Sitting around the campfire is one of the most memorable things to do on a family camping trip. Add in some great games, and you have the recipe for unforgettable experiences that all ages can enjoy. You just need to make sure that you have some game ideas on hand to prevent the fun from dying out faster than a fire in the rain. To help you out, here are ten ideas for fun campfire games to enjoy on your next family camping trip.

1. The telephone game

Like the very best campfire games, the telephone game is perfectly suited to sitting around with a group of people. It doesn’t need any props and there’s no need to move much to enjoy the game. It’s also not dependent on the light from your lanterns, like this LED Siege Lantern, and is a great choice if some members of the party are already in their sleeping bags, like this Kamp-Rite Kitimat Mummy Sleeping Bag, and you need to keep the noise down.

Think of a phrase and then whisper it to the person next to you. Repeating is not allowed, and each person has to pass on what they thought they heard. The last person tells the group the "phrase’", which is usually pretty far off from how it started!

2. Wink murder

This is another perfect game for campfire fun, as long as no one gets freaked out by the idea of a "murderer" being on the loose.

The chosen "detective" leaves the group and everyone else picks a "murderer". Once the detective returns to the campfire, the murderer "kills" their fellow campers with a wink. It’s the detective’s job to figure out who the killer is before the whole group "dies". If the murderer manages to kill everyone, they are the detective next time around. If not, the group can pick the next detective or you could go in order of age.

3. Charades

Who doesn’t like a game of charades? This is a great game for all ages and is fun even if no one has a clue what the answer is.

Players act out the name of songs, films, TV shows, books, and phrases without saying a word and the rest of the group has to guess what they are doing. It can be a good idea to write some ideas down and let people pick them out at random to avoid wasting time thinking up what to act out.

4. In the pond, out the pond

This is a top choice for larger groups and mixed ages, and it is so simple to play. Choose the caller and everyone else should sit around the fire with their hands on their thighs. The caller calls out phrases and the group has to do the relevant actions. These are:

In the pond - players reach their hands forward into the pond.

Out the pond - players put their hands above their heads

On the bank - players put their hands back on their thighs or keep them there if they are already placed.

Players are out if they move the wrong way.

5. I went to market…

The first person says "I went to market and I bought…(an item)" and then the game moves around the circle with each person repeating the phrase with their own item, along with all of the items that were said before. It can be helpful to set a theme, such as camping items.

6. Word association game

Get the old grey matter working with this super-simple word association game. Someone thinks of a word and then the next player has to say a word associated with the one before without hesitation.

7. Guess who

Everyone has the name of a person, animal, or object on their forehead that they can’t see but everyone else can. Each person has to ask other people questions to find out who or what they are.

8. Numbers

This is simple silliness at its best. Count upwards from one without anyone saying the same number at the same time. You have to start again if people speak together. Can you reach 100 without any cheating gestures?

9. Name that song

The idea here is for someone to hum or sing a tune for everyone else to guess. You might want to have a theme to narrow things down, such as TV theme tunes or Billboard hits of the year.

10. Simon says

One person is the caller and instructs everyone to do actions. Players should only comply if the caller starts the command with "Simon says".