I’m known by my mates for knowing all the best activities and games to keep us entertained when camping….so here are a few of my favourites! The games are split into 2 sections: adult campfire games and adult camping games.

The campfire games are designed to be suitable for sitting around a campfire of an evening. Little or no physical activity is required….just a bit of brainpower and good humour.

The camping games are more active. Best played in a field and usually in teams. These are perfect for a sunny afternoon when you’ve got a few hours to kill. I’ve chosen games that require little equipment, usually just a ball.

Only the best games in my repertoire have made this list so I hope they bring you a lot of memories and good fun! If you’ve got a fun camping game you’d like to share, please do so using the comments box below.

Before we start….

If you are new to this blog, I’m Bex Band – a full-time adventurer and founder of the UK’s largest women’s adventure community, Love Her Wild. I’m on a mission to make the outdoors and adventures as easy as possible.

If you have any questions, please do use the comments box below. And for ongoing tips and inspiration on camping and adventure, make sure you follow me on Facebook and Instagram!

You might also want to check out:

• How to stay warm when camping
• A guide to wild camping in the UK
• How to pack a hiking backpack like a pro

Adult campfire games

There really is nothing I love more than sitting around a fire outdoors playing a game! So here’s my favourite collection of adult campfire games.

Each game states the minimum number of players and any equipment that is needed to play.

#1 Fruits

Minimum 5 players
Equipment needed: none

This is a good game to play on-going throughout an evening or even across a weekend camping. You don’t need to be playing the game constantly but can dip in and out of it throughout the day to catch the next player out.

• All players choose for themselves the name of a piece of fruit
• The player who is on must attempt to say another player’s fruit three times – ‘apple, apple, apple’ – before the target can say it once. If they succeed the named player becomes on. If they don’t succeed then the player stays on and must try again with the same or a different fruit
• The players will soon realise that the fruits with the longer syllables are harder to get on so you may want to switch each player’s fruits once they understand the game. They will also learn that it’s best to catch a player out while they are distracted in a task or another conversation

#2 Psychiatrists

Minimum 5 players
Equipment needed: none

This game can only be played once so pick your timing well as it’s really funny when done right. It only works with a group of people who know each other fairly well.

• Pick 3-4 players who know the game to sit facing the other players who are trying to guess what condition the players have
• The ‘condition’ that the players have is that they have adopted the personality of the person to their right
• The guessers can ask any one of the players a question and the player must answer how they think the person to their right would
• If they answer correctly then nothing is said and they continue to the next question
• But if they get it wrong then the person who they are supposed to be imitating shouts switch and the players swap places, now adopting the new person who is on the right
• If a guesser thinks they know the answer then they secretly tell one of the players and if they are right then they can join them on the sofa to add even more confusion!

#3 Werewolves

Minimum 9 players
Equipment needed: none

This is probably my favourite of the adult campfire games….if you’ve only got time for one, choose Werewolves! Although the rules seem a little complicated at first they are easy enough to pick up as you begin playing. I love the politics and scheming that comes with this game.

• Everyone sits in a circle. One person is the leader of the game.
• Everyone closes their eyes and the leader will touch two peoples heads. They are the werewolves. The two werewolves open their eyes so they can see each other. They close their eyes
• The leader then picks one more person: the informant. They open their eyes. The two werewolves put their hands in the air so that the informant knows who they are but they don’t know who the informant is
• Everyone else is a villager
• While everyone’s eyes are closed the two werewolves can choose a villager to be murdered. Everyone opens their eyes and the leader informs them who is dead
• The villagers must then discuss and try and decide who the werewolves are. The informer can help (although they cannot directly reveal the names) but must do so in a way that the werewolves don’t work out they are the informant
• Once the villagers have decided who they think it is that person is killed and reveals if they are indeed a werewolf or if they have killed their own villager
• Everyone then closes their eyes and the werewolves can choose someone else to kill. And so on
• This is a good game with lots of tactics. The game finishes when both the werewolves are dead

#4 Animal Noises

Minimum 6 players
Equipment needed: none

This is another easy but fun adult campfire game which will have your group laughing. You just need to know each other well enough to remember names.

• Someone is blindfolded and stands in the middle
• Everyone starts to walk around the person in a circle. Alternatively, you can have someone spinning the person in the middle around until they are disorientated
• The person in the middle will shout stop and everyone has to stand still or they are stopped by the ‘spinner’
• They will then randomly point to someone in the circle and say the name of an animal
• The person they point at will then have to make the sound of the animal
• If the person in the middle can guess who said the noise then they swap with them, otherwise, they keep going

#5 Empire

Minimum 8 players
Equipment needed: none

Empires is best when you are with a group who are willing to give away the best secrets! It’s a great game for conversation starters but can only really be played well once or twice within the same group as it gets hard coming up with good secrets.

• One person plays judge and will secretly write down an interesting fact from each of the players. On top of that, they will make up about three false facts or names.
• They then read all of the facts, including the made-up one, twice
• Taking it in turns everyone has a guess at which fact/person belongs to who
• If they get it right then that person joins their empire and they get another go (they can use their new stolen person to help decide their next guess). But if it’s wrong then the next person has a go
• If you guess somebody who has already won people, then you win them and all of the people in their empire
• The game ends when someone has won everybody

#6 Emotions

Minimum 5 players
Equipment needed: none

Team members need to be comfortable enough to do some acting to make this game work. It’s good fun when played well.

• 1 or 2 people leave the room and the group that remains picks a word with as many letters as members in the group
• Each person takes a letter and gets in order so the spell the word
• Each player becomes a mood/emotion that begins with that letter
• When the ‘on’ players return they can ask any question that must be answered in that emotion. If the emotions are guessed, so will the secret word and a new guesser and word is chosen

#7 Who Am I

Minimum 4 players
Equipment needed: post-it notes

This is a classic game which works well around a campfire. It’s not as fun as the other games but is a good introduction game for a group of people that don’t know each other well yet or who aren’t very outgoing.

• A famous name or object is stuck on everyone’s forehead (or you can have 1 person on at a time) and they must ask questions to try and guess who they are
• The person can only ask yes or no questions
• Keep playing until all players have guessed their person correctly
• You can also play a game where everyone is an object

#8 Geography Game

Minimum 3 players
Equipment needed: none

Another more chilled evening game that is a good quick filler to warm a group up.

• Someone starts by naming a country, for example, China
• The next person has to think of a country that starts with the last letter of the first country. (e.g. Argentina could follow China)
• As a variation, you can also use animals or names of people

#9 Categories

Minimum 7 players
Equipment needed: pen and paper

I like to make this game competitive so always have prizes up for grabs for the winning team (or forfeits for the losing team). You can also use your imagination to make the categories a little more controversial and also specific to your group.

• Everyone must get into small teams of about 3-8
• Each team is given a piece of paper with a list of chosen categories along the top and a space to put the letters and answers. Ideas for categories: Boys/girls names, countries, animals, fruit, item of clothing, School subject, Kitchen utensil, Famous person, etc
• At the beginning of each round, you give the teams a letter and 1 minute to come up with a word that begins with that letter under each category
• For each correct answer, they get 5points, however, if another team has the same answer it goes down to 1 point

#10 20 Questions

Minimum 4 players
Equipment needed: none

The last in my adult campfire games is 20 Questions. This is a variation of the Who Am I game above.

• The first player starts by deciding on a person and then saying, “I’m thinking of a person” or an object: “I’m thinking of an object”
• Each person takes turns asking questions about the person or object. The questions must all be ones that can be answered with a “Yes” or a “No”
• They can only have 20 questions
• The person who guesses correctly takes the next turn
• If no one guesses the same player stays on

You might also want to check out:

• How to stay warm when camping
• A guide to wild camping in the UK
• How to pack a hiking backpack like a pro

Adult camping games

These camping games for adults require some outdoor space for play (a flat field is usually ideal) and a bit of enthusiasm for those participating. They are all really fun to play…..especially with groups that are a little on the competitive side!

The games list the minimum number of players needed as well as any equipment. If you need to mark out space or court, you don’t need anything special to do this – a jumper or spare shoe will work just fine.

#11 Prisoner Ball

Minimum 12 players
Equipment needed: ball

A more competitive and interesting take on dodgeball!

• A field is marked out with 2 square spaces next to each other, one for each team
• The teams stand in their own field facing each other and there is one ball in player
• The object is to make opponents prisoner by hitting them with the ball below the neck. The ball must not hit the ground, if it bounces before it touches a player it does not count and if a player catches the ball it does not count
• Players made prisoners retire behind their opponent’s ground (just on the backline, they can’t be on the sides) and can throw the ball from behind. If they catch someone prisoner they are then freed and can go back into their area.
• Inter-passing between players and prisoners is allowed
• The side of a player made prisoner has the next throw, once they have reached the prison
• Crossing into the next team’s area makes you a prisoner
• When all of one team are prisoners the other team has won

#12 Boat Race

Minimum 10 players
Equipment needed: none

The more competitive the teams, the more fun Boat Race is to play. I’d start off with a simple back and forth race but then make it more interesting by adding in obstacles. With larger groups, you can have more than 2 teams competing at the same time.

• A race between two or more teams. Each team forms a  ‘crew’ and stands in a line facing backwards with their hands on the shoulders of the person in front of them
• One team member is the ‘cox’ and faces forwards at the back of the crew. He or she must shout directions to their team who are not allowed to turn their heads to look backwards
• On the word “Go!”, crews race to a marker about 50 metres away, round it, and back again. The first team back wins
• Teams must remain linked (by hands-on shoulders) at all times. Any team breaking this rule must return to the start line, re-link and set off again
• You can expand the game and make it more of a challenge by adding obstacles along the way that the teams must negotiate
  

#13 Line and fielders

Minimum 12 players
Equipment needed: bat and ball (if you don’t have a bat and ball you can also just use a football)

This is a more energetic and competitive version of rounders. You’ll need to allocate a team member to keep track of scores.

• Players are divided into two teams one of which chooses to bat: the other field
• The fielding side scatters itself anywhere on the field; the batting side stands in a line one behind the other
• The front player in the batting side throws/kicks a football as far as possible in any direction. Then they run round and round the rest of the batting team: every complete circuit counts one run
• The fielding side all converge; the first person to it passes it back overhead to the second, and so on until it reaches the last fielder – all the fielders are by then in a long line
• The last fielder shouts “Stop!” when the ball reaches them and the batter stops running and can score no more
• The batting side takes it in turns to bat and when all have had a turn the sides change over
• The side with the highest overall total wins

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#14 Scots and English

Minimum 12 players
Equipment needed: 12 bits of ‘treasure’ (could use cups, balls or even rocks)

Of all the camping games for adults, Scots and English is easily my favourite! With competitive teams watch out for cheating 🙂

• A large designated area is needed. At each end, a ‘prison’ is made, from a football goal or an area marked by two stumps
• On each end line, ‘treasure’ – six tennis balls or other tokens – are spread out evenly along the whole line. Each team has one half of the field and attacks toward its opponents’ end line
• When the game starts players may cross the centre line into their opponents’ territory and try to capture a piece of treasure to bring back to their treasure haul
• As soon as they cross the centre line, players may be tagged and thus made prisoners. Prisoners are escorted to prison by their captor and must go quietly
• Captors may not tag again until the prisoner has been incarcerated
• Any player who gets to the opposite end line without being tagged may either take one piece of treasure to their own backline or release one prisoner by tagging
• As soon as the treasure or prisoner is touched the player is invulnerable and may walk back safely to their area with the treasure or prisoner
• The game is won when one team has all the treasure in play along its own backline

#15 French Cricket

Minimum 6 players
Equipment needed: bat (cricket bat is ideal) and ball

French cricket is a nice relaxed game that players can easily dip in and out of.

• Everyone forms a rough large circle with one player standing in the middle with a cricket bat
• The player in the middle must put their feet together and are not allowed to move. They must defend their legs using only the cricket bat while the other players try and get them out with a tennis ball
• If someone manages to hit their legs (has to be below the knee) then they take over the person in the middle
• Make sure the players aren’t too close to give the person in the middle a chance. Also passing the ball between players is allowed and players are not allowed to move when they have the ball in hand

#16 Fifteen Passes

Minimum 6 players
Equipment needed: ball

Of all the adult camping games this is probably the simplest but also one of the most fun. The concept is east so once you’ve split your teams up you are good to go!

• Split your group into 2 teams
• Team members must pass the ball to members of their own team without the ball hitting the floor or being blocked
• The first team to pass 15 times without disruption wins
• You may want to have a designated area for play but this isn’t necessary

#17 Ghosts

Minimum 8 players
Equipment needed: 2 sleeping bags and 2 tents

This is a rowdy game – so your teammates all need to know each other well – but also really funny when played properly. The game needs to be played at night and make sure you are away from anything dangerous like fires as the ‘ghosts’ can end up blindly rolling about a bit!

• Split the group into 2 teams, each having a tent as their base
• The teams will go into their tent and secretly choose a member to hide under a sleeping bag like a ghost and go out into the dark
• The 2 ‘ghosts’ must try and work out who the other person under the sleeping bag using any tactic except pulling the sleeping bag off
• If someone guesses the other ghost correctly they win that person onto their team
• Once a team has one everybody from the other team they have won

#18 Bombing

Minimum 8 players
Equipment needed: ball

This is a similar game to Prisoner Ball but players are competing individually rather than as a team.

• A square is marked out. All the players stand inside this square
• two players are ‘on’ and stand outside the square, one on each side
• The two players ‘on’ throw a ball at those in the square, passing amongst themselves if they wish
• Any player who is hit must join the others outside the square and become on; they must be hit below the waist
• The last player left in the square wins and picks someone to join them as a bomber in the next game

#19 Towerball

Minimum 8 players
Equipment needed: 2 or 3 cans and a tennis ball

This is another relaxed game similar to French Cricket but without the need of a bat.

• A tower is made of two or three large cans stacked on top of the other. A ‘guardian’ is appointed for the tower: all other players stand in a circle around the tower and the guardian
• Those in the circle throw a tennis ball underarm at the tower and try to knock it over. The guardian may only defend it with legs and feet, and the others may pass the ball amongst themselves as often as they like between throws
• When the tower is hit the successful thrower takes over as guardian and rebuilds the tower if necessary. The game does not stop while this is happening, so speed is essential. Any tower who catches the ball as it rebounds from the guardian also takes over in the middle
• If the guardian accidentally knocks over the tower the thrower holding the ball at the time – or the last one to touch it if it is mid-air – becomes the guardian

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