19 Family Fun Camping Activities

One of the best aspects of camping is spending time with family. Daily life and society are dominated by electronics, whether it be phones, tablets, televisions, or computers. Many families no longer communicate face to face; instead, they do it through text messages or email. Camping gives us an opportunity to separate from electronics. It is about family time and relaxation. There are many great non-electronic family activities to enjoy while at the campground.

Outdoor Family Camping Activities and Games

Here at Campers and Campfires, we love to take our bicycles on camping trips. Biking around campgrounds and trails are some of our favorite activities. However, hauling bikes can be difficult with a camper. There are a few different types of bike rack options. Many campers haul bikes in the bed of their truck. However, when driving an RV, truck beds are not an option. You can attach them to the bumper of your camper. If you do not have a hitch mount, then you will need a hitch adapter that mounts to your bumper. Be sure to check your manual to find out what the maximum weight is that your bumper can hold. Click here to read our article on bike racks.

We love staying at campgrounds that offer activities that we can enjoy as a family. In addition to activities like biking and hiking, we enjoy amenities such as pickleball/tennis courts, horseshoes, swimming, gaga ball, and/or mini-golf. Sometimes these amenities are not available so we carry our own outdoor games that we can play as a family. Storage is always an issue when traveling in a camper, so our games are easily portable, and we select only two or three to carry on each trip. There are numerous outdoor games and activities that can be played at the campground.

Cornhole is a family favorite and one of the most popular games at campgrounds. There are several portable variations of this game, which can easily be stored and transported. Campers and Campfires recommends plastic cornhole sets (Check them out on Amazon) in case an unexpected rain shower pops up or the game is left outside overnight.

Washers (Check it out on Amazon) is similar to cornhole or horseshoes, except you are tossing washers, and trying to land them into a target. This game is fun and very easy to transport, making it excellent for camping.

Ladderball (Check it out on Amazon) is another campground favorite. Toss your bolo and try to wrap it around one of the rungs on the ladder. Landing on the top rung is worth 3 points, the middle rung is worth 2 points, and the bottom rung scores 1 point. The first person to earn 21 points wins the game.

An Outdoor Tumbling Tower Blocks Set (Check it out on Amazon) is a lot of fun. Build a tower out of blocks, then removing the blocks one at a time without the entire tower collapsing. This game is a blast, and many times we end up playing with a crowd in the evening. Campers will often come over and join the fun.

Another fun activity that can be found at or near many campgrounds, especially at state parks, is geocaching. Geocaching is a modern-day treasure hunt. You will not find jewels or gold but you will discover trinkets that indicate a completed journey. Only a phone and prize replacements are necessary. These geocache stones (Check them out on Amazon) are great geocaching prizes to leave behind for the next adventurer.

At night we enjoy using the Celestron Travel Telescope (Check it out on Amazon) to view the night sky. Our telescope has been a great family activity. We did not know much about astronomy when we first purchased the telescope, but we have learned a lot over time. After purchasing a couple of books (Check them out on Amazon) to help us identify objects in the night sky, this telescope has become a family favorite.

Indoor Family Camping Activities and Games

We recently discovered a new activity that is a lot of fun. We had a blast playing Unsolved Case Files (Check it out on Amazon). These are cold cases that you attempt to solve. We played with a group of 8 people and we read through all of the evidence attempting to solve the crime. The kit comes with numerous items such as newspaper articles, pictures, maps, and police reports that are used to try and solve the crime. We solved the murder of Victoria Falcone and cannot wait to solve the next cold case.

While we love the outdoors, the weather can be unpredictable. In anticipation of rainy days, we bring many indoor games when camping. A deck of cards (Check them out on Amazon) is great because you can play numerous games such as gin or rummy. Our favorite card game is Sequence (Check it out on Amazon). It is lots of fun for the family. We like this edition because it has a roll-up board that makes it easy and convenient for travel.

UNO (Check it out on Amazon) is fun for the family. This is a classic fast-paced game where you try to discard all of your cards as soon as possible to win. Uno requires two or more players.

Play Nine (Check it out on Amazon) is a Campers and Campfires favorite. In this game, you play hands (holes) and try to get the lowest score by strategizing and matching your cards. After completing nine holes, the person with the lowest score wins. While this game is golf themed, you don’t need to know anything about golf to have fun playing.

Board games are essential when we camp. We love trivia, so we keep a couple of trivia games on board. There are a variety of Trivial Pursuit Games. Our favorite is the Family Edition (Check it out on Amazon). Classic board games that we always have on board include Clue (Check it out on Amazon), Sorry (Check it out on Amazon), and Life (Check it out on Amazon).

National Park/Camping themed games are available and loads of fun at campgrounds. A popular choice is National Parks Monopoly (Check it out on Amazon). National Parks Pursuit (Check it out on Amazon) is a fun Natioanl Parks based trivia game. One of our favorites is the Trekking the National Parks board game (Check it out on Amazon). You’ll learn all sorts of information about the National Parks as you play. This is an excellent game for families that enjoy visiting national parks while traveling.

Toasted or Roasted (Check it out on Amazon) is a fun camping themed card game. Be the first person to use your cards to build a fire and toast three marshmallows. Watch out because the other players will attempt to rain or blow out your fire.

We hope that you will find a great selection of both outdoor and indoor camping activities to keep your family occupied for hours on end. It is so nice to disconnect from electronics and have some good old family fun.

Do you have a favorite game to play while camping? We would love to hear from you. Please drop us a line in the comment section below.