12 Best Travel Games to Enjoy With Friends on Your Next Trip!

At its core, travel is all about personal connection, especially when done with friends. If you’re looking to spend quality time with your travel buddies, you can’t go wrong with travel games.

Plus, there’s always the possibility of flight delays or cancellations. Long layovers can also be grueling without any entertainment!

Similarly, if you’re planning an epic multi-day road trip, you will want something to beat the boredom of endless hours in the car. So, in this article, I handpicked the best travel games, from classic favorites to exciting new games.

Why Bring Travel Games on Your Next Trip

As an avid traveler, you know there’s usually plenty of downtime throughout your journey. Even if you have an action-packed adventure planned, unexpected situations like tour cancellations and bad weather might cause you to spend an unplanned day lounging at your hostel.

Having engaging games on hand will help pass the time you spend on a flight, in an airport, in the car, or anywhere else along your journey.

Travel games keep everyone entertained and help strengthen friendships while creating new memories. Games are also a casual way to meet new people in social settings like hostels or local bars and restaurants.

How to Choose the Best Travel Games

Choosing enjoyable games can be a bit subjective. Some people love elaborate strategy-based games, while others prefer something fast-paced and easy to learn. Regardless of the games you choose, there are a few important factors to consider when selecting the best travel games for your next vacation.

Portability

This is one of the most important factors when searching for games. If you can’t pack the game easily and comfortably, it’s probably not a good fit for your trip—pun intended!

Just because it’s your favorite board game doesn’t mean it will travel well. The best travel games are small and compact! Bonus points are awarded to games with self-contained pieces or flexible packaging.

Players

When choosing games, think about how many people you are traveling with and their varying age ranges. If you’re taking an overdue family vacation, you need games the kids will enjoy. But, a crazy girl’s weekend might call for more mature game options.

You also want to make sure more than one person can play. Ideally, the game will accommodate most, if not all, of the travelers on your journey. No one likes to be left out, so bring a variety of choices, allowing everyone to participate in the fun.

Fun and Easy

This seems like a no-brainer, but you want to choose games the whole crew will enjoy. The best games give rise to laughter, harmless competitive banter, and unanimous smiles. Make sure the games you choose are also relatively simple to understand and play. Remember, reading the instructions doesn’t count as the fun part!

The Best Travel Games for Your Next Adventure

I have compiled a list to help you pick the perfect games for your next trip. These games range from crowd favorites to quirky and competitive newcomers. With these games, you’re sure to have a memorable trip with your travel buddies!

12. Carpool Karaoke The Mic 2.0

Players: 2+

Age: any

Play this: in the car on a road trip

If you and your friends love a classic sing-along session, this microphone is perfect for your next road trip. While not a game per se, this microphone guarantees to entertain for hours. Carpool Karaoke connects to your car with Bluetooth or an aux cord. The battery is rechargeable and can last up to six hours. This microphone also has a built-in duet function, voice-changing effects, and sound effects.

Why You’ll Love It

The only rule for Carpool Karaoke is to sing your heart out for as long as you like, or as long as your friends allow. The mic is small, easy to use, and easy to pack. With Carpool Karaoke, you can enjoy old and new songs while having a good time with your travel buddies.

11. Monopoly Deal

Players: 2-5

Age: 8+

Play this: anywhere you have a small space to set cards out

Monopoly can be a surprisingly polarizing game! Some love it, and others get bored and frustrated with an hour or longer of gameplay. Not to worry, Monopoly Deal is a much better and faster option that’s suited for travel. This card-only version follows the same premise as the original Monopoly, and you can play it in as little as 15 minutes. You need a small area for a few cards, but the setup and rules lend themselves to playing on the go.

Why You'll Love It

This unique version is compact and super easy to travel with since there are no boards or game pieces. It still requires strategy but includes newer, more exciting elements like stealing property from other players. The game is fast-paced, exciting, and much shorter than the original. It’s ideal if you have a brief 30-minute break and want to do something fun.

10. Bananagrams

Players: 2-8

Age: 7+

Play this: anywhere you have enough space to lay out the word grid

Bananagrams will quickly become a new favorite if you love word games like Scrabble. Players receive letter tiles and attempt to build words off of each other like a crossword. But, unlike Scrabble, there are no turns in this game. So you must act quickly to try and get rid of all your tiles. If you’re traveling solo, you can even try to beat your best time with each game.

Why You'll Love It

This is a fast-paced game with simple instructions. It’s great for adults and kids because word length and difficulty don’t matter, only speed. Bananagrams comes in a small zippable pouch holding all the letter tiles. It’s easy to pack in any bag, but you should take care not to lose any pieces along the way!

9. Pass the Pigs

Players: 2+

Age: 7+

Play this: anywhere you have a small flat surface, anytime you meet new people who don’t speak the same language

Who doesn’t love throwing miniature pigs around? The winner of this game is the first person to reach 100 points. Players take turns throwing small pig dice and earn points based on the position the pigs land in. There’s an element of luck in this game, but you also have to know when to stop rolling!

You can roll the pigs as many times as you like, but if they land in the “oinker” position, you will lose all your points.

Why You'll Love It

Pass the Pigs can take as little or as much time as you want by changing the winning point value. You can also stop this game if you run out of time and come back to finish it later as long as you record your scores. The whole game is contained in a small plastic case, so it’s easy to travel with. It’s also a great way to bridge a language barrier when you meet new people!

8. 5-Second Rule

Players: 3+

Age: 10+

Play this: in the car on a road trip, anywhere you can shout and laugh out loud comfortably

Don’t worry! This game doesn’t require you to eat anything off the floor! The basis of this fast-paced and loud game is to name five things in a given category before the timer runs out.

It may sound easy, but as the name implies, you only have five seconds to respond. If you fail, gameplay continues until another player can complete the task. Even though this game arrives in a traditional box, the game cards and spiral timer can be packed in a small bag to save space.

Why You'll Love It

You never know what people will say with only five seconds to respond! I promise you will be shouting and laughing before the game ends. If you’re looking for fun road trip games, this rapid-fire competition will keep everyone awake. Five-Second Rule is easy to play and can take as little as 30 minutes.

7. Top Trumps Wonders of the World

Players: 2+

Age: 6+

Play this: anywhere, anytime

This card game is perfect for adventurers who love to test their travel knowledge. After dealing all the cards, one player reads a category on their card. All other players compare the same category on their cards. The highest value wins, and that player takes all the cards from the round. Whoever has all the cards at the end wins!

You can also learn interesting facts like how deep the Great Barrier Reef is and how long it takes to fly from London to the Grand Canyon.

Why You'll Love It

This game doesn’t require much skill or strategy, so it’s easy to play. It’s also a short game, lasting as little as two minutes. It’s ideal for a quick change of pace during your trip.

The element of luck will keep everyone on their toes as they learn new facts about the world. Top Trumps Wonders of the World is easy to stow away in any bag, and there are other themed sets if your travel buddies love trivia.

6. Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza

Players: 3-8

Age: 8+

Play this: anywhere you have an open flat surface every player can reach

If you think this is a kid’s game you and your friends wouldn’t enjoy, you’d be wrong. The premise of this game is matching, but Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza throws in some hilarious and unique twists. At some point, every player must quickly slap a pile of cards, hoping they are the first. Laughter will ensue, and the longer you play, the more rowdy everyone will be!

Why You'll Love It

Aside from its packability, this game is fast-paced, and everyone must be paying attention. Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza only takes about ten minutes to play and is a fun party starter. The rules are simple, and just when you think you have the hang of it, you’ll forget about the narwhal card. Yes, there’s a special narwhal card!

5. Rubberneckers

Players: 2+

Age: 8+

Play this: in the car on a road trip

If you’re looking for fun car games, Rubberneckers is a classic favorite out of all the games to play on a road trip. Rubberneckers requires players to find things listed on their cards to earn points. Whether you’re looking for a singing driver or a dog in a vehicle, Rubberneckers engages everyone! The first player to earn 100 points wins, and you can start the fun all over again.

Why You'll Love It

Rubberneckers is one of the simplest travel games for the car since you won’t need any space other than the open road. Travelers of all ages will enjoy searching for unique and funny situations listed on the cards. This game can also last as long as you like and can be played multiple times in a row.

4. Codenames

Players: 4+

Age: 10+

Play this: when you get to your destination and have space to set the cards out

Codenames is a popular game for crowds where players try to uncover the opposing team’s secret agents. Codenames uses color-based clues to guide players. You will want to avoid the assassin at all costs!

This game works best when you have an even number of players, so keep that in mind for your next trip. Leave the box at home and just pack the playing cards to save space.

Why You'll Love It

You will love this game for its intrigue and mystery. Suspicions will run rampant, and accusations will fly. But everyone will have a blast! This is an excellent choice for a fun group trip with friends or family.

3. Farkle

Players: 2+

Age: 12+

Play this: anywhere you have a small flat surface, anytime you meet new people who don’t speak the same language

Farkle is a UK-based dice game similar to Yahtzee. This game can accommodate small and large crowds, and winning relies heavily on chance. Players roll six dice, hoping to land a combination that earns points. If you don’t roll any point-earning combinations, that’s a Farkle, and you lose your turn!

Why You'll Love It

Farkle is compact and easy to pack for any trip. Farkle comes with different game and rule variations, so this crowd-pleaser will keep everyone engaged. The element of chance combined with a pinch of strategy makes this game exciting and, at times, loud. Since the rules are simple, this is also a fun game to play with other travelers who may not speak the same language.

2. Unstable Unicorns

Players: 2-8

Age: 8+

Play this: anywhere you have a small flat surface

The name of this game alone should be enough to make you want to buy it! Unstable Unicorns is a unique card game in which you must build an army of unicorns. But, you can’t build your army without betraying other players!

Unstable Unicorns is perfect for travelers who love strategy. But beware, this competitive game can get tense and loud. This game is a fantastic choice for a party starter.

Why You'll Love It

The first and most obvious reason is—unicorns! Of course, players also love the wild unpredictability of this game and the vicious strategy needed to win. Friends become foes, players loudly lament the fall of their armies, and laughter is shared by all.

Unstable Unicorns is an ideal game for making great travel memories with friends. It’s also quite portable and only requires a small area for laying cards.

1. IQ Puzzler Pro

Players: solo

Age: 6+

Play this: anywhere, anytime

IQ Puzzler Pro offers a great change of pace from other group-based games. The goal of this travel game is to solve puzzles of varying difficulty. Each version includes 120 challenges and unique game pieces with stars, arrows, letters, and digits. These games are designed to be played individually, but you can always ask for help if you get stuck.

Why You'll Love It

If you’re a solo traveler or need a break from the group, these challenging games are perfect for you. IQ Puzzler Pro will keep your mind sharp and entertain you for hours if needed. Plus, they come in a small portable travel case.

Plan and play!

Make sure you don't forget anything on your next vacation by checking this packing list. If you really want to plan everything ahead of time, you can also start looking at souvenirs you might want to buy at your destination.

Once you've decided which games to bring, you can move on to the next step in planning your trip. If you need help, there's a great app that will be your new favorite travel companion.