I've rented a house in the Adirondacks for vacation for a week and have invited my parents and my brother and his family. There will be 5 kids (all boys) ages 8, 6, and 4 1/2 and 8 months and 5 adults. Does anyone have any good suggestions for group games? Hopefully the weather will be good and there are lots of outdoors activities to do (hiking, swimming, fishing, mini-golf, etc.). I'm looking for ideas for games (either indoor or outdoor) in the evenings or if there is bad weather (not a lot to do in the area if we have a rainy day). The house has 2 TVs and DVD players, but I'd like to try to minimize TV watching and have some things to do so everyone can interact since we all live a couple of hours or more from each other and can't get together all that often. I want to avoid bringing a lot of board type games or since none of the vehicles will have a lot of space. I saw a book on Amazon today that describes a lot of games and activities, but unless I order and do 24 hour shipping it wouldn't arrive in time. Thanks!
You could pack a large pad of paper and play pictionary.Of course there are games that require nothing more than a pencil and paper, Charades, Hangman. Take a couple of decks of cards and the possibilities are endless. Have fun!!
It may be worth asking the people you are renting from if there are any games at the house. Many rental homes do have some board games and such available, which could save you some packing and duplicates. I agree with the cards and pictionary ideas, which immediately came to my mind. Also, you can let the kids do something crafty if you just throw in some crayons, paper, glue, and maybe pipe cleaners (just watch as the ends of some are sharp). They could also incorporate sticks, leaves, etc. that they mind out in nature and even things like aluminum foil and paper plates (dollar store type works great for crafts). I also find that my kids have always enjoyed listening to the grown up share stories from the past, especially hearing what mom or dad was like as a kid. Have fun!
You may need different games for different ages, but could try some puzzles and quiet games for when you need a quiet moment! ;)
Do kids still play Sorry? Chutes and Ladders? Those types of board games that cover a wide variety of ages?
The family we just vacationed with brought Apples to Apples and we all loved it! It's not too big. Also (no packing) charades, hangman, and the O. where you draw the phrase, movie, book, etc. Large notepad & a sharpie! Also a box of dominoes goes a long way--conventional play or train is really fun. (Not to mention the old "set them up to knock them down" angle!)
Uno - even the 4 year old could play that. Take a few decks of extra regular playing cards - there are so many games to play with cards - memory, go fish, hi lo. Do a google search for card games, plus the other adults might know more and could teach the kids. I like sherades (sp?). Pick a catogory ex. animals, and have everyone act out one - super funny especially with adults!! Sometimes in the winter we play hide and seek "Happy". Happy is a yellow ball that I drew a happy face on with a sharpie marker. It works out better in the house than actual hide and seek and you can use the "hot/cold" rules if you like. Scavenger hunts are fun. Make a list like find something blue that is smaller than your hand, something that is square and red, etc. Or you could do find something for every letter of the alphabet. The eight year old could read the clues, the 6 yr old could hold the bag and the 4 yr old could check them off the list. It encourages team work!!! Make sure to take paper and pencils/crayons cause you never know what other games you could think of. I also do a clue game with my kids. I give them clue #1, which leads to clue #2 (ex: go to the place where you brush your teeth) and so on. I'll do 5-10 clues and hide a treasure at the last one - glow sticks is a fun treasure if you'll be outside at night while on vacation.
