Our Favorite Outdoor Games

There’s no better way to take advantage of the last gasps of summer than inviting a group of neighbors, friends or family to enjoy your backyard. While barbequing, drinking beer and sitting on the deck can be fun, it’s great to have additional activities to add variety to your evening, especially if your guests include energetic young kids. Check out our favorite games below:

Cornhole
This game, which involves tossing miniature bean-bags into a hole cut out of a wooden board, is a barbeque and block party classic for a reason! Cornhole sets can easily be purchased for as low as $60, and come in many different colors and patterns. If you’re feeling creative, you can easily make your own cornhole board with plywood and a jigsaw.

Croquet
This colorful lawn game is as vicious as it is classy; it’s a test of both strength and strategy that lets you choose whether to advance your own position or pull one over on one of your opponents. A complete croquet set, which includes mallets, wickets, balls and end goals, can set you back as little as $35.69.

Horseshoe
This outdoor game involves two people taking turns tossing horseshoes at stakes in the ground, and it can be a ton of fun for large groups as well! Home Depot offers a wide variety of horseshoes and horseshoe sets.

Giant Jenga
Remember this classic game from our childhoods, and hoping nervously that the remains of the tower would stay stable? Well now Jenga is back and better than ever, and the tower is now five feet taller! The anticipation and worry feels much more real when the giant tower is wobbling, and this is a great activity for all ages.