As we head into the summer, I start to get excited about BBQ season, but there’s one garden party in particular that I love the most – a Games Day in the garden with our family and friends.
Inviting your favourite folk over to your garden to join in with some gently competitive fun is a wonderful way to spend a sunny weekend. With most other options for summer days out inevitably costing a lot, this is a frugal way to have some fun together when you’re on a budget.
You can take turns at hosting the Games Day and you can all bring along a favourite garden game or contribute some food to share the cost. This got me thinking about what elements go into creating a lovely, chilled-out summer event like this, so I’ve put together a list of my top tips for having some fun in the sun with your favourite folk…
1. Garden games
Naturally, for any games day hosted in the garden, you’ll want to include some classic garden games. We often play big versions of games, such as giant Jenga and outdoor Connect 4. It’s fun to play with an oversized set and it allows family members of all ages to get involved in the games.
But the old classics are always the most competitive, so if you want to challenge your friends, go for a game of ring-toss quoits or croquet (yes, very Bridgerton!) as these games make the most of the fact that your party is being held outdoors.
It was while attending a garden games day that I first discovered the Scandinavian skittles game ‘Molkky’. Again, it’s a game that all ages can enjoy – the rules are easy to understand and I’ve played it with my tiny nieces and nephews and also their grandparents.
If you haven’t seen it before, take a look. Plus, you can definitely make this game yourself with a bit of DIY. My friends played the game in our garden one summer, and soon after, their family crafted a set of skittles for themselves from leftover wood.
2. Indoor options
As with any garden-based gathering, you have to be prepared for the weather to turn. Sure, we’d love it to be a bright and warm day, but you never know what’ll happen, so it makes sense to have some indoor games ready to go in case the rain appears.
Obviously, you can’t take the big garden games inside, so stick to board games and card games to play with your friends while the weather blows through. You can all gather around the dining table and get stuck into a fun game. I’ve previously shared some ideas for a grown-up games night, which might give you some ideas, too.
The cheapest option has got to be a pack of cards, and there are so many games you can play with the deck. Each family will have their favourites (and sometimes their own rules!), so hours of competitive entertainment are possible with just a pack or two of cards.
Gathering around a card table with snacks and drinks is one of the most fun things you can do with your friends. I’ve always enjoyed playing the kind of card games you’d find in casinos, like poker and blackjack. These games bring a touch of Vegas to your living room, and they’re surprisingly easy to learn, even if you’ve never played before.
One of the most popular poker variants, especially in online casinos and at home game nights, is Texas Hold’em. It’s a strategic but accessible game where understanding the basics can really level the playing field. If you’re curious or need a refresher, here’s a handy guide to the rules of texas holdem.
Remember that episode of Friends where the girls secretly learned the rules to challenge the boys?
That’s the vibe we’re going for: just friendly competition with no real money needed. My top tip if you’re
playing gambling-style games is to use counters, pennies, or paper tokens (like my friends did at their
wedding), so the stakes stay low but the fun stays high.
When you’re playing games indoors, I’d recommend choosing ones that are quite fast to play (probably not Monopoly or Cluedo!) so that you can complete a round and crown a winner within about 5-10 minutes. Then you can have a natural break for more drinks, food and loo-breaks before you move on to another game or do another round.
3. Eats and treats
Although we’re hoping for a sunny outlook for our garden games day, you can’t always rely on the weather being nice, so I wouldn’t commit to having a BBQ. Plus, it takes members of your group away from the games while they cook, meaning they’ll be missing out on some of the fun.
So, I think it’s better to pre-prepare any food you’re planning to enjoy in advance – a cold buffet means no one is slaving over the BBQ, and the meal will already be waiting when you’re ready for it.
In fact, I’d go one step easier than preparing a buffet – I’d pre-make some sub-sandwiches or picnic rolls. These are easy to grab and go, so your guests don’t need to sit down with a plate, knife and fork to eat. Plus, you can pick one up between games for a quick snack.
Likewise, with sweet treats, there’s no need to prepare puddings as this will result in more washing up for you and might end up being messy in the garden. So, I’d recommend stocking the freezer with boxes of ice cream cones and ice lollies – that’s dessert sorted in a matter of minutes!
4. Prizes
Finally, I think that prizes are a lovely addition to any games day. It makes each game even more competitive if you have a prize available at the end of it. We sometimes have mystery prizes – a small item wrapped up so that the winner of each game can ‘lucky-dip’ in the prize pot and win something, like a chocolate treat, a silly joke present or even a pack of cards – always handy!
Or perhaps you might want to create a leaderboard to log everyone’s wins throughout the day. It’ll be fun to watch how each game affects the chart, with people’s names moving up and down the leaderboard. After all the games are played, you can crown one overall champion of Games Day.
There may be a trophy that they get to keep for the year and bring back to the next Games Day to be competed for again, creating a tradition of regularly getting together with friends or family each summer.
I hope this has given you some inspiration for your own Games Day this summer. Let me know in the comments below if you’re planning anything similar with your friends, and I’d love to hear about the traditions you have for having fun with your family – a favourite game or a tricky challenge you try each year.
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