23 Exciting Camping Games To Play At Night
If you’re anything like me, you cherish the magic that night time brings to the camping experience. There’s something truly enchanting about gathering around the campfire, sharing stories, and laughing under the starlit sky. But sometimes you need a little extra entertainment once the sun goes down! That’s where these night camping games are perfect!
When there’s no WiFi and not much light, you’ve got to get a little more creative with your night entertainment! There are plenty of fun activities to do at night while camping. We have put together the best camping games to play at night
There’s no need to have an early night. Keep the fun going after dark!
Awesome Camping Games To Play At Night
Before we get into the list of games, what makes for a good night camping game? Well, it depends on the type of game really! If you’re looking for something simple you can do around the campfire, there are plenty of fun campfire games to play with just the light of the fire.
But if you’re still full of excited energy after the sun has gone down, it’s just a matter of getting creative! This list includes three types of night camping games – conversation games to play around the campfire, active group games that need some equipment and a few adult-only camping drinking games too.
Campfire Conversation Games
These campfire games don’t require a thing! They are perfect for sitting around the campfire at night where all you need is your conversation and imagination.
1. Alphabet Soup
This is our favourite campfire or road trip game to play as a family. Pick a theme, like girls’ names or places. During each round, each player must come up with a unique answer to suit the theme, starting with that letter of the alphabet.
So for example, round one is girls’ names beginning with A, one person could say Alice, another could say Anna and so on. For each round where you get a unique answer, you get a point. If you can’t come up with an answer, you pass and don’t get a point. Once everyone is done playing or passing, move onto the next letter and repeat. The person with the most points at the end of the alphabet is the winner.
2. Build A Story
Start with one person creating the first sentence of a story, then go around the circle with each person adding a sentence. The story can take hilarious and unexpected turns, making it a fun and creative group activity.
3. Campfire Charades
This campfire game needs a little light, either the campfire or a lamp. You can plan ahead with camping charades, by having charade cues ready to draw out at random. Grab our free camping charades printable to save time making your own. Or just make them up on the spot for a no-prop campfire game.
Players take turns drawing a slip and acting it out without speaking while others guess. Playing by the firelight adds an extra layer of fun and challenge to this classic game.
4. Two Truths & A Lie
Two truths & a lie is a classic icebreaker game that works exceptionally well around the campfire. Each player takes turns sharing three statements about themselves: two truths and one lie. The rest of the group then tries to guess which statement is the lie. This game is most fun to play with an adult group of friends but you can play it with any age group.
5. Would You Rather
Would You Rather is a simple campfire conversation game where players present two difficult choices to one another. For example, “Would you rather have the ability to fly or be invisible?”. Each participant must choose one of the options.
A simple one if you just need a quick game to wind down for the night and perfect to play with all ages, family and friends.
6. Twenty Questions
Twenty questions is a guessing game. One player thinks of an object, person, or place (you can set guidelines around what type of things to choose if you want to make it a bit easier), and the rest of the group has up to twenty yes-or-no questions to figure out what it is. If someone guesses correctly within the twenty questions, they win and become the next “thinker.”
7. Drunk or Child
Drunk or child is a hilarious storytelling game for adults. Players take turns sharing funny or embarrassing stories from their past. The twist is that the listeners have to guess whether the story happened when the storyteller was drunk or when they were a child. This game allows for some light-hearted fun and can uncover some truly hilarious stories you likely didn’t know about your friends.
8. Silent Line-Up
Challenge your group to line up in a specific order (height, age, birthday month) without speaking. Use hand signals and gestures to communicate only. This game is a fun way to practice teamwork and non-verbal communication skills, making it a great one to do with teens or as a night camping game for Summer camp.
9. Chinese Whispers
Chinese Whispers, also known as Telephone, is a simple yet entertaining game that can lead to hilarious results. Players sit in a circle, and one person starts by whispering a sentence or phrase into the ear of the person next to them. This process continues around the circle until the last person announces the sentence they heard.
More often than not, the final message is wildly different from the original, leading to lots of laughter and confusion.
Active Group Night Camping Games
These camping games to play at night require a little more pre-planning. Each of these games requires some equipment and a bit of space to play.
10. Flashlight Tag
A classic twist on regular tag, flashlight tag uses flashlights instead of physical tagging. One person is “it” and tries to catch others by shining their flashlight on them. If you’re caught in the beam, you’re out or become “it.” This game is great for open spaces and requires a few flashlights.
Check out these adorable mini flashlights for your camping games.
11. Flashlight Hide ‘n’ Seek
Following on with the flashlight fun and classic kids games, add a night time twist by having one person be ‘it’ who needs to count while everyone else hides. Once they’ve finished counting, they use the flashlight to find each person. Once you’re caught in the light, you’re found.
It’s important to make sure you set some boundaries around how far players can go to hide so that no one wanders off too far. You might also want to make sure each player has their own flashlight for finding their hiding spot without tripping over anything, turning it off once they are in place so the ‘it’ person doesn’t see where you went while counting with their eyes shut.
12. Firefly
One player, designated as the “firefly,” has a flashlight that they turn on and off intermittently while moving around the campsite. The other players attempt to find and tag the firefly based on the brief flashes of light. This game requires stealth and quick reflexes, making it both challenging and exciting.
13. Capture the Flag (Glow Edition)
Divide into two teams, each with a glowing object as their “flag.” Use glow sticks, LED lights, and lamps or get yourselves a glow-in-the-dark capture the flag kit. Teams try to capture the opponent’s flag while protecting their own. This game combines strategy and stealth, making it a thrilling night activity.
14. Manhunt
This is a more intense version of hide-and-seek. One person is the “hunter” and counts while everyone else hides. The hunter then searches for the hidden players, who try to make it back to a designated “home base” without getting caught. It’s best played in a wooded area for added excitement.
15. Night Scavenger Hunt
Create a list of items or clues to find around the campsite. Equip participants with flashlights and let the hunt begin. Items can include specific leaves, rocks, or man-made objects. The first person or team to find all the items wins.
It’s a great way to explore the surroundings and can be a good idea to pair players up, especially if playing with younger kids, so each can pair up with an adult or teen.
Get our free camping scavenger hunt printable.
16. Glow Bowling
Glow Bowling brings a fun, glowing twist to traditional bowling, perfect for a night camping adventure. Set up your “pins” using water bottles filled with glow sticks and place them at the end of a level surface or path. Use a small ball, such as a tennis ball, to knock over the pins. Players take turns rolling the ball and trying to score strikes or spares.
You can also get glow-in-the-dark bowling sets too. A perfect family-friendly nighttime camping game for all ages.
17. Glow Stick Ring Toss
Set up a ring toss game using a glow-in-the-dark ring toss set or a bottle with a glow stick inside. Create rings from glow sticks and place them at varying distances from the targets. Players take turns tossing the rings, trying to land them on the stakes.
18. Werewolf
In this social deduction game, players are assigned roles such as villagers, werewolves, or special characters. Werewolves secretly eliminate villagers each night, while villagers try to deduce who the werewolves are during the day. The game ends when either all werewolves are eliminated or the werewolves outnumber the villagers. It’s perfect for large groups but tricky to explain in a short space, so check out how to play werewolf here.
19. Glow Lawn Darts
Glow Lawn Darts is a fun twist on the traditional lawn darts game, perfect for night-time camping activities. This version uses glow-in-the-dark darts and rings, making it easy to play even after the sun sets.
Set up the glowing rings at various distances from the throwing line. Players then take turns tossing the glow darts, aiming to land them inside the rings for points. The farther the ring, the higher the points. It’s an excellent way to bring everyone together for some friendly competition under the stars.
Night Camping Drinking Games
Looking for some camping drinking games to play after the kids have gone to bed? Or for your adults-only camping trip! Always remember to drink responsibly… especially when you’re in the wilderness! Here’s a few drinking games to play at night around your campfire.
21. Never Have I Ever
Gather everyone in a circle with their drinks. Players take turns saying, “Never have I ever…” followed by something they haven’t done. If anyone has done it, they take a sip of their drink. The turn then moves to the next person. Keep going until someone runs out of their drink or you decide to stop.
22. Glow Beer Pong
Add a night twist to the classic game of beer pong by incorporating glow-in-the-dark elements (get a glow in the dark beer pong set here. To set up, place 10 glowing plastic cups in a pyramid shape at each end of the table. Fill each cup with a small amount of beer or your preferred beverage.
Divide players into two teams, who will take turns attempting to throw a glowing ping pong ball into the opposing team’s cups. If a ball lands in a cup, the other team drinks the contents and removes the cup from the table. The first team to eliminate all of the opposite team’s cups wins.
13. Flip Cup
Divide into two teams and line up on opposite sides of a table. Each player has a cup with a small amount of drink. The first player on each team drinks and then tries to flip their cup from the edge of the table so it lands upside down using one hand. Once successful, the next teammate goes. The first team to flip all their cups wins.
With these fun night camping game ideas, there’s absolutely no reason to go to bed as soon as the sun is set and dinner is done! Turn your nights around the campsite into a laugh-a-minute with these fun games to play at night. And if you want more ideas, check out these night camping activities for kids and families too.
Want more fun camping activity ideas?
- Camp activities for couples
- Camp activities for teenagers
- 2 player camping games
- Camp activities for toddlers and younger kids
- Winter camping activities
- Camping crafts
