Best Outdoor Lawn Games to Play

A lush green lawn provides the perfect setting for outdoor activities. If you don’t want to limit your fun and games to just playing at public parks and sports fields, there are plenty of options for enjoyment in your own backyard. Do you want some high-energy competition? Perhaps some relaxing downtime with friends and family? You can enjoy both with a variety of lawn games.

Advantages of lawn games

Getting outside improves overall health and wellness as the fresh air and movement benefit both your mind and body. Adults and kids need screen breaks and getting out of the house to play helps you put down those devices for a while. The many advantages of playing outdoor games include:

Improvement in motor skills
Development of muscle tone
Elevation of self-esteem
Enhancement of relationships
Appreciation for the environment

Most of all, outdoor games provide hours of fun, especially in the fall. The most popular lawn games combine activity, skill and competition. Plus, they enhance gatherings and promote social interaction.

Best time for lawn games

Lawn games can provide year-round fun. As soon as the grass starts turning green again in the spring, on sunny days in the summer and when the air turns crisp in the fall, each season features ideal weather to play yard games outside.

In the spring, the birds are chirping, and the backyard is ready for a family-friendly game of pick-up sticks. Lots of family reunions take place at parks in the summer and bringing lawn games to play is a great activity that can connect multiple generations together. Fall is the perfect time to plan backyard barbecues featuring your favorite games, such as cornhole and horseshoes.

The autumn months are also when baseball teams make their playoff push and when football games hit the airwaves. Lawn games allow you to bring the tailgating experience right to your home. Playing a game of volleyball gives your guests a great way to warm up before kickoff. Plus, if your team is having a rough day, a croquet match might be a welcome distraction from the disappointing action happening on the outdoor TV.

Most popular lawn games

Anything from playing catch to a game of tag makes for a good lawn game. The following suggestions are some of the most popular outdoor games and a few of their interesting histories.

Toss games

Physically and mentally challenging, toss games require concentration and coordination. This makes them a great option for players of all ages. Toss games encourage focus, motor skills and cooperative play.

Popular and iconic, cornhole epitomizes the lawn toss game. This outdoor competition came to America from Germany. Either one-on-one or in teams, players score points by throwing bean bags through holes in raised boards. Cornhole offers both laid-back games and serious competitions; professional leagues appear on a digital network devoted to the game.

Other toss games challenge you to hit targets or knock over structures. Some require you to throw a disk through a target. Since parents prefer to buy garden games that are safe for all ages, the child-friendly beanbags and plastic discs make any of these options a good lawn game for kids.

Bocce ball

Games like bocce ball have been around since antiquity. The ancient Egyptians and Romans played variations of this sport. Today’s version hails from Italy and involves two teams tossing balls at a target, such as a smaller ball called a pallino. The team whose balls land closest to the pallino wins the game. A combination of horseshoes and bowling, bocce provides a wonderful activity for large gatherings.

Lawn bowling

Why bother going to a bowling alley when you can set up the game in your yard? Bowling also has a history that stretches back to the days of the pharaohs of Egypt. As with the indoor version, lawn bowling involves rolling a ball toward pins. While you don’t have the structured lanes featured at the bowling alley, you do get hours of amusement without renting shoes.

Giant games

Traditional board games like chess and checkers take on extra dimensions with giant games. These oversized versions of classic tabletop games bring hours of physical and mental activity.

Rolling gigantic dice can put a fun twist on any game played on your patio. Rolling these larger-than-normal dice alone offers challenging fun. Super-sized strategy games where you stack pieces or try to make a matching row of one color can engage adults and children alike.

Team games

Your lawn provides a playing surface for a variety of sports and outdoor team games. Classic favorites like soccer, badminton and Wiffle ball deliver fun in the spring, summer and fall. With a little creativity, you can turn your lawn and garden into a miniature golf course. Your family will enjoy planning each hole together as much as they will playing on it with each putt.

Make the most of your backyard fun

Take advantage of the beautiful weather by finding lawn games that bring joy to you, your family and your friends. After the games are over, you can relax in your outdoor living. Grill dinner and eat al fresco on the patio underneath string lights. Close out the night sitting around the fire pit talking about how much fun you had playing games together all day.