What’s a holiday get together without board games to play as a family? As I was rounding up the different games we’ll take with us to Georgia this year, I thought I’d make a list of my favorites for you.
Do you also save trunk space for games beside all the luggage and presents? Then you need this rundown of the best board games for the holidays! I’ve included dedicated deck card games, strategy games, and a few games that the whole family can play, too.
Card Games
Not a lot of trunk space to spare for your road trip home? Or maybe you’re flying and only packing a carryon? These self-contained card decks should be your go-to board games for the holidays.
One Night Ultimate Werewolf
If you only get one board game on this list, make it One Night Ultimate Werewolf. Everything you need comes in a small box, the rounds are short so you can play multiple games, and there’s a free app that you can download to help you move through the different roles and their functions.
At the beginning of a round, each player is dealt a role that no one else can see. There are two teams: the Villagers and the Werewolves. The Villagers want to find the Werewolf and kill it; the Werewolves want to remain hidden and kill one of the Villagers. After a series of secret moves that could include switching two players’ roles or peeking at another player’s card, the group has 5 minutes to deliberate and choose who to kill. This is where the fun happens as players will lie, cheat, and betray one another to help their team win!
I’m not exaggerating when I say we play this game at every single family get together and during most game nights, too. Recently, we even bought one of the expansion packs—One Night Ultimate Day Break—because we play it so often and wanted to try out some different roles. So far, combining roles from both decks into one game has been a lot of fun, and the game’s app makes it easy to do so!
Shop on AmazonMonikers
We played a version of this game at a birthday party earlier this year, and it’s the perfect game for a group of any size. The game takes place over three rounds. During the first round, players can say anything they want to get their teammates to guess the words on their cards. For the second round, all the same cards are shuffled back into the deck, but now players can only say one word to help their teammates guess. And finally, the cards are shuffled again for the third round, which is a round of charades.
Each card has a different point value based on its difficulty. The team that has the most points at the end of three rounds wins. There are different expansions packs that you can purchase, and the cards vary in topic from pop culture to historical figures to common phrases. Overall, it’s a great game to play with a group!
Shop on AmazonNew Phone, Who Dis?
This card game is made by the same people who created What Do You Meme?, and while we also own that one, I honestly prefer New Phone, Who Dis? In the same vein as that one and Cards Against Humanity, one person reads out a prompt and the other players choose a card from their hand to hopefully be chosen as the best response.
Except with New Phone, Who Dis? the players are selecting the best text message response to the original text. This game is probably for adults instead of the whole family because some of the cards are hilariously crass. 10/10, would recommend.
Shop on AmazonTaco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza
If you’re looking for a card game that the whole family can play, this one is it! Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza is a whimsical, elevated take on Egyptian Rat Screw or Spat. Players go around the circle adding cards to the pile and saying the next word in the phrase “Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza.” If a card and a word line up, the last person to put their hand on the card pile has to take all the cards.
There are also hilarious moments when the gorilla, groundhog, or narwhal cards appear! These games are pretty short and are fun for the whole family.
Shop on AmazonBoard Games
Hosting the get together this year? Or maybe you’re just a packing extraordinaire with plenty of space to spare? I’d recommend you pick up a few of these board games for the holidays.
Secret Hitler
For this game, you have to have a group of at least five people who are ready to strategize and often bluff their way to victory in 1930s Germany! Each player is dealt a secret role: some are Liberals, a few are Fascists, and one is Hitler. The Liberals spend the game trying to enact Liberal policies while the Fascists try to covertly block them, sometimes by assassinating their political opponents. The Liberal team wins by enacting all of their policies, but if secret Hitler is voted President, the Fascists win. It’s a lot of fun with the right group of people!
This game has a similar strategy and sabotage vibe as One Night Ultimate Werewolf. However, there are multiple rounds for gameplay that typically lasts between 30 minutes and an hour.
Shop on AmazonJust One
Unlike Secret Hitler, this game has more of a family vibe and is recommended for players age 8 and above. Just One is a cooperative game where players work together to help one player in the group guess a word. Each player will write one word that they think will help the other player guess correctly on a white board.
The catch? If two players write the same word, they cancel each other out and can’t be shown to the player who is guessing. That means unique words are your friend when trying to help the player guess! It’s a fun, quick game to play with the entire family!
Shop on AmazonMysterium
This game is without a doubt the most beautiful one on this list! Mysterium is unlike any other game I’ve ever played. It’s another cooperative board game because sometimes you need to be forced to play together as a team during the holidays! Your goal is to guess what the ghost in the mansion is trying to tell you about how they were murdered.
One player takes on the role of the ghost, and the others are mediums who receive visions from the ghost via cards that they choose to send them a message. To win, all players must successfully make it through three rounds to guess the suspect, location, and weapon used to commit the murder. If one person fails to guess correctly, everyone loses. Consider yourself warned! We’ve lost this game as many times as we’ve won it.
Shop on AmazonBananagrams
While this one isn’t technically a board game, it also didn’t fit as a card game. Instead the Bananagrams banana is filled with letter tiles to help you create words and outplay your opponent. The first person to use all their tiles wins! It’s the perfect game for a family of word nerds.
Shop on AmazonWhat did I miss from this list of board games for the holidays?
P.S. I include board games and other recommendations in my monthly favorites posts. Check them out!
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