Top 7 Games to take on vacation

It's summertime, and this typically means some kind of vacation for most people.  Of course since this is a blog about boardgames, I'm going to promote the idea of taking some games with you.  Now, a lot of what you can take depends on how you travel.  Airplanes leave very little spare space, trains give you a bit more, but car travel has its limitations as well.  Two factors play into this list - size of the box and game footprint.

#7 A Standard Deck of Cards.

Yes, I am going here. Vacations don't have to be all about games.  A deck of cards gives people a lot of options, many games to play, and common ground for all ages.

#6 Forbidden Island

Here's a fun family activity.  Working together is a good thing to have in a vacation game.  The theme of treasure hunting is fun for all ages.  

#5 Tiki Topple

I've talked a lot about Tiki Topple.  I know the box is a little big, but if you really want to slim it down, put the tikis and pawns in a bag, then grab the board and cards.  You could even play without the board if you want to save more space.  Also, you can play with 2-4 players, which is a good mix.

#4 No Thanks

The only reason this isn't #1, is because there are cards and chips, and the chips could get lost.  Besides that, No Thanks is good fun. It's maybe a little mathy for some people, but it's playable in about 10-15 minutes.  

#3 Mafia/Werewolf

If you're in a big group of any kind, I'm thinking large family gathering with 10+ people, this is the game for you.  The best thing, you can play it with a standard deck of cards.

#2 For Sale

2 decks of cards and a bag of tokens.  Can't get much simpler than that.  It plays 3-6 players, in around 20 minutes.  The best part, it's incredibly easy to teach non-gamers.

#1 Coloretto

Here's a fun card game that doesn't take tons of space.  The box fits in your hand, plus with only cards, it's hard to lose any pieces.  It plays 3-5 players which is great for those family trips.  The game is short and simple, which makes for an ideal quick game on vacation.

There are a lot of games you can take on vacation.  Try to pack a game on your next vacation.  Don't go overboard and pack 10 games.  Ultimately a vacation is about spending time with people and exploring a different area than home.