Free Family Garden Games

Summer holidays can be challenging for parents and guardians, with six weeks to fill and budgets to consider. But don't worry! Our free family garden games guide offers creative solutions to entertain your little ones without breaking the bank. Say goodbye to boredom and hello to fun-filled days in the garden!  

Jump to

• Garden scavenger hunt
• Take up twitching
• Make your own fairy or dinosaur garden
• Ball games
• Junk fort
• Colour hunt
• Art competition
• Make your own sports day
• Giant matching game
• What’s the time Mr. Wolf?

Garden scavenger hunt

Our first suggestion might require some forethought, but it's well worth the effort. Your garden provides the perfect environment for free outdoor games, and one such pastime is a scavenger hunt.

Place some household items from around your home in well-hidden areas of your garden, and then write some cryptic clues for your little ones to solve. Make sure there's an odd number of items to ensure that there can be a clear winner at the end of your game; make sure your items are placed in safe areas that don't require your children to climb or jump to reach.

You could even make the hunt harder by incorporating tasks that depend on another sense. For example, blindfold your children and select a range of smell-friendly items for them to identify by smell alone.

Take up twitching

If you didn’t know, twitching is the official name for bird watching. Now, twitching might seem like an activity relegated to older generations, but it can be a surprising amount of fun.

As free family games go, this one is low effort. All you need is a pen and paper! Spend the day looking out for birds in your green space and jot down any species you spot. You can even make this activity an educational experience by looking up facts on the birds you find along the way. 

Make your own fairy or dinosaur garden

The fabulous thing about children is that they can use their imagination much more than we adults can. So, why not encourage their imagination with this fun and free garden game?

Let your kids take the lead in creating this magical world. With just an old flowerpot, seed tray, or any plastic container you have lying around, and some flower cuttings, moss, stones, and pebbles from your garden, they can design and populate the space. You can guide them in creating different hills, mounds, and valleys for their fairies or dinosaurs to explore. 

Ball games

Whether you’re a fan of the beautiful game or shooting hoops is more your style, ball games are a great way to entertain your little ones while keeping them active. Most of us have some type of ball lying around the house, so it’s a free activity for the majority, too!

Just put some old clothes or sheets down as goal posts or utilise the equipment you have to hand. As a parent, you can take on the role of a referee, ensuring the game is safe and enjoyable for everyone involved. 

Junk fort

The power of a cardboard box and an imagination is truly limitless. We all have fond memories of spending hours in makeshift constructions made from boxes, blankets, and household objects, each one a unique creation born from our imagination.

If space allows, why not bring this magic to your garden? From pirate ships to medieval castles, you can break out the paints and make your cardboard fort into whatever your child desires!

Colour Hunt

Rainbows have long been a symbol of hope and good luck. If you’re lucky enough to spot one in your garden, why not challenge your children to a colour hunt? Their task is to collect items from your green space that represent each colour of the rainbow. Just be careful that they don’t collect berries, as they can be toxic.

Art competition

Anything can be made into a family garden activity — even art! Take the sunny weather as an opportunity to dabble in life drawing or landscape painting; when you're all done, you can judge who did the best job.

The beauty of this family activity lies in its adaptability. Whether it's paint, pencils, or chalk, you can use any art supplies you have to hand to craft your masterpiece and have a blast doing it. 

Make your own sports day

What would a summer in the garden be without a touch of competition? A family sports day is the perfect way to keep your children active and engaged in a controlled way. 

The great thing about a garden sports day is that you can design your own races, the schedule, and who takes part in what – to keep everyone safe and prevent squabbling. You can even make your own medals from things around the house and bring the teddies down to cheer you on! 
If you don’t have much space, get creative with your games. Hopping, hooping, and even aim-testing activities can be great alternatives to running. 

Giant matching game

Make a giant matching game for the little ones to test their memory skills outside. 

Print out matching designs in pairs and attach them to one side of the cardboard you have lying around. You can mix them up and place them design-side down to start the game.  

What’s the time Mr. Wolf?

This all-time childhood favourite is perfect for garden fun and is ideal for three or more players.

How to play

1. One player is chosen to be the wolf. The wolf stands about 10 feet away from the starting line with its back to everyone else. Once in position, the other players call out, “What’s the time, Mr. Wolf?” in unison.  
2. The wolf then answers 1 and 12, turning around to face the rest of the players as they do so. The rest of the players will then take as many steps as the time announced.  
3. Once everyone has taken steps, the wolf turns their back again, and the rest shouts the exact phrase.
4. It continues this way until the wolf finally says, “Dinner time!” The wolf turns around and chases the other players. The players then have to run back to the starting line. If they return before the wolf gets them, they get another round. The game continues until the wolf has caught all the players.