Top 3 Wooden Travel-Friendly Games to Take on Your Next Trip
- Scott Norman
- Jul 15
- 6 min read
I'm about to go to the beach with my family and some close relatives next week and need to bring some games. Now, since my whole life currently involves manufacturing handmade wood board games, I'll probably bring 1 of all my products with me. But unless you're me, or Albert and Jackie (a wonderful couple from The Pearl that has bought most of my wood board game selection), then you'll probably want to bring only a few games on your trip. Let's narrow it down to my top 3 Wooden Travel-Friendly Games to Take on Your Next Trip.
Game 1: Travel Mancala Set
(2 Players; 5-10min)
You've probably played Mancala when you were younger, but you might not see it in stores as often these days. Mancala is a great game even for young travel goers as young as 3 years old with adult help. It's a simple counting game where you pick up stones and drop them in consecutive pits while trying to reach your basket at the end of the board. Players have the opportunity to immediately go again by placing their last stone they picked up in their basket, so there is some strategy in selecting a specific group of stones from your side of the board. Players can also play with a "Capture" rule where you can steal your opponents stones from across the board - The player with the most stones in their basket after all the stones are cleared from your side or from the entire board wins the game! If you play with different types of stones, you can assign different point values to different stones adding another dimension to the game.
I would select Mancala as my #1 top wooden board game to bring on a trip due to its blend of quick playability and low-to-mid levels of strategy. The game usually takes about 5 to 10 minutes to play - leaving time for other fun planned trip activities. But the game also has enough strategy and drama for adults that you could play multiple rounds in an evening, and yet not enough strategy to detract from bonding and conversation between you and your opponent. Most importantly, WE HAVE DUCKS as a stone option for this set - You're Welcome.
Want to bring Mancala on your next trip? Read the rules and order one from our site!
Game 2: Travel Chess / Checker Set
(2 Players: 10-30min)
Chess and Checkers (or Draughts) are probably the two most well-known games on the planet. Most games evolve over time through the centuries and through trade, political, and military interactions between different peoples. Chess originated in India and was called Chaturanga. The game involved different pieces with different moves like modern day Chess, but it also used dice to play the game. It eventually made its way to Persia and then to Europe through Islamic Spain around the time of Charlemagne in the 9th and 10th century - the modern rules solidified around the 1400's where it became dominant on the continent and started to indirectly replace European Tafl Games such as Fox and the Geese (Learn more and purchase a Fox and the Geese board)
Checkers or Draughts is an even older game being played in various different froms in ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia from 1500 BC or earlier. Versions of Checkers have been found in archaeological digs in these regions and in temple engravings. Checkers was also played by Homer and Plato and even made its way down to India.
Besides their interesting histories, the games are incredibly fun and strategic. If you have willing partners and time on your trip to dedicate 10 to 30 minute strategic bouts, then this 2-in-1 Travel Chess and Checker Board is just for you. Join the ancients and play some Chess and Checkers.
Game 3: Travel Backgammon Set
(2 players; 10-20min)
Backgammon is another ancient game with multiple predecessors. I won't go into the history - but I recently learned that my Dad, Happy Quacker Sr., was very fond of this game when I was younger - so - full-cricle.
Backgammon is a race between 2 players to get all 15 of their respective checkers back to their "Home" - in this picture, the top and bottom slots on the left side of the board. The top left corner where there are 2 blue checkers is the farthest from blue's Home Slot which is the bottom left slot next to the 2 green checkers. The blue player rolls 2 dice and either splits the 2 numbers between 2 checkers, or uses both numbers on 1 checker and moves it along the triangular points 1 at a time. Currently, the blue player is trying to get their 10 checkers to join the 5 checkers in the bottome left corner of the board - this is blue's home section, and blue cannot start moving their checkers into the Home Slot until all 15 checkers are in that bottom left section. While blue is moving their checkers in a "C" path from top left, to top right, down to bottom right, to bottom left, they can finish a die move on 1 singular green checker. This movement will remove that green checker from play and place it on the "Bar" in the center of the board. Green will then have to roll 2 dice and legally move the green checker off the bar to a traingle in the bottom left corner of the board (the farthest point from their home). So it is then wise to not leave single checkers by themselves - Stacks of more than 1 checker cannot be landed on by an opponent. The first player to offload all 15 of their checkers into their home slot wins the game.
Backgammon is a great game with a lot of replayability. There is a lot of drama in the game when checkers close to home are sent to the Bar, or when players roll doubles and get to move their checkers 4 times instead of 2. The game involves strategy, but it is not a deterministic game like chess since there are dice in the game - the variability makes the game more accesible to players who have not yet mastered the game - try playing chess against a seasoned player - not so fun from personal experience (though it did lead to the creation of my original strategy game: Capture the Crown (shameless plug - oh wait, I'm blogging; this whole thing is a shameless plug, hopefully with fun quips and helpful information)) Check it out:
Backgammon is generally a 10 to 20 minute game. Like I said, there is mid-level strategy to the game, but more casual games are the norm nowadays - I'd really encourage Backgammon for couples looking to have a fun brief gaming experience while still being able to talk and jest.
For more serious players, backgammon has historically been a gambling game - I do not include a "Doubling Cube" with my sets, but other sets include a larger die with exponents of 2 on it that is used in raising bets when a player thinks he or she is going to win the game. Dice rolling cups are often included in Backgammon as well, but I like to aim for the average fun-seeking game player that appreciates quality but not over-quality. I try to keep my products high in quality with beautiful domestic woods and grains you just don't see anymore, but at an accesible price - I have seen Backgammon sets break the $2,000 mark - Hopefully they're made of gold at that price. My beautiful yet affordable Backgammon sets can travel with you and your loved ones on your next trip in a car, on a plane, on a train - Backgammon comes in at Game #3 on my list of Wooden Travel-Friendly Games to Take on your Next Trip.
I hope you've learned something about Mancala, Chess, Checkers and Backgammon. I hope you've learned more about me and I thank you for your time and attention. If you'd like to meet in person, come visit me on weekends at The Pearl Farmers Market in San Antonio, TX. Follow me on Instagram @thehappyquacker - I'm most active on there. And learn more about me, what I do, and why I do it on my website: https://www.thehappyquacker.com/about-us
Happy Quacking!
Scott Norman
Owner
The Happy Quacker LLC
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