Are you looking for the best travel games for two players? Well, you’ve arrived at the right place because Lars and I have some great picks to share!
We’ve been travelling since 2017 and are always looking for cool two-player games.
We’ve tried everything from quick card games to board games and abstract games. Those included in our list here have not only become our favourites but are also loved by my equally game-crazy grown-up kids.
I’m particularly keen on games. Lars? He’s a bit pickier, so it’s definitely a keeper when we both fall for a game.
Size isn’t always what decides it for us—take ‘Who Knows Where,’ for example. It’s a larger board game all about travel, making it a perfect fit for this list. It stays at my son’s house because it’s a bit too hefty for our cozy 4×4, but perfect for more spacious setups like motorhomes.
Let’s dive into our curated list of travel-friendly games for two. Whether you’re in a cozy camper, a spacious motorhome, or just packing them in your backpack, these games promise to add fun and laughter to your journeys.
So, without further ado, join us as we delve into our favourite travel games for couples.
In a Hurry? Best Travel Games for 2 Adults in a Nutshell
Playing games isn’t just fun; it’s a way to connect, recharge, and even boost your brain power. We’ve mainly focused on travel-friendly options that fit easily into your luggage, whether you’re in a compact car or a roomy motorhome.
Ready for our top picks? We know these games are great because we’ve tested them!
Quick Picks: The Best Two-Person Travel Games
If you’re short on time, here are our top 2 people travel game recommendations:
🏆 Overall #1 Game About Travel – Who Knows Where — Not just a game but a geography lesson in disguise. Lars and I had a blast discovering new places and testing each other’s world knowledge, making it our top pick for travel enthusiasts.
💫 Best Small-Sized Travel Game – Dobble/Spot It! — One of our evergreen favourites.
🎲 Best Travel Dice Game – Lost Cities Roll and Write— Hunt for points on expeditions – easy to learn and playable anywhere.
🃏 Best Travel Card Game – Monopoly Deal — Quick, engaging, and perfect for any trip.
👫 Best Thinking Travel Game for Couples – Codenames Duet — A thrilling word game for two.
👉 If you are travelling as a couple, check out our best tips for couples on a road trip—they will help you stay sane and in love while travelling together 24/7!
Best Travel Board Game
There is only one board game on this list, as we want to limit ourselves to smaller games that you can take on your travels. But Who Knows Where just has to be on this list. Why? Firstly, because it is related to travel and will satisfy any travel lover, and secondly, it is our absolute favourite game.
1. Who Knows Where
This is our favourite game—which is no surprise as we love travelling, and it is a great test of our accrued knowledge. It’s not one that’s easy to pack in your suitcase, though, so it’s more for one to pack in your motorhome or play while you are at home.
Each person has a coloured pyramid which you use to place on the map to show where you think that the place you’re guessing is. Questions include capitals, photos of places, famous events, tourist attractions and more.
We’ve learnt a thing or two playing this game and discovered places we’d like to add to our bucket list!
It’s ideal for two players but can also be played with four or as teams. Another bonus is that you play at the same time, so there are no waiting turns.
We’ve the World version, but it also comes in a UK version too.
Best Travel Word Games for Two Players
This next section contains a few of our favourite word-based games for two players.
2. Codenames Duet
This first game, Codenames Duet, is a little larger than the others in this section but worth fitting in your camper. It’s probably a little too big to fit in a backpack, but as a two-player game, it’s awesome.
Codenames Duet is designed for two players and is a little like Battleships for word lovers. The more you play, the more you learn how your partner thinks, and it’s a great challenge to see how you can work together.
Your game partner has to guess a number of words based on one-word clues. You are working together to find all of the spies before either running out of time or running into one of the dreaded assassins.
The more we play, the better we become at being able to include two or three words with one clue. This is important because you only have 9 lives before you both fail the mission!
I had heard a lot about Codenames before we finally got this 2 player game, and it didn’t disappoint. This game is particularly great for couples who love word games and strategic thinking. You could also play this game in teams.
The Two-Player Word Deduction Game - a fun code solving game for those who love puzzles.
3. Lexicon Go
Lexicon Go is quick to learn and easy to play. The pressure is on from the start as you form your words because you can add to swap out your opponent’s letters.
It’s a speedy game in which players try to make their words all at once. This game is easier and feels less pressurised when played with two players as there are fewer words to keep an eye on! When I played with my three sons, letters were being swapped left, right, and centre, and you really needed to be on your A game.
The tiles have a nice feel and are easy to pack away into the sturdy L-shaped zippable case.
Lexicon Go also comes in a Harry Potter theme and a Star Wars Theme.
4. Bananagrams
Bananagrams is another neatly compacted game small travel size game.
Most of the game is spent in quiet concentration until one player wins by using all their tiles. Its easy to play with two players or more.
Bananagrams is a little like Scrabble but without a board or scoring. When a player uses up all their letters, all players take a new tile from the pool. The object of the game is to be the first to complete a word grid after the tile pool has run out.
The race is on from the start because the winner is the first to use all their tiles.
Best Travel Card Games for 2 Players
The great thing about card games is that they come in handy travel-size packs, which make them easy to pop into your backpacks and, therefore, the ultimate travel games.
And the list you’ll find here is all incredibly varied. We’ve the classic pack of cards to play with as well as card games that involve a whole lot of fun but aren’t your traditional card games.
5. Dobble
One of our favourite games is Dobble. Don’t be fooled into thinking it’s a kid’s game because it’s just as fun for adults.
I love Dobble, and as frustrating as it can be, it is so much fun. We’ve been playing it for years since my kids were little. And now they are adults, they still love it!
The idea is to match one of the items on your card with the card being shown and call out what the item is. Each card has exactly one matching symbol or picture in common with the other cards in the deck, but sometimes you’ll swear there isn’t a match!
The first person to call out wins the card. You can play several variations, but that’s the gist of it.
My adult sons beat me every time! Each round is fast-paced and takes about 15 minutes, keeping you on your toes with its demand for quick reflexes and sharp observation.
The best part? It’s super compact and has various themes, making it easy to slip into any travel bag and find the theme you like. It’s great for brain exercise and so easy to understand and play.
This is the original version of Dobble, which is the one we have, but there are several other variations, and I’ve included a few below.
Ages 6+ | 2-8 Players | 15 Minutes Playing Time
One of our favourite family games but can easily played with just two people too. Great to keep your brain active.
Here are a few of the other themes:
6. Five Crowns
I don’t know about the rest of the world, but everyone we know in Australia is talking about this game. It’s easy to play but more challenging than the classic game of rummy, on which it’s based.
You score each round, and the wildcard changes at each round, too, which keeps you on your toes. The aim is to score the least amount of points as possible, and it’s one of those games that you can be winning all along, and one bad hand can have you eating humble pie and trailing at the back again.
Five Crowns can be played with 2 – 7 players.
7. Jaipur
Jaipur is a cool card game in which you trade and sell goods to earn the most money. The best of three games wins, and the more you play, the more you learn to strategize.
It takes a few minutes to set up, which is a little annoying, but it is easy and quick to play with a mixture of luck and strategy involved.
It can be played anywhere, but the fact that you have the tokens means it’s not really suitable for playing on tray tables on a plane. A bit of turbulence, and you’ll be searching for your tokens on the floor—and we all know how difficult that is when you’re stuffed into your seat!
This is a popular two-player game and is worth adding to your travel game list.
| Board Game | Ages 10+ | 2 Players | 30 Minute Playing time
8. Monopoly Deal
Monopoly Deal is really compact, quick, and easy to play.
It captures the essence of collecting property sets like in the original board game but in a fraction of the time. It’s dynamic in that you can often collect money from other players or make your partner give you a card, so it is anyone’s guess who’s going to come out on top.
It’s a game for 2 to five players and is so tiny that it’s easy to take anywhere and play anywhere. You know it’s a good game, when you’re disappointed, it’s over so quickly!
Quick-Playing Card Game for Families, Kids Ages 8 and Up and 2-5 Players
9. Love Letter
Love Letter is probably the smallest travel-size game on our list. It comes in a small red pouch that can easily be stashed into any bag; in fact, it’s so small you could carry it around in your handbag.
This is another quick game to learn and play. It can be played with two, though we find it more fun when played with at least three. Despite that it’s a really popular travel game that many had recommended to us.
There is a mixture of random card draws and subtle strategy when playing this game, and because it is so quick, it can become addictive … just one more!
10. Plastic Playing Cards
Keeping a pack of cards in our glove box has become a travel tradition, ensuring we’re always ready for a spontaneous game during our camping adventures.
The waterproof nature of these cards is a real game-changer; it means we can play anywhere without worrying about spills or damp conditions.
Whether it’s a splash of coffee on the camp table or a dewy morning, these cards endure it all with a simple wipe clean. It’s the little things like this that make our outdoor experiences worry-free and filled with fun.
Number 1 Gold Playing Cards Game, Sleek Gold Foil Design Deck of Cards, Ideal for travel and the plastic means the cards don't get soggy at all.
Other Waddington brands that aren’t waterproof include:
Best Small Travel Games for Adults
Next, we delve into the world of mini-travel games, which are perfect for two-person travel. These travel-size games are compact and packed with fun, making them ideal companions on your couple’s travels.
11. Pass the Pigs
These little pigs pack a big punch when it comes to fun! Pass the Pigs is easy to play and comes in a nifty little carry case, making it another great small travel game.
This game is a fun dice game where the first player top 100 points wins. But be wary of throwing an oinker — you’ll lose all your points.
And if Pass the Pigs doesn’t grab your interest, there is also a Pass the Pug game.
Fun, quick and easy game
12. Six Second Scribbles
I am hopeless at drawing, but that doesn’t stop me from trying! You definitely want to start with the easy variation and may even want to give yourself more time to complete the drawings!
To be honest, I love all the gamely games. What makes buying one of these games even better is that the company gives 10% of its profits to charity and plants 10 trees for every tree it uses.
You can play with two players up to eight players, and it is a game that brings out the silliness and creativity in everyone, making it a hit in our book.
This game fits perfectly into a travel bag or campervan storage, ready to bring joy to any destination.
The frantically Fast and fantastically Fun Drawing Game - fun with two - even more fun with a group.
Best Travel Games For Long Drives
13. A Little More Conversation
As road trippers, we often take long drives, and one of the little games we carry in our glovebox is A Little More Conversation. These are question cards that spark conversation and are also a great way of passing the time with your partner on a long trip.
There are several different categories, and you can pick them at random or stick with one—totally up to you. The categories include Warm-ups, back in the day, what if, right here, right now, and tomorrow and beyond.
It travels with us between Africa and Western Australia, where we currently have 4x4s with rooftop tents, and is always handy when we get bored.
14. Trivia Games
Other games great for long road trips are trivia questions or riddles. We’ve not tried all of these, but here are a few that would fit the bill:
More Two Player Games
This section includes a few other two-player games that we have or fellow travellers have recommended as great travel games.
15. Lacuna
Lacuna is a great two-player abstract game – I really like it. It’s super simple to set up and you can explain the game and be playing within a minute.
It’s a visually appealing game that is quick to play and has a feel-good ambience. The idea is to place one of your six playing pieces (gold or silver) in between the invisible line linking two matching flowers. You then take those two flowers. The aim is to collect 4 of the same because then your partner can’t win that colour theme.
I have included it here because I love it and also because a friend recently played this while on a cruise and told me that so many passers-by were interested in the game and wanted to get it. While we don’t do cruises, it got me thinking that this is really a great game to set up, and while away the hours at sea playing with a pine colada in hand. Is that what one does on cruises? 😉
For 2 Players, Ages 8+
16. Travel Games Recommended by Other Travellers
The next game on our list to try is Hive Pocket because so many have mentioned it —apparently, the pocket version also includes a few extension tiles.
These games are a few that other travellers have told us about that they love:
Do you have any favourite two-player travel games we could add to the list to recommend to fellow travellers? Drop a comment at the end of the post and spread the love!
Best Travel Games for Two Players … That’s a Wrap
That’s a wrap on our favourite travel games for two players!
We’ve shared games that not only fill our travel times with laughter but also bring us closer, no matter where our journey takes us. Whether you’re navigating long flights or cozy evenings by the campfire, these games are sure to enhance your travel experience.
These are all perfect gifts for travel lovers in your life too! And if you are looking for travel gifts, look no further than our best picks for travel and safari lovers.
Have you tried any of these games on your travels, or do you have a few favourites of your own? We’d love to hear about them! Drop a comment below or share this post with your fellow travel enthusiasts. Your experiences and recommendations can help grow our community of adventurous couples and travel lovers.
Keep the fun going—if you’re gearing up for a road trip, don’t forget to check out our free road trip planner to help ensure your adventure is as smooth and enjoyable as possible. Happy gaming, and safe travels!
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If you like Scrabble, try Quiddler! Our favourite. Barely a day goes by that we don’t play. Easier when travelling as no board. Another favourite is Sequence. Definitely going to check out some of your suggestions here.
Ooh thanks Jane – I’ve not come across Quiddler, I’m going to look it up right now. Thanks so much for the extra suggestions.