If you are looking for some fun pool party games for adults, then you’ve come to the right place. Pool parties for adults can be a lot of fun, but it can also be hard to come up with games that everyone will enjoy.
When you’re looking for games that will get the adults laughing and interacting, it can be tough to find something that’s both easy and enjoyable.
Check out our list of the best pool party games ideas for adults! These games are simple enough that anyone can play them, but they’re still sure to provide hours of entertainment.
There are games here that don’t require any special supplies, but we also have games that do need supplies for maximum fun. We also show you exactly where to get the supplies from quickly and easily.
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Pool Party Games for Adults
Pool parties are great in summer time whether you care having a birthday party or just a fun get together with friends. Pool days often bring the best memories of fun times with friends. There are lots of fun pool toys you can grab to have some extra fun in the pool.
The pool party games that you play will depend on the amount of guests who want to participate and also the length of your pool. Always make sure to choose games that can be played by everyone and accommodate all ages and abilities.
One of the first things you’ll want to do to get the party started is to announce a fun but easy game. You should always start off with something simple to help break the ice and ease your guests into having fun in the water.
I sincerely hope you enjoy these fun pool games ideas.
Pool Party Relay Games
Who doesn’t love a relay race at the pool? Most people know how a relay works, but there are a few variations below to spice things up.
Pool Noodle Relay
If you have enough space in your pool, the classic pool noodle race is always fun. Break up into teams of three or four people and give each team their own pool noodle.
Instead of swimming each lap of the relay have the team member ride a pool noodle down the length of the pool. Each team member should hold on to the back of the pool noodle and kick to propel themselves forward.
When it’s time to switch swimmers, have a new person jump in at the end of the pool to take their place behind the noodle. The next swimmer should then run down and jump into the water at that point so they can grab hold of the noodle.
T-shirt Relay
Each team has an oversized t-shirt that they have to put on before swimming their lap of the pool. This gets more tricky as the team changes players – wet shirts are harder to get on and off. The first team player wears the t-shirt before diving in. This game is not as easy as it looks. You could add a swimming cap and goggles or flippers too to make it more challenging.
Hula Hoop Relay
Have each team member swim through hula hoops in the middle of the pool as part of their race.
Adult Pool Party Games
Marco Polo
If you grew up in the 80’s or 90’s then no doubt you’ve heard of or have played Marco Polo. If not, here’s the low-down on the game. One person is ‘it’. They must close their eyes and reach out to see if they can tag any of the other players in the swimming pool. If tagged that person becomes the next ‘it’.
‘It’ calls out “Marco” and the other players swimming around the pool respond with “Polo”. These players are generally in the pool but they may climb out of the pool briefly to escape being tagged. The person that is ‘it’ listens out to see if they can work out where the other players are. (They can’t see the other players as their eyes are closed).
Once a player has been tagged they are out of the game. Also the person who is ‘it’ can also call “fish out of water” at anytime if they think that someone has climbed out of the pool. If someone has been caught outside of the pool by ‘it’ they become the next ‘it’.
Pool Tennis
Pool tennis is a super fun game to play in a pool when you have guests who want to do something more than just swim. It’s very easy to set up and requires the same basic rules as tennis – or any racquet sport for that matter!
You can grab a floating net or a net that extends right over the edges of the pool. Grab some waterproof racquets and balls and you’re ready to play. Tennis is fun to play in the pool with our without a net…just grab one of these awesome racquet and ball sets below.
Pool Volleyball
Can’t go past a classic game of Pool Volleyball. Rather than diving for the ball, players can simply swim after it and bump it back to their teammates with their hands. All you need is a net over the middle of the pool and a soft ball or beach ball. Find some great volleyball sets right here.
Also you have to check out the 4 way volleyball net. It’s literally a net divided into 4 quarters for an awesome pool party game.
Water Polo
You don’t have to be an Olympic champion to play Water Polo at a pool party. The set below includes the goal and 3 balls and a handy hand pump. It’s perfect for any backyard pool.
Pool Basketball
One of our favourite games to play in the pool is basketball. We’ve tried several basketball hoops and found these to be the best. This game is very engaging for adults. It’s easy and fun. You can play it with rules or simply have a fun shoot-around.
This floating hoop (pictured below) is heaps of fun and a really awesome game to play. The inflatable is big but not too big where it would take up most of the pool. It’s a good height so that you can dunk on it too. It comes with 2 balls that are perfect as they don’t hurt if you get hit in the head.
If you don’t want your basketball hoop floating around in the pool and would prefer it to be mounted on the side of the pool then you’ll love this basketball hoop below.
Table Tennis
Have you heard of pool table tennis? Yes, it is a thing and I am obsessed! This is great fun to play as a pool party game as it is so unique and everyone will definitely want to have a turn. It’s great for hot Summer days where you don’t want to leave the pool but still want to have fun.
Swimming Pool Games for Adults
Pool Poker
Now in the same spirit as a table tennis game, pool poker is a game changer for adults that love playing poker. It’s great to play at a pool party – floating table, waterproof cards – everything you need to have a super fun time. Don’t forget to wear your sunglasses to perfect your poker face.
Floating Golf
So did you know there was a floating golf game? There is. This might be good if you have a smaller pool party. But this much is guaranteed…everyone will want a turn.
Floating Tug of War
This one is always a bit of fun. Tug of War in the pool adds a whole new dimension to the game with the floating and weighlessness. Mark an area on the side of the pool so that each team can see how far they need to pull the rope. Anytime the person on one team has their feet touch the ground – they’re out. Or if they let go, the other team wins.
Water Tag
Tag is a simple game to play and everyone already knows the rules. In the pool, the person who is ‘it’ can swim around to tag other players. Or for a fun twist you could use water guns or super soakers for another version where you tag the person with water when you shoot them.
Or you could use a soft ball (beach ball) or sponge as the item that tags the players. The person who is ‘it’ can throw it. Other variation could be freeze tag…where you freeze where you are when tagged rather than being out of the game. Other players can unfreeze you by swimming through your legs. The next person is chosen to be ‘it’ once all players are frozen.
Water Balloon Toss or Water Balloon Shotput
Use water balloons either outside or inside the pool and have a competition to see who can throw them the farthest. If they burst inside the pool, make sure you pick up the remnants so that they don’t go through the pool filter.
Pool Party Activities for Adults
Read on for some more fun pool party activities that will guarantee a good time for all your party guests.
Treasure Hunt
Ahoy there me hearties! Are you ready to dive for some pirate treasure? This is a seriously fun game. Throw these gems into the pool and see how can find the most treasure. The gems sink to the bottom of the pool so that you can dive in to find them. These gems are a decent size and are able to be stored in this cute pirate’s chest. Find it right here.
Money Hunt
Throw a handful of coins in the bottom of the pool. Have the players line up ready to dive or jump in to collect as much money as they can until all the coins are gone. They can stack the coins in their own piles on the side of the pool. The winner is the person with the highest value of coins at the end.
Beer Pong
Do you know how to play beer pong? This is a great pool party game for adults as it’s very engaging and there’s always lots of laughter! You can buy floating beer pong tables right here. Or you could just use any table that floats on water. Now you probably don’t want beer spilt in the pool. There are lots of beer long type games with ping pong balls but without the beer.
Pool Pong
Here is another great game for throwing ping pong balls in the pool. You design your own challenge by arranging the rings. It is awesomely fun to play and there are two ways you can play it. Either play it like golf where the lowest score wins – yellow ring bunker, blue ring is water and red ring is the pin. Or you can play it as water pong where each ring has points and the highest scoring player or team wins. Find this awesome water pong game here.
Ring Toss
This game can be played using inflatable or plastic rings. It’s great to play with multiple players as it engages everyone in the party. There’s lots of cheering and booing, but mainly fun!
Jousting
This is a classic game that everyone knows. All you need are pool noodles and it will have people jousting for hours…literally! This is so much fun to play, especially when you get hit with a cold water splash right in the face – yikes! Or you could use one of these fun jousting sets.
Pool Party Games Ideas for Adults
Floating Dodgems
This is a super fun game for adults to play. It can get really competitive too. Each player has an inflatable pool float to lie on to get around the pool. Any pool floats will do – from lounge to unicorn.
The object of the game is to bump all other players off their inflatables and be the last man standing…or make that last person floating! Just make sure you watch out for the edge of the pool.
Balloon Hunt Challenge
Blow up 40+ balloons of lots of different colors. Throw them in the shallow end of the pool and assign each player their own color. The object is to get as many balloons of your color to the deep end of the pool before the timer goes off. You could divide players into teams or have people play one v one. The winner has the most balloons.
Obstacle Course
You could create a fun obstacle course in and outside of the pool with hoops and inflatables and really anything you have that would be fun in the pool.
Inflat-A-Bull
Yes, it’s an inflatable bull ride for the pool. Watching everyone fall off is half the fun. Can you tame the beast? Check out the great reviews and see for yourself.
Cards
Yes you can play cards in the pool and be very cool and comfortable at the same time. Check out this game station set. You can play cards, or checkers or whatever you like.
You’ll also love these waterproof Uno cards. Great for all ages and who wouldn’t want to have a game pool-side or in the pool? Find them here.
Poolside Party Games
There are also a lot of other fun poolside games to play at a pool party for those that want to join in on the fun but don’t necessarily want to swim.
Giant Jenga
Who wouldn’t love to play this game with oversize blocks? A great pool party game for adults. Find it here.
Giant Checkers
Another fun game to play outside if you have the room in your backyard.
Below is a summary of all of the fun pool party games for adults listed in this article. Find it here.
Giant Tic Tac Toe
A classic yet easy games that everyone knows how to play. A quick game is often a good game. Find the giant tic-tac-toe game right here.
Pool Party Games for Adults
- Pool Noodle Relay
- T-shirt Relay
- Pool Tennis
- Pool Table Tennis
- Pool Basketball
- Pool Volleyball
- Pool Poker
- Floating Tug Of War
- Water Polo
- Floating Golf
- Jousing
- Water Balloon Toss
- Floating Dodgems
- Marco Polo
- Floating Tug O War
- Water Tag
- Treasure Hunt
- Money Hunt
- Beer Pong
- Ring Toss
- Balloon Hunt Challenge
- Inflatable Bull Ride
- Cards
- Giant Jenga
- Giant Checkers
Don’t miss these best party favors for adults.
Fun pool party games for adults are a great way to have some fun in the water while also being active. We hope you enjoyed these ideas and that they inspire you to get your friends together for an awesome time at your next pool party!
Keep reading our blog if you’re looking for more content on how to throw an unforgettable summer bash with minimal effort. I sincerely hope you enjoy these best swimming pool games for your next pool party.