The Summer I Fell for Mahjong

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August 5, 2026

On August 5, 2026

Over Memorial Day, we went to Merrimore with some friends. The weather wasn’t the best, so we were inside for a good chunk of the weekend, which lined up with my plan perfectly to learn how to play Mahjong. There were a few sets floating around and Chris and I got our first crash course on bams, cracks, and dots.

We learned on a more traditional set, which I recommend. The bams look like bamboos. The Chinese symbols with red are easily spotted as cracks, etc. Then they pulled out a few other tile sets they had, including a Texas set, where the winds were tiny cowboy boots. On our set, the cracks had a bit of red on them, which I’ve seen on other sets too. The bams — short for bamboo — showed up as little cactus. I loved that I got to start on something close to a traditional Chinese set, where the symbols really feel like something. I’ll say up front: this is American mahjong. It’s its own thing, separate from Chinese Mahjong. It requires four players, and once you start, you’ll probably be hooked.

By the end of the weekend, I’d bought my own set. Moody floral and plaid mat. Tiles with a reddish marble on the back. The goal was never just to learn it enough to get by on Memorial Day weekend, but we wanted to start a routine of playing it so we could teach others.

Perspective shot of a rack filled with Mahjong character, dot, and bamboo tiles sitting atop a colorful NMJL scoring card, with a lit table lamp and floral mat in the background.

Mat | Racks | Tiles

Here’s the thing about American mahjong, the part I keep telling people. It all runs off a card. There’s the National Mah Jongg League card and the American Mah-Jongg Association card, both copyright-protected, ranging from $15-30, and both changing every single year. The beauty of it is that wherever you go, you can walk in and play, because everyone’s working off the same card. I love that. (And I love the idea of giving someone this year’s card and their birth-year card as a gift!)

The hardest part isn’t the shuffling, the tiles going down, any of that. It’s that there are something like seventy combinations on that card, and you’re only going for one. You get your tiles, and you have to decide, yourself, which one you’re chasing. That’s what takes forever to learn. That’s the whole game.

Close-up top-down view of a player's hands with gold rings organizing tiles in a green rack, resting on a Mahjong scoring card next to a floral mat, a lit brass lamp, and a "Mahjong Row & Co." pouch.

As soon as I got the gist of it, I got a mahjong set (paired with this mat) for one of my best friends. Meagan of @meagansbookclub has been talking about wanting to learn how to play for two years, so I spent the last few months learning how to play and brought her a set in my carry-on.

A medium shot of two women wearing sunglasses seated outdoors at a patio table, smiling and playing Mahjong under a large umbrella. The woman on the left, wearing a black tank top and dark cat-eye sunglasses, adjusts clear acrylic trays of Mahjong tiles, with her right hand in view. The woman on the right, in a grey striped sleeveless shirt and dark sunglasses, smiles warmley at the camera. Their colourful illustrated game mat is covered with tiles, acrylic trays, game cards, and a small blue dice. In the background are other patio umbrellas, a hotel building, and a garden with various pines and shrubs under a clear blue sky.

Mat | Tile Set

We borrowed a coffee table from the lobby and stacked up some tiles underneath to make it playable while sitting on the ground. And we played in between every activity during our girls’ trip.

A wider medium shot of three women gathered around a low glass coffee table in an upscale living room with balcony doors offering a scenic view of a hillside town. A woman stands in the center smiling, wearing a white ruffled sleeveless top. The woman kneeling on the right in a green shirt looks up at her. The woman on the left with glasses in a grey sleeveless dress kneels on the floor and holds a phone while looking at the others. Numerous white Mahjong tiles are scattered across the colourful illustrated game mat, along with clear acrylic trays and two other phones. Stacked suitcases are clearly visible on the left, and her sandals rest on the rug.

American Mahjong Set with Light Blue Carrying Case

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We all grew up in different places and crossed paths at different times. We live across the country from each other and have fourteen kids between us all. We met in our twenties, started our annual girls trips in our thirties, and every year on these trips, we spot older ladies walking or eating together and talking nonstop, and say, “That’s going to be us in thirty years.” (Cue the teary eyes.)

Four ladies smiling at the camera in a downtown city scene

By the end of the week, we had each won mahjong at least once. And in the very last game we played, the stacks of tiles under the coffee table we dragged into our room from the lobby slipped out, and we all screamed and then finished the round on the very crooked surface before packing our bags. Even the coffee table knew it was time to go home.

A medium eye-level shot of three women around a low glass-topped coffee table playing Mahjong in a hotel room with large balcony doors and scenic view of a tree-covered town on a hillside under trees. A woman in a white ruffled sleeveless top stands, smiling down. A woman in a light green shirt kneels on the right, looking up. The woman on the left with glasses in a grey patterned dress kneels on the floor, holding and placing her phone onto the colourful illustrated game mat covered in Mahjong tiles and clear acrylic trays. Two other phones are also on the table. Suitcases are visible in the background.

If you’re ready to buy your own set, there are a few paths. The first is an all-in-one starter set — tiles, racks, pushers, and a case, these can vary in price a lot depending on where you’re shopping and what’s included. The second is building à la carte, choosing tiles you love, then racks, then a mat, which costs more but leaves you with something that feels really custom and personal. I landed somewhere in between when putting together a set for my friend: a set from Amazon for around $70 and a mat from Etsy for around $80. That combination gave me the part I most wanted to customize — the pattern on the table — without committing to a full designer set.

Do you have to have a mat? No, but I’d get one. Shuffling face-down on a bare table is loud, and the tiles skate around while you’re mixing them; a little cushion makes the whole thing quieter and easier to handle, and it gives the play area a defined edge. Sizing is the one place to be careful — racks need to match your tile size (either large format or standard size) and your mat needs to be at least 31.5 inches square to hold four racks and a wall.

If you want to start your own tradition or give a set to your best girl, here are some sets that I think would be engaging works of art in any home. (And here are other good-looking games to add to your collection.)