Camping With Kids - Our Top 5 Tips

We are well-seasoned campers and Steve and I have loved camping for most of our adult lives whether this be in a pop-up tent at Glastonbury whilst pregnant, camping with a baby or a full-on glamping experience, we've pretty much been there and experienced everything. We have a few camping adventures planned this year already including the Corbridge Festival in July, Just So Festival in August and we are hoping to camp on the shores of Loch Ness and hunt for Nessie at some point too.

For us, camping is a fantastic holiday. It's a chance to get away from it all, enjoy the great outdoors, face a few challenges together and go on real adventures. There are hundreds and hundred of camping tips out there, but I have put together what I think are the top 5 things I've learned whilst camping with kids over the years:-

1 - Pack Wine

I can honestly not imagine camping without wine. Whe you are camping you have nowhere to go or nothing to see so nothing beats sitting outside of your tent and drinking a (not-chilled) glass of wine from a plastic glass. I know it sounds crazy but honestly, nothing beats it. Especially if the sun is shining. 

2 - Choose a tent that's easy to put up and pack away (and practice)

I'll never forget the first time we went camping and just didn't have a clue how to pitch a tent. For starters we pitched on a slope. I think it took us around 2 hours to put up a 3 man tent. Not good! Definitely take the time to practice putting our tent up at home first. 

There are so many tents available these days from pop-up 2 man tents for £30 to elaborate family tents that cost well into the hundreds. Our first family tent cost around £200 and I think £100-£250 is a good amount to spend on your first family tent. Make sure you read reviews from websites such as UKcampsite.co.uk before deciding on your purchase.

3 - Take sweatshirts/hoodies/onesies for night

Even if it is the height of summer, don't forget to pack sweatshirts and hoodies for grown ups and kids. They will probably still be playing out as the sun starts to set and they will need to wear layers in bed to keep warm in the UK, even in summer. 

4 - Don't forget marshmallows

Marshmallows are a camping staple and one of the things the kids get most excited about when we plan a camping trip. Toasting marshmallows on a fire is a real memory maker. If your campsite doesn't allow fires, it is possible to toast them on a BBQ or if you are really stuck you can make the kids hot chocolates and melt the marshmallows on top - it's still a treat. 

5 - Don't worry about the kids getting dirty. A 'wet wipe' clean is fine for a few days

When you take the kids camping for a few days, they will get dirty and you need to be at peace with this. Camping gives kids the ultimate freedom to run around, spend hours doing cartwheels, make new friends, climb trees and play in the park. There really is no point trying to change their clothes when they get messy. Just let them wear their old clothes and a quick wipe down with a wet wipe in the morning and night is fine. Make sure they wash their hands before eating though!

If you would like any more camping tips, Halfords have put together a comprehensive online guide to camping which is full of tips, camping recipes, buying guides, touring advice and much more. It is full of useful advice including pitch at the top of a hill to avoid flooding, don't camp near loo's and prepare food at home in advance and pack into zip-lock bags to take with you.

I would love to hear if you have any camping trips planned this summer.

You might also like:- Top 10 Places To Camp In The North East

Collaborative post, all thoughts are my own. 

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