Hi all im new and deciding to try camping, have camped before a couple of times when i was a kid and once a couple of yrs ago with a friend at lochness, really enjoyed it
im just wondering im on a budget and just need to know what to buy really to start with, already got my tent, not sure how good or bad it is, its a malvern 4 person tent from halfords
You will need a good airbed or self-inflating mat to sleep on, but you can save money by taking a blanket, fitted sheet & your duvet from home, instead of buying sleeping bags. In fact, we used to use sleeping bags, but have now found that we prefer the duvet, so the sleeping bags stay at home Don't forget to take your pillows.
You can take crockery, cutlery & saucepan/frying pan from home (preferably cheap thin metal ones), but you will need a cooker. If you think you can manage with one gas burner, then I can certainly recommend the 'cooker in a suitcase' which is sold just about everywhere for around £10. Don't worry about a water carrier, use a large empty spring water or Coke bottle
Your tent is okay...not the best but it's not bad at all for that sort of price. The two things I really feel you need to spend money on are the tent and a good warm sleeping bag. Yes, you can take duvets but remember you'll need a second one or a thick blanket for under you, rather than sleeping on a cold airbed with just a sheet.
For basic cooking a one burner suitcase cooker is fine, if there's just one or two of you.
For other stuff, check out your lcal car boot sales, charity shops and jumble sales for cheap basic cooking equipment and the odd bit of camping gear. If you can find a Scout jumble sale you may be exceptionally lucky. Also small ads and Freecycle. There's very little equipment other than tent, airbed/mat and cooker that you can't improvise or scavange from home stuff but there's no denying it makes life a bit easier once you've collected a box of dedicated basics in smaller and more appropriate sizes. Work on it over the summer. And mention it to family and friends...it's always surprising how much kit people have sitting unused and unwanted in dusty attics!
Second hand shops and cars boots for stuff like a spare can opener .My mate had a whole melamine camping set for £3 quid.We had a camping set(cutlery , plates bowls ect)thats kept separate in a box that just gets put in the van when needed
Search around the cheap and cheerful shops like Wilkinson, Poundland, Woolworths, Aldi etc.
They often have cheap pots, pans and other household stuff which is perfectly fine for camping. It doesn't have to come from Millets to be camping gear.
The big supermarkets as well have their bargain ranges.
Keep an eye on the boards here as when a particularly tasty bargain comes up someone will usually post about it.
Think laterally, we bought a chip pan for £3 in one shop which is great for doing pasta as it has a built in strainer basket !
Oh, and buy two suitcase cookers and you have a double ring cooker for twenty quid !
------------- I can remember when this was all fields.
The basics you need have mostly been covered above, basically tent, sleep equipment and basic cooking gear (although we didn't have any cook stuff for our 1st few trips). I'd say start with the basics and build on it slowly each trip. That way you get more of an idea of what you personally will need. What one person considers essential, another will see as a waste of money/time. If you carry on camping the chances are that you will build a (vast) collection of gear. One piece of advice is to camp relatively close to a camping shop/ civilisation the 1st time in case you have forgotten anything major.
ive not found the cooker in a suitcase could anybody send me a link for it please where i could get one i have seen a double burner stove in argos for £25 which looks ok ive reserved a kitchen stand at argos for £12.49 which i saw on another thread, looks good for storing food as well as having a stand to cook on
ive also had a look at the meths stove it looks fantastic and not a bad price too as im trying to do this on the cheap you have all your pans with it too im not sure how dangerous they are thou
The meths stove is probably safer than the gas stoves due to the flame being inside a stand. The only problem I had was lighting it, but extra long matches took care of that.
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Topic: camping on a budget
Don't forget to take your pillows.
