We are considering going camping with our kids for the first time. They are 2,3, and 5 yrs old! We are considerably older! Any tips for making it a successful trip? Also tent buying advice! We are looking for a multi room tent, which is easy to erect, and no longer than 6 metres.
1) Cheap isn't usually good, most things we bought cheap we replaced within no time, inc tent, beds, table, chairs. Better to be smart and look for sales, ebay etc for quality branded gear.
2) Get organised, get a storage system to suit you as clutter and kids mean you spend half your day looking for things in the tent
3) No need to travel too far to start with, as kids get restless when travelling then setting up is a pain. Make sure you have something at hand so they aren't hungry when setting up as it makes for a quiet life
4) Practice pitching your tent before you go
5) Have a look at a tent setup before buying, there is a huge difference when you actually see different tents in the flesh
Do a search on here for "first time campers" or "camping advice" loads of fantastic tips by some of the pros on here.
6) Enjoy (don't forget a cork screw/bottle opener)
I would recommend trying camping in a pre-erected eurotent, there are sites in the UK that have them, Trevornick are very good and that is how we first started camping. That way, if you don't like it, (and although we love it, remember not everyone does) you have just spent money on a holiday not on a load of gear you won't use again.
I always swore I would hate camping until I tried it, now I love it and wish we'd done it years ago. Eurotents come with everything ready for you, beds, fridge, microwave, etc,you just need to take your own bedding and stuff and you are still experiencing camping, going to the showers, outdoor eating etc so it does give you a good idea of what it is like.
------------- May/June - Spring Valley
Aug/Sept - Leekworth
I echo the advice of looking at pleanty of tents before buying. Your profile doesn't say where you are based but check out local branches of Go Outdoors which tend to have several on display or check Yeomans for any local camping exhibitions (they have LOADS!!!) or any local stores. One thing to consider is whether you want a SIG or SIG (sewn/zipped in groundsheet) for the living area; our first tent did not which we regretted on oput first camp when the midges came out at dusk.
Don't be afraid to keep asking questions on this site - we are mostly a helpful bunch and we all began once.
Hi,my children are 8 5 and 2, and they love it too. We went for the Vango Colorado 800 dlx which is little talked about but fantastic. Takes us about 40mins to put up I guess. We didn't want a SIG, or to be at opposite ends of the tent from the girls at night and it has proven to be a fantastic purchase. Sorry I've not tried putting links in yet but it's easy to google.
If the weather's fine you won't need any advice about having a great trip as the kids will be in their element, but in case of show stopping rain we take a bag of goodies including the obvious pens pencils paper etc, but also sticker activity books, a handful of characters to make believe with or hide , snap etc, and a tiny collage kit you can get in the Range or ELC. The ELC easy painters are brilliant too as the kids are excited to be painting but they're completely compact. All that sounds like tonnes of stuff but it all fits in a carrier.
We just went 30mins up the road for our first trip, but it felt like a million miles away when the tent was up and we were relaxing outside it.
------------- "There are only 2 lasting things we can hope to give our children, one of these is roots, the other wings"
Get your children involved with the whole camping experience. Take them with you when you get water, go to the bins etc. so that they learn that these jobs are part of camping. I started by giving them little jobs, like putting the sauce on the table. Now the sauce appears on the table at meal times - if they forget and ask for sauce I just say if you want it, you get it. Let them help with things like passing you pegs - bashing the pegs in. I have one very firm ground rule - they can either sit in the car and listen to music, play by me, or help when I am erecting the tent. But the most imporant thing is to get that tent set up. They know that the fun does not begin until the tent is up, and the bedrooms ready. I usually get the tent set up, the bedrooms ready, and then take a break, and go to the play area or something. Then we will come back and do the other jobs like the water and sorting and tidying. I find that taking a flask of hot water with me, and having teabags and milk to hand means I can have a cuppa before I set up, or as I am setting up, before I have set the cooker up. I always take things like colouring books and crayons to keep them happy. I just to to the local cheap shop and get a pile of stuff which is kept just for camping. Saves taking that special book that they got for their birthday and finding its been left on the ground and is now soggy. My portable DVD player, although hardly used, had been a godsend when the weather had not been to good. Nothing like a Disney DVD for keeping kids amused on a wet afternoon, especially when poor old mum just wants to relax. I camp more without OH than I do with, so it means I can either watch with them or just sit and relax. Take something for yourself to do when the kids are playing - but something that can be put down/taken up again easily, rather than something that needs concentration. Light fiction rather than War & Peace, plain knitting ratehr than that complex lacey creation. Forget bedtime routines. Kids are not going to want to go to be when they can hear other kids playing outside. Let them play until they are tired. Just teeth and a wash before bed, or just teeth. Once or twice I have had one of mine fall asleep completely clothed. They have just come in from playing and flaked out. As they get older, and more used to camping it becomes easier to say, go to be now because we are going to be doing such and such in the morning. But on your first trip it will all be new and exciting and they will be afraid of missing something - even if it is only poor old mum and dad sitting outside the tent with a cuppa.
I have a pile of cheap outdoor toys as well, and wouldn't be that bothered if any did get lost. OK yours are at an age when you will be with them, but as they get older they will play more with other kids on site, and the toys will be used by all and sundry. In the past I've had balls and things returned to me by other mums when their kids have borrowed them, and taken them back to their units. Its' not stealing, its just kids playing - same as at home where toys are taken to and left at friends, and friends borrow toys.
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: First Time Family Camping!! Tips please!!
