Top 10 Tips For a Fantastic Family Camping Holiday…*

Taking the wife and kids camping can seem like a daunting task, however, if planned correctly it has the potential to become one of the most rewarding family holidays you will ever have. It brings the whole family together like no resort package deal ever could; as you prepare meals together, all join in to build a fire for warmth at night, and, perhaps most importantly, everybody’s creative side is called upon to provide entertainment to keep the holiday interesting and fun! Worried about how your camping holiday will turn out? Just follow these simple steps for camping success and your family holiday is sure to be one which will never be forgotten!

*Where to Camp?* Choose your campsite carefully. If you are taking young children ensure there is plenty of room for them to play safely while you can relax and unwind. Avoiding locations which are in close proximity to rivers, roads, cliffs and crags, will ensure safety and relaxation are realistic possibilities. Should your children be very young then it is also important to consider the facilities at the campsite. It is all good and well hoping for a taste of nature, but not at the expense of their enjoyment.

*Expectations:* It is likely that the most exciting part of the holiday for your children will be the novelty of sleeping outside in a tent, cooking over a fire and exploring their new and unfamiliar surroundings. Use this to your advantage. It may not be necessary to fill their day with activities usually associated with a family holiday and you could save a bit of money if you exploit this!

*Timing:* Trying to erect a tent in the dark can prove very tricky with playful kids running around you so be sure to arrive at your destination with at least a few hours of daylight remaining. In order to prevent excited children wondering off while you set up camp, give them little jobs to do. Let them get involved in assembling the poles and unpacking the supplies. This will ensure that they are kept both happy and safe.

*Choosing the pitch:* Step four to an enjoyable camping holiday is as important as any. Deciding where to pitch your tent could make or break the experience. Think carefully about the distance to the toilet block / shower facilities. You don’t want to be so close that you are disturbed every time another camper pays a visit and, on the other hand, you shouldn’t be so far away that every time you need to go it takes half an hour to get there! If at all possible, try to find a pitch next to something which makes your tent easily distinguishable from a (e.g. a tree, a telegraph pole, or you could fly a flag above your tent).

*What clothing do they need:* Deciding what clothing to take on your camping holiday really depends on where you are going. If you are staying in the UK, then waterproof jackets, jumpers, and wellington boots are essential, however if you are planning your camping holiday in France, Spain, or anywhere else in Southern Europe for that matter, then you are probably wiser replacing the waterproofs in your rucksack with something more practical – such as shorts, t-shirts, sunglasses and sunhats!

*How do I keep warm at night:* Your choice of sleeping bag and sleeping mat are the two most crucial things for keeping warm as night draws in. Purchase your sleeping bags from respectable retailers of camping equipment and try to steer clear of cheap imitations often found in supermarkets and discount stores. The extra couple of pounds spent on a decent sleeping bag can make it feel like you have central heating in your tent!

The importance of a good sleeping mat is often overlooked by rookie campers, who often decide to go with airbeds which actually offer a great deal less in the way of insulation. Again, try to purchase this kind of equipment from an accredited camping store and, although goods purchased from here may seem expensive at first, it is certainly a price worth paying to avoid being woken in the middle of the night by children complaining about the cold. Should you be camping in a country well known for hot weather (such as Spain), it is important to bear in mind that it can still turn very cold once the sun has gone down.

Finally, it is highly recommended that you sleep children in between two adults, thus preventing them rolling off the sleeping mat on to the ground mat which can be very cold.

*Cleaning:* One thing which is guaranteed to happen if you take the kids on a camping holiday….they will get dirty. If you are planning to extend your camping trip past a couple of days it is highly recommended that you choose a holiday park which has shower facilities. It may seem a ridiculous concept, but babies and toddlers can be quite easily bathed in storage boxes /containers filled with water heated on your stove. The shower facilities will therefore benefit you as much as the children.

*Organising the tent:* Bring only what you need because, as you will soon find out if this is your first camping trip, there is far less space in a tent than there is in a hotel room! Should you be taking your
car with you, use this for storage of things you don’t necessarily need with you overnight. Storage bags are essential for keeping things in order. Dirty clothes and food packaging are two things that can easily
be kept in check by having a few plastic bags scrunched up in your rucksack.

*Cooking:* Remember, camping is a self catering holiday! It is very unlikely your campsite will have an on-site restaurant, so come prepared to eat! Disposable barbeques are a great way to feed the family on a camping trip. Doing some research on your location prior to the expedition may even allow you to be safely fed by some of natures nourishing treats, although be warned, this can be dangerous for the inexperienced.

*Unwind*, enjoy yourself and the quality uninterrupted family time, and don’t forget a torch….. Or the toilet roll!!!