Camping has always been a fun and relatively inexpensive family vacation. It is much healthier than staying at a motel where there is little chance for physical exercise. If you have children chances are they will find enough to do at campgrounds to keep them occupied! Most campgrounds have play areas and often have different activities to help the youngster learn about nature.
If you have never roughed it in a tent before you will enjoy the tips in this article. My goal is to help you be prepared before you leave for your trip. First of all, you must realize that with camping there are very few luxuries such as television, video games, electric appliances and a microwave is out of the question! The electricity provided at a campground is pretty basic and not meant to run a lot of appliances at one time- unless you are camping in a motor home.
The most important thing for camping is your personal items. You need to be prepared for all types of weather. It is important to bring a sweatshirt and a light jacket for each person just in case the weather turns chilly. Make sure to bring personal hygiene items also. I use liquid shower gel for camping as it is easier to store than traditional bar soap.
When it comes to figuring out the size of a tent you will need that can be confusing. A four person tent means exactly that- four people can lie down and sleep in it. This does not allow for room to put your gear or move about. I usually get a tent that will sleep five or six people just for my husband and me. This allows room for us to move around and on days when the weather is bad we can set up camp chairs and a small table and play board games.
Next comes the kitchen items. Of course you will need a camp stove to cook on unless you want to build a fire every time you need to cook. I use a large tote box to keep my plastic dishes and utensils in. At the end of the camping season I just store it in the shed and I never have to worry about forgetting things like a can opener! I also have a linen tote that contains all the towels and dish rags I use for camping. At the beginning of the season I take them all out wash them and repack them with a fabric softener sheet which keeps them smelling fresh!
