People's camping experiences
22 answers /
Last post: 07/06/2022 at 7:41 pm
Hi,
Just after some advice really and any success stories or things that went wrong and what was learnt from it. I recently went camping for the first time. I thought we were prepared. We are a family of four, our two kids are 4 and 5. We got a large spacious tent that can sleep 8. We had a wonderful day, it was warm, we did really well with our campfires, but we had a shock at night. our kids slept well, but we didn't get a wink of sleep. it was freezing! This was at the end of may, very recent. We had warm clothes, but our sleeping bag was thin and the blow up mattress cold. It rained in the night and during the next day, so we packed up a day early and decided to go home, rather than have another sleepless miserable night. So disappointed, we are going again end of July and we will be more prepared with thermals and extra blankets. Maybe the nights will hopefully be warmer end of July? Any advice or funny stories welcome. We saw the funny side and laughed during the sleepless night. It was a funny but unpleasant eye opening ordeal, but I want to continue camping and have it as a family hobby
I do enjoy camping and have been with my daughters, though tend to find it so cold which is the downside for me, I always tend to bundle up
The most recent time we did it ended up raining quite a bit, was in wellies pretty much the whole time there
Good idea to take as much clothes and towels as possible also
Good waterproofs are also a bonus, as of course once you get wet it it very hard to get dry again
Good idea to take as much clothes and towels as possible also
Good waterproofs are also a bonus, as of course once you get wet it it very hard to get dry again
Thanks for the reply. Is it still cold at night in the summer months. July?
Thanks for the reply. Is it still cold at night in the summer months. July?
It can be yes, though to be honest I tend to find the cold more than others anyway at the best of times
Probably the trick is to try and not let yourself get cold, as warming up once you are cold can be a nightmare at times.
You mentioned your air bed was cold. One of the best things I use camping is a mattress topper/protector on top of the airbed and a sheet over that. Surprisingly this can make a world of difference. We also take a quilt!
We’ve just come back from camping where we had to pump our airbed back up 3 times in one night. Cue a mad dash to get it replaced the following day so we could sleep on night 2 we’ve been camping for years, we still have disasters but wouldn’t let them stop us going again.
Hi
Rule number one NEVER use an airbed!! Ideally use a matress topper (it takes up a lot of see pace though) or the thickest yoga mat you can buy.
Hi so I only started camping 7 years ago, and the first thing I brought was a decent sleeping bag. It’s cost £85 and is a duvet like material one, I don’t like the feel of the silky ones, and it’s a double, my husband is always warm so I’m sleeping with him! Nowadays there are 4 of us on a double blow up bed! Next time we will get two so the girls can share it.
I also wear fluffy pjs with a t shirt tucked in under and mens socks with the trousers tucked in. We are all in one compartment in a 4 man tent and it actually gets quite hot in there.
all the best!
Fluffy pj's, socks to wear to sleep in and thermals are all good ideas to take, I normally also pack a hoodie and also a hat to wear if needbe
Fluffy pj's, socks to wear to sleep in and thermals are all good ideas to take, I normally also pack a hoodie and also a hat to wear if needbe
I will be taking a hat and thermals next time! ☺️
You mentioned your air bed was cold. One of the best things I use camping is a mattress topper/protector on top of the airbed and a sheet over that. Surprisingly this can make a world of difference. We also take a quilt!
We’ve just come back from camping where we had to pump our airbed back up 3 times in one night. Cue a mad dash to get it replaced the following day so we could sleep on night 2 we’ve been camping for years, we still have disasters but wouldn’t let them stop us going again.
I will definitely put something over the cold mattress next time.
I will be taking a hat and thermals next time! ☺️
Good idea, I also make sure I have a hot water bottle for sure
Long John's and socks. We have a matching stripey pair of the former, as they were on sale! Wooly hats for everyone at anytime of year, when it is clear skies it can get cold at night even in summer. We bought a super warm duvet style double bag that can be unzipped into two rectangles.
Kids tend to wear joggers and fleeces overnight.
Just remember, a tent does not at all hold any heat at night so dress as if you were outside!!
The problem with tents is they can be very cold at night but also boiling hot during the day if there is no shade My daughter went camping during the the hot summer 2020 Their tent had no shade so they were woken early in the morning by the heat of the sun The only way they could keep cool was by sitting in the car with the air conditioning So make sure where you pitch your tent there is plenty of shade My daughter hated it and will never go camping again
Hi,
I used to work in a camping shop for 9 years. They gave us training so that we could advise customers.
1.air bed is not insulated. Camping matt (looks like exercise mat) is insulated. Get the thickest one.
2. You used 8 person tent for 4ppl - I would have advised not to do this as you would end up cold. Get 4 ppl tent. Alternatively, get a big tent but make sure it has insulated partition inside, that would be like a separate bedrooms. Then all 4 of you should sleep in the same room. It's to do with Insulation and heat generation.