family camping

Camping is a summertime essential activity! If you haven’t gone camping with your kids yet, what’s holding you back? Does it sound intimidating? Do you not think you have the right gear? Don’t know where to go? Have more kids than fit in a tent? We’re here to help! Camping might sound overwhelming, but it’s always worth it. Seasoned campers will tell you that sometimes even the most disastrous camping trips are the most memorable and fun. Today, we have the absolutely wonderful Ginny from 1000 Hours Outside here to share her best tips and advice on how to do pop-up camping with a large family. Ginny has 5 kids, an old pop-up camper and a great sense of humor. That’s the perfect recipe for a great adventure! Here’s how their family does camping. 

Less stuff, more fun!

We live in an age where we celebrate minimalism. Less is more! If it doesn’t bring you joy, pitch it! As it relates to parenting, we are encouraged to own fewer toys, fewer clothes, and to have less clutter. You either own your stuff or your stuff owns you, as the old adage goes. There are certainly many benefits of a more minimalistic approach to life, but one area of childhood that we should not want to have less of is experiences. Why? Because experiences equate to learning and they bond us together as friends and as family.

Today, I want to encourage you to build as many outdoor experiences into childhood as you possibly can! Outdoor play provides significant developmental benefits to children. One way our family has substantially increased our yearly outside time is through camping. Camping can be done in a myriad of ways such as tent camping, hammock camping, car camping, staying in a rustic cabin, or even sleeping directly under the stars. With five young kids, we have tried several of the options above (hammock camping hasn’t happened yet). We found that pop-up camping with a large family is a great way to get out and see the world!

Benefits of camping

Life is hectic and no one can really prepare you for the demands that children bring along with them. Beyond the wants and needs of children, there are many other adult responsibilities to juggle. Sometimes it’s nice to get away from it all. Camping is an excellent choice for R&R because it’s affordable, accessible, and it completely removes you from the daily hustle and bustle. It’s a quick and convenient way to set all the expectations aside for a few days and to reconnect with family, friends, and with nature.

In nature, children disperse and become engaged with their surroundings. In this way, camping is an ideal vacation when you have young kids because it’s not the type of vacation that you need a vacation from. When you camp, nature surrounds you and your kids! Nature deeply occupies any age child and so this simple change of surroundings can offer some desperately needed moments of reprieve for parents and caregivers.

Why a pop-up camper?

After many years of camping with children, we found that camping with a pop-camper made camping indescribably easier and more accessible. Because it’s easy, this means camping happens more often! Campers come in all shapes and sizes, but pop-up campers tend to be on the cheaper end of the spectrum and they can offer a notable amount of sleeping space. We bought an ‘experienced’ camper (15 years old to be exact). It cost about the same as a week or two of lodging at a summer cabin. In exchange for one week of luxurious accommodations, we purchased an item that has the potential to offer us years of adventures.

Vacationing as a large family

No one talks too much about large family logistics. In fact, the only thing people told as baby number four was about to make her debut was that once we had four kids we would never get invited anywhere again. We still weasel our way into people’s lives, but the truth is there are some logistical issues once you hit the category of “large family.” Hotel rooms don’t accommodate large families well. Our vehicle choices are limited. Restaurant waits are much longer. Given these “obstacles,” camping quickly becomes an ideal way to see the world.

Pop-up camping with 5 kids

Our pop-up camper provided the answer to so many of our large family vacationing problems. To begin with, we all fit! We searched for the largest pop-up we could find. Double beds aren’t going to cut it but if you can find a pop-up with at least one king bed, you’ll find there will be ample inside space and storage. We actually found a camper with two king-sized beds that pull out on either end! Plus, there’s a bench that turns into a small bed, and a table that also turns into a small bed, fitting all seven of us comfortably inside.

Our bedtimes in the camper have provided some of our favorite memories, all together laughing and telling stories. Additionally, camping is a vacation where you can easily plan your own meals and bring your own food. Most pop-ups have storage where you can leave kitchen items at the ready! We took a quick trip to a goodwill shop to originally stock up for what we needed. Finally, we can travel and explore almost any area of the country at a fraction of the cost! The savings for a nightly campsite versus two (or more) hotel rooms rings in around 70 – 90%!

Pop-up camping tips for large families

Once your pop-up is packed with essentials, you are only a few outfits and a grocery trip away from some lifelong memories. Here are a few of our best pop-up camping tips that we’ve tried, tested and approved!

1. Research your campground and your campsite

Different campgrounds have different things to offer. Depending on the ages of your kids you might be looking for a campground that has a play structure, one with a great bike-riding trail, one with a beach you can walk to, or one with all of the above. There are typically so many options to choose from!  Some have pools and others have laundry facilities. We read about a campground in Virginia that had wild rabbits running all around! Once you’ve narrowed down your campground, think through your campsite. Do you prefer shade or sunny? Close to the bathroom or closer to the beach? At each campground we visit, we make a few notes about our favorite sites for if we book again in the future.

2. Organize clothes by how they are used

With a large family, we have found that it is easiest to organize our clothes by what we use them for. We pack all PJs together in a bag. Everyone’s swimsuits and towels are packed in another bag, while jackets and long pants also get their own bag. We pack complete outfits (including diaper or underwear) so getting dressed in the morning is never a hassle. We store the bags on the beds during the day and then place them on the floor when it’s time to sleep.

3. Add a few special touches

We have a few small things that always stay in the camper. A set of matchbox cars, one small stuffed animal and flashlight for each child, a pack of glow sticks, and a special tablecloth. We only use these items on family camping trips, so they hold special sentiment for the kids. In case it rains, we also always bring along some card games and some books.

4. Think through your ideal restroom situation

As a mom, sometimes the most stressful parts of the day (and night) is figuring out how to navigate young kids to the restroom. We’ve found that keeping a small potty seat in our camper has worked wonders (we use the actual toilet area for storage). As far as showers go, we purchased a few small bathroom caddies that we keep stocked with washcloths, soap, and shampoo. Buy an extra pair of cheap flip-flops to keep feet clean in the camp showers and keep the day-to-day shoes from getting soaked. If getting to the shower is too much of a hassle, remember that toddlers and preschoolers love a bubble bath in a plastic tub at the end of the day!

Bring on the memories!

Our pop-up camper has given our large family easy accessibility to the grandeur of nature, from magnificent sunsets to breathtaking waterfalls. I often tell people it is the best thing we have ever purchased as a large family because of the multitude of foundational memories it has provided us. As our culture becomes increasingly screen-heavy, we are all in for anything that helps us increase real-life moments. 

Are you a camping family?
Share some of your favorite camping memories below!

Ginny
Michigan
@1000hoursoutside

Ginny is a Michigan homeschooling mother of five and the founder of 1000 Hours Outside. She is a thought-leader in the world of nature-based play and its benefits for children. Her 1000 Hours Outside Challenge spans the globe and many people from all walks of life look to her for inspiration as well as practical tips on how to put down the screens and get outside. Ginny has a Masters Degree in Education from the University of Michigan. She is also a children’s book author and illustrator. Her book, The Little Farmhouse in West Virginia was published in February 2019. You can find her online at http://www.1000HoursOutside.com.