‘It’s the first thing we set up’: parents on everything you need for camping with kids – and what you don’t
A lantern for night strolls, lace-free shoes and a microscope for mini beasts … parents on their top camping tips and must-pack gear, as well as what to leave at home• The best camping mattressesI have wholehearted respect for parents who recoil from any notion of family camping. Camping with kids is no picnic. In fact, it sets out from where a good picnic leaves off, venturing from the brevity and civility of a blanket on the grass into the uncertain – and certainly precarious – waters of soggy towels, tangled guyropes, cramped quarters and midnight meltdowns.And yet a great many of us voyage these waters regardless, ardently asserting (to ourselves as much as others) that camping is good for the soul, for the imagination, and for instilling a foundational appreciation of the great outdoors. Continue reading...
7/14/2026 2:00:25 AM