The do’s and don’ts of camping with toddlers

Susan Horn - 1 May 17

Spring is springing, and we’re all getting a rush of happy. The great outdoors beckons and we’re ready to girl-guide it up on the campsite. I get the romanticism of sleeping under the stars. Last year we packed up our wordly goods and travelled round Europe for three months in a camper van. Sounds wonderful until you remember we had a two year old and six month old in tow. So how do you survive camping with toddlers? Here are my top tips;

Do pack a box of toys and books. While we love the idea of the kids being entertained by nature, nature isn’t always playing ball so you need back-ups. It also never hurts to have a few movies or episodes of Paw Patrol saved on your ipad either – they could be the only thing standing between you and the jaws of hell if it’s pissing down and you’re stuck within the confines of your tent or van for more than an hour.

Don’t try to enforce your usual bedtime routine. If you’re camping in Europe kids will be roaming free through campsites till at least midnight. It’s futile to try and enforce your usual bedtime routine – believe me we tried, and promptly gave up after about three days of our oldest screaming and crying in the van for hours while everyone else was kicking back with wine while watching their kids run free.

Do embrace the European way and take your kids out at night. Go anywhere in Spain or Italy and you’ll see parents out eating and drinking with their kids until late. In the UK you are scowled at if you have your kids out after 7pm, but in Europe it’s open season. Hell, in Spain a lot of bars actually have playgrounds to keep the kids entertained while you quaff away from a safe distance – they also do the most magnificent goldfish bowl sized G&Ts.

Do scour the campsite on arrival for a site close to people with kids. Ideally, you want kids the same age or slightly older than yours. The kids will inevitably gravitate towards each other, and the slightly older ones usually have enough sense to keep the younger ones vaguely in line. While you still need to keep a close eye, it saves you from having to permanently hover within arms reach.

Don’t pitch up next to the toilets or entertainment. It may be tempting to be close to the toilets, especially if you’re running the gauntlet of potty training, but in reality the lights will be on and off all night, and it’ll be noisy in the evening when you want to get the kids to sleep. Being within spitting distance of the entertainment is also tempting, but you’ll regret it when you hear Gangnam Style for the millionth time and it runs on into the night keeping everyone awake.

Do pitch next to a playground if you can find one. It’s kind of like having an extended back yard where the kids can play, but you can still see them from the comfort of your deckchair, while you sip an ice cold G&T.

Do pack bikes and/or scooters. It means the kids can travel under their own steam to the toilet block while you carry the washbags/towels/laundry/dishes etc. In fact, bikes for all the family allow you to traverse the larger European sites in a few minutes. Some of them are enormous so will take you half the morning to walk across with a free-range two year old in tow.

Don’t dismiss the larger holiday camps. Prior to the toddler era, we were quite snobby about large all singing all dancing campsites, thinking they weren’t ‘proper’ camping. But as with most pre-children ideas, that opinion has fallen by the wayside and we are converts to pool complexes, playgrounds and trampoline parks. Some of the really big ones have on site spas too!

Do be prepared to wing it a bit at bath time, especially with very little ones. Facilities vary widely. At the larger sites you usually have access to a baby bath, and most sites will have a baby bath to hand on request, but there are times when a sink or shower has to do. It’s not a bad idea to pack a collapsible bucket for emergencies.

Do pack a bouncer for children under six months. If yours is too bulky, buy a cheap one just for the holiday. It keeps the baby off the ground when it’s damp (or there are ants), and means they can see what’s going on. If you don’t have somewhere to put them, you’ll end up constantly carrying them around.

Don’t try to cover too much ground in one trip. To help break up long car journeys, we made the mistake of falling into a pattern of staying just 2-3 nights in a location then moving on. It worked for the drives, but left our oldest feeling bewildered every time we packed up and shipped out. It takes a couple of days for kids to get their bearings and make campsite buddies, so if you have to cover long distances, do it over a couple of days with a hotel stopover in between. That way, when you do camp, everyone can settle in for longer.

Do be prepared to tag team a lot. Everything on a campsite is a walk away, so when you want to pop to the loo, someone else has to be watching the kids. This is where camping next to other families comes in handy. You can all take turns, which comes in particularly useful when your pelvic floor is still recuperating.

Enjoy!

Photo Credit: Photobucket.com

Susan Horn

Susan Horn lives in Melbourne, Australia. Before children, Susan worked in PR and Marketing Communications and was a complete Triathlon geek. She is currently a full-time Mum who squeezes a bit of exercise in between indulging her chocolate and coffee habits.

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