When you take your kids camping, you give them opportunities to connect with nature, make lasting memories, and strengthen family bonds. At Kerola’s Campers, Inc., we encourage you to camp with your kids as often as possible, and we’ve compiled this guide to help make your upcoming camping trips successful.
How to Make Family Camping Fun For Kids
Whether you’re camping with one kid or multiple, it’s important to accommodate them in ways that will ensure that they’ll have fun and feel comfortable around the campsite and in the camper you’ve purchased from Kerola's. Here’s how.
Choose Your Campground Wisely
Family friendly campgrounds feature amenities that your kids are bound to enjoy. A campground with a playground, ballfields, tennis or basketball courts, or access to swimming areas is a campground that they’ll find entertaining from morning to night.
Talk to Your Kids About the Trip
The closer your trip gets, the more you should talk about it. If you give your kids a general idea of what to expect (“This campground will have a public bathroom for you to use”) and introduce a few of the activities they can look forward to (“There’s a great swimming spot near our campsite” or “At night, we’ll roast marshmallows and make s’mores”), you’ll help them feel prepared and excited for the trip.
Give Your Kids a Hand When It’s Time to Pack
Your little campers might enjoy packing on their own, but there’s no harm in lending them a helping hand. Be sure to pack swimsuits, rain gear, extra changes of clothes, and personal hygiene products, plus sunscreen and bug spray. If you’re camping with little kids, invite them to bring a stuffed animal they can cuddle with at night. Other items kids might want to bring from home include books, toys, and games.
Consider Buying Them a Camping Essential
If you want to make your kid’s camping trip extra special, consider purchasing them a kid headlamp that they can wear once the sun goes down. Another great idea for little ones? Purchase them a bug box they can put bugs and other critters into so they can observe them before letting them back into their natural habitat.
Plan a Campground Scavenger Hunt
Many websites offer fantastic printouts that you can give to your kids. Print them out, and then once you and your family are settled in at the campground, announce that you’ve planned a scavenger hunt. Once they complete the scavenger hunt, you can reward them however you see fit. Maybe you’ll start a campfire and cook sandwiches using your Rome's Pie Iron™, or maybe you’ll host a family board game night inside your comfortable Aliner.
Venture Outside the Campground
If you’re so inclined, pick a day to venture outside the campground so your children can visit a nearby attraction that may be of interest to them. Perhaps, for instance, you’re staying at a campground that’s located near caverns—in this case, it could be fun for you and your kids to go on a cavern tour.
Take Photographs
If you trust your kids with a camera, challenge them to take photographs of the birds they see or other wildlife they encounter. Kids are observant and curious by nature, so this could be a thrill for them, and you never know what kind of photos they’ll capture! Once you return home from your camping trip, you might even want to compile all the photos in a photobook or perhaps even frame one that you can display in your home or in your camper from Kerola’s.
Plan a Hike
Hiking can be a great way for you and your kid to get some exercise and for you to talk as well as stop and admire the trees, flora and fauna, and wildlife. If you want to make the hike even more exciting for your kids, supply them with a pedometer so they can track their steps; after the hike concludes, they’ll have an opportunity to feel a sense of accomplishment once they realize how far they walked with you.
Rely on Kerola’s Campers, Inc. for All Your Camping Needs
Kerola's Campers, Inc. is conveniently located at 3610 North Hermitage Road (Rt. 18) in
Transfer, PA. Our hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. You can browse our extensive inventory online and reach us by phone by calling 724-962-4561.
Camping with kids can be lots of fun, and we wish you and your kids many happy and memorable camping adventures in the great outdoors this summer and beyond!