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Old 04-05-2018, 05:37 PM   #1
moandco
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Trip and Tricks for camping with kids?

We have a 5, 3 and a 1 year old and heading out a few times this summer in our new Springdale. I would love to hear of any tips or tricks for camping with little ones that you all have learned along the way!

Thanks!
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Old 04-05-2018, 06:01 PM   #2
busterbrown
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Tip 1: Leave them home!

Ok, joking aside, this was my situation exactly 2 years ago when I surprised my wife on our anniversary with the new trailer in my signature. My kids were 5, 2, and 1 at the time.

Our first couple of trips were planned very close to home (about 1/2 hour drive) for the convenience of leaving something behind. It worked out well as we never had to return home. As many new RVers do, we overpacked. But it thinned out over the coarse of that camping season.

By the end of the summer, we were comfortable enough with the TV and trailer that we took a 1 week trip down to Florida and camped at Disney's Fort Wilderness. Wonderful trip it was and now we plan for it each year until the kids grow up.

So in summary, you'll grow into the role of RV camping family. Your needs will change as the kids get older. Pack'n'plays work well at 1 and 2 years of age, but tend to be cumbersome as they get a little older.

We did buy a "Children at Play" sign and place at street side in front of our trailer as some folks push the speed limit inside the park. If you can find one, they work well as I see drivers being more attentive with brake lights on.

Other tips: smores, campfires, hobo packs all make for great night food and entertainment. Fans are wonderful "white noise" makers during nap time. And bring tons of glow-in-dark sticks, bracelets, and necklaces. They are cheap, always a kid pleaser, and your children will make friends very quickly with them.

Good luck, have fun, and enjoy the many years of camping memories you'll make with the fam.
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Old 04-06-2018, 06:14 AM   #3
lesleyinky
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I’ve found that if it’s going to be somewhere hot, water toys such as water guns are fun. We try to make sure it’s somewhere the kids can swim whether it be a pool or lake. Sidewalk chalk, bubbles, scavenger hunts, frisbees, balls from every sport, and board games have all been things in our bag of tricks over the years.

As they’ve gotten older, sometimes we let one at a time bring a friend. In addition when they were old enough we started a camping journal where they wrote memories from each trip which has been fun to go back and reread now!

And thankfully as they’ve gotten older we no longer have to pack as much to keep them busy as their interest are different. The seasons all go by quickly....best tip I have is to enjoy and savor each one!!


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Old 04-06-2018, 07:57 AM   #4
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Howdy-
We have a 2.5 year old and have been camping with him since he was 5.5 months old.

One thing to do is take the pack-n-play for the 1 year old. The others are of curse old enough to sleep in the bunks. That helps keep them contained and gives them a nice place to rest.

We also like to turn the AC fan to "On" and just let it run all night. Provides a good background noise to drown out any outside noise from the campground, and the AC/heat will still kick on as needed (depending on season of course). We will also take our sound machine we use at home to provide white noise if needed- though the AC noise is usually enough.

We also love to go to State parks, cause they are usually large ad have tons of room to walk and trails to walk. We will usually bring 1 rideable toy to use, but in your case 3 may be needed.

Otherwise it is a lot like home- just let them run around and play on the playground and grab rocks and sticks, etc.
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Old 04-06-2018, 08:57 AM   #5
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State parks, Jellystone parks & some KOA parks have lots of kid stuff to keep them busy & sleeping good at night. We starting camping with ours from about a month old sleeping in back of our Suburban & they camped til they left home. Our son & family (kids anyway, DIL not so much, too dirty) still enjoy camping.
Ours still talk about fishing for raccoons around the campfire in the evenings, no there were no fish hooks just a weight & a marshmallow thrown just outside the campfire light circle & slowly reel it & watch the racoon chase/grab the marshmallow.
If you've had a good day at the campground the kids won't need the background noise as they'll crash as soon as they lay down.
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Old 04-06-2018, 09:11 AM   #6
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Other essentials for kids in the great outdoors: pre-moistened hand wipes, Goo-Gone if you are in pine tree sap territory, bug repellent and of course, band-aids for the boo-boos. When you go on a hike, let the kids lead... they love "being in charge". Throwing rocks in the water is amazingly entertaining for all ages. I recall giving my two a camping bath in a 5-gallon bucket outside the tent. Now they're in their 30's so me and the DW get to take grandkids camping.
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Old 04-06-2018, 09:39 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Number 4 View Post
Other essentials for kids in the great outdoors: pre-moistened hand wipes, Goo-Gone if you are in pine tree sap territory, bug repellent and of course, band-aids for the boo-boos. When you go on a hike, let the kids lead... they love "being in charge". Throwing rocks in the water is amazingly entertaining for all ages. I recall giving my two a camping bath in a 5-gallon bucket outside the tent. Now they're in their 30's so me and the DW get to take grandkids camping.
We gave them baths in the lake with a bar of Ivory soap, Ivory soap because it floated.
And we also take the grandkids. We take 1 every summer for as long as they are willing to stay & have really enjoyed the 1 on 1 with each of them. We are taking the last one of 7 this summer & then some of the others want to go again.
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Old 04-06-2018, 09:43 AM   #8
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Thanks everyone for the great tips! Looking forward to camping this summer
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Old 04-07-2018, 08:08 PM   #9
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We always use the built in stereo tuned to a non existent radio station for white noise, works great when you are boondocking without power!
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Old 04-08-2018, 08:58 AM   #10
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Just thought of something else our boys liked to take when they were small - walkie talkies. We put those to good use many times [emoji4]
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Old 04-09-2018, 04:23 AM   #11
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Take them camping first with sleeping bags and tents. They will always appreciate the trailer much more after that. Be mindful of the things on the ground, like hot coals, rocks, sharp things left over from inconsiderate previous campers, and hot grills.

Mine are older, and were when we first got the trailer, but even then we liked to pick destination campgrounds where there was something more for them to do there, or something else for us to do in the area. And we have a whole set of different games, ring toss, bean bag toss, ladder ball, frisbee, football, etc to help with the entertainment as well.
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Old 04-09-2018, 05:24 AM   #12
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Patience! Remember to be patient with them. They will want to go 100 mph. Get them involved with certain things to keep them busy.
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Old 04-09-2018, 07:24 AM   #13
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Don't be my DIL making was up every 15 minutes, let them get DIRTY it won't hurt them.
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Old 04-09-2018, 10:32 AM   #14
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Amazon Fire Tablets for the drive.

On mine, we put a pack n' play in place of the dinette table. It kept it mostly out of the way at night. My kids are now 5 and 3. At age 4 and 2, we had both in the bunks (older on top).

My kids love cooking s'mores, so we typically bring the ingredients.
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Old 04-09-2018, 11:09 AM   #15
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The above ideas are great and yes we have used some of them, however I guess the best advice I could give would be to make it fun for the kids and have a lot of patients, understanding and be forgiving for all the spills in and out of the RV. Our older RV (now we have a new one) which we use to have has some stains that we named after the kids which we all laughed about later. Have fun and enjoy.
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Old 04-30-2018, 08:26 AM   #16
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We started ours camping in a popup at 6 months old and 3 months old. They camped that way until they were 10 and 7. Then we bought our first trailer. We always had coloring books, Popsicle sticks and glue. Army men, matchbox cars and all the sports you could think of. Eventually as they got older we did not need to take so much and they each had a job to do when we set up and at packed down to go home. We mostly camp in the state campgrounds. I do agree with "let them get dirty" they clean up at night. Besides a little dirt doesn't hurt. Just be sure to have fun and make memories - that is what they will remember and don't sweat the small stuff.
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Old 04-30-2018, 11:39 AM   #17
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Good advice, all. I learned in six years as a scoutmaster that rule number one is have fun. Actually it is rule number two also. The object of all our two and three day trips and weeks at scout camp was to help mold young men out of boys, but that can't be done if you don't have their attention and there has to be a little fun involved somewhere.
I liked the suggestion made earlier that even the younger ones should have a responsibility or two when you get started. They gain a sense of accomplishment when that is done.
Take a lot of pictures, a few videos, and have a good time.
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