How to keep warm in a sleeping bag whilst camping?

[Yeahyeahyeahnooooo]

I'm a very reluctant camper but the dc really want to go. Last time I was too cold to sleep and absolutely miserable - any tips?

Get a better sleeping bag. Also sleep off the ground. You can get all sorts of posh camp beds these days but if you're on a real budget I think old fashioned metal & canvas camp beds are underrated. They are a bit of a PITA to assemble, you have to be strong, but I find them warmer and more comfortable than inflatable mats or foam as long as you are fairly petite.

This kind of thing https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/products/eurohike-utah-4-leg-campbed-grey-352900 which is BOGOhalf price. I make that £13.50 each if you buy an even number.

If funds allow I suspect the more modern ones are better but I don't know, we are only occasional campers so I am very tight!

Jogging bottoms and fleece for pjs with thick socks, assuming travelling by car take sleeping bags and duvets plus real pillows - if public transport take 4 season mummy bags with hoods. I’m going tomorrow, it’s going to rain

Once I went camping at university with my friends who promised it was “actually fun”. Wrapped myself in loo roll to keep warm. Maybe it was fun for them in their expensive sleeping bags, but it was not fun for me at all. Called my dad and begged him to come and get me, he said no at first but then my step mum made him as she was also a victim of camping.

I would recommend- thermal layer (top and bottoms), jammies, a hat, a good quality sleeping bag (I do think it’s one of those “you get what you pay for” things) and maybe an additional blanket for under you because the air mattress gets cold.

But really I would recommend just not going. I love my kids but their dad and grandad can take them camping, I birthed them I’ve suffered enough.

I changed my sleeping bag for one called “The Beast” - I haven’t been as cold since! Plus I can sleep on my side.

i tend to wear socks in bed when camping, consider thermal underwear beneath your pj’s, a thin jumper over the top. Have a blanket available too just in case.

If you have an air bed, put a blanket on the ground underneath it.

Oh and be ready to strip all those layers off when the sun comes up and turns the tent into a furnace!

More clothes and a warmer sleeping bag. I'm always very cosy.

Im always cold, i have my own plan now for camping

I have a camp bed off the floor, i put plenty of blankets underneath. Then i have a fleece sleeping bag liner inside my sleeping bag. I make a hot water bottle. Then i wear leggings and a long sleeve top under my pjs with a hoodie so I can cover my head. And always freshly put on fluffy socks for bed. After that i have more blankets to add over the top as needed.

Excessive, but works 😅

Stay somewhere with electric hookup and take an electric blanket. So cosy!

I agree about camp beds, much better to be off the ground plus you can stow stuff under them. Unfortunately you have to be Wonder Woman to get the legs in of those illustrated. The X style are more forgiving of those of us with normal strength, but might not fit in if you have a titchy tent.

Silk sleeping bag liner and socks

Assuming your on a site, pay for electric hookup and use a heated blanket - game changer

What's underneath makes a real difference. Self inflating mats are better than airbeds. Or buy a foil emergency blanket and put it under your airbed etc, it will help stop the heat transfer. Four season sleeping bag, mummy sleeping bags are a different shape that goes above your shoulders. A blanket inside and we sleep with a hat in grabbing distance , if you're really cold it makes a big difference wearing a hat. Fleece top too if mega cold.

It’s all about the insulation. A decent foam mat or self inflating mattress is the best thing. NOT an airbed though - air is cold!!

Double sleeping bag and a man/child/someone to share it with!

Camping heater on 30 mins before bed and ‘bedrooms’ unzipped so heat circulates.
Duvet, not sleeping bag.
Hot water bottle 30 mins before bed.
Hot cup of coffee in the morning

My main tip is don't get cold before going to bed as it's hard to warm up again so lots of layers on before bed, double thick socks etc. I also make sure I am not lying on the floor direct, have a hot water bottle and a spare blanket to go on top.

I actually hate camping but my husband and kids love it so I usually cave for a weekend every now and then. Took my baby when he was 3 months old once and spent so much money on a special baby all weather sleeping bag, tablet steriliser, etc etc that we only used that one time that we could have just got a hotel ...

Tell your children they can go camping with their friends when they’re older. There’s nothing wrong with kids experiencing disappointment every now and then.

1. Sleep with a hot man.
2. Sleep in a hotel.
3. Sleep in a hotel with a hot man.
4. Ensure you are isolated from the cold ground, preferably by an actual vacuum, use a high-quality sleeping bag with a high-quality liner, wear head-to-toe wool garments, wrap a foil blanket round your sleeper.
5. Electric blanket's a brilliant idea if you have power.

Only solution is a blow up mattress, underneath the sleeping bag

And a hat and socks

And full length thermals, with a hoody

You're basically sleeping rough, so yes, it's cold

If you have electric hook up, then a heated blanket. Put it on 15 minutes before bed and get into a nice warm bed.
Also take a thick air bed and quilt from home.

Oh, and make very sure you won't need to get up for a pee!

Have the correct season sleeping bag
Have a self inflating mattress, or put a yoga mat between you and the air bed/camp bed
Put a warm body into the sleeping bag, not a cold one
Pop a hot water bottle near your feet, or some of those self heating pads you stick on your back.

Do you have a suitable 4 season sleeping bag? Also make sure you have a ground mat and an elevated bed.

We found foil backed rugs on the floor very helpful. And SIMs rather than airbeds.

This is why I hate camping. I’ve got all the gear and I’m still always cold!

The sleeping mat is key. I have a thermarest and I have the Decathlon equivalent (https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/self-inflating-1-person-camping-mattress-basic-185-x-60-cm/312934/c98m8575620 - only £20) and both are good.
If it's particularly cold then hat, socks and gloves too.

I also find that if I get cold socialising outdoors in the evening then I have no chance of warming up again once I go to bed so...
... when the sun is going down, I change into my nightclothes and put my daytime clothes back on over my pyjamas and then extra layers on top of that, before heading back outside for the evening. That way I don't get cold while drinking around the campfire, my pyjamas are pre-warmed and I don't get cold changing for bed. No expensive kit needed!