1st time camping! is this all gonna fit, in the car? HELP!!

[3cutedarlings]

Just looked at all our lovely shiny new gear and i just cant see how is all gonna fit in the car! its not a small car either (vw touran) do you all have some secret that helps force all this tackle in i need your help/tips on how to make it all fit!

Feck!!! i think ive gone over board with what ive bought!

Get DC to sit on duvets, sleeping bags in the back of the car.

Take out about half the amount of clothes you believe you need.

Buy food when you get there.

if its all brand new get rid of any packaging that you might still have. Things need to be packed round each other and if you have too many "box" shaped things you can't utilise every centimetre of space.

I had the owner of the campsite laughing at me last Sunday as I crammed everything in, but I got it all packed in the end.

Agree about the clothes and food though.

Good idea with the sleeping bags scurry, but there are five of us, will the DCs car seats still be ok with the bags under them?

And i hadnt even got as far as thinking about the clothes lol hmm maybe i should dress the kids in all of them and wind the windows down!

If the car seats still anchor properly it should be ok, if not spread them out in the boot (the sleeping bags not the DC).

Yup will do that with food ill have a google later and find the nearest big super market still gonna have big cool box tho.....! for the bacon n eggs wine

Feeling ever so stressed about it all, think i might have to strap DS in his buggy and have a practise!

We've not actually managed to practise pitching the tent either cos the weather has been so shite!, fingers crossed the rain will hold off and we'll get a chance tonight.

You may find there are some things you can pack inside others (I for example packed a great deal of stuff into the camping bog my DW had insisted we needed...).

Tip - try and keep the tent accesible if you think it might rain (fingers crossed it won't) so you can get that out and picth it without having to unpack the entire car to get to it.

If you are really struggling phone round friends to see if you can borrow a roof box sooner rather than later!

Thanks for your reply wibblingDad you must have read my mind, i am just trying to re pack a few things to get them to stack better :)

The air beds seem to be massive!!! i inflated them last night, deflated them this AM so theye are now taking up much more space than i would like any tips on the best way to roll/fold them down smaller?

How many DCs do you have? We remove one of the rear seats entirely and put the tent there. It means if it's raining we can drag the outer part of the tent (and relevant poles) out of the car without disturbing anything else. You will need to make sure your mallets are handy though - side pocket of car door works for us.

We also hire a roofbox/bars and get it fitted but will only need to for as long as DD2 needs a buggy.

Oh, and pack wellies and wet weather gear near a door too so you can put those on without having to unpack.

Hi SE13Mummy

We have 3 DC so back seats not an option, although the foot wells are quite big, think im gonna shove the cool box and possibly a sleeping bag infront of DS, and the stoves in the other. We need to take a buggy to, although i have a zapp and a mini jogger both of which folds down quite small (ish), have been thinking that maybe the kids could have the other bags as blankets over their kness .

Leave one of the DCs behind?

Sorry, not a terribly helpful suggestion! How about the children have sleeping bags, airbeds etc as footrests? Do you have a parcel shelf that could be removed? Leave airbeds behind, get a refund/swap them for camping mats?

I'd never leave anything behind that would reduce comfort/warmth when sleeping. you're better off in 3 day old clothes after a good nights sleep...

Sit the children in their seats and see how much our can fit in their footwells.

Unless we're away for a week, we don't take cool box, only cool bag, but does mean you need to buy fresh milk every night.

Just off to check weather forecast for this w/e. good luck!

We don't have airbeds and have those self-inflating mats for sleeping on. We only camp in the UK and in the 'summer' so find they're fine for warmth and comfort.

We ended up buying a trailer this year....there simply wasn't enough room in the car (it's not a small car either) - but 5 people and 3 tents (the older kids insist on their own) takes up a lot of space!
Think about a roof box or trailer if you're going to keep on camping - travelling squashed in with loads of gear isn't much fun.

Roofbox! And fill every pot and pan with little stuff. Cram shoes under seats, put cookers flat in footwells and it's good that you inflated your beds cos you'll inflate them when you're there and there's nothing worse than it all squeezing in on your drive at home but suddenly finding you have a box left over when trying to leave the camp site!!

We also have a Touran. We use a large roof box and (I know you can't do this), take out the middle back seat and put our tent in that space. Your tent is probably smaller though, because ours is massive! On thing we did when we bought the car is get them to throw in the dog guard. That means you can stack the back up totally to the ceiling without any worry of things flying forwards if you brake to hard. Other stuff can be put between the back seats and the dog guard. You could also try putting some stuff in vacuum bags - pillows, bedding, etc.

Ditto the suggestions about less clothes. Also pots. I just got back from a long trip away and used one frying pan and one pot the whole time, didn't need the other three at all.

Take hand towels rather than massive beach towels, sarongs are big enough to lie / sit on and fold up smaller. How badly do you need a buggy? If you could manage with a sling or backpack carrier that could save some space.

Thanks for all your replies :)

Well the car is packed and it fits!!!! well sort of!! i still need to put the hold all with clothes in, and our pillows!! i know, i know!! but i wont sleep right without it.

Can i stack the boot right up to the top? although i would prefer to still see out the back window, DH will drive and he normally drive a van with no back window.

Grumpla Defo need buggy DS is 18mths and weights a tonne! DD1 has ASD and i sometime still use the buggy for her to (when she get over stimulated, she likes to hide under the hood):)

Once again ta very muchly for your help :)

Hi
Have a good time 3cutedarlings.
We are also first time campers so in same boat. We are taking two cars, as have trailers car bit but no trailer yet.
Hope the sun shines all weekend :)