Happy New Year Campers one and all

[Lucycat]

Now that Christmas is over can we start to plan for the warmer months when we can get back out there?

Here's hoping for some warm, dry weather this year!

Oooo its so exciting.

I have already planned but not booked yet, 2 trips.

I just need to get a footprint groundsheet for my big tent as the sewn in one started to leak at the end of last season.

Another excited one here. I've just about planned the whole year's camping, although not booked yet as I'm too skint to pay deposits.

I love camping

Happy new year!!

I can't wait for the warmer weather and to go with DS again. Been a couple of times with just DH in Nov (leaving ds with MIL) but its just not the same without the little man running around and causing havoc!!

Have booked a festival in august already but no other trips in the calendar as yet...... DH and I were thinking of going away last night to Grizedale forrest in the lakes but both full of cold so decided against it - plus weather was pretty blooming wet so wouldn't have been as fun as if it had been a dry night.... Maybe next nye!!

I bought 'tiny campsites' and plan on visting as many of those as poss this year!

Come on spring :)

Happy New Year!

I've got two trips planned....but am still lusting after a bell tent dh is being particularly stubborn on this one... Yadda Yadda recession Yadda Yadda!

Hi, I'm very excited. Getting back into camping after having a camper van for the last few years. Have just ordered a 5m bell tent and an icytek cooler box. Slightly worried I'm going to find it a bit colder than I'm used to!

Hoping to go to Norfolk in the summer and west midlands area in early June. I'd like to go somewhere earlier than that, maybe the first may bank holiday for a weekend somewhere.....Derbyshire?

Happy New Year campers! I have my ferry booked to Spain in August with a plan to camp our way up to Brittany, nothing organised yet so if anyone knows good sites near Bilbao/Pyrennes/West coast of France I would love to hear about them. Going to North Wales in May can't wait for the weather to brighten and spontaneous camping to begin.

Happy New Year campers. I have also booked the ferry for our main trip. We're going overnight from Portsmouth to Caen in June and heading for the Dordogne and back over a couple of weeks.

I wanted to start a spreadsheet shopping list for equipment but all I can think of that we need is a couple of chairs. Our comfy folding chairs are too low to reach our camp table.

I would also like a super huge Icytek but that's not going to happen so I'll have to make do with treating myself to a couple more ice packs.

My icytek cooler box has just turned up. Thankfully I went for the 25ltr one and I can't believe how big it is!

happy new year to all.
Looking to do some camping this year, and we have the planning appeal for our site very shortly so we are keeping our fingers crossed for that, but definately thinking about holding another camp at the farm, but need to run the details of advertising it on here past MNHQ first (alot depends on above mentioned appeal!)

Happy New Year lovely campers.

Yay for the icey-tek Viva. They are fab.

Nothing booked here yet, although this year we are olympicsing so no summer camping holiday proper. Lots of weekend camps in N Wales I expect.

We camped for the first time with the DCs last summer - used to do loads of camping with DH before then, but had tiny tent and v.basic kit, so a different proposition with a big tent, airbeds and a table (unheard of luxury!). I've never camped outside the UK, though and not sure if I'm up for France or not this year - what do you think? Am used to small, quiet, safe sites with no entertainment bar a few swings. Can I replicate this experience in France?

dotty2 We're going here this year. It has a pool, tennis court and little play area and a bar/cafe with a sandpit outside so you can watch the kids while quaffing local plonk, but it only has 27 pitches so very small and apparently great for small children.

It's in the Dordogne which is quite a drive so we're doing it over a couple of days.

France is a huge and varied country though so the choice is enormous. I found our site on Cool Camping France which doesn't feature the big holiday parks.

Quenelle - umm, that looks lovely. Thanks for the links. You've inspired me to try and talk DH into it. Our tent is a bit of a monster, though, so not sure I can bear to do an overnight on the way. (Idly wonders if we could possibly all squeeze into the old one just for one night.)

We have this Quechua pop-up for overnight stops. It might be a bit too small for you though if you have more than one DC. It's called a four man tent but it's about right for us and 2.6yo DS.

It's fab though, folds into a disc less than a meter in diameter so takes up very little room in the car.

Ours is smaller than that, but might just be doable for one night. Will put it up in the garden when the weather's warmer and see if we can manage it! We camped next to a family in Wales last summer who managed a tent that kind of size with 3 children and one adult - and the youngest DC was 9, so not small. Though a separate issue might be that I think we really need a new (estate) car as we were stuffed to the gunwales last summer - and DD2 was sick on the way over most of our bedding that I'd packed in around her. Nice.