Camping kit - what items are a game changer?

[RS1987]

We are a family of 4 plus dog - DC are 10 and 8.

We go camping twice a year and am looking at expanding our kit repetoire.

What do you swear by for camping? Especially interested in comfort options for sleeping and sitting. Also organisation, our packing and tent organisation is generally a bit chaotic.

I do this too! The boys use empty screw top fruit juice bottles. Total game changer.

I also take extra towels and a tube of sealant in case the tent leaks in the rain.

We have a USB light that can be changed from bright, to warm white (much nicer for reading) to red (doesn't ruin night vision, isn't as likely to wake others up/ keep people awake).

Plastic storage box with a lid to put all non cool box food items in - keeps ants out.

Everdure bbq - it stays cool on the outside, it doesn’t set fire to benches, you can stand it on the ground and it won’t cause a fire. Once cold and emptied, you can stick the lid on and the mess is contained until it can be scrubbed.

we’ve had ours for years and it goes all over the place ☺️

Electric pump!

I’m so sorry for your loss. Your experiences sound incredible - I’m really keen to camp in Europe at some point, we have never ventured outside the UK!

Trailer tent/folding camper - I'm never sleeping on the floor again!
Proper pillow/sheets/duvet rather than sleeping bag.
Always have an electric hook up so we can take the fan heater and electric blanket as well as the toaster.

That's when I'm going anyway. Dh and dc2 don't mind roughing it and take minimal kit but they do prefer these chairs rather than sitting directly on the floor/mats.

I have some thermarest ones which were pricey but they are over 20 years old and still great. Our other two are decathlon ones, they costs about £40, I need ones which roll up very small for car space, but you can get bigger and thicker ones on there, they have a selection.

Same here! Dustpan and brush to keep the inside of the tent free from grass, bugs and mud.

I also love a good bin. I have a set of hollow plastic poles with a lid that you can put together to form the frame to hang a black bin bag.

Clothes pegs to hang wet stuff from various ropes to dry.

I love my rechargeable camping lanterns that can be recharged using a USB and lasts for hours.

www.amazon.co.uk/Kinberry-Camping-Lantern-Rechargeable-Brightness/dp/B0CS2XLJDS/ref=sr_1_6_pp

I always take my proper pillow, a decent sleeping bag and yes a SIM on top of a camp bed is brilliant, plus roll mats under the tent carpet. We've got a solar panel too.
Game changing was getting a tent we can stand up in, but we did that as soon as we had DC. And a decent padded chair each.

These days game changing is the teen DC each have their own tent- SIM, roll mats and picnic blanket carpet... No more sharing with us or each other!
We camp when doing a hobby for 2-3 weeks so it's not a holiday as such.

Outdoor revolution inflatable sofa...game changer

High level airbed, thick foil picnic blankets under them and then decent fabric ones over the top (or tent carpets)

We didn't have carpets in ours, last time I went camping was 20 years ago but my goodness it was luxury compared to sleeping on air beds in a tent which was all that was available at the time.

We had a folding picnic table which was brilliant. Duvet was a must and yes I took my hot water bottle with me as well.

I was not really a happy camper but I look back with fondness

I take a swing bin. Can load stuff into it for travelling and then it stops bin bag spills, pests etc when you use it as a bin

Inner silk sleeping bag, proper branded thermorest, below zero sleeping bag, inflatable pillow and pillow case. We motorbike camp so space is at a premium, I sacrifice all cooking gear, what a shame we have to eat out

@wishingonastar101. The best trick is to camp up against a hedge, I just nip behind the tent. All the lads do it and if you can’t beat them … it’s rally camping so there isn’t always a toilet available overnight

What do people use to keep clothes organised inside the tent? Ours always end up a disaster by day 2.

Kallax boxes are genius !

We are pretty efficient at camping now, but last year added this Jackery (Amazon was the cheapest)absolute game changer !

Also we always take our own bedding (duvet, pillows) rather than a sleeping bag, if we are camping rather than camping and hiking.
It feels like luxury :)

I am quite a ‘back to basics’ camper and don’t take loads of furniture etc, But I have recently started using one of these as a bed head. Stops my pillow falling off the end of the mat, and I can sit up in my sleeping bag to read. I put the mat part under my SIM. Mine was much cheaper in the IKEA SALE

www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/strandoen-sun-lounger-multicolour-80605944/

20cm Exped Megamat SIM - so warm and comfortable.

3 way camping fridge (runs off EHU, 12 volt or a gas canister) - heavy though

camping chairs and tables which concertina and fold up into very small bags

a campfire

I just don’t get on with SIMs they leave me sore and cold - my last on was a double Vango 7.5

Ive gone back to a double frame metal camping bed with mattress topper, double sleeping bag , pillows and a duvet!

it’s only me now - no kids so I like a bit of luxury- normal camping is EHU, DVD player, toaster, kettle, heater etc

festival is power banks, vodka and warmth!

We have camp beds and we use memory foam.mattress toppers on them, also duvets instead of sleeping bags, we either use vacuum pack bags to take them and give us more room or roll up really tight, the kids have the same. We had the plastic collapsible crates to then store items under the camp beds.

The truth is the items that will make the most impact will be, wipes, toilet roll, adapter plugs that take the danger out of the energy, drink bottles that close discreetly & easily (for obvious reasons), sanitary towels, wine bladders, extra pants, T bags & milk sachets.

Fishing beds. Absolute game changer, so comfy

I use a small dog as my hot water bottle 😁.

We use packing cubes for clean clothes, different colours per person and have a big laundry sack for dirty washing.

Buy proper ones...much better https://www.amazon.co.uk/Leetye-Mei-Emergency-Portable-Shrinkable/dp/B09JJY8YZ6/ref=sr_1_4?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.-ltfUJ6P-isyN0IAfHCq0b0jEXCLVmvp_j5h0acNC4dObBhTsBxX2ecpAyrTiLGIDEWJX-5VJH-tJxRH5NAlWe4veQ1SvNZPju8NFInaa0g0jT1uwV-W7M3c0dBm1b3Jwnh8nts00syDqXSVNM5r-qL7f6teOefllTIDtxV2JURhTBQ88BNyGAXY8iy4y_-x10eOlwE7rIp5C69MhpXc-QZFNirQd9A0W6iT-Cic3SCcTE9m08VV8pP7NvPBpeF7BFRr5ql3aCmsFN-3SxjHxhYwSHKAl3XqKhep64AVGxE.UfpahPPjJgpWNrdK88cNfo0QcQgpvHI7wyXqdwXX3A8&dib_tag=se&keywords=emergency%2Burinal&qid=1776759310&s=camping-hiking&sr=1-4&th=1