Camping...be honest...do you really enjoy it?

[OrkneyGirl]

I'm typing this in a field in Cornwall. I love the idea of camping but, honestly, is it really a holiday? My neighbour is snoring. I've got to wash up at a sink area with no roof. The tent is starting to ming because it's been so wet. I could go on! And the one thing I never seem to get right is sleeping comfortably. I've tried blow up mattress, camp bed, blow up mattress on camp bed - all just a bit uncomfortable and making me want the comfort of a double bed with a cosy duvet!

I enjoy it with my kids (tweens/young teen), and think it is excellent for them to be back to basics and in nature, and I love us all being in the same 'room' for a change.
We enjoy it more now that we have really good mattresses. We only have a basic tent, and only do three nights max, but that's enough for a nice break in the wild, but I am definitely ready for a good shower in my own home after night three.
We love cooking over a little fire, roasting the marshmallows, etc, but we also extra appreciate our home once we return.

Thank you!

We have camped in small 2 man tents to trailer tents, if the weather is wet nothing will cheer you up. Most uncomfortable camping was -5 overnight in a desert, the trailer tent was the warmest in that you are off the ground. Did most camping with a good airbed good mattress topper and the duvet from home.
We always sleep well

Yes to this. Large tunnel tent bigger than you think you need!
Solar string lights inside.
Kids to bed before it’s properly dark.
Clothes kept in car boot so they don’t get damp.
Campfire - absolute dealbreaker for us.
Fold up cupboard for food storage/prep.
Earplugs - hell yes!

I don't want to pay money to live like a refugee, thanks.

Terrible.

I love days out but, unless I'm somewhere nicer than my own home, I do not want to stay the night, no siree

I like some bits of it like the peace and quiet and just being forced to chill because no electricity.
But can only manage 2 nights before I get sick of it! Also would never do it without DH because he enjoys messing about putting the tent up and cooking and all that stuff.
But even he often just can't be arsed with the faff of getting all the gear out and setting up camp just to take it all down again after a couple of days (he often goes camping alone with a one man tent and only enough stuff to fill a backpack which he enjoys more).

We went glamping with the DC recently which was a good compromise, hard work done for us!

No.

And there's definitely boinging on the mattress we bought from Tesco but not in a good way! The bloody thing has a life of its own under us! Never done the water bed thing but has got to be similar! Def separate SIMs if we go camping again! Make going home something to look forward to! (Have always worried that you are never as quiet as you think you are! )

@OrkneyGirl wrote
Aaaargh! Also thinking to myself that I'm sitting on toilet seat where someone who hasn't showered for days has also just sat. Ewww!

That's why I couldn't even think about going to a music festival and camping.

Don't some just have portaloos with nowhere to wash your hands?

The only festivals I've been to are ones where I have a proper home (mine or a friend's) to go home to at night.

I've camped many times over the last 20 years for between a few nights to 2 weeks both in the UK and abroad so feel like I'm a seasoned camper. I took mumsnet advice to buy SIMs about 10 years ago and honestly they were awful. Since then I've gone with airbeds with a duvet and bottom sheet/ pillow like you'd have at home and i love it but takes up so much space. Have sims improved much over the last 10 years? They still felt like lying on a cold hard ground to me...

Love all the comments. Thank you! Clothes in boot of car...mattress topper...rent a fridge...tent you can stand up in...max 2-3 nights...ear plugs...all genius!

No. Tried it once and utterly hated it. Never, ever again.

Why on earth do I want fewer creature comforts when I go on holiday than I have at home?

Also, I can't see the attraction of driving for miles to get to the holiday destination only to have to build my own accommodation in the middle of a field!!

Walking miles to do the washing up, and back again? No thanks. Walking across fields to visit the toilet at night? No thanks.
Blow up mattresses that just let themselves slowly go down overnight so that you are on the ground before too long? Again, no thanks.
Cooking breakfast and other food in the rain? No thanks.

It's such a bag of shite. I'd really rather have no holiday at all.

It makes you appreciate your home comforts all the more! Like when you are poorly, you extra appreciate your health.

Or simply don't go!

We have these, and I really rate them:

www.decathlon.co.uk/p/self-inflatable-camping-mattress-ultim-comfort-70-cm-1-person/_/R-p-307396?mc=8759611

It certainly had that effect. So much so that I will never go camping again. 🤣

They do look good. Thank you!

My two boys wanted so badly to camp.. I booked a trip round wales in 2022 having never camped 🥴 I bought a luxury air tent and everything we'd need.. having never stayed in a tent. Off we went.. a tour of wales which see us camp in 7 separate places along the way, I planned a whole trip and absolutely loved it! 2023 we did our first festival (Gone Wild) jammed packed with activities, we had a blast but it was gruelling 😫 we are doing it all again this year and it's the highlight of our summer holidays. Amazing memories with my boys, I really couldn't be happier.

Also, has anyone got any good camping recipes? One or two pans only? It can get a bit expensive eating out - though a real treat if you can find a good place- just wondered what great ideas I'm missing out on!

Sounds just like our set up!

I love camping and sleep better in my tent than I do at home. We don’t do basic camping though as I need decent shower block and electric hookup! We always camp with friends which helped when kids were little as more adults on hand and kids had friends to play with, and now dc are all adults they go off together and do their own thing and us oldies can sit and chat.

I find it more relaxing than being in a hotel..

Love the chat but getting cold and need to snuggle down for night with two layers of clothes, a bobble hat and a snoring DH! Boots first thing tomorrow for wax ear plugs!'

We had a big tent, campesinos with others, so also had event tent. Big blow up beds, proper duvets, fairy lights. Plug in cool boxes, pizza oven, fairy lights, bunting. Blow up sofas, the works. I enjoyed it in France when the kids were little. But now.we.stay in mobile homes. If ive only got 2 weeks away, I'm.not spending it sharing the loos, listening to my neighbours, freezing at night etc. It just doesn't work for us any more.

It's better in good weather. We are currently camping in the Mediterranean, and it's been ok - no rain or cold; towels and washing are dry within an hour at 35 degrees. UK camping is so miserable because of the weather (and not that cheap either). We have double Vango SIM's that are quite comfortable when folded. Would also recommend electric hookup so you charge your phones, cook, boil the kettle, have light, etc. Having said that, it's also not really my kind of holiday. The noise, the shared facilities, having to walk half a mile to the loo twice a night... The money we've saved on accommodation we are spending on eating out because we want a break from camping! I look forward to going home but we've got another week here 😂.

@HelloDaisy I hope that when ours are older they still want to come camping with us all! We don't tend to go for electric hook ups but I have been tempted to try it out.
@OrkneyGirl recipes depend very much on what you have available to you in terms of hob space/ cool boxes etc. We have varying allergies/ sensory needs to accommodate so currently take very basic pasta sauces, plus ramen/ canned meals (bolognese/ meatballs/ etc) but when I've catered for camping with youth groups etc I've usually stuck with chilli/ bolognese/ curry/ bbq on a disposable bbq/ sandwiches etc. One or two pots is definitely plenty as otherwise you've got tons of pans to deal with and that's no fun. We're going to try making "pizza" with wraps topped with passata and grated cheese, plus sweetcorn/ onion etc and then apparently they get fried in the pan on the hob. I haven't tried this one yet though! The kids school were making it at the end of term so I've stolen the idea to try out. We might try it at home first though!

No it's horrendous, I hate bugs and lights / fairy lights attract them, I went a few years ago with my girls who were in guides and ended up booking into a local premier inn by the 2nd night - no matter how big / glamorous the tent, it's hell for me 😂