urgent camping help please

pukkamum

Looking for advice from any camping families out there.
We want to take our 3 kids camping tomorrow, driving from manchester to north Wales, we have a site arranged etc.
My problem is a space one we are quite restricted in how much we can take, tents quite big and we need to take duvets and airbeds.
So how few clothes would you take for 3 kids 2, 7 and 10 and me and dh oh and shoes.
I like to pack for every eventuality weather wise but need to cut back.

It would be for 2 or 3 nights.

BitterAndTwisted

Three sets of clean underwear, one T-shirt, one warm top-layer and one waterproof each. Plus a bathing-suit and a pair of sandals/plimsoles each. More sturdy shoes can be worn in the car if necessary. Kids can sleep in their T-shirts and underwear for a couple of nights before anyone would call the police for neglect.....

pka_2

for only two or three days then all you need is one pair of trousers each, one jumper, maybe a pair of shorts each if the weather forecast is good. Obviously pants and socks for each day, i'd pack one spare set each in case you get soaked through one day. T-shirt for each day. Only need to take one pair of sturdy shoes each. Oh and a raincoat. If you are all wearing the trousers and jumper to travel in then you should be able to pack everything for the five of you in one reasonable sized bag.

pukkamum

Very good advice b&t, how about bottoms, I'm thinking one shorts one full trouser each.

alias*alibi

Don't forget towels which can be bulky! We went to newquay for 4 nights and packed everything bar kitchen sink so I'm no good at advice. I've stayed at Shell Island in north Wales before and would totally recommend that campsite.

jellymid

Challenging, but use every available nook and cranny in the car.

Take wellies for everyone, the grass will be wet in the mornings from dew and once you are wet it's hard to get dry unless the hot weather returns. It's not that long a journey for you, so the kids could wear them if necessary! Shorts and wellies are acceptable camping wear (especially for the kids). Flipflops double up for wearing inside the tent and to wear in the showers, but aren't really necessary.
I'd take the trousers they are wearing, a spare pair and shorts for the kids, but travel lighter for adults.
For warmth at night we always lay newspaper under the airbeds. If they are cold, lay their coats over them, too.

Have fun!

pka_2

If space really is at a premium then sleeping bags pack up much smaller than duvets, we also use the self inflating roll mats which roll up much smaller than air beds and in my opinion are just as comfy to sleep on. Obviously not very mse if you don't already have these and/or don't intend camping very often.

Person_one

I think you always need at least one full change of clothes more than the minimum when camping, to allow for the inevitability of someone slipping into a ditch and getting stinking mud from head to toe, or of getting caught in rain so heavy it soaks your underwear through in the 5 minutes it takes you to get under canvas.

You can keep that spare set squashed really flat in plastic bags under a seat in the car though, and just get them out if needed, it doesn't matter if things are creased when you're camping!

Other essentials are thick woolly socks, a waterproof jacket, wellies and a big chunky jumper that's really warm. Even when its really hot during the day you can get surprisingly cold in a tent at night.

choccymoose

We used to lay our duvets on the back seat and sit on them

jellyhead

if you have flipflops or crocs it doesn't matter if they get wet, and you can wear them the whole time. My mum takes wellies for walking to the loo, but she wears long pyjamas and doesn't want to get the legs wet. I either wear short legs, or roll them up and wear crocs. She goes in a car though whereas I go on the train, so I need to limit my luggage.

valk_scot

Don't forget most family type campsites have washing machines and tumble driers, so pack one dose of washing powder too!

Shorts are far better for campsites than trousers, the bottoms don't drag in the grass and get wet. We all wear shorts/cutoffs and crocs on site, you can wear crocs to go to the shower, through puddles and they're surprisingly warm as they insulate you from the cold ground.

For three days/two nights I'd be packing one set of undies, socks and t-shirt per person, one pair of shorts for on site, one pair of slightly smarter shorts or longs for off site, crocs, walking shoes or sandals for off site, one warm fleece top or hoodie, one waterproof layer. I might add in a smarter top or shirt if I knew I was going out for the day.

If you run short of kids' clothes, head for the local charity shops. It's amazing what you can find for not a lot.

If you're taking airbeds and duvets btw I hope you've packed something to insulate you from the airbed? Airbeds are just blocks of cold air, you need to put something between you and it. I use a fleece blanket held on by a fitted sheet and then a sleeping bag as well, if you sleep on an airbed with just a sheet on it and a duvet on top you'll freeze. Self inflating mats or cellular foam mats are significantly warmer to sleep on.