How to Host An Awesome Backyard Camping Experience

Camping is a great way to get back to nature for a little while and it’s a wonderful opportunity for some family bonding away from the usual distractions of everyday life. While heading off into the wilderness or a campsite might not be practical for your family, you can still have a super fun camping experience right in your own backyard!

How to Host An Awesome Backyard Camping Experience

Kids love an adventure and they thrive when parents make an effort to spend time together. Even if you have little backyard space to work with, or even a patio, you can plan a camping adventure.

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Break Out the Camping Gear

If you happen to have camping gear, break it out. Depending on the space you have available, you may not be able to use everything, but pulling your gear out of storage shows your family that you want the experience to be as real as possible.

If you want to sleep outdoors but still appreciate some shelter, a good tent is in order. And it’s always fun to snuggle down into a comfortable sleeping bag to make you feel nice and cozy even on a cool evening. But even if you can’t afford a tent and sleeping bags, camping out under the stars with a nice assortment of blankets and pillows is a great option, as well.

Did you know that you can rent camping gear? This is a great option if you don’t want to purchase camping equipment that you may not use very frequently. This site has some great gear that you can rent for the weekend.

Pack Up Camping Food and Treats

For the most authentic camping adventure in the backyard, consider packing a cooler full of food just like you would if you were heading out to the campground. If you don’t have any way to cook in the backyard, you can always pack it full of sandwiches, fruit, and other ready-to-eat foods.

But if you have a fire pit or small portable grill you can pack foods up to cook outdoors. We all know how delicious meats and veggies taste when cooked on the grill. And there is nothing that says “camping” quite as much as a hotdog on a skewer cooked over an open fire.

And whatever you do – don’t forget to include the makings for S’mores!

Explore Your Backyard and Neighborhood

A great part of any camping trip is doing a bit of hiking to see more of the local area. Even if your backyard is kind of small, leading your kids on an adventure to discover new things can be great fun. And when you’ve exhausted the possibilities in your own yard, you may find something amazing and new in your very own neighborhood once you start looking around with the eyes of an explorer.

Pretend You’re Too Far For Wi-Fi

Part of the ultimate camping adventure is to be so far out of town, you can’t get wi-fi. In order to make your family backyard camping trip as authentic as possible, make everyone turn in their phones and devices. Better yet, consider turning the wi-fi off completely during your “time away” just to keep the temptation to a minimum.

Plan Some Outdoor Fun

In this age of indoor children and life on the internet, kids sometimes need a reminder of how much fun it is to play. So when you take their devices away, it is only fair to have fun things planned for them to do.

Some great ideas include setting up a badminton net, playing frisbee, or making some cool crafts using natural materials. You can even get the whole family involved in a fun scavenger hunt!

Backyard Camping For Your Family

Whatever you do for your camping adventure, don’t be afraid to make it just right for your family. If that includes cooking burgers over an open fire and pitching a big tent, great! If bundling up with blankets in the grass while eating cold pizza is more your speed, that’s fine, too. All that really matters when camping in the backyard is that you are together, spending time having fun as a family!