Family camping checklist

By Joe Pontin

Published: Friday, 12 August 2022 at 12:00 am

Toothbrushes, tent, sleeping bags, collapsible kettle, teddy bears… there is so much to remember on a family camping trip that you often need lists of lists. To help make sure you don’t arrive at your campsite without the most useful or important items, here’s our round-up of camping gear that you really shouldn’t leave home without.

Campsites in the UK vary enormously with regard to facilities, but most have a toilet and running water. If you’re staying on an almost wild campsite, you may want to bring water supplies and even a portable shower depending on how long you’re staying. If you’re planning to bring more home comforts, electric hook-up will be more important to you. If your campsite allows campfires, check whether you need to bring a firepit to keep it off the ground.

Not booked yet? Consider Britain’s best beach campsites.

What to pack when family camping, ranging from the critical to the optional:

Cooking stove and gas cylinder (if applicable)

Camping chairs

Crockery and cutlery

All-in-one washing liquid

Cookware

Firepit

Coolbox or coolbag

Camping tarp or awning

Silk liners

Camping table

Kitchen unit

Tent

Recommended: Vango Aether Airbeam tent

<image>

If you’re looking for a large family tent, this excellent air tent from Vango is easy to put up and very spacious. It’s also made from recycled bottles, meaning you’re taking plastic waste out of the world by buying it.

Read our full review of the Vango Aether Airbeam tent

Buy now from Amazon (RRP £800)

Also consider: Easy Camp Palmdale 600 Lux

<image>

For families on more of a budget, the Easy Camp Palmdale 600 lux tunnel tent offers similarly palatial interior, but is held up with fibreglass poles, more compact and considerably cheaper.

Read our full review of the Easy Camp Palmdale 600 Lux tent

Buy now from Amazon (RRP £380)

Sleeping bags

Recommended:

Sleeping mats

Recommended:

Pillows

Recommended: Sea to Summit Aeros Ultralight Deluxe pillow

<https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sea-Summit-ULTRALIGHT-PILLOW-REGULAR/dp/B07NH74D9M/ref=sr_1_5

_{Sea to Summit’s super-comfortable pillow deflates to the size of an orange}

This inflatable pillow is an expensive but surprisingly comfortable luxury. Also light (at 130g) and compact enough for backpacking. I found it most comfortable when slightly soft… the choice is yours, of course.

First-aid kit

Recommended: Lifesystems First Aid Kit

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Life-Systems-20210-Camping-First/dp/B00M4V2CY0/ref=sr_1_23

<image>

Household admin is often hard to keep up with, which is why many parents end up with a box of plasters and a bottle of Calpol comprising the home ‘medical’ cabinet. But with all the potential injuries that camping offers, this just isn’t an option when on a family trip: a decent first aid is essential. This camping first aid kit is recommended by the Duke of Edinburgh award scheme, and contains more than 40 items to treat the most common camping situations, including burns, cuts, grazes, blisters and even eye injuries. Clever design features include reflective frontage so it’s quick and easy to find in low light, and internal organisation according to the Lifesystems QUICK-FIND system – where everything is stored logically and well labelled, for panicky situations. It’s this kind of manufacturing experience that makes it worth forking out for.

Cooking stove and gas cylinder (if applicable)

Recommended: Trangia Camping Stove

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Trangia-Hardanodised-Cookset-Spirit-Burner/dp/B001BXA2R6/ref=sr_1_2

<image>

It’s hard not to be impressed by the Trangia stove. A clever bit of Scandinavian design, the flame sits inside a cylindrical cup, which stops it going out. It works well in most conditions, although in high winds, you will get the customary burnt thumb as you try to use your lighter. Buy it with the cookset, and you’ll also get lightweight ‘hard-anodised’ non-stick pans (fryer 22cm, saucepans 1.75l & 1.5l) that cook eggs, baked beans and bacon to perfection with less than a teaspoon of oil. It’s lightweight, compact and as you’d expect, stacks down into itself to offer dimensions of 22.6 x 11.4 x 22.1cm.

You can buy the version that plugs into either a spirit burner or a gas canister.

Camping chairs

Crockery and cutlery

All-in-one washing liquid

Recommended: Lifesystems all-purpose soap

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Life-Venture-LIFEVENTURE-Purpose-200ml/dp/B00DN9AHJ4/ref=sr_1_1

<image>

If space is at a premium, you’ll love this little washing solution that has multiple uses for different family situations. This all-purpose soap has been tested in cold water and cleaned greasy dishes, ketchupy faces and even restored a rather sodden sleeping bag to its former glory after a not-so-little night-time accident from my little one. Tip: it’s concentrated, so you only need a tiny bit. Dilute in water for use on young skin rather than squeezing neat onto a flannel.

Cookware

Recommended: Dutch oven

Recommended: Kelly Kettle Ultimate ‘Base Camp’ kit

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00RTMPLKG/ref=redir_mobile_desktop

<image>

Like to start the day with a cuppa? The Kelly Kettle could revolutionise your morning routine. Employ the children to find dry twigs while you fill it up, and place them inside the bottom tray. Place the brilliantly designed hollow kettle over the lighted twigs and behold as a hole in the side of the tray draws in oxygen, firing up the flames. The efficiency of the heat, which travels up through the middle of the kettle and out the top of the cylinder, means that the water boils in around three minutes (listen out for the whistle). You have to keep an eye on the twigs and be ready to feed it – and do not, under any circumstances, allow any member of your family to peer curiously down the top.

The Ultimate Base Camp kit comes with a sauce pan and shallower frying pan, two mugs (with measurements on the side), a small griddle for toast and of course, the kettle. Although bulky for hikers, it’s perfect for creating a little outdoor magic without needing gas. Just don’t leave it unattended around the kids.

Firepit

Coolbox or coolbag

Camping tarp or awning

Silk liners

Camping table

Kitchen unit

_{The Camp Chair’s elasticated framework collapses and fits neatly in the stuff sack}

Camping chair

Camp Chair, Helinox, £125

There are a lot of comfortable but bulky chairs out there – and a lot of compact but uncomfortable ones, too. These excellent chairs from Dutch firm Helinox are easy to assemble, light (1.232kg) and small when packed. Many other collapsible camping chairs push you forward at the shoulders and offer no support in the lower back, leaving you feeling hunched, but this is comfortable and supportive in the right places. That low weight means you can take add it to your pack for a moderate distance (a fishing trip, the beach). The even lighter (622g) Ground Chair is suitable for backpackers or hikers who like to keep things civilised when they stop to relax.

_{The Navigator feels more robust than the Helinox chair but is significantly heavier}

2 Relax in comfort

Navigator chair, Robens, £109.99

This robust chair folds down to a remarkably compact size – handy when it comes to pack your car. The comfort level is at a similar high level to the Helinox chair above, the aluminium frame is tough and there’s a drinks holder in one arm. If weight matters, note that the Navigator weighs an extra 500g compared to the Helinox above.

_{Handy storage, especially if you like to use large gas bottles for cooking}

3 Get organised

Gastro Kitchen, Vango, £120

This roomy kitchen unit will soak up food, plates, pots and cutlery, keeping everything ship-shape. There’s space on top for a gas hob, with a windshield to protect the burners from a breeze. A small metal worktop to the right can be easily removed and replaced with a washing up basin, though if you are going to use it, you have to take great care not to slop soapy water over the rest of the unit, so you may doubt its utility. The right hand cupboard has been designed for a large gas bottle – which may suit you, but many UK campers tend to use smaller bottles, leaving you with a lot of redundant space.

It’s extremely easy to install. Needless to say, with a width of 122.5cm it’s a significant size, so check there’s room in your tent. And note that the pack size is also bulky at 122cm and 11cm thick – a significant extra for your car boot.

_{The X-Pot has an aluminium base and collapsible sides made of silicon – ideal cramming kit in a small car boot}

4 Time for a brew

X-Pot Kettle 1.3 Litre, Sea To Summit, £36

Some ultra-light backpackers will use a single pot to make food and boil water for tea, but I think it’s always worth the luxury of bringing a kettle that is purely for boiling water, and always free of the taint of food.

This collapsible kettle boils a full litre of water and weighs only 186g. There are lighter kettles – for example, the (rigid) titanium Titan by MSR (just 118g, but smaller, too, at 850ml; £55) – but the X-Pot Kettle concertinas down to a tiny packed size of just 15cm x 3.5cm. Just take care to keep those silicon sides away from the flame: it’s designed for use over a stove, not a campfire.

It can also double up as a pot, but if you want clean-tasting water, I would cook only pasta and rice and other bland foods in it.

_{The EcoLux takes a while to cool down after switching on, but then delivers on capacity and flexibility}

5 Keep it cool

EcoLux 35L coolbox, Outwell, £165

This stylish coolbox looks like something Nasa made. Designed for family camping where an an electrical hook-up is available*, it’s fairly bulky in your car boot, but at 35L compared to the standard 24L, that extra space will come in handy in your tent, keeping food fresh and helping you avoid a daily trip to the shops.

It’s not exactly a mini-fridge; it will cool to between 18C and 25C below the ambient temperature, whatever that may be. To keep things nice and chill, you need to add an ice pack – which doubles as a divider, fitting in the centre of the box. (It might be worth buying a spare, to keep in the campsite freezer – if there is one – and swap over once your original thaws out.)

Other useful functions include an LED light in the lid, and a USB port so you can charge your phone. The split lid allows access to bottles (up to 2L) without losing cool air from the food compartment. That’s useful when you have guests over for a few drinks.

It operates with a low whir that may keep you awake at night; so its best unplugged before bedtime, but the insulation should keep stuff cool until morning.

TIP – Shop around – you may well find the EcoLux available for significantly less than the rrp.

* The coolbox can be plugged in to your car – and as with most coolboxes there’s a risk that this will flatten your car battery. Happily, when the car battery is beginning to run low, the Ecolux 35L (though not its 24L sister) is fitted with an alarm. Handy, assuming you’re not away at the beach or up a hill when it goes off.

_{Like any traditional enamel coatings, the beakers may chip, so handle carefully}

6 Old-school style

Tumbler (£6) and mini-tumbler (£5), Falcon Enamelware

Classic retro-style enamel beakers in ‘special edition’ samphire and sage colours.

_{The pots fit neatly together, saving space in the car boot}

7 Cook real food

Ceramic 2-pot set, MSR, £50*

If you want to travel light and compact – but still want the flexibility to cook real food – this pair of lightweight aluminium pots are a very good option. The 2.5L and 1.5L pots are lightweight (at 460g); to shave off a few grams, there’s only one lid and handle (which is easy to attach and remove). If you want to cook real food rather than stuff from packets and cans, they will make life that much easier. The packed size is 20cm x 13cm, with room inside for a mug and even plates. And both pots are coated with a non-stick ceramic coating that makes both cooking and washing-up easier. (Non-stick coatings are hard to assess until they have come in for some serious use: many quickly lose their non-stick properties unless given careful treatment. I will report back after I’ve given mine a full test.)

*Shop around – for example at the time of writing, Ellis Brigham were asking £34.99 for this set.

_{The versatile gas-fired alternative to a barbecue}

8 Easy grill

Party Grill 400 CV gas stove, Campingaz, £119.99*

When a barbecue is just a bit too much hassle, this gas stove makes life much easier.

It’s highly versatile – giving you the flexibility to cook in various ways. There’s a wire grid for cooking with a pan, a griddle for meat or veg (reversible, with one smooth side, and one corrugated).

And the lockable lid doubles up as a wok (though this takes a bit of careful handling).

It’s all pleasingly self-contained. Unclip the lid and inside you find all the components, including the detachable legs.

It’s portable over short distances – it all zips into a carry bag, and that 5kg weight (plus a 700g gas bottle) is fine for taking down to the beach, or carrying from your car to a picnic spot.

You’d expect a product like to rapidly get pretty greasy and stained – but there is one useful feature to help you keep it clean.

Pour some water it to a little container beneath the burner, and much of the cooking grease will collect inside, where it’s easy to drain off. Then wipe the whole thing down.

*Shop around as the product is widely available at a price of around £90.

_{The Openfire pit folds out to make a barbecue, or remove the grill for safe camp fires that won’t spill sparks on to the ground beneath}

9 BBQ and campfire

Kamoto OpenFire pit £120 (small) and £140 (large), Primus

This smart Swedish product doubles up as a barbecue – and a campsite-friendly fire pit.

Beautifully made from stainless steel, it is easy to set up – it opens from a hinge, then you slide three stainless steel plates into place at the ends and fire bed – and that’s it.

It’s a fair size at 60cm wide and 39cm tall, so there’s plenty of capacity for substantial logs.

The large base beneath it catches any escaping sparks and hot ashes, but you may need to find some means to further protect the ground beneath, as the grass beneath that warm base will wilt.

(The grass roots may well survive but you wouldn’t want brown patches on your lawn, and I imagine many campsite owners might not be too keen either.)

If you are cooking, the grill is large and well made. It holds your food a fair distance from the fire so you will need to build up some good heat beneath: if cooking over charcoal you may find that quite a lot of fuel is required.

Carrying is not easy; the whole thing weighs 6.1kg, and a strap binds everything together rather feebly. The packed Kamoto is too wide for most rucksacks, but a specially designed ‘pack sack’ is available separately for an extra 30 euros.

_{The compact lantern is easily inflated for use (right)}

10 Solar powered

Lux lantern, £25, Colour lantern, £30, Luci

These superb waterproof lanterns have a solar panel that charges during the day and runs for charge 12 hours on brightest mode (50 lumens). The Lux (£25) gives of a mellow white light, with two brightness setting and a flashing mode. At 125g they are light enough for backpacking too, but Luci also make an even lighter (69g) version called the EMRG, which gives out 25 lumens.

_{The rechareable Twist+ 300 saves on battery costs}

11 Bright light

Twist+ 300 LED rechargeable lantern, Coleman, £69.99

The design world has been profoundly changed by a certain computer company with a crunchy fruit logo. Products from all sorts of other brands and markets now resemble something that Californian tech company might make. Think Sigg for example. Now there’s this lantern from Coleman. Very Apple. Or maybe even Star Wars; but I digress. For actually it is rather good. It has lithium ion batteries, rechargeable via a USB, and will run for five hours on the brightest, 300-lumen (ie very bright) setting; more than enough to read by. Other, dimmer settings are available and will allow the battery to last longer. A diffuser makes the bulb less dazzling, and the quality of the light cast is quite pleasant. There’s a handy device that disengages the battery so it won’t drain while not in use, as others do. Finally, you can charge your phone from the lantern battery via a USB socket.

_{A cutaway shows the foam structure of the Comfort Plus sleeping mat}

_{Pleasant to sleep in during sultry weather, this liner also adds a little warmth when nights are cold}

15 For hot nights

Ultimate Silk Sleeping Bag Liner, LifeVenture, £52.99

When the weather gets really hot, cast aside your sleeping bag and envelop yourself in soft silk instead.

In cooler weather, the liner can be used inside your sleeping bag to add a little warmth and luxurious texture. On the practical side, it helps to keep your sleeping bag clean. If you have an expensive down bags, you may find it deteriorate with washing – using a liner should keep it clean and thus lengthen its life. Treated with Polygiene to keep it smelling fresh, the liner is also washable and weighs only 134g. Mummy-shaped or rectangular versions are available to match the shape of your sleeping bag.

Obviously with all that silk the price is stiff – but much affordable polycotton versions offer some of the same benefits and can be had for a tenner; or you can sew one from an old sheet for next to nothing.

Kit pictures by Steve Sayers

Main image: Getty