While spontaneity is one of the charms of camping without children, planning is key for successful family camp-outs. Facilities range from relatively luxurious to down and dirty, and families should choose the destination best suited to their interests, outdoor experience and children's ages.
Beginning campers often start by car camping: not sleeping in the car, as my family once did, but pitching a tent beside it, typically at a site in a private campground or at a state or national park. For your first trip, pick a spot within a few hours of home and plan to stay no more than two or three nights (you want your kids to beg for more, not beg to go home). Call ahead and ask the rangers if they offer family programs and activities, and see if you can reserve a site; many are first-come, first-serve.
Once you arrive at a campground, look for a site that is flat, smooth and on top of a rise (rather than at its base) to prevent your tent from flooding during rainstorms. The ideal site also offers privacy, a mix of sunshine and shade, and a source of water. Our family tries to camp by a river, lake or ocean. In scorching Death Valley, we beat the heat by camping near the area's only swimming pool.
Campground amenities vary widely. These days, resort campgrounds feature water slides, horseback riding and kayaking equipment. For a purer, back-to-nature experience, choose a campground that simply offers the basics: running water, flush--or at least pit--toilets, picnic tables, grills and storage lockers (handy in bear country). Primitive campgrounds--those without running water and with (at best) pit toilets--provide more privacy. If you go the no-frills route, bring plenty of water and lower your standards of personal cleanliness.
Setting up your tent and organizing your site is entertaining when you turn chores into games. Have a contest to see who can gather the most kindling the fastest. Divide your group into two teams and hold a camping cook-off to determine who can prepare the most delectable campsite dinner. And, using those same teams, time which crew can wash the day's dishes the quickest.
For help in choosing a site, take a look at Park Search and the National Park Service.
Please keep in mind that phone numbers, addresses, and prices are subject to change.
