Taking the Kids: Camping

Across the board, families with kids are driving the uptick in camping, with three-fourths of new campers being from households with kids. They obviously had a good experience as the majority say they will keep camping this year; 34 percent say they chose camping to get away from crowds and noise.

At the same time, campers are turning to RVing in record numbers, renting from sites like www.RVshare.com, Outdoorsy.com and Harvest Hosts, a member organization that offers stays at more than 2,100 wineries, farms, breweries, golf courses and more. There are now 13 million U.S. RVing households — an increase of 1.7 million, the report said. (A tip for first-time RVers: Rather than try to maneuver your rig in a national or state park, opt for an Uber or shuttle from the campground and then shuttles within the park.)

Campers are interested in “glamping,” cabins or platform tents with many amenities, like those we found at the ultra-deluxe Paws Up in Montana, complete with camp butler, tiled bathrooms and even a tub and KOAs with pools, playgrounds and even dog parks, as well as cabins. Some campgrounds have hot tubs, water play areas, organized kids’ activities, shuttles to national parks, bike rentals and more.

“More than 80 percent of campers changed their camping habits last year, including working and schooling from the campground, turning to RVs for travel safety and security, and adding more weekdays to their trips, which, coupled with the influx of first-time campers, solidifies that many Americans turned to camping and the outdoors to make it through a challenging year,” observed O’Rourke.

First-time campers and those camping with children say access to technology is key, especially as more families eye the possibility of being able to continue remote work and school.

Environmental educators hope that with the growing number of camping families, kids will grow up appreciating the importance of protecting natural spaces.

“When we’re camping, I try to leave everything better than when we arrived by picking up trash and not littering anywhere,” said Pearl, 12, who is from Wyoming.

Two-thirds of camper households said the availability of vaccines will encourage them to camp more.

Kids report they especially like RVing because they always have everything they need, including scooters, bikes, skateboards and pets. “We take our cat with us,” said Brittaney,12, from Arkansas. “She loves riding on the motorhome dash. You should see the looks we get from other cars!”

Another plus for kids: There’s more freedom in a campground than a hotel and the added plus of not having to wait in restaurants and always having snacks at the ready. “The best part of an RV trip is waking up to the fresh smell of breakfast,” said Adalyn, 10, from Montana.” My favorite meal when we are camping is a big breakfast with eggs, bacon, and potatoes.”

And then there are s’mores. You can never have enough marshmallows — and chocolate!

========

(For more Taking the Kids, visit www.takingthekids.com and also follow TakingTheKids on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram where Eileen Ogintz welcomes your questions and comments. The Kid’s Guide to Philadelphia, the 13th in the kid’s guide series, was published in 2020, with The Kid’s Guide to Camping coming in 2021.)