Camping. What does that word mean to you? Something on a par with pretending to be homeless, or an amazing experience under the stars, embracing the great outdoors? 

If you’re in the group of people who think ‘camping’ isn’t a word to be used in conjunction with the word ‘holiday’, you’re not alone.  

But what if you’ve agreed to go camping and it’s too late to change your mind? Uh oh. 

Change Your Thinking…

If you’ve decided to hate camping before you’ve even got there, then you probably will hate it. Self-fulfilling prophecies and all that. 

But if you’re worried about how you’re going to plug your hair straighteners in or how you’re supposed to have a poo (which, to be fair, is a valid concern), then you’re going with the wrong mindset. 

Go into it with an open mind. If you do you’ll have far more of a chance of actually enjoying the whole experience of camping. Which is a lot better than spending your whole time moaning about the things you can’t do as easily as you can at home. 

… and Leave Your Vanity at Home

Leading on from the above, leave your vanity at home along with your hair straighteners. If you’re out in the wilds, you don’t need a hairdryer, hair straighteners, high heels, false eyelashes or make-up. 

In fact, you’re going to look ridiculous with all your slap on when everyone else is fresh-faced in their hiking gear. 

So, just leave your fashion sense and make-up bag at home. Instead bring appropriate clothing (yes, we mean walking boots and waterproofs!)

But Don’t Leave The Comfort Behind 

Just because you’re leaving your make-up behind, that doesn’t mean you have to totally rough it. You may think camping involves being cold, wet and itchy but this doesn’t have to be the reality of your camping trip. Being warm, dry and comfortable is 100% possible in a tent. Honest. 

Fill up the space in your bag and car you made by leaving inappropriate clothing behind with warm clothes and pyjamas. Also, take more bedding than you think you’ll need. This is because, although we don’t like to remind you of this, there’ll be no hotel reception to ring to ask for more blankets if you get a bit chilly overnight. 

Camping doesn’t mean sleeping on a thin mat on the ground, oh no. Just because you’re in a tent and not a big, squishy, comfy hotel bed (sorry!) you can still be comfortable on a large, flocked air bed. Also, don’t forget, there’s nothing stopping you from taking your own duvet and pillow with you. Therefore allowing you to feel just as comfy as you would if you were at home. 

Take A Big Tent

When it comes to your tent, buy the biggest you can afford and can fit in your car. Be warned though, a tent that’s advertised as a ‘two-man’ tent means it can sleep two people in side by side. You won’t be able to fit two air beds in it. 

You probably won’t be able to stand up in a small tent either. So if you’re not able to try a tent out at a camping store, check the dimensions before hitting the buy button. As a general rule, double the number of people you want to fit in the tent. This is to ensure you don’t want to wake up with your boots and bags on your head. 

If the weather’s bad, you’ll be spending a lot of time in your tent. Therefore you need it to be spacious and not claustrophobic. You won’t quite be able to replicate a hotel suite but you can be comfortable. 

Choose your campsite carefully

If you’re not really roughing it by wild camping but you’re staying at a campsite, then some sites are practically hotel-like in their facilities. Maybe you’ve even got your own static caravan or lodge at a holiday camp and that’s as far as camping as you’re prepared to go. 

Campsite’s facilities vary from being simply a place to pitch your tent to pitches with electricity (see, you can bring your straighteners after all), flushing toilets (see, you can even have a civilised poo) and hot showers. Some campsites even have laundry rooms, a clubhouse and a shop where you can get your daily fix of cheese and onion crisps (other snacks are available). 

As you can see, there are many ways to stay comfortable when you’re camping. You may find yourself so comfortable you wondered what all the fuss was about and never want to stay in a hotel again.