If you are thinking of camping in a tent as a cheap way to spend a nice holidays in Italy, well … you have Tips 4 Italian Trips’ moms approval. It is a way of living and travelling that kids have to experience once in the life and, by taking care of some details,  it is not so uncomfortable as it may seem before leaving. Consider, finally, that Italy has many beatiful organized camping resorts in breathtaking locations and offering a wide range of amenities for children.

Camping with children: the basics

One idea has to be basically in your mind: you have little space in a tent. You have no closet or armchair to set your stuff and this could help you to finally choose the essential. Isn’t the goal of this type of holiday to regain your feeling of nature and freedom?
All you need to pack in your kids’ bag is a swimming suit, a hat, sandals, few t-shirts and shorts, a pijama, a sweater, a tracksuit and some underwear: all things you can easily wash in the coin-laundry many camping sites have.

Don’t bring many toys. Children will have the chance to socialize with other kids and learn to share toys and to create new games to play with their new friends.
There’s one more thing you can renounce to: electricity. Mostly if the camping site has ice boxes and coolers, you can make your children experience a truly boy-scout life style. We did it last year and, despite what many people could think, we had a great holidays. We just plugged our cell phones and cameras to charge every three days, no more.

In case you deprive yourselves of electricity, then the 5 things to bring with you while camping becomes 6 …

What bring with you for camping with children?

1. Paper toilette seat cover. Common shared bathrooms are one of those uncomfortable situations parents are most worried about. Paper cover is the ideal solution in order to have the best hygienic protection for kids. For children still in the “let’s try without diaper” phase, or for those needing night use of the bathroom, a “travel potty” with a cap can be a useful way to avoid a mad rush to the toilets.

2. A plastic waterproof tarp to lay under the tent. Make sure the tarp surface to be wider than the tent basis, so you can use a part of it as a kind of doormat at the entrance of the tent. The tarp make sure you’ll have a dry “bedroom” and and a clean place to change your clothes. As a doormat, the tarp is useful to get off your shoes or sandals. To keep it clean use a “dwarf size” broom. Even boys will have fun doing the housekeeping: it’s a matter of giving them the right perspective

3. Microfiber bathrobes and towels for all the family’s members. They occupy less space in your bags than the traditional sponge ones and they get dry faster.

4. Linens. It may happen your children do not like sleeping-bags. Then, prevent any complaint by bringing in your luggage some linens. Use one with elastic corners as mattress cover and the afternoon siesta will be cooler. In Italy the temperature could be warm also during the night and in this case linen is enough to cover yourself. If you are planning to  bring linen with you and you still have to buy the sleeping-bags, consider that it is enough to buy one every two persons. A good tip I give you is to buy a sleeping bag with a zip close all around it. So you can open and use it as a huge family blanket, for the cooler nights.

5. Hammock. This the best deal we did for our first camping holidays. Samir loved it. He used the hammock as a swing to have fun near the tent and for us it was the most comfortable place to relax. It is an original place for cuddling, reading a book or just laying down and counting the stars.

6. Candles. I agree candles are not indispensable. You can substitute or use them together with a battery light torch. But it’s so romantic to have a candle light dinner with the perfume of pine trees around you … and I’m sure your kids will never forget this exciting experience.

If you already had a tent camping holidays and have some recommendations or tips to give, please, write them on the comments space below. Many readers would be happy to read them and will find them useful … believe me!!