Growing up in California, some of my favourite childhood memories were made outdoors, often near lakes or Yosemite National Park. When I became a parent, I wanted to create similar experiences for my kids. The challenge was that I didn’t know anyone in England who camped, and couldn’t imagine how tent camping was supposed to work in a place where rain is usually a daily occurrence.
Would we spend entire weekends trapped in a soggy tent? Would our first trip be miserable? Would the kids be cold, wet, and never want to go again?
Choosing Our First Family Tent
I quickly realised that if our first trips were going to be a success, comfort mattered. I wanted enough space to enjoy ourselves even in bad weather, with room for the kids to play even if we couldn’t spend every minute outside.
After a lot of research, comparing tents ranging from around £20 to over £2,000, I eventually settled on the Eurohike Sendero 8 XL.
Two years and around six camping trips later, I can confidently say it was the right choice for us.
It doesn’t have all the latest features. There’s no blackout bedrooms and only one entrance, but what it does offer is plenty of space, a reasonable price, a manageable pack size, and a straightforward setup process. Most importantly, it has helped make family camping enjoyable.
Camping Has Helped Us Discover England
When I decided to give camping a try, I didn’t expect it to introduce us to a completely different side of England. Camping has encouraged us to slow down and discover new parts of the country we might never have considered otherwise simply because there was a beautiful campsite nearby.
One of our favourite campsites is on the banks of the River Stour in Suffolk.
For us, a perfect camping weekend starts by loading the car with everything we need: camping gear, paddleboards, children, snacks, and our golden retriever. Once we arrive, we can pitch the tent and head straight for the water.
There’s something incredibly special about waking up by the river, spending the day paddleboarding, and then returning to camp for an evening outdoors together.
We’ve also stayed beside the River Thames, where Laleham Camping Club gave us the perfect base for combining time outdoors with a visit to Legoland.
More Than Just a Holiday
What I’ve come to love most about camping isn’t the accommodation or even the destinations. It’s the way it creates space for simple moments.
Kids need very little entertainment when they’re given the freedom to explore. They make friends on campsites, search for interesting sticks, and watch ducks on the river. As parents, we slow down too.
Without the distractions of everyday life, there’s more time for conversations, shared adventures, and the small moments that end up becoming family memories.
Seeing a Different Side to England
If you’ve been following along for a while, you’ll know that camping is a very different chapter for us. When I first moved to England, we didn’t have a car and relied entirely on public transport. Most of my experience of England involved cities, train stations, and tourist attractions.
I loved those experiences, but I couldn’t have imagined that a decade later I’d be loading a car full of camping gear, paddleboards, two children, and a golden retriever and heading off for a weekend by the river. Camping has introduced us to a different side of Britain. One that’s slower, greener, and often hidden just beyond the places most people pass through on their way somewhere else.
And perhaps that’s why I’ve grown to love it so much. What started as an attempt to recreate some of my favourite childhood memories has become one of my favourite ways to make new ones with my own family.
C l a r i M i c h e l e 