Published on June 26, 2026 12:10 pm
Overview: Family camping with small children is a lot – but the right gear makes it survivable and fun too. After two summers of figuring it out the hard way, Outside contributor Jenny Wiegand shares the family camping gear that actually works for families with young children.
I survived my first family camping trip of the summer with two kids (ages 1 and 3). It was a better time than camping with a baby and a 2-year-old last summer – but easier? None yet. Are you resting? Maybe five minutes while the kids were jumping on their mattresses. worth it? Clearly yes. We came home dirty, smelly, tired, and optimistic about our life as an adventurous family. We were getting there—one trial-and-error journey at a time.
We packed heavily for a 24-hour escape to a nearby state park (1.5 hours from home, close enough to bail if needed). In some ways, we were better prepared than last year – we had a campsite reserved, a pitched tent, portable shed and plenty of toys to encourage sleeping in at 5am – but we still fell behind in some key areas. Here’s the family camping gear that served us well, the items that didn’t, and the stuff we’re adding to our packing list for our next family camping trip later this summer.
Updated, June 2026: This family camping guide has been updated to reflect our family’s growing camping needs. Now with two kids (up from one baby and one toddler last summer), we’ve swapped out new gear picks based on hard-earned lessons from the campsite — including a blackout tent, an all-in-one camp kitchen, and a few items we already plan to get rid of before our next trip.
Family Camping Gear I Swear
Dark, family-sized tent: Kelty Daydreamer 6P
Last summer, we camped in The North Face Wawona 6-Person Tent– A setup we liked for its double doors, spacious gear vestibules, and multiple storage pockets. But the bright orange color accentuates the dusk and dawn lighting – not ideal for tricking babies and young children into sleeping through 12-hour shifts at camp. This time, we tried the Kelty Daydreamer, a slightly smaller six-person tent with a light-blocking rainfly that creates complete darkness even during peak daylight.
The footprint (89 square feet) is still large enough to accommodate a double air mattress and two singles, with plenty of room for gear and bags. My 5 feet 9 inches tall husband can stand comfortably without bending. It has no frills compared to a tent like the Wavonah – just one door, four corner storage pockets, a detachable overhead gear loft – but very simple and quick to set up. Only two pillars mean one person can easily install it in less than 10 minutes. This is a big deal when you’re herding feral kids while setting up camp.
One downside: the rainfly brilliantly blocks out light but turns the tent into a sauna. This is completely safe as airflow is minimal – you may want to pull the fly back during the day to make it habitable. Still, the blackout technology alone makes the Daydreamer our new family tent.
All-in-One Camp Kitchen: Cinch x Wild Land Kitchen Cruiser
A new addition to our camp kit this summer, the Kitchen Cruiser has proven to be life-changing – and I don’t say that lightly. The hardest part of camping with babies and toddlers (besides sleeping position) is keeping the camp clean and organized. Running water is a must when you’re constantly washing milk bottles and dirt-stained pacifiers. My favorite feature is the built-in sink and rechargeable electric faucet that draws water directly from your water jug at the push of a button.
I also like the counter and storage space, which keeps cooking utensils and food safely out of reach of children. Posted at the end of the picnic table, I had a dedicated kitchen to work in instead of having to work on the entire picnic table. The two-burner stove lights at the push of a button – no matches, no lighter required – and it had our pasta water and coffee boiling rapidly. The size of a standard camp gear box when packed, it easily unfolds to standing height in under a minute. The best part compared to other camp kitchens: Everything packs into the unit itself – stove, sink, cookware, everything.
Weighing in at 43 pounds unloaded, this is a beast to lift more than a few feet. But it may weigh 100 pounds and I’d still find a way to carry it to every campsite. It has made such a difference to my camping cooking and cleaning experience.
Plush camp mattress: Exped MegaMat Duo
If you want to increase your chances of getting a good night’s sleep (or, more realistically, a few hours) while camping with kids, invest in a quality camping mattress. I had trouble sleeping even before I had kids, so my husband and I splurged on the queen-sized Exped MegaMat Duo. At four inches thick and nearly 60 inches wide, the MegaMat felt like a luxury when it was just the two of us, but with small children, I’d call it a necessity. Kids inevitably take up your sleeping space, and having an extra room keeps us from feeling completely cramped. As far as durability goes, our 35-pound kid turned it into a trampoline while setting up the rest of camp, and the pad handled it without any issues.
Electric Pump: Exped Mega Pump
Last summer, we let the self-inflating EXPED MegaMat inflate on its own while we took care of the rest of the camping setup. This year, we have added Mega Pump to our kit to make life easier. This rechargeable electric pump, designed for Exped mattresses, inflates our MegaMat Duo in less than five minutes (compared to a self-inflating time of 20 minutes). But the real win is the deflate port: packing up camp is always a scramble, and we had to try to deflate mattresses five minutes before vacating our site, which doesn’t make for a very fun team-building exercise. With the pump, it’s done in minutes.
Portable Shade: Kelty Sunshade with Sidewalls
Shade is never guaranteed in Colorado, so a portable shade structure is essential when camping with kids. The Kelty Sunshade is easier to install, more portable, and better at blocking sunlight than other similarly sized shades we tried. Three crossbars are threaded through the sleeves for easy setup in less than five minutes, although the job requires two people. A detachable third wall can be reinstalled on either side to block low-angle afternoon rays. It’s large enough to shade a standard picnic table, but its carrying case holds up to the size of a yoga mat. The only downside: The shade becomes a parachute in the wind – we had to use the included guyline to keep it stable even in light wind.
Reliable Cooler: RTIC 52QT Ultralight Cooler
When it was just my husband and I, we made do with a cheap igloo cooler for weekend car camping trips. But now that we’re eating a quart of milk, yogurt, and enough cheese and eggs to feed a small army, we’ve upgraded to something bigger and better insulated. More affordable than most competitors, the RTIC 52 qt Ultralight is large enough to hold a week’s worth of groceries for the family and retains ice remarkably well even when left in the sun. A silicone mesh inside the lid keeps butter, sandwiches, and cheese out of pools of melting ice, and an integrated bottle opener is a thoughtful touch. The catch: Takes up 52-quart of serious trunk space. We can probably make do with the 32-quart model until we start increasing trips beyond 24 hours.
Bomber Gear Storage: Gregory Alpaca Camp Box 50
Any old storage container can serve as a camp gear box, but we learned last summer that it’s worth spending a little extra on a durable camp box with a quality latch system. The Alpaca Camp Box 50 is made of thick, durable plastic, which won’t squeeze into tight spaces in the trunk when sitting on it or having children stand on it. The feature worth the price tag is the lid: transparent with a gasket seal so you can see inside and keep water and dust out, attached via a dual-purpose hinge/latch that lets you remove it completely or simply open it from one side. Very simple, but so handy when you don’t want your child running around with the lid and using it as a shield.
Toddler Sleeping Bag: Kelty Space Cadet 40
Figuring out how to keep small children warm and comfortable when they move around like crocodiles at night is one of the most stressful parts of family camping. Last summer, we put both kids in Morrison Outdoor Wearable Sleeping Bags—a sleep system they couldn’t start or get out of—which kept them plenty warm during a 40-degree night. This summer, we tried out the lightweight Kelty Space Cadet 40 on our 1-year-old. The two-way zipper design meant we could open the bottom of the sleep sack and snap it back so he could move and thrash more freely, and it ensured he wouldn’t overheat on a mild 46-degree night. Our 3-year-old left sleeping bags at home, so he went with a regular sleeping bag. He didn’t get up near his bag but insisted that it was quite warm.
Family Camping Essentials
In addition to the big-ticket gear above, these are the little essentials we swear by.
Carpets: We use three small rugs where barefoot babies can run around to keep our tent as mess-free as possible: one outside the tent door, one inside, and a third in the car that can be used as a changing mat on the go.
Tablecloth: Most picnic tables at campsites have seen better days. We bring a durable plastic tablecloth for a clean, easy-to-wipe surface – and tablecloth clips to keep it in place.
Sand Toys: It doesn’t matter if you’re camping at the beach, lake, or forest, a few buckets, shovels, rakes, and pan sifters go a long way in keeping little ones occupied for at least 15 minutes at a time.
What we’re adding to our family camping kit
The hard-earned lessons from this trip mean some changes for next time.
Ditch Single Air Mattresses: Looking back, we were delusional into thinking that both of our kids would sleep better on their single camp mattresses. In reality, both slipped and rolled off their mattresses several times throughout the night. For the next trip, we’re reintroducing the Pack ‘n Play for our 22-month-old (he still needs to be confined); For our 3 year old, we would try a blow-up toddler bed with bumpers. Eventually, the plan is for them to share a double mattress—but we’re not there yet.
Add a rechargeable portable fan: We’re committed to the blackout properties of the Kelty Daydreamer, but we’re adding a fan to keep the tent cool in the evening when we put the kids down before the sun goes down.
