This is the year.  2020 will be the time! It’s time, parents, to take the kids camping. Why? Won’t it be a lot of trouble? What if they get bored? What if they hate it? Trust us, they won’t. We’ve got five reasons to go camping with your kids this season, and we know there are a million more.

1. Screen time.  These days everyone and their grandma is telling you kids spend too much time in front of a computer, tv, or phone. Getting them away from all that with a camping trip means you can feel ok about the times when they ARE watching tv – you know they’ve gotten outside, gotten some fresh air, and spent time away from that screen.
2. Imagination.  What better way for kids to get imaginative and turn the outdoors into a world of their own than by camping? They’ll build forts, find insects, and create their own games.
3. Exercise.  Kids need to run and play.  They need to develop muscles and burn off some energy and camping is a great way for them to do that.
4. Responsibility.  Camping is a great way to teach kids responsibility.  Have them be in charge of gathering firewood, for example.  You can also have them be responsible for packing their clothes (with you checking behind them, of course), or helping to load and unload the camping gear.
5. Stewardship.  Finally, camping is a great way to teach kids about the environment and how to care for it.  This is the time to teach them Leave No Trace principles.  Remind them about picking up after themselves and others and staying on trails.

Camping with your kids can be super fun – kids are an excuse to have s’mores! But this can also be valuable time to teach them to appreciate the world around them, flowers, plants, hiking trails, scenery – all things they can’t get from a screen. There are way more than five reasons to go camping with your kids, but we hope these 5 are a motivator for you.  If you’re ready to upgrade from a tent to a camper to make that camping trip even better, start your search here.