Holidays and camping trips have been cancelled across the world as families are in lockdown in order to keep their loved ones safe. But that shouldn’t mean we can’t still have fun and one way to do that is to go camping in your back garden!

Camping in the back garden is of course no consolation for any cancelled holidays and trips but it still does wonders for the happiness and wellbeing of your family. Snuggling up together under the stars, toasting marshmallows on the BBQ and then waking up to the fresh morning air and birds singing will make you feel like you are on a real camping adventure.

I’m a bit of a pro when it comes to camping in the back garden as for a few years I’ve taken part in Big Little Tent Festival, an annual event run by the Caravan and Motorhome Club. I work for the Club as their Community Manager and I have always really enjoyed taking part. One year we even got to play in a tent at the Oval Cricket Ground!

So as a Big Little Tent Festival veteran I thought I would share with you my top tips on how to go camping in your back garden.

Set up camp – pitch your tent in your garden

First step is setting up camp and getting the tent up in the back garden.

If you haven’t got a tent, no worries, you can order one from Amazon. Here’s my top three tents for camping in the back garden:

Amazon’s Basics Four Person Tent £59.99

Why Buy? Good quality, great reviews and reasonable price for a four man tent.

” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Azuma 2 Man Double Skin Summer Music Festival Camping Hiking Outdoor Dome Tent £24.99

Why Buy? Affordable, easy to assemble and the kids will love it!

TentHome Waterproof Double Layers Teepee Tent Outdoor Camping 3.1M/10ft Family Tent Pyramids Indian Tent With fixed Groundsheet £172.95

Why Buy? It’s the ultimate tent for a festival in your back garden, plus it sleeps up to four people.

Get that festival feeling

Set the scene so you can pretend you are at a festival. Add some bunting, fairy lights, music and tea lights in jam jars. Get the kids to make paper chains and pompons to hang around your tent. You can also add glow sticks to jam jars to make DIY lanterns, perfect for when it starts to get dark.

Make your tent cosy

Layer the tent with blankets, pillows, cushions and rugs. If there’s a chill in the air make sure you have hot water bottles to keep you all nice and warm. We love our Potwells hot water bottle as it’s nice and long to cuddle into for extra warmth in the night.

Have a BBQ

A BBQ is not just about great food and the fun of eating outside. You can turn a BBQ into a campfire after you’ve finished your meal. Toast marshmallows or even turn the flames into different colours with Mystical Fire (£7.52 for 10 sachets from Amazon).

Back to the delicious food, our coke can BBQ Chicken recipe and tomato and feta will be uploaded soon!

Night time fun

As the sun sets, wrap up warm in blankets and tell stories by candlelight. Or why not get a telescope and go stargazing.

Breakfast on the camping stove

If you can, make your breakfast on a camping stove the next morning and drink your coffee from camping mugs to complete your camping experience.

For our camping adventures visit: Camping and Glamping

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