First camping trip with a baby

First camping trip with a baby

Camping with Baby for the First Time

Posted by Lauren.
First Published Jul 2015; updated May 2023.

Read about Lauren's first camping trip with their baby.


In this post, Get Out With The Kids tribe member Lauren, goes camping with her baby for the first time. Read how they got on...

First camping trip with a baby

we have tried to carry on doing the things we love

While I was pregnant we were one of those annoyingly naive couples. You know the sort. Those who maintain that having a baby won’t change anything. That baby will just slot effortlessly into their lives with minimum disruption. Well, that may not have entirely worked out (unsurprisingly!), but we have tried to carry on doing the things we love.

finn camping

At the top of the list is camping. We try to get away a few times a year and vowed to carry on with baby in tow. We did agree one small concession early on, which was to wait until the warmer summer months. Last year we went in March when it was a tad too cold (even if we’d never admit it!).

our first family camping trip we decided on a long weekend in the Peak District

So for our first family camping trip we decided on a long weekend in the Peak District. Far enough away to feel like a proper break (and obviously lovely scenery to boot) but close enough to come home if it all turned out to be a terrible idea.

finn in tent

I’ll admit to a few wobbles before we went, especially as our otherwise delightful baby has recently decided that sleep is overrated. Also, being 5 and a half months, he’s at an awkward stage.

sleep is overrated

I am still breastfeeding, but had just started introducing solids. As it turned out, it was all fine. Better than fine in fact!

there is no such thing as too many wet wipes

Feeding wasn’t an issue at all. I just kept it simple. I have recently perfected the art of feeding lying down, which is very handy in a tent! Despite wanting to be the perfect, organic, home-cooking mum, I did resort to pouches of baby food for ease. I also worried about changing him, especially as he is prone to a poo explosion from time to time (or every morning). For this I found that disposable bed mats were a godsend. I originally took them to protect his travel cot, but they made great changing mats. They were also useful in the night as I could slide baby over to me on a mat when he wanted a feed. This weekend also cemented my view that there is no such thing as too many wet wipes.

finn walking

So all in all I have to say our first trip was a success. Baby loved it, he spent many a happy hour on his playmat, or watching the world go by our tent. He loved being a celebrity when our camping neighbours all came to fuss over him. He even proved to have a typically stoic British disposition when we headed out for a walk in less than ideal weather. He donned his little raincoat and kept on smiling.

our first trip was a success

I’m so happy he’s taken to camping and the outdoor life (not that he had a choice!) and I can’t wait for next week when we’re doing it all again.