Tent camping list:

[estherhead]

Hiya! I'm in the new stages of planning a trip to the Fort. We just bought a giant tent & have used it once. We're a family of five and it fit us nicely. But it was just in my parent's yard so our camping trip didn't require any planning at all (my dad made us gourmet meals & just carried them out )

Anyway, we're planning a weekend trip in October near home to try out a more realistic trip before truly trusting our Disney trip to a tent. Ya know?

I was looking for, but couldn't find, a tenting list of all the things possible you could take to make for a more comfortable trip. Here's what I came up with, in no particular order:

Mickey/Disney Waffle Iron
Waffle mix that you just add water to in the jug

New, smaller crockpot
Crockpot

Folding camp table
5 chairs
Giant screen room
S’mores
Dorm fridge
5,000 btu air conditioner
Something to put it on
Coffeemaker
Flavored coffee (already ground)
Powdered creamers
Splenda
To go coffee mugs
Flashlights
Lights to sit around tent
2 3 drawer sets for our clothes (inside tent) and as nightstands
2 big plastic things with kitchen stuff in it
Tent
2 tarps
Bungee cords & rope
Panduit straps
Duct tape
Plastic table cloth
Air beds & pump
6 pillows
Bedding
Extra long Outdoor extension cords
Towels
Hanging toiletries bag


OK, what would you add to all this?

And, we have a Honda Odyssey. The back seat folds flat and we have a cartop carrier. But even still, it's a 14 hour drive, and I'm not sure we'll be comfortable with all that stuff and no back seat! How can we get all this stuff to Florida?

Obiviously, we won't take all this stuff on our local camping trip, but I just wanted an idea of what you take & how you transport it & your fam?

 

[medic9016]

What time of the year are you planning to go to The Fort? Depending on the time of year you may not need to take an AC with you. Alot of small stuff gets heavy really fast, be careful not to overload the payload capacity of you Odyssey. You still have to add clothes for 5 people. You may want to look into a small trailer.

 

[estherhead]

What time of the year are you planning to go to The Fort? Depending on the time of year you may not need to take an AC with you. Alot of small stuff gets heavy really fast, be careful not to overload the payload capacity of you Odyssey. You still have to add clothes for 5 people. You may want to look into a small trailer.

I was thinking of the end of May. If we end up not going then, we might go at Thanksgiving, tho last time that time of year it was so busy I swore I'd never go again at Thanksgiving.

 

[WalkingintheFog]

Can I come camp in your Dad's backyard?

 

[estherhead]

Can I come camp in your Dad's backyard?

Honestly, he'd LOVE you to. He lives to cook for people. Very handy to have around, let me tell ya. They had a little fire ring & we made s'mores and my nephew played guitar and my dad told a story & then we told a story where everyone says a little bit and then leaves it hanging for the next person. It was hilarious.

But perhaps not really a good idea of camping. My sister set up my tent for me (since it was my first time) & my mom took it down while I was at work on Monday. All I did was lie around all weekend taking photos of the kids laughing. Of COURSE I love camping, who wouldn't?

 

[GOBA Mom Lynn]

Hi
Your list looks pretty good.
I would just add two things:
1) some kind of rug for just outside your tent, to keep as much of the sand out as possible.
2) 2 power strips, one for the cord going inside the tent, and one for the cord powering the "kitchen". We also took a small, plastic, low wattage lamp for inside the tent. It worked much better than a flashlight!

Like medic9016 said, I think you'd better practice putting as much of that stuff in your van as you can, to see if it will all fit. We had 3 adults and 1 child in our minivan and it was really full! We did have 2 medium/large tents and a canopy, but no cooking equipment to speak of. Those big Rubbermaid storage containers pack well, and would work great as nightstands, too.

Have fun planning!

 

[chartle]

Here are my thoughts on your list.

How are going to take your cold food down with you on your 14 hours drive? If you pack it in the fridge (with ice) its going to be very unwieldy to carry.

The night stands sound like a good idea but are not at all squishable the more things you have that can't be shoved into a tight spot and the less flexibility you have when you pack.

How are you planning on hooking up the air conditioner to your tent? There are a lot of threads on this board on how to do it and its not for the faint of heart. Here's a company that makes kits for this purpose. http://acboot.com/.

I'm not a big fan of screen tents, I find then very confining. They will say they are 12' by 12' but they usually slope in as they go up so the real amount of space they have is deceiving. Also with my family they would be zipping and unzipping it all day.

A big tip is to plan out every meal as to all the ingredients and all the tools you will need. You need to think about all the little stuff like if you make mac and cheese did you bring something to strain the noodles or a sharp knife to cut a block of cheese. Also bring just as much as you need.

Also you need something to wash your dishes in.

I know you aren't planning on taking everything for your week end trip but at some point you going to have to load the van with everything to see if it fits.

A big tip in packing is not to pack air. Like if you don't completely fill the night stands with clothes you are wasting space. You are taking a flexible item like clothes and turning them into a hard box. We pack our clothes in soft duffel type bags that as the clothes are worn the bags get smaller.


Well thats enough for now have fun.

 

[estherhead]

Hi
Your list looks pretty good.
I would just add two things:
1) some kind of rug for just outside your tent, to keep as much of the sand out as possible.
2) 2 power strips, one for the cord going inside the tent, and one for the cord powering the "kitchen". We also took a small, plastic, low wattage lamp for inside the tent. It worked much better than a flashlight!

Power strips! Every time I remember them, I'm so glad I have them, and every time I forget I'm bummed I forgot. I've added it!

Here are my thoughts on your list.

How are going to take your cold food down with you on your 14 hours drive? If you pack it in the fridge (with ice) its going to be very unwieldy to carry.

The night stands sound like a good idea but are not at all squishable the more things you have that can't be shoved into a tight spot and the less flexibility you have when you pack.

How are you planning on hooking up the air conditioner to your tent?

I'm not a big fan of screen tents, I find then very confining. They will say they are 12' by 12' but they usually slope in as they go up so the real amount of space they have is deceiving. Also with my family they would be zipping and unzipping it all day.

A big tip is to plan out every meal as to all the ingredients and all the tools you will need. You need to think about all the little stuff like if you make mac and cheese did you bring something to strain the noodles or a sharp knife to cut a block of cheese. Also bring just as much as you need.

Also you need something to wash your dishes in.

I actually wasn't going to take food with us. I really don't mind going to Wal-mart on vacation & blowing $200.00 on convenience food. We'll just eat McDonald's on the trip down. And just a small soft-sided cooler with drinks in it. We have one we always take into the parks so it has to come anyway.

The nightstand idea came from long ago I went with my parents & sister to Mexico & we decided to take a small 4 drawer wooden dresser instead of suitcases. It fit in the back of our van and what you could fit in your drawer, you could have. Then we each had a collapsable duffel (it had to fit in the drawer too) and when we went into hotels we threw our stuff in those that we needed for that night. It worked great. So I thought it might work for this too. If I got two three drawer ones than each of us girls could have one drawer & dh could have two. Dh is my heavy packer, we're backwards.

I've read all the stuff on air conditioners on here. Our tent has three doors so I thought we'd use one of those. I'm actually the vice-president of an HVAC business & both dh & I are Universal technicians. So though we don't often work with room a.c.'s I'm pretty sure with duct tape, tarps, and our wealth of knowledge we can figure it out. We'll just have to work hard to not get our tent wet. That's what I'm not an expert in.

I really would like the a.c. and this all to work (& easily fit into our van) as in addition to really wanting to do the Fort, I'd love to drive to Colorado & Utah as a summer trip and as I recall it gets super hot at places like Arches. Hot kids are miserable kids.

The screen tent is an interesting perspective. It was only because of this site I added it. So many people mentioned leaving your tent to go into the screen tent without getting wet that I got convinced. But I'm certainly not set on it.

I will definitely plan out all meals & bring weird things with us, and also a dishwashing thing. Hadn't thought of that.

Oh, what about a clothesline? Will I need one of those at the Fort? What do you put wet bathing suits & towels on?

Thanks!

 

[chartle]

I've read all the stuff on air conditioners on here. Our tent has three doors so I thought we'd use one of those. I'm actually the vice-president of an HVAC business & both dh & I are Universal technicians. So though we don't often work with room a.c.'s I'm pretty sure with duct tape, tarps, and our wealth of knowledge we can figure it out. We'll just have to work hard to not get our tent wet. That's what I'm not an expert in.

I really would like the a.c. and this all to work (& easily fit into our van) as in addition to really wanting to do the Fort, I'd love to drive to Colorado & Utah as a summer trip and as I recall it gets super hot at places like Arches. Hot kids are miserable kids.

So I guess you know the basics of HVAC . On another home repair forum there was a bunch of people who didn't understand that you just can't put an AC on shelf in a garage and cool it down like a heater.

The screen tent is an interesting perspective. It was only because of this site I added it. So many people mentioned leaving your tent to go into the screen tent without getting wet that I got convinced. But I'm certainly not set on it.

Thanks!

We use a dining canopy which is just a 12' square tarp on 4 poles.

http://www.cliffgear.com/details/camping/tents/tentshelters/1683/all

 

[ntsammy5]

Looking at the list, I'd hate to have to carry all that stuff on my back!

 

[estherhead]

You know, that I'm looking at it, I think the thing I need to add to my list is another family & their mini-van. Then they can take half the stuff!

 

[ntsammy5]

The first thing I always pack is the beer - as long as I have that everything is OK. Us exmilitary guys are pragmatic if nothing else.

Beer
Tent
Food

That's it

 

[chartle]

Speaking of alcohol, if you like to get a nice bottle of wine from a shop in the world showcase. Just remember that nice bottles of wine don't come with a screw top so pack accordingly.

I remember my father trying to get a cork out with a screwdriver.

I know that there are ways to do it without one, but this was decades before you could fire up youtube and get 3000 hits on the proper procedure.

 

[neffernie]

We will be there next week. Here is my list so far in case it helps. We opted for the QS Dining Plan this time so I left off most food and cooking stuff.

In no particular order:

Tent
Extension cords
Cell phone chargers
DS, games, and charger
Fans
Sunscreen
Bug spray
Air mattresses
Pump
Pillows
Sleeping bags or blankets
Flashlights
Lanterns for tent
Broom
Shoe mat
Outdoor lighting (solar yard lamps or string of lights)
Beach towels
Cord for hanging wet clothes and towels
Quarters for dryers
Garbage bags
Bucket for washing dishes, etc
Cooler with drinks, snacks, etc
Bath towels
Shampoo, soap, deodorant, razor, etc in ziploc bag for each person
tote bags to carry clothes and toiletries to comfort station
Toothbrushes and toothpaste (1 toothpaste for each men and women)
Hair brush
Hats
Portable dvd player and movies
Camp chairs for each person
Bikes
Bike chain and lock
First aid kit
Trading pins
clothes, DON'T FORGET BATHING SUITS!
AP's
Backpack

We usually pack our clothes in plastic totes which will double as nightstands and stands to put the fans on.

 

[estherhead]

I've got my alcohol opening essentials on a handy-dandy key chain I found in a Yellowstone gift shop so I've always got that covered.

Personally, I feel that beer can be purchased anywhere. What I make sure to bring is the rum. A bit of rum in the bottom of a refillable mug filled with Diet Coke travels so well to every location at Disney. It sits right there in my stroller cupholder with no one to be the wiser. So delightful.

 

[neffernie]

I've got my alcohol opening essentials on a handy-dandy key chain I found in a Yellowstone gift shop so I've always got that covered.

Personally, I feel that beer can be purchased anywhere. What I make sure to bring is the rum. A bit of rum in the bottom of a refillable mug filled with Diet Coke travels so well to every location at Disney. It sits right there in my stroller cupholder with no one to be the wiser. So delightful.

LOL! I used to know a lady who would do this as she walked her kid around the block each morning. Only she used diet orange soda and vanilla rum.

 

[DisneyRose&Boys]

Reading this thread makes me very, very, VERY happy... we're leaving for the Fort in 10 days!!!! And we're tent camping, too.

Yay!!!!

Rose (bouncing with happiness!)

 

[neffernie]

That is what we need.. a virtual bouncy house of FW anticipation happieness!

 

[DisneyRose&Boys]

That is what we need.. a virtual bouncy house of FW anticipation happieness!

Ooooh... excellent idea! One where flipping IS allowed, though.

Rose (still bouncing!)

 

[estherhead]

Reading this thread makes me very, very, VERY happy... we're leaving for the Fort in 10 days!!!! And we're tent camping, too.

Yay!!!!

Rose (bouncing with happiness!)

Please tell us all about your adventures when you get back! With photos, please.