luggage for camp??

[riley2008]

I had in my mind that I was going to get my boys new luggage for their birthday to use for camp and for our cruise. I have no idea what I was thinking as camp is in 3 weeks - and 3 weeks before their birthday.

(I can still get it for their birthday, but it won't be the same idea.)

Anyway. What to do? They are going to a week long sleep-away church camp. I've never been, so I don't lnow what other kiddos use to pack their belongings and it doesn't say on their website. When I called, it was "whatever you'd like to send".

Originally, I was thinking LL Bean large rolling duffel. Now thinking, maybe a $20 trunk from Academy for camp and maybe a smaller bag for their birthday for our trip.

What do your kids use for camp? Any recommendations on luggage for 9 year olds. (I know we don't want spinner wheels, but wheeled, is great!)

 

[2disneyboys]

my oldest just went to camp this week and he used a large duffle (just a regular one)

 

[MichelleinMaine]

My kids both bring Rubbermaid totes to camp (the totes double as a table top in their cabin/tent.)

 

[of2dbeach]

when my daughter went to Gs camp last year she used a small rolling luggage. We were at Ross today and got her a backpack by Jansport for $18.99 which is cheap they are usually around $40. You can pack things in it they will use for camp such as a waterbottle, small fan, mosquito repelant etc. then when you go away again they can use it as a tote bag for toys and whatever. just depends on how long the camp will last. As for a birthday present what about a hand held game to play with on the trip a new swimsuit spending money or a new book ?

 

[vicki_c]

We just bought a medium duffel bag from Lands' End for my DS for week long overnight camp - everything fit in it perfectly, except for his sleeping bag & pillow, including beach towels, bath towels (4), multiple pairs of shoes, clothes.

Not cheap at $65, but we have had some pieces of LE Lighthouse luggage for 20+ years and they are still holding up.

http://www.landsend.com/pp/medium-l..._MERCH=IDX_luggage-_-duffel-bags&origin=index

 

[Mickey'sfriend]

My kids both bring Rubbermaid totes to camp (the totes double as a table top in their cabin/tent.)

Yup, that's what my kids use, too. Keeps their belongings dry in the humid weather (or if the cabin roof would spring a little leak) and it doubles as a nightstand by their bunk.

 

[dreamer423]

Many camps nowadays prefer soft sided luggage-ie-duffel bags for easy and compact storage. Lands end, ll bean or google soft camp trunks to get ideas. rolling duffel sounds good. i have for DS only for camp a large "soft trunk" Since i ship it both ways and wont be carrying it-I did not get wheels. The wheels and base contribute to overall weight for airline or shipping fees.

 

[Hannathy]

My DS takes a duffle bag and or his big back pack, depending on how long camp is and what kind.

I would think a good duffle bag would be the best and most useful for many years and many occasions for a guy. From camping to going away for the weekend, to coming home from school.

If they are tent camping there may not be room for a rubbermaid tub, also if they have a walk to the site and if it is rough terrain it could be hard to carry.

 

[riley2008]

my oldest just went to camp this week and he used a large duffle (just a regular one)

This is what I'm thinking - and easy to store.

My kids both bring Rubbermaid totes to camp (the totes double as a table top in their cabin/tent.)

I thought seriously about the Rubbermaid tote, but I really don't think there is enough room. It is a cabin, but they have triple bunks (L-shaped) and I don't think there would be anywhere to use it as a sidetable, especially if they end up on the middle or top bunk. Rubbermaid would be the easiest and cheapest though! I could easily dump out some Christmas decorations for a couple of weeks and be all set.

when my daughter went to Gs camp last year she used a small rolling luggage. We were at Ross today and got her a backpack by Jansport for $18.99 which is cheap they are usually around $40. You can pack things in it they will use for camp such as a waterbottle, small fan, mosquito repelant etc. ...

Thanks for the ideaon Kohl's - it's right next to our academy. We have plenty of backpacks, but I'm pretty sure our small rolling suitcase won't work for bedding and all.

We just bought a medium duffel bag from Lands' End for my DS for week long overnight camp - everything fit in it perfectly, except for his sleeping bag & pillow, including beach towels, bath towels (4), multiple pairs of shoes, clothes.

Not cheap at $65, but we have had some pieces of LE Lighthouse luggage for 20+ years and they are still holding up.

http://www.landsend.com/pp/medium-l..._MERCH=IDX_luggage-_-duffel-bags&origin=index

I like!!! Still thinking I may need wheels as DH can't do drop off/pick-up. But I think this would last FOREVER. Maybe I could get some muscle in three weeks!

Many camps nowadays prefer soft sided luggage-ie-duffel bags for easy and compact storage. Lands end, ll bean or google soft camp trunks to get ideas. rolling duffel sounds good. i have for DS only for camp a large "soft trunk" Since i ship it both ways and wont be carrying it-I did not get wheels. The wheels and base contribute to overall weight for airline or shipping fees.

My DS takes a duffle bag and or his big back pack, depending on how long camp is and what kind.

I would think a good duffle bag would be the best and most useful for many years and many occasions for a guy. From camping to going away for the weekend, to coming home from school.

If they are tent camping there may not be room for a rubbermaid tub, also if they have a walk to the site and if it is rough terrain it could be hard to carry.

I think a simple soft-sided canvas duffel would be our best. (Really like the Land's End one.) I'll take a folding luggage carts to strap it onto if needed. (The cabins are about 200yards from the parking area.)

Thanks all!

 

[MineMail]

My kids both bring Rubbermaid totes to camp (the totes double as a table top in their cabin/tent.)

We did the same. Our camp had a space for chests at the foot of the bed. We keep a few things, like the clip-on fans and lights, in the bins during the off-season so they don't get misplaced. We bungee them onto our wheeled cart to transport, but you could get the ones with wheels.

 

[karin037]

Samsonite duffel

http://www.ebags.com/product/samsonite/tote-a-ton-325-duffle/220951?productid=10151612

 

[Hannathy]

We just bought a medium duffel bag from Lands' End for my DS for week long overnight camp - everything fit in it perfectly, except for his sleeping bag & pillow, including beach towels, bath towels (4), multiple pairs of shoes, clothes.

Not cheap at $65, but we have had some pieces of LE Lighthouse luggage for 20+ years and they are still holding up.

http://www.landsend.com/pp/medium-l..._MERCH=IDX_luggage-_-duffel-bags&origin=index

May I ask how old your DS is? I read the 4 bath towels and it gave me a good chuckle! Thanks, I needed it. My son grudgingly took 1 towel last year for a week and it was folded exactly the way I sent it when he got home! he said they swam and it was hot, they didn't need a towel..........

I love 12-13 yr old boys! This was Scout camp and 3 days were spent canoeing lakes you can't reach any other way and living out of a backpack
But they did have 5 days at base camp!

 

[crisi]

Girl Scouts aren't much different at the shower - until about 12-13 when they get in two over the course of a week at base camp.

Most girls take a duffel. In our council there is a often repeated "rule" when you are a junior - if you can't pack it in yourself in one trip, it doesn't belong at camp. Most 10 year old girls can't haul a rubbermaid or a trunk a quarter mile back into the woods. For girls/troops that follow that rule, you are carrying all your clothes, pillow and sleeping bag out in one trip. The paths are good - a rolling duffel works for base camping.

 

[MichelleinMaine]

Laughing along with those commenting about showers.

DS16 is on staff at boy scout camp this year. During their orientation, they had to repeat-after-the-director several times, "Swimming is not a shower".

He is home on Saturdays and has looked fairly clean anyway. Last week, though, he did his laundry and then somehow forgot to repack his swim suit, rash guard and towel. I figured correctly he just swam in his shorts, but asked him if he took a shower. He did. Asked what he dried off with- "My dirty clothes".

 

[eyes4eeyore]

Your post made me think "no!!! Don't do it!" The first year I sent my girls to church camp I couldn't believe what I saw when I picked them up. All the luggage, dufflebags, stuffed animals, and pillows were piled in the wet grass and mud. I wouldn't spend much on something really nice until you know the routine and how things are treated there. The side of another girls suitcase was all muddy and scratched up because the floor in the cabin got muddy and the girls pushed the suitcase under the bed over the dirt during the week....what a mess!

My girls take a large black duffle bag, sleeping bag and a nice well made laundry bag that has a shoulder strap...I think we got it at target. The towels, swimsuit, pillow, and creek shoes (in there own ziplock bag) travel in there on the way to the camp/cabin. I pack lots of ziplocks for them for the way home. The first year one daughter put a still-wet painted craft in her pillow case...which she packed next to her wet swim suit and threw in with her dirty clothing....that was a mess!

 

[vicki_c]

May I ask how old your DS is? I read the 4 bath towels and it gave me a good chuckle! Thanks, I needed it. My son grudgingly took 1 towel last year for a week and it was folded exactly the way I sent it when he got home! he said they swam and it was hot, they didn't need a towel..........

I love 12-13 yr old boys! This was Scout camp and 3 days were spent canoeing lakes you can't reach any other way and living out of a backpack
But they did have 5 days at base camp!

My son is 13. This is our first overnight camp experience, and we just went by the list given by the camp which said 4 bath towels. I'm sure if DS had packed himself (ha!), there would have been none! He has only started to use deodorant on a more consistent basis this past year - we're still unsure if shampoo is involved in his showers most days!

 

[cookingqueen123]

My son is going to a 4H camp in two weeks. I have stopped hassling him about showering. I was hoping when he went to the the dentist he would have a big cavity that would require a huge shot of novicane and then maybe he would brush more than once a week but nope, perfect teeth. He is 11 and I truly hope he outgrows this hygiene thing. I wonder if they will make him shower at camp.

 

[froggy922]

I'm a mom to a teenaged son and he has been to LOTS of camps; plus, my profession is a camp and event coordinator, so I know about camps LOL. My suggestion (based on my son's experience and my professional opinion): I would not send expensive luggage to camp, period. Plus I would send something that the child can easily carry (or drag LOL). Generally a duffel bag and back pack is best as it's easy for your kids to lug around and won't break your heart if it comes back ruined. Also, don't underestimate the power of garbage bags. (seriously). I know, it's not glamourous, my son packs his sleeping bag and pillow in a garbage bag for every camp. I also put several empty ones into his duffel so when it's time to leave and pack up, wet towels (if he actually takes a shower or uses one!), sleeping bags, dirty nasty clothes can just be thrown in. I know every kid is differnt and the thought of using a garbage bag might mortify and embarrass them, but my son never minded. Just remember that the things that will be nicely and neatly packed when they leave for camp will NEVER be packed the same way on the return trip. Most kids, will jsut throw everything they have (wet, clean, dirty, etc.) into whatever bag they have. I've seen it with my own sone and with the thousands of kids that have come to my camps over the year. So, with that being said, I wouldn't use anything for camp that I would worry about getting ruined.

 

[NotUrsula]

I always sent DS with a regular cheap daypack for hikes, and a large mesh laundry bag with a shoulder strap.

EVERYTHING fit inside the laundry bag, and because it was mesh the air got to the contents, which helped reduce the "eau de unwashed boy".

 

[MichelleinMaine]

He is 11 and I truly hope he outgrows this hygiene thing. I wonder if they will make him shower at camp.

When my son was that age, I was assured self-regulated hygiene would start once the love interests did.... either DS16 hasn't gotten there yet, or he's found girls who like stinky guys