We’re a family who loves camping here in Japan, and we started when our kids were 0 and 2 years old.
At first we had no idea what we actually needed — we forgot things constantly, and kept thinking “I wish we’d brought that!” (lol). We also bought plenty of things that turned out to be mistakes.
In this post, we’re sharing the gear we’ve landed on as “this is all you really need,” organized by category, based on real trial and error camping in Japan.
A lot of our gear happens to be from ogawa, but as you read, think about what features would matter most for your own style, group size, and needs!
We’ve put together a shopping-link table for each category, plus lots of tips and things to watch out for that are specific to camping with kids — hope it helps!
Packing Checklist
First, let’s run through everything at a glance!
Tent & Setup
- □ Tent (a two-room style is recommended)
- □ Tent stakes
- □ Stake hammer
- □ Guy lines
- □ Work gloves
<Nice to have, but not essential>
- □ Awning pole
Bedding & Living Space
- □ Mattress
- □ Futon/blankets
- □ Ground mat
Lights
- □ Outdoor light (something powerful)
- □ Indoor light
- □ Personal lights (one per person)
- □ Lantern hanger
- □ S-hooks
Chairs & Tables
- □ Chairs (a bench works too)
- □ Bench
- □ Table
Fire Gear
- □ Fireproof mat
- □ Grill grate/net
- □ Charcoal
- □ Tongs (one for raw meat, one for serving)
- □ Gloves
- □ Fire starter and something to light it (matches/lighter)
- □ Heavy-duty aluminum foil
<Nice to have, but not essential>
- □ Fire extinguishing pot
Food & Cooking
- □ Something to boil water (kettle, burner, etc.)
- □ Sierra cup
- □ Cutlery
- □ Kitchen scissors
- □ Cooler
- □ Ice packs
- □ Trash bags (bring extra)
- □ Wet wipes
- □ Dish soap, sponge, and a wash basin
- □ Zip-top bags
- □ Paper towels
- □ Marshmallow roasting sticks
Kids’ Items
- □ Extra clothes (bring more than you think)
- □ Bug spray
- □ Bug bite cream
- □ Sunscreen
- □ First aid kit
- □ Bug net and bug cage
In the height of summer or winter, you’ll need extra heat/cold gear on top of this list. We’re leaving that out here since it would make this post way too long, and honestly, most of it is pretty easy to guess anyway (lol).
This list is a carefully narrowed-down set of what you’ll absolutely need to get started with camping.
Tent & Setup
You can skip this if you have an RV, but otherwise a tent is the one thing you absolutely need.
There were so many types of tents out there that I had no idea what to even judge them by. I visited a ton of stores, talked to staff, and climbed inside all kinds of tents.
Tent
To cut to the chase: for families with kids, a two-room tent is unbeatable.
A two-room tent is a large tent that combines a “bedroom” (tent) and a “living room” (tarp/canopy) in one — think of it like a small 2-bedroom apartment (in Japanese real estate terms, a “2LDK” — two bedrooms plus a combined living/dining/kitchen space).
- The bedroom is separate, so no one tracks shoes into it
- No need to pitch a separate tent and tarp
- If it rains, you can retreat to the covered living space
- There’s a space for the adults to relax and talk once the kids are asleep
The key thing to look for is height.
A lot of models have low bedroom ceilings, but when you’re spending time with kids, you really want enough height in both the living space and the bedroom to move around while standing up somewhat straight.
We use the ogawa (Campal Japan) Facil — ogawa is a well-known and respected Japanese outdoor brand, especially popular among families for its two-room “living + bedroom” style tents. The living room ceiling is tall enough that adults can stand and move around, which makes it really easy to use.
Changing diapers, helping kids get dressed — with little ones, you’re constantly busy. I figured crouching the whole time would be exhausting, so I specifically looked for something with height.
It’s listed as a 4-person tent, but 4 adults would find it tight.
Our car is small and our kids are small too, so we picked this one partly because of how compact it is when packed away. (Folded up, it fits at the passenger’s footwell.)
If you add an awning pole, you can prop up one edge of the living room and use it like a tarp canopy.
For the Facil, a 170cm pole tilts down slightly and ends up being just the right length.
The ogawa Facil is a compact two-room tent for 4. The inner tent has 170cm of ceiling height, so adults can move around inside without stooping. It can go fully open or mesh, making it a versatile model for any season.
| Product | Link |
|---|---|
| ogawa Facil | |
| ogawa Apollon(※) | |
| Awning Pole (170cm) |
※Watch out for similar Apollon variants — there’s a 2-3 person Apollon S, and a 5+ person Apollon t/c with a flame-resistant fly sheet (inner tent sold separately).
Brands like Montbell, Snow Peak, and The North Face all sell similar-spec models too.
Search “two-room tent” and you’ll find plenty of options — look for one that fits your preferred design and size!
ogawa tents sometimes go on sudden sale for specific items, so it’s worth checking a few other sites too.
Laying a PVC ground sheet under the inner tent protects against ground moisture and keeps water from seeping in from below even in heavy rain. Get one sized to fit your tent!
| Product | Link |
|---|---|
| PVC Ground Sheet (Facil) | |
| PVC Ground Sheet (Apollon) |
You can also rent a tent. It’s one of the priciest items in your camping gear and not something you can easily swap out on a whim, so trying one out firsthand — or stepping inside one at a store — can help you get a real feel for what you want!
Renting an RV and looking around to see what other campers are using is another good way to figure out what fits your style!
Stakes, Stake Hammer, and Guy Lines
You can pitch a tent with the stakes it comes with, but they can pull loose easily on windy days or in hard ground.
They may look the same, but how easily they drive into the ground varies a lot, so if you plan on camping regularly, we’d recommend upgrading to sturdier stakes.
The included stakes are fine, but bringing extra guy lines gives you peace of mind on windy days.
Search “bowline knot“ and you’ll find plenty of how-to videos for tying guy lines. Some campgrounds don’t get cell signal, so it’s a good idea to download the video beforehand, just in case!
The included tent stakes exist, but they were hard to drive into hard ground or rocky sites, and felt a little flimsy — so we bought well-reviewed Snow Peak ones instead.
They come in 20cm, 30cm, 40cm, and 50cm lengths, but 30cm is plenty for a typical campsite.
By the way, for sandy areas like beaches, you’ll need “sand stakes” — a type designed not to pull loose in sand.
We use a Snow Peak stake hammer too. It doesn’t slip and is really easy to drive stakes with.
There’s the N-001, with a copper-finished head, and the N-002, which is all steel.
N-001 → the copper softens the impact and grips well on the strike.
N-002 → doesn’t deform, lasts a long time. The impact transfers to your hand more, so your wrist can get tired if you’re not used to it.
A regular cloth bag for stakes will eventually get punctured through with use.
Also, with forged stakes like the Solid Stake mentioned above, each one is heavy and you’re carrying a lot of them (we use about 12), so a sturdy bag really helps.
I use ogawa’s stake bag since it’s thin and doesn’t take up much space in the car. I couldn’t find a link for it, so I’ve linked a similarly-shaped one from Oregonian Camper instead.
There are lots of types out there, so find one you like!
| Product | Rakuten |
|---|---|
| Snow Peak Solid Stake 30cm | |
| Snow Peak Stake Hammer PRO.S N-001, Camping/Outdoor | |
| Snow Peak Stake Hammer PRO.S N-002, Camping/Outdoor | |
| Oregonian Camper Large-Mouth Peg Bag 3.0 |
Bedding & Living Space
Bring a Real Mattress and Futon!
Adults-only camping trips often use a cot, but with kids, sleeping through the night on a cot just doesn’t really work.
So here’s our brute-force solution: just bring an actual mattress and futon (lol).
We bring a tri-fold mattress, the futon mattress I used back when I was single, and our regular blanket from home.
Since the kids get the same bedding as always, they seem to rest easy.
Just hit a laundromat on the way home, or wash everything as soon as you’re back — no problem at all! (lol)
With this combination, we stay warm and comfortable even at rocky campsites or during the coldest part of the season.
After our friends saw us do the “bring your own futon” move, they all started copying it (lol). It really is that comfortable — highly recommend!
We also see a lot of families bringing air mattresses or interlocking foam mats. We tried a thin air mattress once and it was nice, but the squeaking noise every time someone rolled over bothered us, so we went back to a regular mattress. Mix and match with what you have to build a comfortable sleep setup!!
The air bed from the outdoor brand WAQ might be worth a look too — it comes with built-in foam and inflates using the included pump.
| Product | Link |
|---|---|
| WAQ Air Bed |
Set Up a Shoes-Off Zone!
The first time we camped was at a lakeshore. We hadn’t thought at all about where to change out of clothes that were wet or covered in fine sand, and didn’t want any of that inside the futon — it was a real struggle.
So we came up with the idea of setting up an “it’s-okay-to-get-dirty” shoes-off zone right in front of the bedroom.
This is a space for changing out of dirty clothes and taking off shoes before heading inside.
Just having this cuts way down on how much sand and dirt makes it into the bedroom.
What we’d recommend for this is a “wall-up mat.”
This is a camping mat with a waterproof, slick underside, where the four edges can be raised about 10cm straight up to form a wall.
We thought a regular tarp/picnic sheet could work as a substitute and used one for a while, but at plenty of campsites the ground is rocky or uneven enough that it just doesn’t make a comfortable spot to relax on — so we landed on a wall-up mat + tent ground mat combo.
- Waterproof wall-up mat → no water seeping through even in the rain, and it also helps keep bugs out.
- Ground mat → cushions rocky ground so it doesn’t hurt to sit or kneel!
With kids, having this versus not having it is night and day! It costs a bit more than a basic tarp, but it lasts a long time, so it’s worth picking up early on.
We’re constantly checking the weather forecast when we camp (lol).
If it’s raining on the day you pack up, you’ll need to dry the tent out again once you’re home or it’ll get moldy, which is a bit of a hassle — but,,
rain on a day in the middle of your trip is still surprisingly fun, so just bring rain gear like a raincoat and rain boots!
We use the ogawa one below, but since we couldn’t find another listing for it, we’ve also linked a similar one from Oregonian Camper as a reference.
| Product | Rakuten |
|---|---|
| Wall-Up Mat: Oregonian Camper Wall-Up Ground Sheet RE |
We use this combination ourselves, but some tents also have a living sheet designed to fit them exactly. This turns the entire footprint under the tent into a shoes-off zone.
| Product | Link |
|---|---|
| Living Sheet (Facil) |
Compared to the wall-up mat, this folds up bigger, so we just use the wall-up mat.
If you want the whole tent to be a clean zone, though, this could be a great option!
Lights
I figured one light would be enough — turns out you need way more than that.
The first time we went camping as a family, we only brought two lights. On the first night there were campers all around us, so we didn’t notice at all — but the next day, once most people had left… it was genuinely pitch black.
We realized we’d basically been relying on our neighbors’ light the whole time (lol).
In the dark, it’s also much easier to lose track of the kids. Giving each kid their own light means everyone can move around — and just relax in general — with peace of mind.
- Outdoor: something powerful that lights up the whole campsite × 1
- Indoor: something to light the inside of the tent × 1
- Personal: for moving around (like trips to the bathroom) × one per person
Lantern Stand
Set a light on the ground or a table and it tips over easily, and it’s hard to light a wide area that way too.
A lantern stand means you don’t need to put the lantern on the table, and it lights up the surrounding area efficiently.
We use the “CLAYMORE Multi Pile Driver.”
We went back and forth with the Snow Peak version, and chose this one for its packed size and price.
It works fine, but I did wish it were a bit taller.
Also, since it collapses down small, you have to connect several sections together — it never actually falls over, but it did feel a little wobbly.
The Snow Peak version extends from a single pole, so based on watching other people use theirs and reading reviews, it seems noticeably more stable.
Having extra hooks beyond just the lantern spot is a nice touch too — kind of jealous of that one.
There are also tripod-style stands made for hanging lanterns.
The reason we went with the type that sticks into the ground is that we worried the kids might trip over the legs.
It’s hard to see your feet at night, and once it’s bright out, no one turns the lights on, so the pole itself is easy to miss — or just something you stop noticing.
Tripping over one turns into a huge ordeal, so pick something you can use safely and comfortably (lol).
| Product | Link |
|---|---|
| CLAYMORE Multi Pile Driver | |
| CLAYMORE MULTI STAND Black ※Not a ground-spike type. | |
| Snow Peak Pile Driver | |
| Snow Peak Lantern Hanger |
Chairs & Tables
I figured chairs and a table could be pretty much anything — we went through a lot of trial and error.
First was a cheap set from Amazon. Simply put, they weren’t durable enough — my husband broke two of them just by sitting down (lol).
Next we bought a Coleman set with a built-in table. Genuinely convenient to have, but way too big — our car had to choose between that and the car seats, so we gave up hauling it around.
Then we bought a smaller size. The seat height ended up hurting adults’ backs. It was perfect for the kids, though (my husband still uses it by the fire these days).
When we replaced our tent, we also picked up ogawa’s “High Back Chair.” Incredibly comfortable to sit in — but being lightweight with a full backrest worked against it, and on windy days it nearly blew away, so a few times we had to retreat into the tent.
What we finally landed on is this.
ogawa Aluminum Compact Bench (2-seat & 1-seat)
No backrest, but the seat is solid and flat, so it doesn’t sink in — standing up and sitting back down is easy, and your back doesn’t hurt.
It doubles as a spot for kids to lie down for a diaper change, or as a table for setting down a quick snack.
With no backrest to catch the wind, it never blows away, so you can step away from your seat without worrying about it.
When it was just adults, we’d sit in our chairs the whole time and never noticed, but with kids, they’re constantly sitting down and standing back up. On a flat site that’s fine, but on rocky ground, 4-legged chairs tend to get wobbly.
Most people probably already have chairs, but having extras for the kids — and as a spot to set down gear — comes in really handy.
There are two versions: the 2-seat 1923 (109cm long) and the 1-seat 1926 (70cm long).
Weight capacity is 160kg and 100kg respectively — sturdy enough for adults too.
If your car can fit a lot of gear, a chair with a built-in table — even if it’s bulky — is really useful too!
ogawa Roll Table
Tables took some wandering too. We have 4 total, and each one is useful for different needs.
The reason we use this one for camping specifically is simply how compact it is. Bulkier tables tend to be sturdier, but space is tight, so that’s not always an option.
You can’t spread out a huge spread of food on it, but for 4 people setting down cups, plates, and grilled meat in the middle, it’s plenty.
The downside is that it can tip if a kid leans on it. The roll table’s tabletop weight limit is 20kg.
It’s never actually tipped over on us, but if you have room to carry more, we’d recommend the hi-lo table instead. It holds up to 60kg, so it’s fine even if a kid puts some weight on it with their hands.
| Product | Rakuten |
|---|---|
| ogawa High Back Chair II | |
| ogawa Aluminum Compact Bench 1923 (3-seat) | |
| ogawa Aluminum Cargo Bench 1926 (2-seat) | |
| ogawa Roll Table (20kg tabletop capacity) | |
| ogawa Hi-Lo Table (60kg tabletop capacity) |
Fire Gear
Fire gear is easy to forget.
We once forgot our lighter and had to borrow one from our neighbors (lol). Pack carefully!
⚠️Some campgrounds require a fire pit/stand and don’t allow fires directly on the ground, and a small number don’t allow open fires at all. Always check the rules for wherever you’re headed before you go!
Fire Pit & Grill Setup
- Fireproof mat (a must, to protect the ground from scorching)
- Grill grate/net (if you’re doing BBQ)
- Charcoal
- Tongs (one for charcoal, one for food)
- Gloves (work gloves)
- Fire starter and matches or a lighter (keeping matches on hand means you’re covered even if you forget the lighter!)
- Heavy-duty aluminum foil
Shaped like this for starting a fire, heavy-duty aluminum foil creates a “chimney effect” that reliably and quickly gets your charcoal lit.
There are products made specifically for this, but foil is also handy for wrapping a thick cut of meat to slow-cook near the coals, or for wrapping up leftovers — very versatile.
Thin aluminum foil tears fast, so we’d recommend the heavy-duty stuff.
Fire always carries some risk when kids are around. Keeping things safe really comes down to helping the kids develop their own sense of danger.
To help our kids understand that fire is dangerous, we actually let them get as close as they safely can once it’s lit. They naturally back away on their own. Once they realize it’s hot/dangerous for themselves, we reinforce it with, “That’s why you shouldn’t run around near it.”
Even if it seems like it’s not sinking in, repeating it matters.
Fire Extinguishing Pot
A fire extinguishing pot is handy for cleaning up your fire or charcoal afterward. It’s fine to drop in charcoal that’s still lit, but if it cools down inside, sometimes the lid gets stuck and won’t open.
We had a Logos model with a twist-to-close lid, but once we opened it partway through, the coals reignited immediately — we left it alone for a while after that, and the lid ended up stuck shut, ,
※Turns out the current version of this product now uses a locking lid, so this shouldn’t happen anymore!!
You don’t strictly need one if you burn the charcoal all the way down! From that lesson, we ended up just fully burning through our charcoal every time (lol).
Ash and any remaining embers will burn out on their own if you seal them in heavy-duty aluminum foil and wrap that in a firewood bag. We often see people just leave burned coals directly on the ground, but note that charcoal doesn’t break down naturally, so leaving it behind isn’t okay. Collect it and dispose of it as burnable trash (rules vary by municipality).
| Product | Rakuten |
|---|---|
| Fire Pit: LOGOS the Pyramid TAKIBI L | |
| ZEN Camps Fireproof Mat | |
| Gloves: Towa Corporation Cowhide Split Leather Gloves EXTRAGUARD TAKIBI, 5-Finger, EG-012 | |
| Fire Starter (solid fuel) | |
| Heavy-Duty Aluminum Foil: Onoe Corporation BBQ Helper Sheet (Extra-Thick Aluminum Sheet) G-ON-3501/ G-ON-3502 | |
| LOGOS Buckle Fire Extinguishing Pot |
The Logos TAKIBI packs down really compact, but opens up large and stable, so that’s why we chose it.
There are all kinds of fire starters, including ones soaked in fuel, but we use solid fuel tablets since they’re odorless, compact, and you use the whole thing. We usually go with the individually wrapped ones from the 100-yen shop (Japan’s version of a dollar store). We always keep several lighters or matchboxes on hand, plus a backup fire starter tucked in the fire pit’s carrying bag.
Grill grates are a pain to wash, so we treat the ones from the 100-yen shop as disposable.
Food & Cooking
You need more for food and cooking than you’d expect.
Some items are must-haves, others depend on your camping style — pick what fits how you actually camp!!
Something to Boil Water
You end up needing hot water more often than you’d think while camping — morning coffee, tea, instant noodles, and more.
You’ll often want hot water even when you’re not doing BBQ or a fire, so having a kettle and burner set on hand covers you.
There are tons of burner types, but we use the small, powerful SOTO Micro Regulator Stove. It’s a little unstable on its own with a pot on top, so we pair it with a cooker stand.
Gas canisters last a long time, so you don’t replace them often — which also means we’ve shown up before to find the canister basically empty, , It’s compact, so bringing a spare is a good idea!
Drinking water is easy to forget. If tap water is fine where you’re headed you can skip this, but it’s reassuring to bring a few 2-liter bottles of drinking water just in case.
| Product | Rakuten |
|---|---|
| SOTO Micro Regulator Stove Windmaster Single Burner SOD-310 | |
| CAMPING MOON Cooker Stand, 2-Level Height Adjustment ※A windscreen version is also available |
We use ogawa’s cooker stand, but since we couldn’t find it listed, we’ve linked a similar one from Camping Moon instead.
Get one that matches the height of whatever burner you’re using. From experience, an ordinary portable cassette stove — a common tabletop cooking appliance found in most Japanese households — works just fine too. Outdoor-style ones, like the Iwatani portable stove, look pretty cool too.
Iwatani Portable Cassette Stove
In Japan, portable gas canisters come in two main types: CB canisters — the flat, slide-in canisters used in household portable stoves — and OD canisters — screw-top canisters made for outdoor burners (like the SOD-310 mentioned above), similar to the threaded gas canisters common outside Japan. OD (“Outdoor”) canisters burn hotter and more consistently, so they hold up better in cold conditions (below 10°C) — but they can be harder to find at campsites or along the road.
For typical camping, a household cassette stove with a spare CB canister is usually all you need.
⚠️Using fire inside a tent carries a real risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. Carbon monoxide is odorless, so it can build up without you noticing. Always ventilate, and bring a carbon monoxide detector!
Even in summer, we’ve had times where it suddenly started raining and we moved closer to the tent for a bit. Charcoal produces carbon monoxide even more readily than a stove, so be careful. This product also has a built-in thermometer, which makes it easy to keep an eye on conditions — we’d recommend it!
Cups
Titanium mugs are light, durable, and popular. There was a phase where we just used cups from home, thinking that was good enough — but honestly, these ones look cooler (lol).
We collected our cups a little at a time, so the sizes don’t quite match and they don’t stack neatly, , If you try to buy the same one later, it’s sometimes sold out — so when you’re building a set, we’d recommend buying matching ones all at once!
Titanium conducts heat well, so a hot drink makes the whole cup hot. It’s great for warming your hands with gloves on in winter, but watch out for kids burning themselves!
By the way, Stanley cups are great in the heat of summer since the ice doesn’t melt!
Sierra Cup
A sierra cup is the ultimate all-purpose camping item. We mostly just use ours as a plate, but it can hold drinks, hold food, and even go directly over the fire to cook — one item, endless uses.
Snow Peak’s version is very well known, and a lot of frequent campers own one.
It comes in titanium and stainless steel, but we’d recommend titanium.
Titanium: ultra-lightweight and highly durable, safe directly over a flame.
Stainless steel: budget-friendly, sturdy, safe directly over a flame.
Being lightweight means it blows away easily when it’s empty. You don’t set out empty, but by the time you’re finishing up eating, it’s easy not to notice it’s empty until the wind’s already taken it (lol).
Kitchen Scissors
Some people bring a knife, but with young kids around, we really wanted to avoid that, so we bring kitchen scissors instead. It’s honestly been completely fine.
We figured whatever we already had at home would be good enough, but once we looked into it, there turned out to be way more variety than we expected.
- Rust-resistant and durable.
- Good for boiling or alcohol sanitizing.
- No seams, so more hygienic.
- Often multi-functional, with a bottle opener/can opener built in.
They cut through even thick cuts of meat cleanly! Handling raw meat means extra sanitizing hassle, so cutting meat after it’s cooked keeps things more hygienic!
The tip is sharp and it cuts well, so keep them out of kids’ reach!
Cooler & Ice Packs
A cooler is essential for keeping food fresh. We’d especially recommend one with strong cooling power for summer trips or camping 2+ nights.
Since it’s something you’ll use for years, we think it’s worth choosing based on performance! We also freeze 2-liter bottles of water to supplement the ice packs — once they melt, you can drink them, so it’s never dead weight.
Shimano Cooler
- Cooling power → varies a lot by price. Similar-looking coolers can have very different performance, so watch out!
- Size → depends on group size and trip length. For a family of 4 on a 2-night trip, around 30L is a good target.
We didn’t just choose this for its cooling power. Vertical sides, no bumps, and double doors mean it packs efficiently even in a small car.
Shimano is a well-known Japanese fishing gear maker that also makes coolers for camping and outdoor use.
With 6-sided extra-thick vacuum panels plus urethane foam, it can hold ice for up to 10 days. On one summer trip we froze all our meat solid, and by night it was still rock-hard — that’s how strong the cooling power is.
It’s also antibacterial-treated and has a drain spot, which made it hygienic enough for storing fish too — another reason we decided on this one.
Similar-looking coolers can have wildly different prices, but you can basically treat price as performance (lol). It’s confusing, so be careful when buying!
Shimano ICEBOX PRO
Ice Packs
Along with a cooler, you’ll need ice packs. We’d recommend “LOGOS Quick-Freeze Sub-Zero Packs” — they’re easy to use.
They come in M, L, and XL, so you can pick a size that matches your cooler.
This photo shows the M and L sizes thawed (left) and frozen (right).
On summer trips we also freeze 2-liter bottles of water to add in. Beyond the cooling power, once they melt you have something to drink — highly recommend!
Drinking the melted water as you go helps the remaining ice last even longer!
LOGOS Quick-Freeze Sub-Zero Pack Series
Handy Extras for Food & Cooking
Unglamorous, but you’ll be lost without them.
Trash bags: never hurts to bring extra. Larger ones come in especially handy.
Wet wipes (baby wipes): also great for wiping hands or the table!
Dish soap & sponge: pre-soaking a disposable kitchen cloth with soap ahead of time is a nice trick!
Zip-top bags: great for storing food, sorting wet items, and packing up leftovers.
Food smells can attract wild animals. Depending on the campsite, you’ll want to seal anything that smells like food in a zip-top bag as a precaution!
A lot of campgrounds will collect your trash, but plenty of others require you to pack it out. To avoid generating bulky trash like food trays on-site, we usually repackage things into plastic bags at home beforehand. When we do need to pack trash out, we compress it as much as possible and seal it in an emergency-toilet bag (the kind sold for disaster preparedness) to carry home.
Paper plates blow away in the wind, so we use compact metal ones instead.
For spoons, forks, and chopsticks, we use the disposable wooden ones sold at the 100-yen shop, and burn them afterward.
※Paper items are sometimes coated or treated to be water-resistant, which may release something harmful when burned, so we don’t burn those — we pack them out instead.
Bonus: Marshmallow Roasting Sticks
One of the best parts of camping with kids is roasting marshmallows!
We thought a long stick would be dangerous, but it lets kids roast marshmallows without getting close to the fire, so it turned out to be surprisingly safe! The stick cools down fast, but check it together with your kid just in case!!
| Product | Rakuten |
|---|---|
| TITAN MANIA Titanium Kettle 700ml ※Stays stable even set on firewood! | |
| Snow Peak Titanium Mug Single/Double, 220/300/450 | |
| Snow Peak Sierra Cup (Stainless) | |
| Snow Peak Personal Cooker Set, Aluminum ※We use aluminum since it heats up fast. | |
| Kitchen Scissors | |
| Marshmallow Roasting Stick: CAPTAIN STAG BBQ Slide Fork ※A long bamboo skewer works too |
Kids’ Items
This will vary depending on your kid’s age, but here’s a general list! Add anything specific to your own style on top of this.
・Extra clothes
・Sunscreen
・Bug spray
・Diaper set (diapers, wipes, a bag for used diapers)
・Bug cage, bug net, underwater viewing gear, etc.
First Aid Kit
You probably don’t need it any more often than you would elsewhere, but campgrounds are often in fairly remote spots, so it’s reassuring to have one on hand just in case.
- Bandages (a few sizes)
- Sterile cleansing wipes
- Nail clippers
- Bug bite cream
- Thermometer
Sterile cleansing wipes are one of my personal favorites. They’re individually wrapped (often in foil packets) cotton pads soaked in purified water, and sterilized using high-pressure steam or a similar method.
Rinsing with water works too, but clean water isn’t always easy to find right away. With these, you can safely wipe a wound directly and keep it clean immediately. I bought a big pack for postpartum care and I’m still using the leftovers to this day.
Bug Net, Bug Cage & Underwater Viewing Kit
Not essential, but since you’ve made it all the way to a campsite, we want the kids to soak up as much nature as possible! You don’t have to put actual bugs in the bug cage (lol) — a leaf or rock you found works too! Even something like pouring water on a pinecone to see what happens is fun to observe.
A basic net and bug cage from the 100-yen shop are fine, but for underwater viewing gear, we found a big difference between the 100-yen version and a proper one.
The 100-yen ones let water in fast, and the viewing surface scratched up and got hard to see through — but a product called the ReefTourer was genuinely great to use!
We have a more detailed comparison in another post if you want to check it out.
| Product | Rakuten |
|---|---|
| Sterile Cleansing Wipes | |
| Arobaby Sunscreen | |
| ReefTourer |
In Summary
We built up this gear collection gradually over about 3 years. It’s tempting to compare similar-looking items and go with whatever’s cheaper, but we made plenty of costly mistakes doing that, so, ,
Take your time finding good gear at a good price — secondhand marketplace apps like Mercari (also available in the US) can help too!
We’re planning a separate post on the extra gear you need for summer and winter camping specifically.
Thanks so much for reading all the way to the end!
