Family Camping Activities: 20 Ways to Keep Kids Entertained

The first time we took our kids camping, they were 4 and 6. By the second hour, our daughter looked up from the picnic table and said, "I’m bored. Can I watch my iPad?" Emily and I exchanged a look that said everything. We had driven four hours, set up camp in a beautiful forest, and our kids were already done with nature.

Fast forward to today: our kids are now full-time camping enthusiasts who voluntarily leave their devices in the RV. The difference wasn’t the location or the gear — it was having a toolbox of activities ready to go. Kids don’t naturally know how to entertain themselves outdoors. They need a little structure and a lot of options. Here are 20 activities that have kept our family (and dozens of camping friends) entertained across hundreds of nights in the outdoors.

Nature Exploration Activities

1. Scavenger Hunt

This is our go-to arrival activity. Before every trip, we print or write a list of things to find: a pinecone, a smooth rock, a feather, something red, animal tracks, three different types of leaves, a Y-shaped stick, something that smells good. The kids explore the campground with the list and a bag, and it keeps them busy for an hour or more. For older kids, make it photographic — they take pictures of each item instead of collecting them, which teaches observation without disturbing nature.

We’ve made themed scavenger hunts too: beach camping (shell types, driftwood, crab holes), forest camping (mushrooms, moss, bark textures), and desert camping (animal burrows, different rock colors, cactus types). Customizing the list for your environment makes it educational and keeps it fresh trip after trip.

2. Nature Journal

Give each kid a small notebook and some colored pencils. Challenge them to draw or describe one thing they observe each day — a bird, an interesting tree, a bug, the sunset, the shape of clouds. Our daughter started her nature journal at age 8 and has filled three books. She draws plants and insects with surprising detail, and it’s become her favorite camping ritual. Younger kids can do leaf rubbings (place a leaf under paper and rub with a crayon) or press flowers between the pages.

3. Bug Safari

Hand a kid a magnifying glass and point them at a rotten log. You just bought yourself 45 minutes of fascinated silence. Insects, beetles, worms, spiders, centipedes — it’s a whole world under there. We carry a clear container so the kids can temporarily observe bugs up close before releasing them. Our son once cataloged 14 different species at a single campsite in Washington. He still talks about it as one of his favorite camping memories.

4. Star Gazing

Away from city lights, the night sky at a campground is spectacular. Download a free stargazing app (Sky Map or Star Walk) before the trip while you have cell service. After dark, lay on a blanket and identify constellations, track satellites, and watch for shooting stars. Our best stargazing nights have been at remote campgrounds in eastern Oregon and New Mexico. If your kids are interested, a basic pair of binoculars ($20-$30) reveals craters on the moon and Jupiter’s moons. It’s genuinely awe-inspiring for kids and adults alike.

5. Creek Exploration

If your campsite is near a creek or stream, this is hours of free entertainment. Kids can build small dams with rocks, race leaf boats downstream, look for crayfish under rocks, skip stones, and wade in the shallow water. Pack water shoes (or cheap sandals with straps) and let them get wet. Our kids have spent entire afternoons at creeks, building increasingly elaborate rock dams and channels. It’s engineering, nature study, and water play combined.

Campfire Activities

6. S’mores Bar

Upgrade from basic s’mores to a full s’mores bar with options: different chocolate types (dark, milk, peanut butter cups, white chocolate), various cookies instead of just graham crackers (Oreos, chocolate chip cookies, stroopwafels), and toppings like sliced strawberries, banana, caramel sauce, or Nutella. Set everything out on the picnic table and let kids build custom creations. This turns a 5-minute snack into a 30-minute activity and the creative combinations are half the fun.

7. Campfire Stories

Not ghost stories (unless your kids can handle them) — collaborative stories. One person starts with a sentence, the next person adds to it, and you go around the circle. The stories get increasingly ridiculous, which is the whole point. Our best campfire story involved a talking raccoon who became the mayor of a campground. We’ve also done "two truths and a lie" about our family adventures, which is surprisingly entertaining and leads to great conversations about past trips.

8. Campfire Cooking

Let kids cook something over the fire themselves (with supervision). Roasting marshmallows is the obvious choice, but try hot dogs on sticks, banana boats (slice a banana, stuff with chocolate chips and marshmallows, wrap in foil, set on coals), campfire popcorn in a foil pouch, or toasting bread for cinnamon sugar toast. The act of cooking over a fire feels like an adventure, and kids eat anything they’ve made themselves. Our camping meal prep guide has more recipes kids can help with.

9. Shadow Puppet Show

After dark, use a flashlight and the side of the RV or a hung-up sheet as a screen. Kids create shadow puppets with their hands and perform shows. It sounds simple because it is, but our kids have spent an hour on this multiple times. Older kids can create elaborate plots. Younger kids are just amazed that their hands make animals on the wall. A headlamp works even better because it frees both hands.

10. Constellation Stories

Combine stargazing with storytelling. Look up the mythology behind the constellations you can see (Orion, Ursa Major, Cassiopeia) and tell the stories to your kids while pointing at the actual stars. Then challenge them to make up their own constellation stories using star patterns they spot. Our daughter invented "the camping chair constellation" and drew it in her nature journal. Astronomy and creativity in one activity.

Active Games

11. Flashlight Tag

A camping twist on regular tag. After dark, one person is "it" with a flashlight. Instead of physically tagging, you tag by shining the flashlight beam on someone. The campground becomes a massive hide-and-seek arena. Establish boundaries beforehand (stay within your campsite loop, don’t run on other people’s sites), and set a time limit. Our kids play this until they’re exhausted, which is exactly what you want at bedtime.

12. Geocaching

Download the Geocaching app before you lose cell service. There are hidden caches everywhere, including at most campgrounds and parks. Kids love the treasure-hunt aspect of following GPS coordinates to find a hidden container. Many caches have small toys inside that you can trade (bring a few small items to leave). We’ve found geocaches at over 40 campgrounds and the kids treat it like a camping-wide scavenger hunt.

13. Hiking with a Purpose

Kids don’t like hiking for the sake of hiking. They like hiking when there’s a goal: a waterfall, a lookout tower, a lake to swim in, a bridge to cross, or a landmark to find. Choose trails with a payoff at the end and keep the distance appropriate for your youngest child (a good rule is 1 mile per year of age as a comfortable maximum). Bring snacks for trail breaks — the promise of trail mix at the halfway point has motivated our kids through more miles than we can count.

14. Frisbee Golf

Designate "holes" around your campsite using trees, posts, trash cans, or bags hung on branches. Each person throws a frisbee from a starting point and tries to hit each target in the fewest throws. You can make a full 9-hole course around a campground loop. A couple of cheap frisbees ($5 at any store) and 15 minutes of setup creates an activity that lasts all afternoon. Scoring adds a competitive element that older kids love.

15. Bike Rides

If you can bring bikes (rack on the back of the RV or in the truck bed), campground roads are perfect for family rides. Low traffic, gentle grades, and a built-in route that loops you back to camp. Many campgrounds also have nearby bike trails. Our kids will ride the campground loop a dozen times in an afternoon, making friends with other camping kids along the way. It’s exercise, independence, and social time combined.

Rainy Day and Quiet Time Activities

16. Card Games and Board Games

Pack a deck of cards and 2-3 compact games. Our camping game rotation includes Uno (indestructible and universally loved), a travel Yahtzee set, and a card game called Sushi Go that takes 15 minutes per round. For two players, Cribbage is a great option that teaches math skills. Games are essential for rainy days, rest periods, and the hour before dinner when everyone is hungry and slightly cranky.

17. Whittling

For older kids (8+ with supervision), whittling a stick with a pocket knife is a camping rite of passage. Start with soft wood and a safe carving technique (always cut away from your body). A simple project like shaping a marshmallow roasting stick gives purpose to the activity. Our son whittled a full set of roasting sticks for the family on a rainy afternoon in Oregon. The combination of focus, skill building, and creating something useful is perfect for kids who struggle with unstructured time.

18. Hammock Reading Time

String up a hammock between two trees and declare it the "reading zone." Pack a few books, comics, or magazines (physical copies — this is screen-free time). Even kids who resist reading at home will curl up in a hammock with a book. There’s something about swaying gently in the shade that makes reading irresistible. A basic camping hammock costs about $20 and we bring two so there’s no fighting over turns.

19. Art Projects with Nature Materials

Collect natural materials (sticks, leaves, pinecones, pebbles, seed pods) and use them for art projects. Younger kids can make nature faces on the ground (arrange materials into a face or animal shape). Older kids can build fairy houses, create leaf prints with paint, or weave small baskets from flexible branches. Bring a small set of watercolors and paper for nature painting. The art doesn’t need to be permanent — the process matters more than the product, and taking a photo preserves the memory.

20. Campfire Talent Show

On the last night of a trip, hold a talent show around the campfire. Every family member performs something: a joke, a song, a magic trick, a dramatic reading, a dance, an impression, or a demonstration of something they learned on the trip. Keep it judgment-free and cheer for everything. Our talent shows have included remarkably bad jokes, surprisingly good harmonica playing, and one memorable interpretive dance about a bear encounter. It’s become our family’s closing-night tradition and the kids start planning their acts days in advance.

Tips for Keeping Kids Engaged

After hundreds of camping nights with children, here’s what we’ve learned about keeping the energy and excitement going:

• Give them ownership: Let kids choose activities, help with camp chores, and have responsibility for something (firewood gathering, water filling, lantern setup). Feeling useful keeps kids invested in the camping experience.
• Rotate activities: Don’t do the same things every trip. Introduce one new activity each outing alongside the favorites. Kids need novelty to stay engaged.
• Follow their interests: If your child loves bugs, lean into it with a magnifying glass and identification book. If they love building, bring extra rope and let them construct things. The best camping activities align with what your kids already care about.
• Plan for transitions: The trickiest times are arrival (before camp is set up), the hour before dinner, and rainy mornings. Have a specific activity ready for each of these moments. A deck of cards and a bag of scavenger hunt supplies handle 90% of transition awkwardness.
• Camp with other families: Kids entertain each other better than any activity list. If you can coordinate trips with friends or family who have kids, the entertainment practically runs itself.

For more on planning family camping trips, check our camping packing list to make sure you don’t forget the game and activity supplies. And if you’re bringing the family dog along, our camping with dogs guide has ideas for keeping your four-legged family member entertained too.