Fun activities for a camping night in

Gather ‘round the campfire

The standout activity of camping has to be sitting around a fire, talking and cooking delicious camp food. If you have a fire pit at home, set it up to recreate the magic of a campfire, and teach the kids how to make damper. Have a jaffle iron? Put it to good use with this pizza jaffle recipe.

Enter our competition to win a fire pit, along with a host of other great prizes.

Take turns telling stories or jokes for a fun-filled night. For dessert, cosy up with a healthy fireside treat of a Blueberry and lemon mug cake or a cheat’s rice pudding.

If you don’t have a backyard, you can make the damper in the oven. Make-believe the campfire by using fairy lights over some logs of wood, and use a chargrill pan to mimic cooking at a real campsite. Try this Chargrilled veggie salad for dinner or this Chargrilled nectarines with ice-cream and honey recipe for dessert.

Keep cosy

Warm yourself from the inside out with a steaming mug of hot chocolate or a warming bowl of delicious comfort food. Think one-pot soups, stews and curries for a delicious meal to devour around the campfire – be it real or pretend.

The kids will love to warm up with a healthier bowl of chicken noodle soup, and the family will enjoy Speedy pumpkin soup with smoky pepitas , minestrone, or creamy tomato soup with cheesy toast dippers.

For a warming drink, try this Healthier hot chocolate recipe for a delicious and nutritionally approved cuppa. Use camping mugs or a thermos to keep your cosy drinks warm, and snuggle up in blankets and sleeping bags to keep the cold away.

Share scary stories

No camping trip is complete without sharing terrifying ghost tales around the campfire while holding a torch under your chin. For inspiration, think back to the stories you were told as a child. If your kids are old enough, organise a movie night to watch scary films. Make sure the stories and movies are age appropriate. If the kids are young, opt for humour instead.

Make scary-themed food to pair with your ghost stories. Pigs in coffins and Monster mini pizzas make for great savoury snacks, while Monster rice krispies and Pretzel ghosts are truly terrifying treats.

Dress up as an adventurer

Get crafty and pull together a dress-up outfit to brave the great outdoors (or indoors, in this case!). Creativity is key for this activity as you put together a fun look for every member of the family. Sunhats, binoculars, backpacks and boots are camping must-haves, but there are plenty of accessories you can create yourself, too.

Why not paint leftover toilet rolls to make a pair of binoculars, or even decorate old cans and turn them into walkie-talkies. The options are endless!

Pack a snack box to complete the ensemble and fuel your little adventurers. Bento boxes are perfect for this. Try a Pork katsu bento box, Sushi burrito bento box or Teriyaki chicken bento box.

Go exploring!

Tap into your little adventurers’ imaginations by creating a game of exploration. Grab some paper and coloured pens, and draw a map of the lounge room, whole house, or even the backyard, marking little tasks for the kids to complete on their journey.

Get creative with your scavenger hunt by turning everyday items into parts of nature. Try laying down a blue towel on the floor and having kids jump over the ‘river’, using cushions for ‘stepping stones’. Have them search through indoor pot plants to retrieve treasures, such as chocolate gold coins.

Any good explorer needs snacks to fuel their adventurous spirit. Cheesy pasta bites, Baked veggie and noodle fritters or a Blueberry muffin slice will work a treat.

Make s’mores

Nothing says ‘camping’ more than s’mores! Quick and easy to prepare, they’re the perfect treat for the whole family. There’s so many ways to customise s’mores – they can be made gluten-free, created using donuts or even made into ‘nachos’.