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Camping Gear Deep Dive #3: Baby & Toddler Camping Essentials

Explore must-have baby and toddler camping gear. Compare buy, rent, and DIY options for chairs, sleep, feeding, play spaces, and more.

Baby & Toddler Camping Essentials

👶 1. Camping With Littles: What Makes It So Different?

Camping with a 1- to 3-year-old is a whole different adventure. They’re mobile, curious, and unpredictable. You’re juggling naps, diapers, snacks, and safety every hour.


So having the right gear can mean the difference between a joyful family memory… or a total meltdown (yours or theirs).


This guide covers baby + toddler-specific camping gear and whether it makes more sense to buy, rent, or DIY.


🪑 2. Baby & Toddler Chairs: Safe Seats Anywhere

You’ll need a secure, elevated space to feed, strap in, or just take a break from wrangling.

🛒 Buy:

  • Portable high chairs (like ciao! baby or Summer Pop 'n Sit Booster)

  • Camping booster seats with built-in trays

  • Kid-size folding camp chairs with harness

🔄 Rent:

  • Some baby gear rental services (e.g. BabyQuip) offer travel high chairs

  • National park gateway towns may have gear libraries or peer-to-peer rentals

🧰 DIY:

  • Use a large box or laundry basket padded with blankets as a temporary seat

  • Strap a booster seat to a picnic bench with ratchet straps (tested first!)


Verdict: Buy if camping more than once. Rent or DIY if you're testing the waters.


🛌 3. Sleep Spaces: Contained, Cozy, and Safe

Tiny campers often need defined sleep zones — especially for daytime naps.

🛒 Buy:

  • Travel cribs / Pack ‘n Plays with mesh sides

  • Toddler sleep cots or compact airbeds

  • Inflatable baby beds with bumpers

🔄 Rent:

  • Many vacation-friendly baby gear rental companies include cribs

  • Watch weight/age limits and mattress quality on rental gear

🧰 DIY:

  • Air mattress inside a pop-up mosquito net tent

  • Stroller reclined + foot muff for naptime naps

  • Extra large duffle bag lined with blankets (yes, people do this)


Verdict: Pack ‘n Plays are worth buying for multi-day or multi-child trips.


🍽️ 4. Feeding Gear: Tidy-ish Mealtimes Outside

Keeping food contained (and off the dirt) helps toddlers actually eat.

🛒 Buy:

  • Clip-on camp tables

  • Silicone bibs with pockets

  • Baby cutlery + collapsible bowls

  • Food storage pouches

🔄 Rent:

  • Not common; may be bundled with chair rental

  • Alternative: bring what you already use at home

🧰 DIY:

  • Use lidded containers for finger foods

  • Repurpose bento-style lunchboxes

  • Hang a mesh bag as a DIY dish rack


Verdict: Feeding gear is affordable to buy and small enough to pack.


🧸 5. Play & Containment Zones

Toddlers need safe freedom — a way to explore without vanishing into the woods.

🛒 Buy:

  • Portable playpens with UV covers

  • Pop-up sun tents or baby domes

  • Foldable indoor-outdoor foam mats

🔄 Rent:

  • Rare, but large baby gear companies might have play yards

  • Bring disinfectant wipes — outdoor use gets messy

🧰 DIY:

  • Set up a tarp with pool noodles as edges

  • Use a lightweight pet exercise pen for crawling babies

  • Repurpose beach cabanas or shade tents


Verdict: Play zones can be DIY’d, but structured gear is great for long trips.


🧼 6. Diapering and Clean-Up Tools

Let’s be honest — this is where things get… real. But it’s doable!

🛒 Buy:

  • Portable changing pads

  • Wet/dry bags or dry sacks

  • Biodegradable wipes and diaper sacks

🔄 Rent:

  • Not available. (You wouldn’t want to, anyway.)

🧰 DIY:

  • Use a yoga mat with a towel for changing

  • Reuse grocery bags for trash

  • Hand-washing station from a water jug + soap caddy


Verdict: Always BYO diaper tools — and bring double what you think you need.


🧭 7. Top Baby & Toddler Gear Brands We Love

Category Brand Suggestions
Chairs         ciao! baby, Summer Infant, Hiccapop
Sleep         Guava Lotus, Hiccapop, Shrunks
Feeding         Oxo Tot, Munchkin, Bentgo
Play         Regalo My Play, Fisher-Price Dome, Baby Delight
Hygiene         Skip Hop, Honest Co., Kanga Care

📌 Conclusion: Keep It Contained, Keep It Simple

For baby and toddler camping, your two biggest goals are:

  1. Keep them safe and contained

  2. Make your job as easy as possible


Whether you go minimalist or pack the entire nursery, just remember — a calm adult is the best camping gear of all.