CAMPING | How To Keep Warm Camping In A Tent
🕒 3-4 minute read
The other day I was asked a question that got me thinking and prompted this article, the question was “Is March too cold to camp in the UK?” Read on for my thoughts and to find out how to stay warm when camping!
As the days start getting longer, camping is always the first thing on my mind. Spending time outdoors and under canvas is a joy, and I can’t wait for the first camping trip of the year to come round.
Is early spring or late autumn too cold camp in a tent in the UK?
This is a tough one to answer, as it depends on lots of things, but generally camping in spring and autumn is going to make for cold nights.
Let’s take March as an example. The average daily UK temperature in March is between 2 degrees and 9 degrees, and with temperatures dropping substantially lower overnight, in terms of camping, that is pretty chilly.
However, I have camped as early as the end of February and as late as November in the UK.
On both occasions the temperature was in minus figures, and it was so cold that there was ice on the tent and my butane gas canisters were too cold to operate.
For more comfortable family camping, particularly if you’re in a big tent, I would recommend choosing a campsite with an EHU (electric hookup) pitch or waiting until the end of April or early May.
Waiting a little longer means that daytime temperatures will be into double figures, and being warmer in the day can help you feel warmer at night, but it is possible to happily camp outside of the ‘good’ summer months!
If you fancy camping earlier or later in the season, you’ll just need to invest in the right gear and a do a bit of planning.
We normally camp from about April onwards up to the end of October, and whilst most camp sites start to re-open around Easter, don’t be fooled into thinking this means it’s ideal camping weather!
Being cold at night can make for a miserable camping experience, so assuming you aren’t short on space (my tips are utterly useless if you’re a backpacker and need to carry everything with you), there are lots of things you can do to ensure you spend a snug, cosy night under canvas.
How To Keep Warm Camping In A Tent
- Pay attention to where you pitch your tent, out in the open and you will be at the mercy of the wind, so try and choose a sheltered position if possible
- Don’t underestimate how cold it gets in the UK at night in spring and early summer and take extra. Even if you think those 2 hot water bottles and extra jumpers are overkill, you’ll be thankful for them!
- Invest in the best quality sleeping bag you can afford, and make sure it is a 3 or 4 season bag (see our guide to the best cold weather sleepng bags)
- Mummy style sleeping bags are more effective at trapping body heat
- For those who prefer less restrictive envelope style sleeping bags, make sure you have additional blankets
- Taking an extra thermal blanket or down-filled camping quilt (we love Rumpl camp blankets) along to pop on top of your sleeping bag will ensure you are kept snug and warm, down filled or vegan-friendly materials that mimic down are usually best
- Never get into bed cold, you will remain cold so layer up your clothing as soon as you start to get chilly
- Have a warm drink before you get into bed
- Make sure that all tent windows and doors are fully closed so no additional breeze can get inside the tent
- Take a kettle and stove camping and use a hot water bottle to warm up your sleeping bag
- Never sleep directly on the floor, a good quality SIM makes an excellent investment (see our detailed guide to the best campsite sleeping options)
- Invest in a thick, warm pair of pyjamas for camping
- Wear thermals (top and leggings/long johns) under your pyjamas – when camping I rarely sleep without thermals on at night, even in summer
- Always wear thermal or thick cosy bed socks at night
- If you have a mummy bag, make sure you pull it tight around you head to minimise heat loss
- If you are not using a mummy bag, or don’t like pulling it tight around your head, wear a beanie hat to sleep in to help prevent heat lost through your head, it really does make a difference
- Take a fleece hoody or jumper that you can pop on top of your pyjamas in case you get really cold during the night
- If you forget extra layers or blankets, improvise and lay thick sweaters or coats on top of you
- A thermal reflective layer under your bed or self inflating mat will help to trap heat
- If you are using a camp bed that is raised off the floor, use the space under it to put clothing, bags, kit and so on. This will help stop cold from the ground reaching you
- Portable heaters although tempting should be used with extreme caution! Even if you camp with a EHU and are planning on using an electric heater, just like portable gas heaters you will still need to take extra care and follow safety advice. Portable gas heaters are available but should be used with great caution. Gas heaters should NOT be used in an enclosed space and you must have plenty of ventilation. Please use common sense and follow the manufacturers safety advice, do not ever leave a gas heater unattended, don’t use one inside your tent or in any un-ventilated area and you must also make sure you are using a carbon monoxide alarm. Take a look at the safety advice from The Camping and Caravanning club Carbon Monoxide safety advice.
- Don’t let any of your kit get damp, this will only leach heat away from you
- For anyone who has joint conditions such as Rheumatoid Arthritis, cold isn’t just unpleasant, it can be very painful. Always take a few disposable single-use heat pads with you, they can be popped into pockets, socks or gloves and can make a big difference
- If you have a perpetually warm partner, consider using a double bed and sleeping bag to steal some of their heat
- If you wake up shivering in the night, it might seem counter intuitive, but get out of bed, move around and get the blood flowing. Put the kettle on and refill your hot water bottle, then get back into bed
- Sheepskins are excellent insulators so great for lying on top of if you don’t have a good quality SIM
Stay Warm Camping Gear
DISCLAIMER: Camping with Style do not endorse or recommend using any gas appliances inside your tent. All gas appliances should be used with great caution and manufacturers’ recommendations should always be followed. Even when using portable gas appliances in a well ventilated area, we strongly recommend you take additional safety measures including the use of a Carbon Monoxide alarm.
Where to next?
- The Ultimate List Of Camping Tips – 63 Camping Hacks & Tips
- The Secret To Happy Camping: How To Stay Warm In Your Tent
- 6 Easy Tips For Camping On A Tight Budget
- 6 Simple Tips For Your Spring Camping Trip
From open water swimming, snowboarding and kayaking to hill walks and meditation, Shell shares her travels and microadventures here on the blog and in various publications she's written for, Shell has a particular interest in promoting wellbeing and the many benefits of nature therapy.
Great tips! We love our gas heater when we are sitting in our caravan awning and I’m a big fan of sleeping socks! Back in our camping days we put a wind-break up outside our tent if we couldn’t get a spot out of the wind. That helped to sheild us from the elements.
Thanks Tin Box Traveller. The wind break is a great tip and glad to hear i’m not the only sleeping socks fan! 🙂
gas heaters can be very dangerous – especially in vans. They emit carbon monoxide, which is odourless and deadly. They can be used in tents that breathe well, but only for short periods of time – never while sleeping. I have one but I’m very careful. A great alternative is a cast iron camp oven heated on the fire, and filled with fire rocks – heats up the tent really well, and helps limit moisture – you just have to make sure it’s on a well insulated tray so it doesn’t burn a hole in your tent floor, and make sure it’s somewhere you won’t touch it and get burned!
Thanks for tips. My camping tip is always take one more jumper than you think you’ll need. And one more pair of socks. Had my coldest ever camp last May (first May bank holiday). Woke up and my duvet (yes, on top of a sleeping bag!) was crisp with cold and I could see my breath. Not nice, and didn’t sleep well (usually I do!). This year I have a new sleeping bag (4 season!) and am taking fleece pjs and socks, plus hot water bottle as you suggest! Didn’t feel the cold when I was younger but I do now. Will pack lots of things you suggest (I too am no light packer!)
Have you any recommendations for a good campsite we could try? We usually stay in Norfolk or Suffolk but would like to go a bit further afield next – somewhere within 2-3 hours’ drive of Norwich!
Hey Lucy, your trip last Spring sounds a bit rubbish. I hate it when it’s really cold, I much prefer warm nights when i’m camping. Your new 4 season back should do the job and thick fleece PJs and a hot water bottle will keep you nice and snug I hope!
Relieved to hear you don’t pack light either 🙂
Funny you should ask about campsite recommendations as i’ve been looking at sites in Norfolk. The sites I know best tend to be in Wales and the Lake District, which is probably over your 3 hour maximum. If you could make it up to Whitby, then the campsite at Robins Hood Bay is lovely, a great location overlooking the sea and short walk down into the Bay and not too far from the lovely little town of Whitby.
Great tips! A few other things that are good to have when you are camping and cold is, have an all weather space blanket, for one they are waterproof, they are silver on one side which reflects your body heat back to you, and keeps you toasty. Another thing you could do, is instead of having a duvet, have two sleeping bags, one inside the other, and if your really cold, invest in a survival bag and get inside it as well. Instead of thick pjs and jumpers etc, have pjs and invest in a thick onesie, as it’s all in one, it will stop any drafts from getting to you where just wearing pjs, the top tends to separate from the bottoms unless the top is a real long one.
I’m pleased to report i’ve finally got hold of some, and I take them with me now, just in case. My partner uses the two sleeping bags method, which gives me an entire kingsize duvet to myself 😀
Great post – and totally agree with investing in a good sleeping bag and the use of hot water bottles! On a camping trip a couple of years ago I barely slept because of the cold then invested in a better sleeping bag for my next trip and couldn’t believe the difference it made – guess you get what you pay for! Since then I’ve made my hobby my job and am working as a warden at a campsite. for the first season I lived in a tent for six months of the year so have had lots of experience of cold weather camping! Getting off the floor is a must! Ground mats just don’t insulate you from the floor. Our campsites (www.ecocampuk.co.uk) have futon-style beds and mattresses and that makes a big difference – plus if you stay somewhere that you can have a campfire you can get warm before you get into bed!