How can I make camping awesome?

Some awesome practical advice here, mine is less practical but goddamn important for successful camping: take treats There is nothing more satisfying than sitting back, you've set up your tent, you've eaten your dinner, you've got nothing to do except look at the stars til it's time to bed down, and you have an enamel mug of wine or whisky in one hand and a piece of excellent chocolate in the other. Bliss.

You know those giant Tupperware bins that are normally used for under the bed storage? They will save your camping! I use three: Bin 1: contains plates, utensils, cooking utensils, 1 pot, 1 frying pan and 1 cutting board, and cups that are camping only and get thrown into the dishwasher and then repacked as soon as I get home. This bin also houses paper goods (paper towels, trash bags, etc.) and an aim-and-flame candle lighter that I just replenish when I get home. Literally, this bin is grab and go. Bin 2: anything related to cooking, etc. that is flammable - dish soap, olive oil, bug spray, propane canisters for a Coleman tabletop stove. Also: bug candles and fire gloves, rope and/or tarp. Same thing - this bin is also relatively grab and go and gets replenished after each trip. Bin 3: any food items that will not live in the cooler. The bonus is that the bin will protect from animals, moisture, and prevents you from over buying. Then, a cooler with refreesable ice packs, Coleman stove, chairs, tent, sleeping bags and thermorest pads. I try to keep these packed and bundled and stored with bins 1 & 2, oftentimes in empty bin 3 when not in use. Done! Basically if you keep bins 1 & 2 packed with the stuff you know you'll need each time and just wash and repackage after every trip, it literally makes packing and hauling crap, a snap!

Everybody else mentioned tent-only campgrounds and prepacked bins of gear, so I'll just second those bits of advice. If you get a pop-up camper, you'll be limited to the campgrounds where the noisy people stay. Stick with the tent. Food Anything that can be cooked using the campfire is great fun, and feels like "real" camping food. Hotdogs on the ends of sticks (use marshmallow roasting sticks) are quick and easy and taste better with a bit of campfire smoke in them. Cooking stuff in the coals is great, too. https://www.google.com/search?q=tinfoil%20dinner (basically hamburger, potatoes, veggies, and seasonings wrapped in foil) is a classic. I also really like to do hot sandwiches in the coals. Bring some large hotdog/brat buns, deli meat, cheese, maybe some dijon mustard or thinly sliced peppers or tomatoes, whatever your family likes. Everyone gets to stuff their own sandwich(es) with the fillings they like, then mom and dad double-wrap them in foil and toss them on the coals for 5-10 minutes until they're hot and gooey. Even better, stuff your sandwich with mostly-defrosted meatballs (count them from the freezer into a ziplock bag and keep in the cooler until day two), pizza sauce ("Pizza Squeeze" comes in a bottle with a reclosable cap, which is handy), provolone or mozzarella, and green peppers. Cut up some fruit to eat on the side, if anyone wants a side dish. It's handy to have some old junky oven mitts when you're opening foil packets, to avoid accidental steam burns. There are 2 keys to foil cooking: 1) Cook in coals, not flames. Flames will turn the outside of your food to charcoal while the inside is still raw. You have to build a good fire and get some good coals going. Either let it burn down to coals, or just let the fire burn a while and then push it to the side so you have a nice bed of coals to work with (turn your packets frequently if you do it this way, so the flame-ward side doesn't burn). 2) Make a handle. You've got to have a way to get the thing out of the coals when you're done cooking, and trying to balance the packet on 3 sticks held by 2 people without piercing the foil is a recipe for disaster. I like to twist some extra foil at each end of the packet into one big loop, so that the packet ends up sort of like an easter basket - payload on the bottom, handle arching over the top. Then it's easy to lift out of the coals with a stick. It feels a bit wasteful of foil, but it's less wasteful then dumping your entire dinner loose into the fire. And obviously, finish with s'mores. If you get bored with normal s'mores, sub in peanut butter cups for the chocolate. Or slit open a banana the long way, stuff in some chocolate chips and/or peanut butter and/or mini marshmallows, wrap in foil, and toss it in the coals for a few minutes. Gear You have to have comfy camp chairs. Nobody wants to sit around the fire if they're uncomfortable. There are lots of folding options out there, and some are ridiculously cheap, but try sitting in them for a few minutes in the store and look for a different model if your back gets sore. Kids will be happier in kid-sized chairs. Cup holders are nice -- make sure they're big enough to hold the water bottles you favor. Bring bug spray and anti-itch cream. Being itchy will ruin the trip for anyone, especially a kid. A lantern is really nice to have at night, so you can play cards at the picnic table or even just wash dishes if it got late. Headlamps are also super useful for hands-free lighting (think midnight bathroom trip, or reading in a sleeping bag), and kids love them because they're kind of goofy. A frisbee or a football or a bocce ball set can be nice to while away a bit of the afternoon. Tents: the number of people a tent is rated for is if you sleep like sardines and nobody tosses and turns. For 2 people, a 3 person tent is nice and a 4-person tent is perfect- especially if you want to fit a queen-size air mattress in there. I will say, though, that having separate air mattresses for each person makes for a better night's sleep. They're just too bouncy if somebody else is moving around on them. A camping-only snack is great for setting the mood. As a kid we only ever had GORP (ours was raisins, M&Ms, and spanish peanuts) when camping, so it was something to look forward to. We also had a song we would play as we were pulling out of the driveway for a roadtrip, which was a fun tradition. I remember when we had to replace the tape with the CD, when we got a new minivan. I still play that song on my mp3 player in my car when I leave for a long journey. Any kind of tradition you can set up will make you feel more comfortable, more like real campers.

Lots of good advice here so I'll just throw in one tip that kind of saved my camping with kids life: a red wagon. I packed the wagon in the car along with all the camping stuff and then, presto, everything goes on the wagon and you pull the wagon along to the campsite instead of making umpty million trips back and forth to the car. This opens you up to more adventurous camping places as well, as in you're not camped right next to the car anymore. The added bonus is that the kids have a wagon to play with at the campsite and it's amazing how much fun they can suddenly have with it.

Joshua Tree is a solid recommendation- if you go, you want to avoid Hidden Valley campground. It's the most popular with climbers and tends to be the loudest. I'd also recommend checking out camping on http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/prog/recreation/camping.html; my understanding is that excepting a few areas you can camp anywhere you like on BLM land for up to 14 days. The first area that came to mind is the San Bernardino National Forest near Big Bear- you can http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/sbnf/about-forest/districts/?cid=fsbdev7_007796 for details. There are many other places within 3 hours of L.A. that would be great for camping, and if you're willing to drive on some gravel/dirt/rough roads you will increase your likelihood of solitude. No water or toilets though, but that's the price you pay for peace and quiet.

I camped a lot when I was younger and have camped as an adult, with no kids, a lot too. 1) Try and break the drive up if it is long. As a kid, my parents used to do 10 hours of driving there and 10 hours back. It was probably hell for them but we were away for 3 weeks at a time so it made it worthwhile. Be prepared to break your journey into 2-3hr chunks with decent breaks. 2) Get your prep totally sorted when you pack; your aim is to get to a point when you arrive that within 30 minutes you can be sort of functioning and the kids have somewhere to hang out. Ideally within no more than 1 hour everything should be set up. 3) Don't disrupt eating or sleep patterns if you can avoid it: for your first night, make life easy and bring something either super easy to cook, or pre-made. 4) Sleep is important, and for you and your kids don't skimp on comfort because you are camping. 5) If your kids can walk, give them jobs to do so they are part of the "camping crew", even if they are trivial jobs. If they are older, give them small, but proper jobs. On site selection: without knowing the area, I'd say this: you need to make a call between more rugged campgrounds and ones that are overtly tailored for families, with facilities to match. Up to the age of ~10 for your kids, family oriented campgrounds will make it a lot more enjoyable for your kids. You might sacrifice beautiful views or rugged wilderness, but they will have more to do, kids their own age to play with, and the vibe should preclude partyhounds and other people you wish to avoid. But it's not everyone's cup of tea. Also: arrive earlier in the day to get better spots or book ahead - the ones with shade, which are level, away from roads and toilets etc. A recurring mistake, IMHO is to tip up at 5pm without a reservation and then have to take some crappy spot. A follow on mistake is to stay there for several days and hate it. If you want to go down the rugged nature route, then the best piece of advice I have is this: places accessible by 4x4 (or where you can do it in a 2WD vehicle, but need to go slowly and carefully) typically rule out RVs, tour groups, and most asshats. Places without connection to electricity tend to be much quieter because people can't run lots of lights, TVs, stereos or keep their beer cold indefinitely so they tend to rise and go to bed with the sun. But - bring a lot of water. Both for safety, and because it is a pain to ration yourself when you need to do things like wash hands, dishes etc. My absolute favourite spots like this were all within a 10-15 min walk of some swimming water. If there is a 4x4-oriented camping guide to your area you might want to take a look.

Agree about tent camping. There are people who like to camp, and there are people who like to party in parking lots, and with tent camping you are much more likely to get the former. Also, anything near water or a beach is good because there is automatically something to do - just walking the shoreline, finding seashells and rocks, building sandcastles, etc. is fun for kids. Are there any islands off the coast of California where you can camp? We camped on the Boston Harbor Islands and it was one of the best camping experiences of my life. And amandabee's suggestion of presents. We took a 10-hour drive once when we were really little and my mom had a wrapped present for us to open for every hour, just something from the dollar store like a coloring book. Each one gave us something to do and we genuinely looked forward to the next one. Also, whenever I go camping I like to make at least one really impressive meal, just because it feels so fun and out of place. It fills you up, everyone can get in on helping (if you trust your kids, let them build the fire and tend to it), and it does not have to be difficult at all. The last time we went I pre-cooked some pasta to just before al-dente and put it in a plastic bag and froze some linguica so it would be thawed by the time we got there. At the campsite, I cooked the linguica over the fire and set it aside. Pour out some of the linguica oil if there is too much - about two tablespoons is good. Add some olive oil, chopped garlic, and diced onions, cooking until soft. Toss in the pasta and cook for a minute or two. Toss with fresh chopped basil, a squirt of lemon juice, and salt and pepper. Serve with the linguica and a crusty baguette. The parents can have wine, the kids sparkling grape juice or something. Put some candles on the picnic table and it will be a meal you will remember for years. You can do desserts (bananas foster - no need to worry about flambeing your kitchen because you are already outside, and have your kids make the ice cream using one of those coffee can things), breakfasts (a good frittata), anything you want. I don't know if I've ever returned from camping feeling physically rested, but certainly more relaxed and happy.

Ps - I forgot to add: just because your camping doesn't mean you have to eat like a hobo. I like to buy and freeze a few filets before the trip and the place in a plastic shopping bag in the cooler. It doubles as an ice pack while thawing for a second day dinner. Using ice packs nd the frozen meat method rather than a cooler of loose ice is just as effective and less drippy and gross and so much easier to clean. Marinade anything the night prior to leaving in the fridge in a Tupperware (chicken, steak, etc.) when you get to he campsite that day, skewer and put over the fire on tin foil while you're setting up camp. Prosciutto wrapped around asparagus with a drizzle of olive oil and some red wine? Instant class at the campsite! Bring a French press for morning coffee.

It sounds like site selection is a large part of your woe - I'd start doing searches for "tent camping" specifically. (I tried looking for a book to link you to - there's a couple books about "tent camping" sites in New York and New Jersey, where they specifically look for places that won't be overrun with huge RVs and tend to encourage more peaceful atmospheres.) http://www.mademan.com/mm/10-best-tent-camping-sites-california.html I found online, and I note that in their second suggestion it says "RVs are not allowed." So "tent camping" seems to be the magic word when it comes to looking for campgrounds. This does not preclude car camping, from what I've seen; RVs are the only things they seem to rule out.