Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Outdoors

A new study says these are the 10 best states for a family camping trip

Take your family camping to one of these 10 states this summer.

Sarah Joseph
By
Family Vacation Guide

There are always problems you can run into when you go camping, but when you’re bringing kids along (especially for their first trip), you want the experience to be memorable. Camping with kids takes a ton of preparation, but the Family Vacation Guide took out all the guesswork by analyzing eight crucial traits that could affect your camping experience. They considered everything, from activities to family-friendly camp spots and crime rates, and tallied the score to a final number out of 10. Other factors considered include social media data, hiking trails, safety scores, and annual temperatures. These are the best states for camping, according to the analysis.

Top 10 states for family camping

We’re all for camping pretty much anywhere and everywhere, but Family Vacation Guide’s report says these 10 states practically guarantee an extraordinary camping experience for your entire clan in 2023.

Recommended Videos

Florida

Florida, the sunshine state, takes the lead with a score of 7.93 out of 10 for safe camping spots. With its year-round sunshine and an average temperature of 70.7 degrees, this state offers a playground of diverse campsites, many of which receive four-star ratings.

Related

New Jersey

Scoring neck-and-neck with Florida, New Jersey beckons with its beautiful inland camping spots in proximity to the sea. Immerse yourself in the state’s white-sand beaches while partaking in many activities. With numerous family-friendly walking trails, New Jersey offers an outdoor wonderland for both young and old.

New Hampshire

New Hampshire earns a score of 7.68 out of 10, impressing families with its abundance of family-friendly camping grounds and activities. With an average temperature of 43.8 degrees, this state provides a refreshing retreat from the ordinary (especially in summer). Notably, New Hampshire boasts the lowest crime rate among the top contenders, ensuring peace of mind for a safe vacation.

Massachusetts

The third Northeast state on the list is Massachusetts, where families can revel in a camping experience that seamlessly blends seaside charm with dense forests. With a score of 7.65 out of 10, this coastal state offers an array of thrilling activities, from captivating boat tours to exhilarating jet skiing and parasailing. Explore the highest number of family-friendly hiking trails for this state’s size and discover hidden treasures with your little ones.

Rhode Island

Rhode Island may be the smallest state, but it packs a punch with a score of 7.53 out of 10. History buffs will definitely appreciate everything this state has to offer. Rhode Island boasts the highest number of activities per 10,000 km2, with an astonishing 1,178 options to keep the fun going.

Virginia

Scoring equally as high as Rhode Island, Virginia emerges as a dream camping destination for families seeking a harmonious blend of natural wonders and engaging activities. Don’t forget Virginia has some of the best colonial destinations in the United States, so don’t miss the chance to bring your kids to places like Williamsburg.

Maine

Scoring 7.4 out of 10, Maine secures the second-highest number of Instagram posts in the top 10 after Florida, a testament to the breathtaking beauty found within its borders. With an average yearly temperature of 41 degrees and the third-lowest crime rate, Maine guarantees a safe and enchanting haven for your family camping vacation.

Vermont

Vermont, with its score of 6.84 out of 10, offers stunning scenery, from rolling hills to majestic mountains, as you partake in almost 300 activities per 10,000 km2. (And, if you need a break from the kids, it actually has a pretty cool wine scene.)

Delaware

Delaware has over 500 activities per 10,000 km2, so your family will never run out of things to do. With an average temperature of 55 degrees, this state offers comfortable weather for outdoor adventures.

Hawaii

While Hawaii holds the highest crime rate among the top 10 states, at 5,077 per 100,000 people, it compensates with its unparalleled array of activities per 10,000 km2. Second only to Rhode Island, Hawaii is a tropical paradise teeming with opportunities for adventure and relaxation.

From the sun-soaked beaches of Florida to the historical allure of Rhode Island, each state offers a distinctive blend of safety, adventure, and natural wonders.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Sarah Joseph
Sarah Joseph
Contributor
Sarah is a lover of all things outdoors. With a bright sense of adventure and a heart for the mountains, she is always…
Jackson Hole Mountain Resort owners sell to local families, keeping resort hyper-local indefinitely
Jackson Hole resort has been sold - to everyone in the area, basically
Skier heading downhill at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, with the sun and aerial tram in the background.

Consolidation and conglomeration. These two words have dominated almost every industry — from banks to fast food restaurants to web apps — over the last two decades as more small- to medium-sized businesses are gobbled up by large, often international corporations. In many cases, that loss of independence means putting customers second and profits first. The mountain resort industry has been no different, with massive multinational conglomerates buying up U.S. resorts for years now.

But many smaller, family-owned resorts have stood strong, vowing to remain independent despite seemingly all-consuming consolidation — resorts like Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in (where else?) Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It's a world-class, year-round playground that's been a mainstay of North American ski resorts for the better part of a century. The bad news is that it's been sold; the good news is that the buyers of the famed Jackson Hole ski resort aren't who you might expect.

Read more
Make ‘roughing it’ a little less rough with these tips for sleeping in a tent comfortably while camping
With a little planning, the right outdoor gear, and a dash of compromise, you'll sleep like a baby in the wild
Cheerful traveler lying on a mattress in a tent.

Unless you’re glamping (i.e. luxury camping) or car camping with air conditioning and an air mattress, tent sleeping in the woods is rarely as comfortable as drifting off in the comfort of your own bed at home. But, with proper planning, it can be pretty darned close. It just requires preparation, the right outdoor sleeping gear, and a dash of compromise. Here are our top tips to more comfortably sleep in tents.

Start with the right tent
Sleeping comfortably in a tent while camping starts with picking the right tent to begin with. You want one that's easy to pitch (so you're not struggling to get it up after dark right before bedtime), well-made (to protect you from bugs and rain), and roomy enough for you, your tentmates, if any, and a bit of gear too. This last bit is especially important. Most tents billed as "one person" or "two person" are exactly big enough for one or two campers, respectively, sleeping side by side on compact sleeping pads. There is often very little extra room for gear. That's why I personally recommend sizing up. If you like to camp solo, consider buying a two-person tent just for a little extra breathing room and to stash your gear in the event of inclimate weather.

Read more
Take your booze, seltzer, or homemade kombucha anywhere with the best wheeled coolers
Ditch that cheap, bulky cooler you bought in college for one of these easy-rolling wheeled alternatives
Man pulling a wheeled Igloo cooler over sand at the beach.

It's still technically summer, so warm weather activities, camping, and barbecue season remain with us. And we all know what that means. Cold beer for backyard barbecues, trips to the beach, and outdoor excursions. Whether you’re into camping, surfing, kayaking, or tailgating with the crew, the common thread linking them all is the need for refreshing beverages packed inside your best well-chilled cooler. However, most coolers lack portability. The best, most insulated models are bulky even when empty and considerably more so when laden with ice and beer. If you want to level up your cooler game in 2023, you need a cooler with wheels.

Rolling coolers let you transport your favorite drinks from one point to another without breaking your back or shoulders. What’s noteworthy about wheeled coolers is their versatility, serving either as a makeshift dinner table or as extra storage space for your gear. Are you ready to keep your beverages cool? Below are our picks of the best wheeled coolers to shop for right now, all recommended and praised by adventurers.

Read more