We’ve always been a family that likes spending time outdoors, and we recently got back from a long weekend in Napier over the Easter holiday. It’s become a bit of a tradition that we go camping with Hop’s best friend and her family over Easter, and we usually stay at holiday parks.
Holiday parks were definitely not a thing for us when we lived in the US. There, the closest thing would be KOA’s, and my (probably unfair) impression of them is that they were mainly for retirees with RVs. We would generally stay in National Forest campgrounds with sites just big enough for a tent, or just pull off somewhere.
Most of the time when we go camping here we stay at a holiday park. They’re definitely a bit pricier, but you get a large site, kitchen facilities, nice playgrounds, and often even a pool. And there’s always kids running wild everywhere, so you can feel ok just letting them run off. They’re generally in or close to town, so good access to activities, but a little more of a drive for day walks, like the one we did to Bell Rock.
As we’ve shifted most of our camping to holiday parks, our camping set up has evolved as well. In the States we had our (for us, large 6-person dome tent), and a tarp to put over a picnic table. We still use the same tent (which is defintely on the smaller side for NZ holiday park family camping), but we now have a large shelter with table and chairs for hanging out in out of the weather, fancy lighting (which didn’t exist a few years ago), and comfy mattresses.
Kiwi Bound 