Packing up a family of five for a Fourth of July camping trip might sound like chaos—but it’s the kind of chaos we welcome! With three little campers (ages 4, 6, and 9) and one giant tent, we’re trading fireworks for fireflies and embracing family camping activities that bring us closer together.
This year our families are returning to our family fourth of July destination in Lake Almanor. This is a hidden gym of old town charm, frosties, lake fun, and camping. This has been a family tradition since my Grandparents were children and we intend to keep the tradition strong. One of our favorite things to do when we go is stop in at the local lake restaurant for the day on the green, live music, and dinner. When we aren’t on the lake we play games, hang out at camp, walk trails, and have do fun kids activities.
This year, we’re keeping it simple and special with kids camp activities that work without Wi-Fi or gadgets. Because of wildfire risk in our area, we’ll be camping without a fire—but that hasn’t stopped us from planning safe (and magical!) Fourth of July camp activities.
Here’s what’s on our list to make this family camping adventure one for the books:
🎨 Nature Art & DIY Camp Flags
Our first kids camp activity will be a nature rubbing art project. The kids will collect leaves, place paper over them, and use crayons to create nature prints. We’ll then turn their artwork into DIY campsite flags to decorate our space. It’s an easy, creative way to explore and appreciate the outdoors.
My oldest of the Greene trio is dead set on painting rocks to leave behind, this is a creative option that uses things around camp. Let the kids search for rocks, wash the rocks, dry them, and paint. Parents can put clear spray over the top to keep designs intact for years to come. While this seems like a lot, sometimes rock painting happens on multiple days, especially when you have down time and the kids are getting squirly and bored. Pull out the rocks, and have a rock painting competition where campers can vote for their favorite designs. The final fun comes when you hide your rocks around camp on your last day.
🐞 Bug Hunts & Nature Discovery
Armed with magnifying glasses, the kids will go on a bug-hunting scavenger hunt. This is one of our favorite family camping activities—they get to explore the ground beneath their feet while learning about nature. We’re also packing small notebooks for them to draw what they discover or make up stories about their bugs. My middle son loves animals and creepy crawlies, this is one of his favorites.
🗺️ Draw the Campground Map
To help them connect with their surroundings, we’ll draw a campground map together. This fun summer kids camp activity lets them mark the location of our tent, trails, bathrooms, and special spots they want to remember. We might use the maps to hide pirate treasure to!
💃 Bubble Dance Party & Flashlight Hide-and-Seek
What’s a Fourth of July camp activity without a little dancing? As the sun sets, we’ll have a bubble dance party in the clearing, followed by flashlight hide-and-seek after dark—two easy ways to create giggles and burn energy. Add in some glow sticks and you have yourself a party.
🍓 Solar S’mores & Nutella Pancake Skewers
Since we can’t have a fire, we’ll be making solar oven s’mores using pizza boxes and sunshine. For those that don’t work in schools this is a classic project many schools do. You can use a shoe box or pizza box just cut out a square in the top, cover with plastic wrap, line the inside with tinfoil and you made a solar stove! This keeps the kids busy with their hands and is a learning activity, the gooey yummy ending is also a bonus! We’re also bringing ingredients for Nutella skewers: mini pancakes, marshmallows, and strawberries—a sweet treat that’s easy to assemble at camp. We might spice things up and make a pancake skewer bar for the whole camp where each site brings a topping for a fun dessert party!
🎥 Projector Movie Night Under the Stars
We’re downloading our favorite movies in advance and packing a portable projector. A sheet between trees transforms into our screen for the ultimate family camping movie night. Add popcorn and glow sticks, and it’s pure magic. There are several fancy options for projectors and screens, but when in doubt a sheet and a quick projector do the trick!
🎆 Watch Fireworks Over the Lake
The highlight of our Fourth of July camping trip will be watching fireworks launched from the lake peninsula—no crowds, just our family snuggled in our Amazon zero-gravity lounger camping chairs under the stars.
☕ Special Moments for Mom & Dad
Even with all the fun kids camp activities, we’re carving out little moments for ourselves:
- Morning coffee together: We’re bringing our Jetboil stove, Starbucks VIA packets, and enamel mugs for quiet sips in the cool morning air.
- Lounger time: Our Amazon zero-gravity camping chairs make it easy to relax while watching fireworks, movies, or just the trees sway. Sometimes the chaos of camping with littles can make things feel a lot less calming and relaxing so having a nice chair really makes a difference. This zero-gravity chair for adults makes us feel put together.
- My husbands favorite cooking gadget is our Blackstone camping griddle we use it all the time at home and when we camp its our go to for pancakes and breakfast!
🏕️ Family Camping Tips
✅ Pack extra clothes for muddy fun
✅ Bring plenty of baby wipes
✅ Portable potty = sanity saver
✅ Don’t aim for perfect—aim for connection
