Choosing the Right Summer Sleep-Away Camp

Summer is quickly approaching which means it’s almost time for you to pick a sleep-away summer camp for your child. Whether or not it’s your first time trying to pick a camp, you may be a bit nervous about finding the right one. Don’t worry because we can help. Check out the following tips for choosing the best sleep-away summer camp so, whichever option you go with, you can feel confident that you made the right decision.

Write Down a list of “Must-haves”
It’s not just about the must-haves you want the sleep-away camp to have; it’s also about what your child wants as well. For example, you may not want a camp that’s co-ed but will want a camp where the staff is trained well while your child might insist that they offer particular sports or programs. The cost and the length of stay at the camp are obviously two important factors. Make a list of what both of you want so you can keep everything in mind as you’re going over your options.

Do Research by Interest
If your child has a particular interest they want to focus on, you may want to make camps that offer it a top consideration. To find them, all you have to do is plug a particular interest, such as “cooking” or “horseback riding,” into a search engine followed by “sleep-away camp” to pull up links that lead to “best of” articles that can help give you some top options. To further narrow down your choices, you can search by a particular area. You can also pull up accredited (and non-accredited) sleep-away camps via the American Camp Association website.

Read Reviews
It’s a must that you read reviews on the camps before you commit. It gives you a good idea from a wide array of past campers and parents about whether or not the camp is even worth considering. Pay special attention to reviews that are from the past few years. The more reviews you read and the more insight you get about the sleep-away camp, the better.

Write Down a List of Questions
Chances are you’re going to have a bunch of questions you’re going to want answered, so make a list as you think about them so you don’t forget. Not only can you look up the questions online, but you can also call camps directly. Writing down the questions ensures that you’re fully prepared and you’ll get all the answers you need.

Dig In and Do Research
It’s not enough to just ask questions and read reviews; you have to dig in and do your research on the sleep-away camp that you’re considering. For example, what type of training does the staff go through? Is the camp accredited? What is the day-to-day schedule your child will encounter? What’s the cost? The more extensive your research, the better you will feel about sending your child to the sleep-away camp because you’ll know you were completely thorough and made the best decision possible.

If your child mentions about wanting to go to a particular sleep-away camp, it may be because one of their friends is going in which case you and the friend’s parent can team up and do the research together to make sure it’s a good idea. With extensive research and careful consideration, you’ll have your pick in no time.