Outwell Collaps Kettle
£30
The unique selling point of the Collaps kettle is, you guessed it, that it squashes down for storage. Push down on the top and the rubber band across the middle collapses resulting in a 3 inch high package. Simply pull the top of the kettle up to use it again – genius.
Other than that, it’s just like a home kettle, with a reassuring handle, and thick, polished stainless steel base and top.
The kettle has a 1.5 litre capacity, is dishwasher safe and the rubber collar is BPA free. There is even a choice of funky colours to choose from.
Tentsile Stingray 3p tree tent
£520
Everyone loves the surreal, spaceship-like shape of the Stingray floating in the trees. It’s held there by three heavy-duty ratchets stretching it taut until the seatbelt straps forming its shape create three hammock-like ‘pockets’ inside, with a maximum load of 400kg. With practice it pitches with one ratchet, saving 2kg of the 8.5kg total, and a pair of aluminium shock-corded poles arch its roof. The best (most fun!) access is via the triangular hatch in the middle and an optional rope ladder is available for the real treehouse feel.
The Stingray comes with a waterproof flysheet which can be easily flipped on or off for stargazing. It’s undeniable fun but the big surprise is how comfortable the Stingray is to sleep in, once the kids stop bouncing around!
Coleman Twist+ 300 LED lantern
£63
With its 300 lumen maximum output the Coleman Twist+ 300 is a great option for camping in larger, family sized tents.
Although a bit plastic in finish, the Twist+ 300 has a rugged exterior shell claimed to withstand drops from 2 metres and is IPX4 water resistant.
One annoyance is that the dial to cycle between modes is too clunky and noisy. That said, clever features include the twist lock system, which allows you to lock the lantern in off mode so it can’t be switched on by mistake, and the USB lead and wall plug being housed inside the lantern so that you can’t forget them.
Plugging in charges the lithium ion battery in around 3 hours, giving around 9 hours of light in high and around 20 hours in medium mode. We used the 1A output of the Twist+ to charge mobile phones on a recent trip and the lantern was still going strong 3 days later with minimal use at night.
Pyramid Trek Ultra Mosquito Repellent
£6.95
Trek ultra mosquito repellent manages to provide tropical strength protection with a surprisingly low 30% DEET content. It does this with ‘micro-encapsulated’ DEET – essentially slow release – which allows the manufacturers to put less of the active ingredient in for the same protection.
Less DEET means you can apply Trek Ultra to children as young as two, making it a great option for adventurous young families.
The formula is still 90% effective after 12 hours and is sweat and splash resistant. A 60ml bottle should last around a week if used every day by two adults. If you need more, or for families, a larger 120ml bottle is available.
If you prefer a low DEET content or you have young children and are heading to a midge-infested area then you should definitely consider putting this highly effective repellent on your packing list.
Easy Camp Sarin camp kitchen
£80
Folded up in its carry bag the Sarin is compact and, at 10kg, light enough to sling over a shoulder from car to tent.
Assembly is easy; everything unfolds and slots into place in a matter of a few minutes.
Storage and preparation space on the Sarin is excellent, with two sturdy shelves on the top. One is easily big enough to prepare food on and there are two shelves under the stove for pots and pans as well as hanging shelves with a zipped mesh front which easily swallow a long weekends worth of food.
In use the Sarin camp kitchen is sturdy even on rough camping ground and we wouldn’t question its longevity thanks to a robust steel frame.
Campingaz Party Grill 400
£99
Open the bag of the party grill up and you'll be greeted with a load of cooking plates, including everything from a traditional stove to a griddle and a grill as well as the very cleverly designed lid which turns into a wok. All in all we don't think you could possibly need any more cooking options.........apart from maybe a portable pizza oven?
The hose and regulator come supplied so it's ready to go once you've hooked it up to a R907 or R904 butane or propane cylinder.
Cooking classic bbq fare on the Party Grill couldn't be easier and is a whole load quicker than waiting for your coals to turn grey.
You can fill the base with water to catch all the oily drippings, at the end of your meal you just pour it out and give it a wipe over, a lovely touch that has saved us a lot of scrubbing.
We love this stove so much that it's going to replace our trusty Campingaz 400 ST stove for family camping trips as well as the traditional BBQ at home so we can safely say it gets a big Active Traveller thumbs up.
Outdoor Tech Buckshot Pro speaker, light, powerbank
£56
The Buckshot Pro is a Bluetooth speaker, light with three settings, as well as a powerbank with USB output for charging accessories.
The speaker is better than a phone (and will prolong that device’s battery life), but didn’t blow us away with the quality of its sounds. But full charge of the 2600 mAh Lithium Ion battery will give 10 to 16 hours of music.
The light functions are impressive, with a powerful, wide beam from the single LED on flashlight mode. Press again for camplight mode, and the flashlight switches off and the white rubber rim lights up, with a diffused, non-dazzling light. Press once more and the LED will strobe, making the Buckshot a beacon.
All said, the Buckshot Pro is a useful Jack of all trades for any family camping adventure and justifies its place in your gear pack.
Niteize Buglit LED light
£13
This ‘hang anywhere’ device from Niteize looks a little gimmicky at first but take it camping and you’ll wonder how you managed without it. Hang it in your tent for quick and easy lighting, use the bendy legs to stand it on uneven surfaces, wrap it around a small branch, or perch it on your lap.
The three modes give you high power, low power and a strobe for emergencies, we found the low power mode to be perfect for use as a child's night light, and he loved the spider-like design and bright colours.
The big button on the top of the device is hard to miss, even in a blurry-eyed moment in the pitch dark, and the bright green legs make it stand out enough to at least get your fingers in the general area.
The size and weight as well as the price of the Buglit are negligible, so this handy little camplight gets a big thumbs up from us.
Coleman FastPitch Air Valdes 6XL tent
£839
At 30kg packed up in its duffel bag the Air Valdes is no featherweight but if only the bag had a pair of wheels it could truly be unloaded and pitched solo.
Because once on the pitch, the Valdes is a dream. Roll down the duffel bag, spread out the tent, peg its corners and inflate the four TPU air arches.
The very first time we pitched it in 15 minutes including final pegging out and threading the essential porch arch pole, leaving a nicely sewn-in ground sheet throughout the inside, and three rooms already pre-hung in the back of the tent. Two more shock-corded poles form the handy hinging front door, which although not essential for access, does make for a civilised zip-free entrance for the tent.
The Valdes’ living space is wonderful, with a huge main ‘living room’ and loads of headroom for our 6ft 2in tester. All said, a wonderfully faff-free camping solution.
Panasonic DMC TZ80 Camera
£335
The DMC TZ80 from Panasonic packs a big bang for your bucks in a compact body that’s light and robust.
Its 18.1 megapixel sensor is capable of shooting both 4K video and 4K photo, and the quality 30x optical zoom Leica lens allows you to do closeups and ultra-wide angle landscapes.
The auto mode is flatteringly competent, and the scene mode makes getting creative easy.
For action shots the auto-focus is impressively fast, and even lets you take creative night shots with the ‘Star Light AF’.
The touchscreen is a healthy size and easy to use for adjustments on the fly such as adjusting the auto focus point, as you can on a phone camera.
The DMC TZ80 seamlessly links with your smartphone via wi-fi for remote control of the camera as well as uploading and sharing of photos.
