A Jewish guide to camping holidays

“In my opinion, going into nature is the most Jewish thing you can do,” says Gali. “Our holidays are intertwined with the changing seasons and agriculture: the story of 40 years of wandering in the desert; the motif of trees in Genesis and their spiritual interpretations in Kabbalah all show that Judaism has a strong connection to nature.

“But for me, Judaism is not my main motivation for camping – it’s the great joy of waking up surrounded by nature and simply being present there,” she adds.

Tempted to give it a go? I spoke to four outdoorsy Jewish families to get their hard-learned tips for exploring the great outdoors…

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Get going with glamping

There are different ways to enjoy the outdoors. Besides traditional camping, it is always possible to begin with the gentler glamping option, which supposedly provides the luxury of a real bed inside a well-equipped, photogenic tent. The options are endless – from bell tents and yurts to premium pods with hot tubs – and so is the price range, which can rival hotel prices.

There are UK companies that will deliver erect and luxury glamping tents at suitable locations. This option is also pricey and tends to make more sense for groups than for a single travelling family.

At the other end of the spectrum, Shani Richland – who moved to the UK with her husband and their three daughters, aged seven, ten and 11, only a year ago – immediately started pursuing their campervan dream.

“Beginners can start by renting a van to see how it feels. We bought our campervan second-hand and have already taken five trips since then, so the initial investment is balancing out over time,” she says. “You can find a nice and luxurious campervan, with beds, gas, a refrigerator and even air-conditioning, on the second-hand market for a reasonable price.”

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The Richland family love spending time outdoors together (Photo: Shani Richland)[Missing Credit]

Short and sweet

Dana Even-Chen first tried camping in the UK with her then six and three-year-old children while she was nine months pregnant. She suggests starting with a short trip not too far from home, at a well-rated campsite.

“I wanted to create these types of magical camping memories for our children,” she explains. “To test the waters, we borrowed camping equipment from friends, brought comfortable mattresses and picked a campsite that was close enough by.

“Our friends didn’t want to camp, so we opened a ‘tent of Abraham and Sarah’: they popped by and visited us with their children. We thoroughly enjoyed it, and since then we have camped almost every year,” she says.

“Now we go for at least a week because the logistics of setting up camp can be tiring.”

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Walk it out

“I was looking for a fitness activity and got bored with everything I tried until I went on a long hike,” says Tzvi Ferster, who fell in love with trekking, somewhat to his surprise.

“Since then, I trek, and my wife, Esti, who is also strictly Orthodox and had never been exposed to this lifestyle, became my partner in crime,” he tells me over the phone from the Swiss Alps, after they had completed a 12km trek.

“For trekkers, every gram counts, so it is less camping-focused and our sleeping arrangements are different,” he adds. Ferster says that besides occasional camping, they prefer to rent rooms along the trail. Britain also offers another option: the bothy.

In remote parts of Britain – particularly Scotland, but also northern England and Wales – traditional bothies provide free, very basic shelter for walkers. Those maintained by the Mountain Bothies Association are generally unbookable and may have no running water, electricity or toilet: so it’s camping with walls, essentially.

Bookable alternatives include National Trust bothies and bunkhouses and mountaineering club huts, although facilities and access requirements vary considerably. For a serviced experience, you can hike to traditional bothies where guides cook for you, or book premium glamping cabins featuring private chefs.

Ferster advises that anyone interested in trekking should start gradually with shorter day walks, and warns that long treks may simply be too difficult for young children.

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Secondhand kit for the win

If you’re feeling ambivalent, it’s understandable that you probably won’t want to splurge on all the gear. Borrowing from outdoorsy friends and family is always a great call, but if you don’t have any, try eBay, Vinted or Facebook Marketplace for secondhand essentials.

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Know your crowd

Different ages require different preparations. On her latest camping trip, Gali took her four-month-old baby and discovered unexpected challenges: from having less space in the car for camping equipment to collective sleep deprivation that is difficult to catch up on inside a hot tent during the day.

At the other end of the scale, Even-Chen says that while younger children find every campsite activity exciting – “even washing the dishes” – as they get older, the planning changes. Campsites may need to be closer to attractions, and a decent internet connection suddenly becomes rather more important.

When it comes to activities, a balance between active pursuits and chilled-out campsite dwelling is always recommended – as is a bit of pre-planning, so you’re not caught short with no way to pass the time.

Evenings are always a particularly magical time. From the traditional bonfire with marshmallows to an open-air mini cinema made with a portable projector and a bedsheet, or children’s performances involving torches and glow sticks – the sky is literally the limit.

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The Even-Chen family snuggle up under the stars[Missing Credit]

Keeping it kosher

While it requires some logistical preparation, keeping kosher is perfectly possible whether you are traditional camping or using facilities along a trekking route.

“When we hosted my religious nieces while camping, we prepared the food before Shabbat began – and we also kept some meals vegetarian and simple,” Even-Chen says.

Richland points out that campervans are particularly convenient for those who keep kosher because you travel with your own fridge and kitchen.

Ferster uses more creative methods. “We travel light. We buy fruit and vegetables along the way, and purify fresh water. Scotland specifically is the wet dream of kosher trekkers because many of its trails pass through villages,” he says.

For longer trips, he uses Poste Restante, the Post Office service designed for travellers who do not have a local address. “About a week before the trip, we post freeze-dried food that I prepare in advance using my friend’s freeze-dryer,” he explains.

UK-posted Poste Restante mail is held at participating Post Office branches for up to 18 days, giving trekkers the opportunity to send supplies ahead and collect them as they travel.

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Follow the forecast

British weather is changeable. All four families suggest following the forecast closely and choosing campsites with flexible, short-notice cancellation policies where possible.

“Last August we went camping in the Lake District, but we didn’t check the forecast,” Even-Chen recalls solemnly. “My husband pitched the tent on top of a hill, and then there was a terrible storm. We almost flew away and slept in a puddle.” This is not an issue that campers have faced in 2026.

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Embrace the camaraderie

As much as outdoor life forces us to embrace small disasters and miscalculations, it also leads us to communicate with other travellers.

“My wife and I are visibly Jewish, and while in London I feel people staring or hear the occasional ‘Free Palestine’ shouted at me, in the camping and trekking community I feel completely safe,” Ferster says.

“I never hide who I am, and people are very accepting. We must be kind, because we need each other to make it through.”