Some of the most special childhood memories include hosting or attending sleepover parties to celebrate someone’s birthday. I remember the excitement and buildup to the evening, where we would all be planning what to bring, what sweet snacks we would be eating and deciding what movie to watch.

An indoor camping experience is a great way to host a children’s sleepover as you won't have to worry about having enough beds, as well as the enormous amount of bedding washing you would have to do afterwards! Ask each child to bring their own sleeping bag, pillow and air mattress (if they want it to be more comfortable).

Clearing a large space

You want a large room - perhaps your lounge area - for the glamping set-up as you’ll be adding in the tents or safe spaces here. Remove any central tables or anything that might get in the way of the set-up. Larger furniture such as sofas, can be pushed out the way - backing onto the walls to give more floor space. If you have any breakables we also recommend removing these from the room as you won't want to risk anything getting damaged! 

Sleeping spaces

The children could either bring their own POD along or a mini camping tent to set-up this space. Set-up these mini indoor spaces in a neat row or circular pattern so that all of the children can interact with each other over the night. You don’t want anyone to feel left out or behind!

Name tags to avoid drama!

To avoid fall-outs with deciding who is sleeping where, it might be best to print out labels for each of the children and place these at the top of the POD so that the children are directed straight to their sleeping space when they arrive. Many children will worry or stress over ‘who gets to camp next to who’ so it is best to avoid the drama by having this arrangement!

Everyone loves a theme

Choosing a theme for the glamping experience is a great way to ensure your party stands-out and you could even incorporate a dress-up theme for the children too. Ask your child what their interests are and let this be the guide to your chosen theme.

Once you are decided on a theme you can collect props and decorations to match. You can also base the evening activities around the theme such as playing games that involve specific characters or locations. We have written afew examples of themed ideas you could choose below:

• Rumble in the jungle
• Galactic space adventures
• Polar ice arctic theme
• Sunset safari animal theme
• Magical princess or prince theme
• Under the sea
• Jurassic world dinosaurs