Check out the new equipment that's displayed on store shelves in the camping section and you'll notice that outdoor gear has come a long way since your childhood days of shivering at night in a damp tent. Today's tents pop up in less than fifteen minutes and have enough headspace for tall people, with room to spare. Most tents today offer portable living quarters with separate rooms for sleeping. Once you're finished admiring the great tents available, take a look at sleeping bags. New materials have enabled manufacturers to pack plenty of heat into a feather-light sleeping bag, and most labels even show you the temperature grading the sleeping gear is designed for.

There are other amenities that can make your camping trip comfortable and even close to luxurious. There's no need to sleep on the cold, hard ground, as plenty of pack-able sleeping pads and mattresses will give you a great night's rest, and for those who still yearn for a comfortable bed, there are portable cots complete with mattresses that can easily fit in a car or SUV. While camping is usually considered roughing it and most facilities that provide tent space require that you walk a distance to share public bathrooms, new developments have made it possible to buy small port-a-potties that even flush just like a regular toilet, which makes those midnight trips to the bathroom a breeze.

Every item and accessory made for camping has gone through major overhauls in the past decade or two. Great ideas have cropped up and manufacturers are putting out more and more things that make the lives of campers easier. Not only that, safety concerns have forced camping equipment suppliers to take a look at each accessory they offer the public so that accidents that could be avoided are minimized completely. Oil lamps are practically gone from store shelves, replaced by waterproof lanterns, and tents are coated with flame-retardant products regardless. Style has also been developed, dishes being redesigned to rival the ones you serve your suppers on at home, and blankets and bedding is offered in nice shades of colors.

As with anything on the market today, there are varying qualities of camping equipment and prices range from cheap to extremely expensive. The good thing about camping gear is that even the cheapest items are usually just fine for regular vacations and you'll probably get plenty of wear and tear out of them before they give up the ghost. More than just investing in some camping equipment to keep you comfortable in the wilderness, you'll also be investing in some memories you'll be able to share with your family and friends for a long time.