Car Camping vs. Backpacking Differences (Which Is For You?)
Sleeping outdoors can be done in many different ways. Car camping & backpacking are a great way to get into the great outdoors. This list will help you decide which is a better option for you.
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Car Camping vs. Backpacking
When deciding between car camping vs. backpacking, you need to consider what you’re trying to accomplish. Are you trying to relax for a few days with comfort in mind? Or are you hoping to reach new places & challenge yourself a bit? This post will help you determine if car camping or backpacking is a better fit for you.
Here is a general list of pros & cons to show you the main differences when deciding whether you want to car camp vs. backpack on your next camping trip:
| Camping Pros: Room to pack more gear Keep food cold Group activity Can be done in all seasons Easier for children Can cook full meals Might have access to water/electricity | Backpacking Pros: Great exercise Involves strategy You can reach new places Peaceful Challenges you Very rewarding Learn true self-sufficiency Helps you appreciate modern conveniences |
| Camping Cons: Crowded campsites Packing can feel overwhelming Less physical activity Might have to pay for campsite Might not be as scenic Less options of where to camp | Backpacking Cons: Have to conserve water, food, & fuel You’re far away if you get injured Can’t escape the elements & weather Gear can be more expensive Have to count calories & gear weight Stick to a schedule Can be more uncomfortable |
Car Camping
When you picture tent camping, you’re usually thinking of “car camping.” Car camping is when you bring all of your camping gear with you in your car & then set up camp near your vehicle.
There are several types of camping when it comes to car camping. Some people sleep in a tent by their car. Others sleep in their car. Some might even have recreational vehicles like a cargo van to sleep in at the campsite.
There are also sometimes options for “primitive campsites” where you have to walk your gear from the parking lot into a campsite that might be ¼ mile away.
All of these are considered car camping because your gear is nearby your campsite in your car.
Car Camping Gear Overview
Car camping gear can be as simple or as complex as you’d like. You might want to go with minimal gear (I cover the most basic camping gear in this comprehensive list) or have yourself a “glamping” trip.
In general, you’re going to pack for your sleep, food, personal hygiene, and other campsite gear.
For sleep, you’ll need a camping tent, sleeping bags, & air mattresses/sleeping pads. (Here is a review of our favorite car camping tent).
For food, you’ll want to figure out how you’ll heat your food like wood or a camp stove, and bring those items. Then, you’ll need some basic utensils to cook with.
Personal hygiene gear is up to you. You might want to be minimalistic and not focus at all on your personal hygiene while you’re in the great outdoors.
For campsite gear, it’s a good idea to bring a camp chair, flashlight, first aid kid, & a few other items.
Car Camping Pros
For camping, the most basic pros list can be categorized by:
- Gear Options
- Who You Go With
- Food Options
- Comforts
Let’s dive into these categories.
Gear Options
Since you’re packing everything in your car, you can bring quite a lot of gear.
You’ll have the option to bring a larger tent, plus more comfortable items like fluffy pillows and fuzzy blankets.
You can also bring a cooler with you to store all of your food. This gives you more options when it comes to packing your food. (Learn how to properly pack a cooler here).
While car camping, you’ll also have room to bring hobby gear like kayaks, fishing poles, a volleyball net, etc.
You have so much room in your car compared to in a backpack, so you can really pack as much as you’d like for your camping trip.
Who You Go With
Car camping is easier to do with a group of people. You can pitch several tents across a campsite and have a weekend of fun together.
You can also bring children with you more easily than if you were backpacking. It will be less strenuous for young children & you’ll probably feel like you’re a little safer at a campsite than backpacking in the wilderness with them.
Car camping gives you the great option to go by yourself, with a large group, or as a family with kids. This is a huge pro for car camping compared to backpacking.
Food
You have so many more options when it comes to food while you’re car camping. You’ll most likely have a cooler with you, which allows you to bring practically anything you want to eat to your campsite.
There is also more room to bring cooking gear like a double burner camping stove, a dutch oven, and any other cooking items you’d like to use. (Learn more about all the ways to cook at a campsite in this post).
Depending on where you’re at, your campsite might even have a picnic table to prepare your food on. Then you can eat a meal together as a group at the table. Even if you don’t have a picnic table, you could throw a folding table into your car for your camping trip.
The options are truly endless when it comes to cooking delicious meals while you’re car camping.
Comforts
With the option to bring more gear, gives you the option to have more comfort. You can make sure you’re totally prepared for any situation while car camping.
You’ll have room to bring extra gear with you like a gazebo to protect you from rain, comfy blankets for warmth, & anything else that helps you relax.
4-season tents can even give you the option for winter camping. You might even have the luxury of bringing a propane heater with you for an extra toasty night of sleep.
Car camping is also more likely to give you access to electricity and water depending on where you’re at. Some campsites will have an outlet & a water spigot for convenience.
In general, you’re going to be way more comfortable while car camping than you will be while backpacking.
Car Camping Cons
When we think about the cons of car camping, we can split it down into these 4 categories:
- Noise & Crowds
- Too Much Gear
- Limited Locations
- Cost
These 4 categories might deter you from wanting to car camp, so let’s take a look.
Noise & Crowds
If you’ve been to any state parks in the summer, then you know that campsites can fill up. When we lived in Texas, we’d have to book a campsite weeks in advance because there was usually no availability.
Car camping is more accessible to people & easier for families to do than backpacking. 58 million families camped last year. That is a lot of campers!
This means that the campsites can be pretty crowded, which also means you might not find the peace & quiet you are looking for.
There is always the option to overland and camp on public land or BLM land somewhere, but then you’ll lose the possibility of amenities like bathrooms, water & possible electricity if that is important to you.
Too Much Gear
We talked about the pros of being able to bring all of the gear you need for camping, but there is also a point where it might seem like too much gear.
Packing & unpacking can get exhausting if you have way too much gear with you. This can also be a downside of car camping.
Since you have so much room to pack in your car, you might be bringing too much gear with you. The process of packing and unpacking could be more work than the amount of relaxation you’ll have on your camping trip.
Limited Locations
When car camping, you are limited to the areas that you can actually camp in. In general, you’ll probably be in a designated campground at state or national parks for your camping trip.
This means you are told where to camp and for how long. Also, the campgrounds might not be in the most scenic areas of the forest, so you could be missing out on epic views.
Another choice is to overland or off-road to a more remote location. This still limits you to a degree because you have to be able to get your vehicle to the location that you want to camp in.
You’re still dictated by the ability of your vehicle & what trails are open to you in the area.
Being limited while camping might take away from the feeling of “freedom.” A huge part of camping is to feel like you’re getting away and becoming one with nature.
This can seem hard to do when you’re not able to choose exactly where you want to camp.
Cost
It’s no secret that camping gear can be expensive, especially if you’re opting for higher quality. You can totally get away with buying a cheap tent and bringing some blankets, but you might not be as comfortable.
Besides the price of gear, you usually have to pay a daily fee to stay at designated campsites. These fees can range from $5-$35 per day for tent camping sites.
If you’re looking for an RV site with electrical hookup, then the prices are even higher. Camping can get expensive if you are going for several days at a time.
Backpacking
Backpacking is also a form of camping. The biggest difference is that you wear all of your gear in a backpack and walk to a remote area in the backcountry for your camping trip.
Technically, you combine a day hike with a camping trip. You hike somewhere, set up camp, and then hike again the next day.
Backpacking can be for as long or as far as you choose. Some people do an overnight backpacking trip, while others will spend months backpacking the entire Appalachian Trail.
Backpacking Gear Overview
There is a lot of planning that goes into backpacking gear. You want to have enough gear with you for survival, but you don’t want to carry a heavy backpack for miles on end.
The best option is to go with light gear that is specifically designed for backpacking.
In general, you’ll need the basics for sleeping like a backpacking tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, & pillow. (See the best ways to attach a sleeping bag to your backpack in this post).
You’ll also need gear for your meals like a backpacking stove (we love the Jetboil), fuel, & lightweight utensils.
Aside from that, there might be a few tools you’ll want to bring to fix gear along the way, a small portable charger, & first aid kit items.
Backpacking is supposed to be very minimal when it comes to gear.
Backpacking Pros
When I was brainstorming all of the pros for backpacking, I realized that some of the pros might not seem like a good thing to some people. Read on to let me explain why these are actually good things.
Here are the 4 categories I came up with:
- Physical Activity
- Strategy & Challenges
- Exploring New Places
- Alone Time
Physical Activity
Since the main activity during backpacking is to hike several miles to your campsite, you’re going to be exerting a lot of energy.
It is estimated that an average person will burn over 500 calories per hour while backpacking. If you’re hiking for 8 hours each day, that is over 4,000 calories burned just from hiking.
It is a great exercise for you, while also enjoyable. You are staying active & enjoying nature all at the same time.
The physical activity could be hard on you, but the reward is so worth it.
Strategy & Challenges
Backpacking is a great way to practice strategizing and challenging yourself. There will be a lot of challenges that come up along the way, which will result in you coming up with different strategies.
In general, you’re going to need to be able to follow a map & compass during your backpacking trip. Some trails aren’t marked well in places, so you’ll need to pay attention and ensure you’re staying on track.
There could also be issues with your gear or you accidentally leave something behind along the way. You’ll have to get creative and problem solve for each challenge that arises.
Some people love the idea of challenging themselves because they know it will help them grow. If this is you, then backpacking is the perfect activity for you to do.
Explore New Places
You can go pretty much anywhere that your legs will take you while backpacking (or you could try bikepacking and enjoy mountain biking to remote areas!).
You’ll be able to go where a majority of humans have never gone. The main population relies on cars to get them to destinations, so if you’re on a trail with no vehicle access, then you’re experiencing something unique.
Many backpacking trails take you miles back into the backcountry where not many people have been. You’re often met with rewarding and breathtaking views while you’re out backpacking too.
Exploring new places is one of the best parts of backpacking.
Alone Time
If you’re backpacking, you’re going to have a ton of opportunities for peace & meditating. While hiking, you’re left alone with your thoughts and can use that time to grow.
Even if you’re backpacking with a partner or small group, you’ll have plenty of time to enjoy peace & quiet while out on the trail & at base camp.
The ability to have alone time without a large crowd is a huge perk of backpacking.
Backpacking Cons
Along with the pros of backpacking, there are also several cons. Here are the 4 categories to cover:
- Gear Prices
- Planning
- Comfort
- Structured
These cons might make you change your mind about backpacking if they don’t outweigh the pros for you.
Gear Prices
The first thing to mention is that backpacking gear is generally more expensive than car camping gear. You really want to have the right gear while you’re backpacking so you are the most comfortable.
Backpacking gear is designed to be lightweight and compact. This helps you keep your pack weight low & have enough room to bring all of the essentials.
Because the gear is made from lightweight materials, it generally costs more. The good news is, you usually only have to buy the backpacking gear once every 5-10 years because it is also very durable.
Planning
If you love planning, then this might seem like a perk to you. But, backpacking takes a lot of planning in all aspects.
You have to plan your route, plan your gear, plan to have food, plan your water intake, & plan for emergencies. There is so much that goes into a backpacking trip, whether it be for a few days or a few months.
You need to plan your route & make sure that you’ll make it to the desired destinations in a timely manner.
Planning what food to bring so you have enough calories, while not taking up too much room in your backpack might also seem like a challenge.
You’ll need to plan the weight of your gear so you’re not miserable during your trip, plus you’ll need to have enough water, but not too much to weigh you down.
Also keep in mind that you’ll be in a remote location, which means an emergency can become way more serious without help nearby. You’ll have to be extra careful to plan ahead for any emergencies that might happen while you’re out.
If you don’t love planning, then this might deter you from wanting to go on a backpacking trip. I hope you’ll at least try it out once though!
Comfort
It’s no secret that hiking for long distances with a heavy backpack and then sleeping on a tiny sleeping pad isn’t the most comfortable activity in the world.
If you’re backcountry camping in cold weather, it can be especially difficult to find comfort.
You’re also not eating gourmet meals on your trip. After a long day of hiking, you’re probably eating a pack of ramen noodles or some other freeze-dried meal. This might not seem comfortable to some.
Backpacking can be comfortable to a degree with the right gear, but you’ll really need to test out different gear to find what feels best to you.
If you’re looking for an activity to relax and be comfortable, then you might not want to go on a backpacking trip.
Structured
Right along with all the planning, backpacking is very structured. You have to stick to a schedule so you make it to where you’re going without running out of supplies.
You’ll need to hike a certain amount of miles each day, and eat the right amount of your food so you don’t run out too soon.
If you’re looking for a relaxing camping trip where you can be lazy, then the structuring of backpacking might not be the best option for you.
FAQ
Conclusion
Deciding which is the better choice between car camping vs. backpacking is going to depend on you. Your personal preference might be for an easy & quick camping trip out of your car. Or you might want to have a ton of alone time & epic views on a backpacking trip. Regardless, you can decide based on all of these pros & cons to determine which option fits your needs better.
Our Favorite Must-Have Camping Gear
Gazelle T4
Hub Tent
Jackery Solar
Generator
Qomotop Self-Inflating Mattress
THERMACELL MOSQUITO REPELLER
Basic Camping Packing List
If this is your first time camping, or you need a refresh, then here is a free download for our Basic Camping Packing List. It is a full list of the basic items you need to bring for a successful camping trip.
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