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10 Top Tips for the Best Summer Camp Experience

In case you haven’t seen already, I went on two summer camps in 2014 and 2015. I returned to the same camp in 2015 because of how awesome of an experience I had out there. So here I am to provide ten top tips for having the best summer camp experience for yourselves.

Advice for Making the Most of Summer Camp

1. Be bold, be different. So one of the main reasons I went to the states was to experience a different culture. Little did I realise how nervous I would be on the plane there and how I didn’t want to initiate conversation. When finally in camp though, one of the first things I did was avoid the temptation to hop straight into bed after the jetlag. Instead, I hit up the staff room, socialised with strangers (albeit absolutely shattered) and made some of the best friends of my life in those short hours.
2. Make friends with security. An easy one this. You’ll thank them later when they save your butt from being fired for being caught doing all sorts beyond curfew…
3. Go on all of the evening activities. Camp isn’t all about the kids you know. Well yeah, it kind of is… But the camp you work at make it an enjoyable experience for staff too. They line up all sorts of activities so you in the evenings, so make sure you sign up to every trip you possibly can to Walmart – you’ll need the break!
4. Drink water. You sure as hell don’t want to be ‘that guy’ who fainted because of dehydration!
5. Bond well in staff week. Sure, you may be crapping yourself to introduce yourself to so many new faces, but you won’t regret it. You’ll be turning strangers into best friends in this period so make the most of it!
6. Call home. Whenever you have a bar of signal out of camp (all camps seem to have no signal by the way!), make sure to fill them in on what’s been going on. To everyone back in the UK, you’re living the life. They are jealous and want to know how you’re doing!
7. Spend money. If you’re going all that way and work that hard then you have to make the most of the experience. Take some spending money with you, embrace the hotels experience and visit as much as you can.
8. On that note, photos! When you’re home, you want to look back at the memories, show your friends exactly what you have been up to. Take plenty, share plenty and treasure them forever – not everyone gets this experience!
9. Social Media. Add, follow, subscribe. Whatever you do, ADD FRIENDS. Some of the people you have just spent 2 months with you will never see again. These people come from all over the world so make sure you add them so you stay in touch! Who knows, you may arrange a reunion later down the line!
10. Stay up late. Embrace the early wake ups and beyond curfew stay up times. Make sure to take in maximum amount of  experience you can. If you’re going to be going to bed early, you’ll be missing out on a lot of socialising.

Still reading? How about you check out my Diary of American Summer Camp book here? It’s available from Amazon and all good bookstores.  Be sure to leave your comments below on any tips you have to make the most of your American Summer Camp experience!