What kind of camping do you want to do? How can you choose?

Tent camping: Investing in a tent or borrowing a tent is pretty easy. Do you want to rough it? Tent camping doesn’t have to mean roughing it, unless you want to! You can:
Bring air mattresses to make sleeping more comfortable (even a box fan if you have electricity)... At Riverside Resort, we have the ability to run a long extension cord out to where you are camping.
Bring a cook stoves and any other kitchen item to make cooking easier.
Use picnic tables so you don’t have to sit on the ground.
Bring those fancy collapsible chairs that even recline. You can even take a nap in them.

Camper/RV camping: If tenting isn’t your thing, then perhaps you want to rent or use a camper. There certainly are busier times than others, so try to plan ahead. If you are lucky, you might be able to borrow one from a friend also.
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Rent a cabin: Some people call renting a cabin “Camping.” Although it isn’t tent or RV “Camping,” it certainly is a way to enjoy many of the same experiences as tenting or RVing has to offer. At Riverside Resort, we have 21 different cabins to choose from. 

What do you want to do?
As you are planning your camping trip with the kids think about what and how you want that experience to be. Are there activities that you would like to do? What are the “must haves” and the “nice to haves?”
Boat, Swim, Cook over the fire, Hike, Bike, Fish, Play games, Movies, Eating out, Scheduled activities at Riverside Resort are definitely a favorite of our guests!
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Who will be going?
How large of a group will you have? Will you be camping with just the family? Will you invite grandma and grandpa? How many sites or cabins will you be needing? Think about if you want to have your kids bring a friend along. There are certainly pros and cons to camping with a larger group and extended family.

Once you have thought through all these questions and have finally booked your "camping trip", just think about how beneficial this will be for the whole family. It will be an "unplugged" time where you can all just enjoy one another and beautiful world around you!

Pros:

You can really relax. As a resort owner I have heard so many times that it take 3 days to really start relaxing. The first couple days you start to decompress and then starting the third day the stress level starts to go down. So, by the time you are on day 5 you are feeling good!

Use more amenities at the resort. If you have a full week, you may have the time to partake in all or at least more of the activities or amenities that the resort offers. You will have time to take both the canoe and the kayak out. You may take the time to sit in all the beach chairs at the beach. You may take the time to have a conversation with the friendly resort owner.

You can spend days doing nothing. Perhaps you have no interest in taking day trips to see area attractions. Sitting and doing nothing can be awesome. Doing a full week of that… well… even MORE awesome.

You can really get to know an area in a week. If you are new to an area and want to get to know the area, by staying a full week you will have time to hit the attractions that everyone goes to AND you will have time to see some that aren’t as popular, but are just as good.

Bad weather day isn’t a big deal. You cannot control the weather, so it is not beneficial to get angry with the weather (not always easy to avoid though!). But, if you have a full week, having a rain or wind day (or two) isn’t as big of an impact. You can spend time in the cabin playing games, bake something new or special, have a reading or movie marathon. Or maybe go to the Riverside Inn. There you could take advantage of their indoor pool area, which includes a hot tub! 

You may have some alone time and some together time: Maybe you are vacationing with other families or adult children and not everyone can stay the full week. Hurray! That can be a good thing. You can spread out the visits throughout the whole week. Or perhaps….. you will have some together time with the family and some quieter time, too. Ah, the best of both worlds!
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Cons:

More time away from work. It may not be easy to get all the time away from work that you want. You may not have many weeks of vacation. Or perhaps you don’t feel like you can take a full week away from work. That is another topic all together. But, it is a reality. Taking time off is a gift to you and your employer. Do try to take some time away.

More time with the whole family. Although this is also a pro, it sometimes is a con as well. Families can be complicated. You may be vacationing with extended family, or with your adult children, or perhaps with your minor children. It isn’t always easy. It is rewarding and worth the effort. But… not always easy.

Kids may not want to be away from their friends that long. Your kids may say that they don’t want to be away from their friends or activities for that long. But, later on when asked what they remember most about their childhood, many talk about their vacations.

You don’t know how to relax for a whole week. Relaxing may take practice. Many people are so busy with their lives that the thought of not having anything structured for a full week is overwhelming. Again, practice makes perfect. If a week seems overwhelming, then try a weekend, then a long weekend. Work up to a full week vacation.
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It is usually less expensive! Yes that is right. For most Minnesota Resorts if you stay 4 or 5 nights the rate is the same as a full week. So, if you were thinking of staying 4 nights, why not stretch it out? The cost may not be more!