How to Keep Insects & Bugs Away While Camping

Most avid adventurers will tell you that camping & caravanning is always good idea. But, unfortunately, being outdoors means insects and bugs are all just part of the experience.

Don't let the bugs, the creepy crawlies and the little critters scare you away from enjoying your holiday. A bit of planning and holiday preparedness will go a long way to ensure a leisurely holiday.

1. Dress for the environment

Are you dressed to impress? That might be ideal on date night or a long-lost catch up with your bestie, but less impressive when camping.

Dress for the environment. Packing your backpack with long sleeves and pants to guard against the pesky insects while on vacation will save the bacon. A great way to avoid insects when on holiday is by wearing suitable clothing - this means long sleeves and pants. Insects thrive upon exposed skin, so minimizing the amount you have will help keep them at bay! To stay comfortable in your summertime, make sure it's light enough for warmer conditions.

2. Good insect repellent

The poor 'lil pests are not fans of insect repellents.

The go-to method of keeping bugs and creepy crawlies away is traditional bug spray or cream, which is easy to find and highly accessible. Supermarkets, the petrol station, convenience stores and even plenty of post offices sell insect repellers.

You may have seen DEET written all over the packaging of many insect repellent brands. DEET, known as N, N-Diethyl-meta-toluamidee, is the active ingredient in many insect repellents. This chemical is excellent at preventing mosquito bites, especially in more wild, humid environments. Products with DEET should only ever be applied per the manufacturer's instructions, as it can cause skin and eye irritation.

3. Mosquito Coils

A practical alternative to combat an influx of bugs and insects is creating smoke from burning mosquito candles and coils. From our experience, these products work well when used according to their instructions.

4 Keep your food hidden

Everyone loves a good meal after a day of adventure – including all the insects.

To avoid them having their way at our dinner table, keep all food sealed in containers or with cling wrap until after you're done eating – then dispose of it sooner rather than later - ASAP where possible. Remember to rinse any used bottle or cans thoroughly before giving away; otherwise, you'll quickly be inundated with insects again.