Periods While Camping: What to Pack

Camping with a tween who has her period, or might get it while you are away, is one of those things that feels trickier than it is. The catch with camping is the basics we take for granted at home: running water, a flushing loo, a bin that is not a hundred metres away in the dark. Sort those out in advance and a period on a family camp, a holiday or a school camp is just a normal few days. Here is a mum-to-mum pack list and a few tips so she is set up and not caught out.

This guide is about family camping and holidays. If you are packing specifically for a school camp, our school camp period kit checklist is the one to print and tick off, and packing a period kit for camp, school or a sleepover covers the bag itself.

Why camping needs a different pack

At home she can change, rinse and bin things without a second thought. Camping takes those away, so the pack leans on a few simple swaps:

• Limited water. No tap to rinse at, so wipes do the clean-up instead.
• Limited bins. Fewer places to throw disposables, and you carry out what you bring in. Reusable undies mean almost nothing to bin.
• Shared and bush toilets. Less privacy and less light, so everything wants to be grab-and-go in one pouch.
• You are out all day. Hikes, the beach, day trips. She needs a small back-up on her, not just the main kit at the tent.

The camping period pack list

This covers a few nights away. Scale it up or down for how long you are gone and how heavy her flow runs.

• Enough period underwear for every day, plus spares. Reusable undies are made for camping: nothing to insert, nothing to bin, and they double as her clean-up-free option. The Tween 5-Pack Bundle ($99) covers a full period week in one go.
• Intimate water wipes. The hero item when there is no tap. Gentle, pH-balanced, and they let her sort herself out anywhere.
• A wet bag or laundry bag. Used undies go straight in, zipped away and out of sight until you are home or somewhere you can rinse. No smell, no fuss.
• A waterproof neoprene pouch. Keeps the kit dry in a tent, a daypack or the boot. This is what she grabs on the way to the toilet block.
• Heat patches for cramps. They stick under clothes and warm up on their own, so no campfire or hot water needed. A real help on a cold morning in a sleeping bag.
• Hand sanitiser and a head torch. Two camping staples that make a night-time change far easier.
• A few zip-lock bags. For carrying out any disposables and keeping things separate.

Main kit at camp, small back-up for day trips

Set her up with two layers. The main kit stays at the tent or cabin: her week of undies, the wet bag, spare wipes, the lot. For day trips out from camp, a hike or a beach afternoon, she carries a small back-up on her. The Period Emergency Kit ($29) is built for exactly this: a slim pouch with the essentials for a short outing, carried alongside her main kit, never instead of it. It means a surprise start on the walking track is a two-minute stop, not a hike back to camp.

If you would rather buy one thing and be done, the Ultimate First Period Kit ($89) is the most complete main kit, and the First Period Tween Starter Kit ($49) is the simple starting point. You can see the range in the first period kits for tweens and teens.

A few camp-day tips

• Pack as if it will arrive, even if it is not due. First periods love to turn up away from home. A kit in the bag means no last-minute dash.
• Do a dry run of the toilet block in daylight. Knowing where to go and where to bin or stash things takes the stress out of the first time at night.
• Rinse undies when you can. A spare water bottle or the camp tap at the end of the day, then back in the wet bag. They will be fine to wash properly at home.
• Layer dark bottoms. Leggings or shorts she feels safe in mean she can get on with the day without checking over her shoulder.

Frequently asked questions

What period products are best for camping?
Reusable period underwear with water wipes and a wet bag are the easiest combo when water and bins are limited. There is nothing to insert and almost nothing to bin.

How do you manage a period camping without running water?
Wipes replace the rinse for clean-ups, reusable undies go into a sealed wet bag until you can wash them, and hand sanitiser plus a head torch make night changes simple. Rinse undies when you next reach a tap.

What if her first period starts at camp?
Pack a kit before you go even if it is not due, so she is sorted on the spot. Take our first period quiz to gauge how close she is, and the free first period checklist to pack everything in one go.

Should she carry a kit on day trips from camp?
Yes. Keep the main kit at the tent and give her a small back-up like the Period Emergency Kit for hikes, beach trips and short outings, so a surprise start is a quick stop rather than a long walk back.

New to all of this? Our guide to the best first period kit in Australia walks through which kit suits which situation.