Camping Pros and Cons

Why camp when you can stay in a motel, hotel or lodge?  There's more to it than just saving money, although that is very substantial. See cost comparisons on this page, and compare other aspects  of camping vs. motels/etc. below.

Aspect	Camping	Motels	Hotels	Lodges
Cost	Cheapest, by a huge margin
Flexibility	Many campgrounds do not require reservations and always have room for another tent, and cost little, so if you want to change plans and stay longer somewhere else or change your route, it's easy to do.
Education	Again, camping you family learns new skills. Whether it is cooking, camping in the wild, seeing wildlife up close, talking with other campers from many other places, there is plenty of learning.
Experience	Camping beats the others, no doubt. On a recent trip to Yellowstone, we showered in a popup tent by a hot spring that emptied into the river and watched as a bison calmly walked past us.
Family	Building incredible experiences, spending time together and working as a team, splitting up tasks (kids spread out the air mattresses and sleeping bags, set up the lights while mom and dad get dinner ready, older kids can set up the tent. Of course, if your family is normally dysfunctional and hostile towards each other, camping WON'T make that better. Never go camping with a narcissist or an angry emotionally troubled person.	You can get separate rooms for people in your party who are a pain in the you know what. Of course, that costs...	You can get separate rooms for people in your party who are a pain in the you know what. Of course, that costs...	You can get separate rooms for people in your party who are a pain in the you know what. Of course, that costs...
Weather	Except on the rare exceptionally hot night in the Southeast or East Coast, or in heavy rains (again rare) camping is incredibly pleasant! Just be sure to take good equipment (see this page for tents and this one for sleeping mattresses)	Better on hot nights and heavy rains	Better on hot nights and heavy rains	Better on hot nights and heavy rains
Bugs	Most destinations are almost insect free: On a cross country camping trip, we never once needed deet nor were bitten or annoyed by bugs. They're usually only bad near stagnant water - so look into that before you go!	Better during July-September in buggy areas, like near stagnant water along the east coast, swampy areas in the soouth.	Better during July-September in buggy areas, like near stagnant water along the east coast, swampy areas in the soouth.	Better during July-September in buggy areas, like near stagnant water along the east coast, swampy areas in the soouth.

Conclusion

When planning your trip, choose times and places that are not likely to have super hot nights nor regular heavy rains. If you do this, and your family or group get along, it will be much better than staying in a motel or hotel.