Camp for a night in a national park
A friend has invited you to do this with them.
A night in a tent keeps you in a national park after the day visitors have gone home, for the dusk, the dark and the dawn. On Dartmoor you may backpack camp on some of the commons for a night or two, and the US National Park Service publishes a guide for first-time campers.
ModerateUnder £100 / $130An afternoonOutdoorsAlone or with othersUK and US
How to start
- Check Dartmoor National Park Authority's camping map for where backpack camping is allowed, or read the National Park Service's How to Camp pages.
- Borrow or hire a small tent, a sleeping bag and a mat, and try them out at home first.
- Carry everything in on foot, light no fires and take all your rubbish away with you.
Where to go
We opened these links on 8 October 2026 and found them to be what we say. Dates, places and prices are on the official page, where they stay up to date.
Plan this
Pick a day, or a month, and we will set out how to get ready, step by step, with a date and a reason for each. The hard part of a day out is the timing: the right season, tickets and getting there. The plan watches the calendar for you.
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