Tent security and how to keep your tent safe while camping is an important aspect of camping. After all, you want to feel safe and secure whilst you are out camping, and enjoy the fresh air and countryside rather than worrying about personal safety and the security of your possessions.
In this article, I’ll take a look at how to keep your tent safe while camping, as well as looking at some other safety and security tips to make your next camping trip safer and more secure.
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Table of Contents
Tent Security 101
So lets look at tent security and what you can do to have a more secure tent.
Let’s make no bones about this – tent security is extremely hard.
It’s a shelter made of thin material at the end of the day, but hopefully the ideas, tips and suggestions in this article will help you make your tent more secure, and give you more peace of mind.
Choosing Your Camp Site Wisely
The best way to stay safe and secure whilst camping is to choose your camp site wisely.
Read reviews and research the area in which you are looking to go camping beforehand – research is king.
UKcampsite.co.uk is a good website that offers a huge amount of information and reviews about campsites, even if it does look outdated and there’s ads all over it – but well worth a look.
Some campsites also have some sort of security personnel patrolling the campsites, with some even having a 24/7 presence.
If security is of concern to you, then choose a campsite that has security.
The more rural you are also reduces the risk, as you won’t have criminals from towns and cities close by.
Love Thy Neighbour
It’s in your best interests to at least say hello to your fellow campers.
You don’t need to know everything about them, but what you do need to do is get them to remember you and your party, and hopefully you will remember them.
And a friendly chat does nobody any harm, does it? you may even pick up some tips about the camp site and some info on the local area.
But why? I just want to keep myself o myself whilst camping.
Love Thy Neighbour is the theme here – by getting to know who is next to or around you, and your neighbours knowing you, then there’s a greater chance of someone who is not from the camping party being identified – especially useful if it’s a criminal snooping around tents.
So if you’re out one day and your neighbours are in, and a person starts snooping around your tent or trying to access it, your neighbours can either challenge them, or raise the alarm at the camp site.
Whatever way you look at it, talking to your camp site neighbours is an easy way to keep your tent safe while camping.
Travel Light & Cheap
You really don’t need to bring your laptop or tablet camping, but if you really need your tablet for the evening or for entertainment, consider investing in a cheap tablet that will still play Netflix and Youtube etc.
No point in bringing an £800 iPad and then worrying about it whilst you are out exploring for the day.
Bring the neccessities, and ditch the expensive equipment that you really don’t need.
You can even take the time whilst camping to do a digital detox.
Using Your Car
If you have valuables, use your car to store them.
Of course, don’t leave your valuables in clear view – if possible, try and hide them in hidden compartments or in your boot.
Your car is the most secure place – or at least more secure than your tent, so do use it especially when you’re out for the day.
A Padlock?
A pocket knife or any sharp instrument will be able to slash through the material of your tent in seconds, so using a padlock on zippers is a futile exercise.
However, from a psychological standpoint, using a padlock on the zipper when you’re asleep may give you some peace of mind – the same goes for when you leave your tent for the day. It also acts as a deterrent, because someone can’t simply walk up to your tent and enter it – they would have to either break the padlock or slash the material, which would draw much more attention from anybody close by.
However, others can perceive a padlock on a tent in a different way – some may think because there’s a padlock on it, there’s valuables inside.
Using a padlock is up to your risk perception and levels of peace of mind, but do remember that a sharp knife will enable anyone to gain access to your tent in a matter of seconds – padlock or no padlock.
The padlock below is recommended as a cheap padlock to increase the security of your tent, and will fit around even the smallest of holes in a zip.
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Bike Security
One thing that you may have with you is bicycles.
Bikes are easy to steal if they are not secured. Make sure you secure your bikes to anything that is feasible near to your camp spot.
If you can’t secure them to something, secure them to your car, van or motorhome.
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Motion Sensor Lights
Hanging a motion sensor light outside your tent at night is a great idea, and will help with tent security.
The light will come on when it detects movement near to your tent – an excellent deterrent, especially if things are really dark in the area where you’re camping.
These motion sensor lights are lightweight, small and portable – they also work off solar power, so no need to charge them or replace batteries.
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Related Articles
Here’s some related articles you might find useful:
- Vanlife Security
- 75 Ways To improve Home Security
- 25 Ways To Improve Garage Security
- Best Way to Secure Your Bike
Questions & Comments
As ever, if you have any questions or comments on how to keep your tent safe while camping, or tent security and camping in general, then please use the form below to submit your comment.
Do you agree with our tips on tent security and making your tent more secure? What are your best tips to have a secure tent? Leave your comments below. All comments are welcome, read, and responded to.
