Camping is "cool" – that seems to have been the thinking that prompted various designers to put their names to ranges of tents, sleeping bags and wellingtons. Some ranges have sold, others have crashed and burned.

Maybe that's because the names of the designers are not recognised by those outside La-La land. Or it could be customers are wising up to the premiums demanded when a designer's name is attached to a product (£30 extra on a tent, £10 or more on a sleeping bag, £10 on a pair of wellies).

For many, the thought of spending a week in a tent isn't an option. Maybe they've been put off by seeing Glastonbury on television or they've watched a rerun of Carry On Camping and think that camping hasn't changed much since then.

For others, it's an affordable way of getting a weekend, week, fortnight or month away in the UK or further afield, despite the financial climate. Once the initial investment is made on a tent, sleeping bags, sleeping mats, airbeds, lighting, chairs, water carriers and a stove, the cost of an overnight on a campsite is a fraction of what it would be in a guesthouse, B&B or hotel.

Think in terms of £10 per night for two on a campsite compared with £65 per night for two in a B&B.

It's currently possible to pick up a family starter tent pack for about £100 that contains a four-person tent plus sleeping bags and three airbeds. Add to this a pump for the airbed (£5-10), lighting (£10-20), chairs (four for £30 or less), a water carrier (£5) and a stove (£13 to £50).

Tot this up, factor in the number of years use it's going to get and then divide the figure by four to get the overall cost per person per year of usage.

How to choose your kit? Prices have been competitive again this year. But as the weather has been disappointing, I suspect that as the school holidays get going, prices may well come down. There are several players on the high street and in the retail parks. Chain stores may not have space to show tents to their best effect. Independent retailers in larger premises may have more room.

The family tent I chose wasn't the cheapest or the dearest. It offered plenty of space and had a dividing "wall" that could be hung in the sleeping area for an element of privacy and was big enough to stand up in.

Another bonus was a good hydrostatic head. This is the measurement of how waterproof the flysheet fabric is. Today 2,000mm is the norm but some now offer a 3,000mm or 5,000mm hydrostatic head.

Our Vango Venture has a figure of 2,000mm (very useful on Orkney last year), but the latest version – Vango's Tamor 500 – has 3,000mm. The tent also has a good porch area, two entrance doors and windows in the porch to let more light in. Others may prefer tents with several bedrooms or massive bedrooms, ample storage space and a larger porch. Tents such as Outwell's Hartford XL were in several tent suppliers' top buys last year, largely because of the quality, the competitive price for its size and the number it can sleep.

There can be a penalty for buying bigger. Some campsites charge double for overly large tents.

With the tent and kit purchased, where to book? We're rejoining the Camping and Caravanning Club which lists its own sites and those certified by them, along with independent and farm sites.

Any other pluses to camping? How about opening the door on a different view every day or week? Having breakfast while gazing on to the English, Scottish, Welsh or Irish mountains? Or the Cornish coastline? The harbour at Kirkwall on Orkney? Or staring at The Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau on a campsite at Interlaken?

There's always the Dales in autumn, as I discovered when I first moved to Yorkshire four years ago and spent six weeks living on a campsite before I found a flat.

Further reading:

Camping Magazine – monthly magazine looking at all types of camping experiences

The Camping and Caravanning Club – www.campingandcaravan club.org.uk