Choosing a Summer Camp, Camp Fairs and Tips for Making Camp More Affordable
Choosing a summer camp is always a complicated algorithm of deciding between myriad choices: day or sleep away camps, staying in the city or sending the kids to the country, all-around or specialized sports, arts or science camps...but this year there is another factor that is weighing heavily into family summer planning and that is finances.
One thing that can help making a decision about summer camp easier is going to a camp fair. There are four Camp Fairs coming up. At the upcoming New York Family Camp Fairs you'll find over 40 day and sleep-away camps represented for kids from preschools to teens. You can meet camp directors, ask them your questions and get a feeling of the camp's personality, plus get information and applications all in one place. Believe me, that's a lot easier than calling each camp individually to request their cheesy video brochure (you'll plenty of those at the camp fair too).
The New York Family Camp Fairs promise to have camp options at all price points, but if you're looking for more ways to cut camp costs this summer, you might want to check out this page with ideas for how to keep summer camp affordable.
Four Upcoming Camp Fairs:
1/24: UPPER EAST SIDE :: St. Jean Baptiste School 12-3pm
1/25: UPPER WEST SIDE :: Congregation Rodeph Sholom 12-3pm
2/7: DOWNTOWN :: Friends Seminary School 12-3pm
2/8: BROOKLYN :: Berkely Carroll School 12-3pm
All Camp Fairs are free, but visit NewYorkFamily.com for more information and to register in advance to be entered to win a family vacation. And say tuned for our updated camp guide which will be coming in a couple of weeks and have lots of affordable camp options.
If you have a child with
If you have a child with Special Needs you may go to the 24th annual free Special Camp Fair this Saturday, January 31, 2009. It is sponsored by Resources for Children with Special Needs (212) 677-4650. It is from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Church of St. Paul the Apostle. The entrance is on Columbus Avenue near West 60th. Representatives from 70 NYC Day camps and Sleepaway camps will be there.
On a personal note - I sent my 7 y.o. son with Autism to sleep away camp two years ago. It was one of the best experiences of his life. He continues to go to camp every year. I encourage parents of children with special needs to go to this Camp Fair and see what is out there. There are scholarships available.
Thank you for adding that.
Thank you for adding that. The Special Needs Camp Fair is an amazing resource for families. I am planning a separate post about it.
Thanks for the great info. I
Thanks for the great info. I am a volunteer for the American Camp Assocation and have produced several camp fairs in recent years in Los Angeles, CA. Summer camp fairs are a great way to find a camp.
Hello! Did you post about
Hello!
Did you post about the special needs camp fair? We live in Florida but are from NY and would like to come up in the summer, but we'd like our girls to attend a camp up there while we are visiting.
Any ideas?
Thanks!
I'm sending my kids to camp
I'm sending my kids to camp for the first time this year! I'm very nervous but very excited for them. When trying to find the camp that would best suit them, I did alot of research. I finally found one close to home and the counselors are great! They gave me many tips on how to prepare my first time campers. The next thing I had to do was figure out what to pack for them. One of the best things that they suggested was getting them a prepaid phone called the Motorola W376 from TracFone. Service is as little as $7 a month for the minimal contact needed to be in touch. They have a feature called the double minutes feature which gives you 120 minutes for under $20 for 3 months. This is great because this is all they're going to need in order to keep in contact with me while they're at camp. The phone must have been designed for children. I bought it for them and as they described it..."ITS SO COOL, MOM!" It has a camera ( so they can send me pictures throughout the summer), and it comes in built in games for the plane rides. They love it.
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