7 Unforgettable Sleepaway Camp Experiences for Kids (2024)

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When you’re a kid, a night away from home is an irresistible first taste of freedom. Multiply that by a few weeks, add in cool camp counselors, new friends, and fun activities that celebrate personal interests, and you're guaranteed a summer to remember.

Sleepaway camps are often the first time that kids are given parent-free space to grow, where they can learn everything from budgeting skills, to outdoor survival tips, to the words to Sweet Caroline.

“I think it really just opens your eyes and makes you excited about the world,” says Laurie Kaiden, the director of Maine Camp Experience (MCE), a collection of camps in the state that welcome more than 20,000 kids annually. “The experiences make you more worldly. You gain confidence, independence, resilience, and all these great life skills.”

For many kids, sleepaway camp is the first step towards a life where travel feels like second-nature. “I think it gives them the confidence and wanderlust that helps when they’re picking a college or deciding what to do next in life,” says Kaiden. In her “Campcierge” role with MCE, she helps parents figure out the best camp for their would-be camper.

It’s no easy feat. Like kids, camps come in all shapes and sizes. What's right for your child: Single gender or co-ed? Short stay or multi-week? General experience or focused interest? Kaiden suggests that families consider their child’s likes and dislikes, their needs—some camps cater exclusively to kids with specific accessibility or chronic health needs—and the effect camping may have on family plans. (Hint: kids are rarely looking for less time at camp after their first year away.) And if you're unsure if your kid is up for it? Test the waters with a sleepover at a friend’s house first. The kid who comes home excited and asking for more may be sleepaway ready.

Once your litmus test is complete, it's time to pick from the best sleepaway camps out there. Below, we spotlight seven unique camps from around the U.S. that are sure to tempt your kid off the Internet and into the great outdoors.

Camp Laurel, Mount Vernon, Maine

Best for: Kids in search of a classic sleepaway experience, with some twists

It’s not unusual to spot a kid flying through the air or mastering the art of sushi rolling at this historic property. About 500 kids head for the shores of Echo Lake each summer for a seven-week immersion. Younger campers have a daily schedule of core activities, including swimming and tennis, but as they get older they get more elective options, which include access to an on-site aerial park and “Chef Camp.” Sport competitions with neighboring camps bolster camp spirit, and weekly camp-wide Special Days can include a trip off-campus to a water park or a Halloween in July celebration.

Book online; seven weeks start at $14,700.

Stage Door Manor, Catskills, New York

Best for: Theater kids

If your kid is an aspiring actor, spending a summer with the program that helped train Mandy Moore and Robert Downey Jr. will likely be a hit. This total theatre immersion experience attracts kids ages 10 to 18 from around the world. Camp staff include vocal coaches, directors, and choreographers, and every kid is cast in one of about 40 shows produced over the summer. Kids share dorm-style rooms in a former hotel and spend time in classes that range from musical theater performance to film acting and stage combat. Non-stage time includes non-competitive sports, pool swims, open mic nights, and movie viewings outdoors.

Book online; three weeks start at $6,345.

Camp Natoma, Adelaida Mountains, California

Best for: The outdoors lover (or the outdoors-curious)

From the moment they board the camp bus together in Paso Robles, these kids are outside. Set on a protected 260-acre oak woodland, this 80-year-old camp offering keeps kids outdoors and active. Campers range from first grade to tenth and are divided across five sites. Younger kids can expect twice-a-day pool time, along with activities that run the gamut from hikes and geocaching to group games and skits. Older kids also have opportunities for team building and leadership training. A screened dining room is used for meals, but everything from sleeping to showers (leave your hot water dreams at home) happens underneath the open sky.

Book online; one week starts at $875.

Space Camp, Huntsville, Alabama

Best for: Future astronauts

For kids who dream of extra-terrestrial beings and the spacewalks that might help find them, this collection of weeklong camps in Alabama is a must. Camps are split according to age groups (as young as nine) and interests (there are robotics, aviation, and cyber technology options). The camp’s location at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center offers hands-on simulators and gravity-defying opportunities that allow kids to train like real astronauts in the very spot that once played a key role in putting a man on the moon. Space Camp is a six-day, five-night program, and kids have the option of purchasing an authentic flight suit to add to the experience. (Fun fact: 61 percent of Space Camp grads are currently studying or are pursuing careers in STEM, and 15 graduates have gone on to work with NASA or the European equivalent—two are currently on the International Space Station.)

Book online; one week starts at $1,499.

Camp Med-O-Lark, Washington, Maine

Best for: Creative minds

This sprawling collection of cabins set on the shores of a three-mile lake in Maine is a creative kid’s haven. Forget mandatory activities: every camper at the co-ed arts colony crafts their own schedule of favorite things. Options include more than 50 age- and gender-mixed activities and workshops in performing and fine arts, culinary skills, dance, sports, water fun, and more. Each week includes an off-campus activity and evening events bring the whole camp together. A range of program lengths, from two to eight weeks, makes it easy to fit camp into other family summer plans.

Book online; four weeks start at $7,100.

Science Camps of America, Big Island, Hawai‘i

Best for: Budding explorers

If your kid’s idea of summer fun is turning over rocks and peeking out through telescopes in outdoor “classrooms” alongside scientists and explorers, this is the camp for them. Teens choose between a Land & Sea program (including time spent at the world’s most active volcano) or the Air & Space track (where the fun includes building a rocket) for the weeklong experience. But it’s not all brain work: Campers hike, swim, and explore the island as well. Home base is Pahala Plantation Cottages, where campers from around the world are grouped together in homes that are only a five-minute walk from the main learning locations.

Book online; nine days start at $2,395.

Teton Valley Ranch Camp, Jackson Hole, Wyoming

Best for: Wild west enthusiasts

Each summer 300 campers, from the ages of 11 to 16, gather in the foothills of Yellowstone National Park for a 30-day adventure. The camp, set on 2,300 acres of land and surrounded by protected lands, offers kids a chance to find their grit—every camper completes a backpacking trip and a horse pack trip during their stay—and hone their appreciation for the history of the American west. City kids are in for a treat with wildlife that can include elk and moose in the area. Alongside developing horsemanship, campers spend time fishing, climbing, hiking, and participating in Sunday rodeos. And, of course, stories and songs around the campfire are the norm.

Book online; four weeks start at $7,350.