I know tons of people who have gone to sleep away camp for years and love it so much. I, on the other hand, went to sleep away camp for one year and absolutely hated it. After years of attending and working at day camps, I've come to the realization that I don't want to be anywhere else. Here's why.
1. No homesickness
Okay yes, I'll always have a five-year-old who misses their mommy. However, there aren't too many of them and the homesickness can be forgotten rather quickly. At sleepaway camp, the majority of the younger kids' cabins will be crying every night due to being homesick, which isn't something I could handle.
2. The price
Parents love day camp because it's a lot cheaper than sleep away camp. Don't get me wrong-- it's still pretty expensive. However, parents are much more eager to pay around $2,000 than $6,000.
3. You get a break
As much as I love working at camp, my favorite part of the day is when I go home and just lie on my couch and watch tv. At sleep away camp, campers and counselors alike have no escape from the craziness that is camp.4. Food
One thing that sleep away camp is known for is the awful food. However, at most day camps you bring your own food, so you won't have that problem. Also if you have allergies or are just picky like me it's hard to figure out what at sleep away camp you can eat. At day camp I just make my own lunch.
5. Local Friends
Even if a sleep away camp is fairly local or has a lot of people from your area attending, there's a good chance that the friends you make will live far away. At day camp this isn't a problem, and you can see all your camp friends year-round!
6. Choices
Sure sleep away camps sometimes have a "free period" but for the most part, you do what your bunk is scheduled to do. In day camps you not only get the choice of what kind of camp you want to attend (yes, I'm sure there are sleep away camps for soccer but there are a lot more day camps for something like that), but within the camp, you can have choices about which activities you want to do.
7. Air conditioning
I'm sure there are some luxury sleep away camps that do have air conditioning, and I know that there are some day camps without AC or just outside all day. However, I get to sleep in an air-conditioned room every night. Bet lots of you sleep away-campers can't say that.
8. Better sleeping conditions
Now I know not everyone has a bed at home that's bigger than a twin and has their own room, but I'm pretty sure most of you don't spend the year in a room with 11 others. If you go to day camp you don't have to deal with the uncomfortable beds while sounds of crying, coughing, and sleep talking surround you.
