Bikepacking and cycle touring with Children: Our Guide

Everything you need to take children bikepacking off-road: trailers, tag-alongs, tents, sleeping bags, route planning tips and how to keep children warm and motivated on a multi-day trip.

Bikepacking with children is entirely possible. It just requires a different approach to planning, packing, and managing expectations.

The distances shrink. The kit list grows. The pace slows right down. But the reward is something you simply can't replicate on a day ride: multiple days of moving through the world together, sleeping outside, and discovering that your children are more capable adventurers than you gave them credit for.

Planning a family bikepacking trip

How your child travels: trailer, tag-along, or riding solo

The single biggest variable in your planning is how your child is travelling. It changes everything: how far you can go, what terrain is realistic, and how much weight you're carrying.

A trailer suits younger children and gives you the most control over pace. You're carrying the child's weight, which adds significant drag on climbs. The upside is a predictable rhythm: the child can rest or sleep, and you cover ground steadily. Choose a trailer with off-road-capable wheels (20" is the standard) if you're planning gravel or trail riding.

A tag-along attaches the child's bike to yours so they pedal but you steer and take the weight on hills. It's a good middle ground for children who want to be part of the riding rather than passengers. Options worth knowing about: the Trailgator and WeeRide are well-established choices, while the Follow Me Tandem uses a quick-release coupling that lets the child detach and ride independently, then reconnect when the terrain gets harder or they tire. That flexibility makes it particularly useful on a multi-day trip where conditions vary. Be aware that any tag-along changes your bike's handling significantly, particularly on narrow singletrack or technical descents. Stick to smoother surfaces and wider paths with one attached.

A child riding their own bike opens up a different kind of trip. You move at their pace, which is slower and more unpredictable, but the sense of achievement for them is much greater. Many families combine approaches: a child rides under their own steam on easy sections and transfers to a tag-along or trailer when they tire or the terrain gets demanding. Plan the stages with this flexibility in mind.

Terrain, elevation and realistic daily distance

Elevation gain is the most underestimated factor in family route planning. A flat 20km day and a hilly 20km day are completely different propositions when you're towing a loaded trailer. Even modest climbs feel significant with 30kg behind you. Keep total elevation gain low, particularly on the first day while everyone is finding their rhythm.

If your child is riding independently, gradient affects them directly. A long drag that an adult barely notices can be demoralising for a child on a small bike. Look at the elevation profile before you commit to a route, not just the distance. Most mapping apps (Komoot, OS Maps, Trailforks) will show this clearly.

As a starting point: take your expected daily distance, cut it in half, then add an hour of buffer. You'll use it. Short days with time to explore, swim, or simply stop are far more enjoyable than arriving at camp exhausted and behind schedule.

Choosing your route: traffic-free trails and useful stops

Traffic-free routes such as the EuroVelo 6 along the Danube transform the experience. In the UK the Sustrans National Cycle Network has a huge number of traffic-free sections across the UK, many of which run through genuinely beautiful countryside. For off-road, look for forestry commission roads, canal towpaths (mostly flat, very child-friendly), and gravel tracks on OS maps. In Scotland, the Land Reform Act gives broad access rights which open up a lot of options for wild camping and off-road riding.

Plan stops around things children care about, not just distance. A play park, a river crossing, a good viewpoint, an ice cream stop: these become the landmarks the trip is measured against. Hotels and B&Bs can also be deliberately mixed in. There's nothing wrong with a wild camp one night and a warm bed the next, it often makes the wild camping feel more special, and it gives everyone a chance to dry kit and reset. Build in a bail-out option for every day. If a child has a bad night or the weather closes in, having a plan B removes the pressure entirely.

For more on the mindset shift that makes family adventures work, Bex shares hard-won tips for successful family adventures from years of doing exactly this.

Kit for bikepacking with children

Choosing an off-road child bike trailer

For younger children, a quality off-road trailer is the foundation of the whole setup. Look for larger wheels (20"), a solid single-arm attachment system, and enough interior space for the child plus overflow kit. Good trailers can take a balance bike strapped to the outside while still fitting a tent and mats inside. That flexibility matters when you're packing for multiple people.

Before you head out, check your mudguard coverage. Your rear wheel throws up a constant stream of mud and surface water, and without adequate guards it goes straight onto the child behind you. A full-length rear mudguard with a decent flap at the bottom makes a significant difference on wet or muddy trails. It's a small thing that's easy to overlook until you arrive at camp with a very unhappy, very muddy passenger.

As children get older and stronger, they can begin to carry their own gear. Even a small pack with their sleeping bag and a spare layer is a meaningful contribution, and they tend to take real pride in it.

Choosing a tent for family bikepacking

You want something light enough to carry on the bike but with enough headroom and floor space to settle children down at the end of a long day. The Frejus 2 is a good fit for young families: a lightweight two-person tunnel tent that packs small, pitches quickly, and handles British weather reliably. Pitching speed matters more than you'd think when you have tired, hungry children circling you.

For wild camping in Scotland, a freestanding or semi-freestanding pitch is worth prioritising. You're often working with rocky or uneven ground and want to be set up well before dusk.

Children's sleeping bags for bike touring

Children feel the cold more than adults and sleep poorly if they're not warm enough. A miserable night means a miserable day. Get the temperature rating right: a 2-season bag works for summer lowland camping, but if you're heading to the Highlands or camping in spring or autumn, go warmer. Our guide to sleeping bag temperature ratings explains what the numbers actually mean and how to match the bag to your conditions.

A down sleeping bag compresses far smaller than synthetic for the same warmth, which matters when space on the bike is tight. Junior-sized bags also make a real difference: an adult bag on a small body loses much of its warmth efficiency.

Bike bags and panniers for family tours

Children need a lot of immediate-access stuff: snacks, wet wipes, a spare layer, toys, hats, gloves. A handlebar bag is the right place for all of this. Keep it light but organised so you can reach in without stopping. Panniers on a second adult bike carry the heavier items: cooking equipment, sleeping bags, and clothes. The split between handlebar bag and panniers becomes instinctive quickly.

If your child is riding their own bike, a few small bags turn them into a proper member of the touring party. The Stem Cell mounts on the stem and puts snacks within reach while moving. Hand them responsibility for the ride's sweet supply and they will guard it with great seriousness (sharing is optional but encouraged). The Bilbie frame bag is designed to fit smaller frames and can carry a spare layer, a snack, or the things they insist on bringing but you'd rather not carry yourself. A Koala 2 litre saddle bag completes the setup and gives them a genuine sense of contributing to the load. One thing to check before fitting: some smaller children's saddles don't have rails, which most saddle bags need to attach. Worth confirming before you buy.

For general family camping equipment that earns its place on a bike tour, look for gear that doubles up across activities and packs flat.

Feeding and fuelling children on the trail

Hunger is the fastest route to a bad day. Children's energy levels drop sharply and without warning. Keep snacks in reach at all times and stop to eat before anyone says they're hungry. Snack stops work best when they double as a reward: a particular viewpoint, the top of a climb, or a riverside spot you've been talking about since the morning. For camp meals, simple and hot wins over ambitious. A single-pan cook on a small stove produces warm, filling food fast which is all you need after a long day in the saddle.

Keeping children warm on the bike

A child in a trailer or on a tag-along is not generating heat. They're sitting still while you do the work. Even on a mild day, a child can get cold surprisingly quickly, particularly their hands and feet. Check on them regularly, especially into the wind or on descents.

Pack more layers than you think you need for the child. A thin down jacket takes up almost no space and makes a huge difference. Waterproof over-trousers are worth having too: a child sitting in a wet trailer seat for an hour is going to be cold and miserable before long.

For hands, proper waterproof gloves are ideal. But a genuine field hack worth knowing: a pair of plastic bags worn over thin liner gloves, or pulled over socks inside shoes, make surprisingly effective emergency wind and rain protection. Light, weightless, and they actually work. Carry some sandwich bags for exactly this scenario.

Footwear is often overlooked. Shoes that get wet in a stream crossing or a rain shower and never dry out will chill a child's feet for the rest of the day. Neoprene socks or a spare pair of dry shoes in a dry bag are worth the weight.

Keeping children motivated

Children don't think in miles or hours. They think in events. Structure the day around things to look forward to, and motivation takes care of itself.

Snack stops are powerful motivators: name the stop before you leave ("we'll have a biscuit at the top of the hill") and it becomes a target rather than a chore. Play parks are worth routing through deliberately, a 20-minute stop at a park mid-morning does more for the day's mood than almost anything else. Water features, bridges, animals, viewpoints and interesting landmarks all give children something to ride towards.

Don't feel every night has to be wild camping. A night in a bunkhouse, a B&B, or an Airbnb part-way through can reset everyone's energy levels and morale. It gives you a chance to dry kit, charge devices, and have a proper meal. Children often find the contrast makes the camping nights feel more like an adventure, not less. Some families plan their routes around a mix: camp for two nights, sleep inside for one, camp again. It's a flexible formula that works well across a range of ages and energy levels.

Get children involved in the plan from the start. Show them the route on a map. Let them name the campsites. Give them a job: navigator, snack monitor, tent-peg collector. Children who feel ownership of the trip are far easier to motivate when the going gets harder.

See it in action

All of the above works in practice. Here's proof.

More family adventure reading

• Bivvying with the family — from garden to the Austrian Alps, how one family built up to sleeping out under the stars
• Tips for successful family adventures — Bex on what she's learned about adventuring with children, from packing lists to letting go of the plan
• Tents for bikepacking and touring — how to choose the right shelter for a loaded bike trip
• Guide to bikepacking bags — saddle bags, frame bags, handlebar bags and panniers explained
• Guide to wild camping — everything you need to know before sleeping out