11 Summer Camp Movies That'll Make You Nostalgic for Childhood Summers

By Johnni Macke Jul 13, 2018 2:00 PMTags
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Summer is in full swing which means it's time for camp!

OK, we aren't going away to summer camp, but that doesn't mean we can't daydream about the days when we did.

Whether it was sports camp, band camp, drama camp, or a sleep-away camp, camps were the thing to take part in growing up, especially when the summer months rolled around.

It was where you and your BFFs met up and spread your wings and let's be honest every camp was magical.

Since we can't leave work to go to camp this week (or ever again, sadly) we are going to have to live vicariously through movies about camp adventures.

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Over the years there have been a lot of classic films that take place at summer camps that we still get nostalgic for.

Whether it's the isolation cabin in The Parent Trap (either the Lindsay Lohan or Hayley Mills version) or jumping on The Blob in Heavy Weights, camp movies give us a serious case of childhood blues. The good news is that there are 11 films that can cure those blues and take you back to the good old days in an instant.

Movies including Wet Hot American Summer, Camp Rock and more are must-watch films for the summer months.

So, what are you waiting for? Grab your favorite childhood treat (AKA Oreos and peanut butter) and your lanyard or friendship bracelets and get watching!

Oh, and as you prepare for nostalgia overload make sure to vote for which of these summer camp movies is the best of them all below.

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The Parent Trap

If you didn't want to stay in cabins with your best friends and eat Oreos with peanut butter after watching The Parent Trap then we probably shouldn't be friends. This camp was the coolest camp. They had a lake for sun activities, played poker in the dark and made it seem like you too could have a long-lost twin out there somewhere just waiting to trade places with you.

Heavy Weights

We don't care what you say Heavy Weights is one of Ben Stiller's best movies ever. Sure, he plays the villain but he's so good at it. Throughout this movie you forget that the guys are at fat camp and instead daydream about possibly riding go-karts in the Apache relay and hiking for fun. Oh, and of course we all wanted to jump on The Blob!

Addams Family Values

The Addams family are at their finest in this 1993 film and it truly is an iconic movie. When the Addams kids attend a snooty camp they of course stick to what they know…mayhem. During the Thanksgiving play (yes, there is a Thanksgiving play during summer) Wednesday (Christina Ricci) takes over and burns the camp literally to the ground. Hopefully your summer camp didn't go up in flames, but we bet you did have a camp play.

Wet Hot American Summer

The 2001 film makes fun of everything we love about camp movies, which in turn makes us love it even more. It's a parody about summer camp set in 1981 and stars a lot of big names like Amy Poehler, Paul Rudd, Bradley Cooper, Elizabeth Banks and more. The wildest part is that the movie is technically only one day…the last day of camp.

Troop Beverly Hills

Beverly Hills, what a thrill! OK, we know that Troop Beverly Hills isn't a camp movie per say, but it does take us back to childhood summers. The Wilderness Girls were everything we wanted to be. They were best friends who had fun adventures and sold cookies. Plus, since they also had their Jamboree in the woods and it was more than one day it counts as a camp movie to us.

Camp Rock

This 2008 Disney Channel Original Movie is definitely a fan favorite. It stars Demi Lovato and the Jonas Brothers and takes place at a music camp for gifted teens. While the campers assume they will meet rising stars, they are surprised to learn that one of the most talented voices actually belongs to Lovato's Mitchie Torres, who is a camp kitchen worker.

It Takes Two

Of course Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen have a movie that takes place at summer camp…they can do anything! In It Takes Two, Alyssa and Amanda are two strangers who are identical and after meeting they decide to switch places in order to stop Alyssa's father from marrying the wrong person. Where does all this scheming take place? At Camp Callaway. It's a perfect camp complete with canoes, horseback riding and one epic food fight.

Moonrise Kingdom

Not even the cool camp of Camp Ivanhoe AKA the home of the Khaki Scouts could compete with love in Moonrise Kingdom. The Wes Anderson film is magical, romantic and screams eternal summer. Even though Sam (Jared Gilman) leaves camp, the perfect tents, matching uniforms and picturesque location is something we yearn for as adults on a regular basis.

Camp

Can you believe this 2003 flick was Anna Kendrick's first movie? It's insane. Not only do we get to see Kendrick as a youngster in this movie, but it takes us back to all of those drama camps we either attended or heard about growing up. Camp Ovation was the one place anyone could fit in and that's why we loved it so much.

The Baby-Sitters Club

The Baby-Sitters Club was made up of seven super unique and sweet girls who we not-so-secretly wished were are BFFs growing up. In addition to making some serious dough in the film, and falling for a few cuties along the way, these ladies created the coolest baby-sitting camp we've ever seen. They made work look fun and we're still mad we weren't able to be a counselor at this epic camp.

Camp Nowhere

Instead of wanting to go to camp, the kids in Camp Nowhere were all about doing everything possible to stay away from the usual place their parents shipped them off to. Throughout the movie they blackmail their drama teacher (Christopher Lloyd) into pretending they are going to a real camp. In reality, they rented an abandoned campground and later had to fool their parents into thinking it was a computer camp, fat camp and a drama camp…which of course is hilarious.

Poll

Summer Camp Movie Poll

Which classic summer camp flick takes you back to your summers as a kid?
The Parent Trap
41.9%
Heavy Weights
8.5%
Addams Family Values
3.8%
Wet Hot American Summer
2.1%
Troop Beverly Hills
9%
Camp Rock
4.9%
It Takes Two
10.6%
Moonrise Kingdom
1%
Camp
0.6%
The Baby-Sitters Club
5.2%
Camp Nowhere
12.5%