From instant messaging, to online shopping and even smart fridges, we live in a connected age where all of life’s essentials can be obtained at the click of a button. So why do so many people ditch the trappings of modern life and head off into the countryside with a tent? In her latest project for the BBC Phoebe sets out to answer the question… why do we love camping?

Phoebe undertakes a journey for BBC World Service to find out why sleeping outdoors is so special © Phoebe Smith

This is Phoebe’s latest BBC assignment for The Why Factor, a 23 minute programme where she sets out on a journey to discover what makes camping so special. Along the way she discovers a camper in Kenya who spends his weekends alone immersed in nature, a family in Greenland who turned their backs on the rat race to live in a tepee and she even convinces her dad to join her for a night’s wild camping on an island in the River Thames in England.

In the BBC Radio programme Phoebe made, she took her 70-year-old dad on his first ever camp © Phoebe Smith

She discovers that leaving our phones and tablets behind to spend a few peaceful nights under the stars might not just be a good way to unwind but research shows it can improve our sleep patterns and well-being. So the question is why aren’t we all doing it?

Listen to it online or download it free now…