How do you prevent condensation from forming on your camera when going from a cool area to hot outside?

Last summer anytime we would take our camera out of the hotel room and onto the balcony or the beach (anywhere outside) the thing would get a ton of condensation within it. This year we got a new digital camera and I REALLY would like to use it to take pictures on the beach, but I do not know how to prevent the condensation and moisture from getting inside. Any tips???

First let me warn you about cameras and beaches, they tolerate each other but just barely. I can't tell you the number of friends that have come to me after visit a beach to see if I could fix their cameras. "It makes this grinding sound when I turn it on." The small digitals with the expanding lens is a great design but very susceptible to getting grit in the mechanism. This will ruin a camera. Also the sun tan lotion on your hands gets oil on the exterior of the camera that collects the sand particles. If you take the camera to the beach place it inside a zip lock bag. Don't just toss it in the bottom of a beach bag. Sand from towels and other items collects in the bottom of a bag and can ruin a camera. Really be careful about this....a few grains of sand in the wrong place and you're looking at an expensive repair.

But back to your question......If you leave the camera in the zip lock bag when you exit the room the moisture will collect on the exterior of the bag and not the camera (air conditioned air is drier than the humid beach air so don't worry about any air inside of the bag.) After the camera warms up to the temp of the outside air you can pull it out and snap to your hearts content.I know this kinda ruins the spontaneity of the beach but it comes down to temperature differences, humidity and metal.

Get some silica...that's what it's designed for....Go to a camera/ electronics store they'll probably just give you a sachet for free.

Keep the lens cover on it and use a shammy cloth or a chamois cloth to wipe the condensation off of it once you do take the lens cover off.

Hi, a salesman was telling me to keep my camera in a plastic bag and fill it with some cotton wools, before bringing out from the cold to the hot ambience.

This will minimise your camera from experiencing the temperature change that results the condensation in your cameras.