Camper Must-Buys, Even Though You Already Own Them!

When you bring your new camper home, your first thought might be: I already own many of the supplies I’ll need in the camper! And that might be very true. However, there’s a list of items that you will want to consider buying for your camper, even though you already own them for your home!

New camper! So exciting!  I remember the day we brought home our first camper. It was a small pop-up and we did not have kids yet. We couldn’t wait to stock it up with “all the things.” Many years down the road, we traded that pop-up camper in for our first travel trailer. Once again, I was excited to fill up the camper cabinets and closets and shelves.

When you bring home your new (or new-to-you) camper, it would make sense to think that you will simply share items between your home and your mobile home. You have a coffee maker in the house… surely that can go in the camper when you are heading out on the road. Same goes for towels and bedding and even toothbrushes, right?

Yes.  Yes, you can certainly do that.

But once you get a couple of trips under your belt, my guess is that you are going to start to feel how we did: tired of schlepping umpteen household items between our home and our RV. It was tiring and certainly annoying. It also kept us from packing everything the day before our trip so that we could leave first thing the next morning. (This is because it’s hard to pack the coffee maker until you are finished using it in the house the morning of your trip, and so on. You can’t pack these things into the camper until you are finished using them in your house!)

We truly believe that having a dedicated “camper version” of the following items will help you get on the road quicker, set up camp at the campsite more efficiently, and simply add a huge amount of convenience to your travels! You can take your time to accumulate these things – no need to buy them all at once! Look for sales and other discount opportunities to score some great deals on these items.

Here are our very favorite suggestions for things to keep in your camper, in addition to the ones you already have in your house!

Bathroom Essentials

Toothbrushes – Consider keeping a set of toothbrushes in your camper. No need to remember to pack them each time you leave home. We typically replace everyone’s toothbrush at the beginning of a new camping season. After the final trip of the year, we throw them out. I highly recommend picking up this awesome camper toothbrush holder. It keeps toothbrushes off of the counter and even helps keep dirt and dust off of them when you have the cover pulled down.

Bath Towels – Also hand towels, dish towels and washcloths are a great idea to keep stocked in your camper. Whether you shower in your rig or head to the bathhouse at the campground, having towels packed and ready will cut down on the bulky items that you need to haul from your home.

Bedroom Must-Haves

Bedding – I’m talking about bed sheets, comforters, extra blankets for chilly nights, etc. Anything that goes on your camper bed – consider buying your RV beds a dedicated set of sheets, pillows, etc. This is another big, bulky item that I love knowing is ready to go at all times in our camper!  After every camping trip, from a weekend away to a longer road trip, we strip all of the camper beds upon arriving home. All bedding is washed and then returned to the camper ASAP.  It’s ready to go for the next trip!

Our camper bedding was actually a convenient bed-in-a-bag set that came with a fitted sheet, flat sheet, pillowcases and a comforter!

Night Lights – These definitely aren’t restricted to the bedroom – in fact, we have nightlights in a couple different places in our camper. Night lights help with visibility during those after-dark hours. It can be tricky navigating the path to the bathroom in your camper at night, no matter how old you are! Make sure you check out this easy motion activated bathroom nightlight hack that we posted earlier this year. I am grateful for that silly little light on each and every camping trip.

Night lights are of course also helpful to keep kids calm and relaxed while trying to fall asleep in a new environment.

Kitchen Helpers

Utensils – Keep a set of dining utensils in your camper! Don’t forget to add other commonly used gadgets including a: spatula, can opener, measuring cups, measuring spoons, an ice cream scoop and a vegetable peeler.

Small Appliances – This one will vary by person of course. It is also something you can add a little at a time. It is hard for me to choose my top 3 small appliances in our camper, but if I’m going with the most used appliances, I’d choose: coffee maker, ice maker, toaster. Our air fryer is a close runner up. You can see some of the other appliances that we love using in our camper here.

Plates and Cups – Grab a set of plates and cups to keep in your camper!  Our plates and cups are reusable plastic to cut down on the breakable items that bounce around in the cabinets as we drive along. Don’t forget some mugs for coffee, tea or hot chocolate. Also add some bowls for ice cream nights and cereal breakfasts. We also have this set of silicone stemless wine glasses! I also always keep a set of paper plates and napkins in the camper. The paper plates are wonderful for nights when you don’t feel like washing dishes!

Handy to Have

Trash Can – Pick up a small trash can for the inside of the camper. You might also want a second trash can to keep outside of your camper. We have a small pop up trash can in our camper bathroom and a small lidded trash can in the camper kitchen.

Phone Chargers – In our house, phone charging cables are always at a premium. They break, they disappear, and no matter how many I buy, we never seem to have enough. Do yourself a favor and stick a few spare charging cords for your phones in the camper and LEAVE THEM THERE.

Tissues and Baby Wipes – Always a great idea to have a pack or two of each of these in the camper at all times. Perfect for small messes, cleaning cuts, quick wipe downs, etc.

Outdoor Chairs – We actually have a bunch of outdoor chairs as they come in handy at home, at campsites, or wherever we find ourselves outside for a spell. We keep a set of chairs in our camper storage compartment at all times. They are great for campfire nights and lounging around the campsite!

First Aid Kit – It probably goes without saying, but keeping a well-stocked first aid kit in your camper is a great idea. From the bumps and bruises that like to accompany life in the great outdoors, to pesky bug bites and poison ivy, a first aid kit is a sound investment. Go through your first aid kit a couple times each year and make sure that you are discarding and replacing any medications/ointments/etc that have expired.

Batteries – So random but oh-so-great to have on hand! Grab some spare batteries in a variety of sizes. You never know when your flashlight batteries will die or when some other small electronic will require some fresh juice.

Basic Cleaning Supplies – Keep some of the basics on hand in the camper! Perfect for quick cleaning during your trips and also for full wipe downs after you return home.

Cordless Drill – We keep a spare drill in our camper at all times. A drill is super convenient for lowering and raising the stabilizer jacks on the camper. Having a drill on hand is also helpful for simple repairs and/or maintenance that you might need to do while on the road.

Toolbox – In addition to the cordless drill mentioned above, we recommend buying a dedicated set of common tools for your camper. Keep a toolbox filled with these tools and other simple supplies for quick fixes: electrical tape, wire nuts, silicone sealer, etc.

How many of these things do you have in both your house and your camper? Is there anything else you would add to my list? Drop a comment and let us know! 

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