Packing up your RV and heading out for an adventure? Make sure you take a look at these handy dollar store RV camping hacks before you leave town! These are some super helpful items to pack and hacks to make RV living a little more convenient and safe!
In a little over a decade of travel writing, I can rattle off the topics that are always consistently among my top 3 most popular posts: Disney, camping, and dollar store travel supplies.
Dollar Store Travel Supplies
I used to overlook the dollar store when it came to packing for vacations. Typically after a trip to the grocery store (if camping/road tripping), drug store and possibly a big box store, my shopping would be complete. Then one year before a trip to Disney World, I happened to cruise through our local Dollar Tree. I came home with so many of the supplies I’d normally buy elsewhere, but spent a ton less.
Since then, I have written a bunch of dollar store travel posts across multiple sites:
- 40+ RV Dollar Store Supplies for Your Camper
- Dollar Store Camping Bucket for Kids
- 26 Essential Camping Trip Dollar Store Supplies
- 28 Dollar Store Must-Buy Items for Beach House Vacation
- 30+ Dollar Store Essentials for Your Cruise Vacation
- 14 Dollar Store MUST-BUY Items for a Disney Vacation
- 25 Dollar Store MUST-BUY Items for a Disney Cruise
- Dollar Store Horse Show Supplies
Dollar Store Camping Hacks for Your RV
So let’s talk hacks!
There are plenty of handy RV camping hacks that you can put to great use in your camper! They range from helpful ways to stay organized and maximize your space to ideas for keeping the kids and campground a little safer. Check out our list and let me know which ones you already use and which ones you might try! If you have some great hack ideas, drop a comment and tell me about them!
Fabric Totes
We have a set of small, fabric totes from the dollar store and use them to store clothing like socks, underwear, shorts, etc. Basically we store any clothing that we don’t hang up on hangers in the totes. The totes are small but roomy and flexible. They sit in the bottom of our closets in the camper!
Damp Rid Moisture Absorbers
We have mentioned these in a number of other posts on this site because THEY REALLY WORK! Forget the fancy, expensive dehumidifiers. Use these moisture grabbers as a quick and easy hack for cutting down the naturally occurring humidity and moisture in your camper.
Cake Holder
Use a cake holder to keep your paper plates and napkins from blowing all over the campground! This little trick makes it much easier to keep your plates within arm’s reach of the picnic table!
Glow Sticks
Sure, the kids love glow sticks. But do you know what glow sticks are really awesome for? Keeping your kiddos visible across a dark campsite! We put glow sticks on our kids at sundown and it helps to be able to spot them quickly and easily, even from a distance.
Hard Plastic Glasses Case
These little glasses cases are super nifty for storing all sorts of little odds and ends in your camper! From USB and other charging cords, to quarters for your laundry, there are endless possibilities for these cases.
Mesh Laundry Bags
Yes, these mesh laundry bags are very helpful for containing your family’s dirty laundry in the RV. The bags are also great for putting wet dishes into and then hang up the bag to let the dishes air dry. Beach camping? Put the kids’ sand-coated beach toys in a mesh laundry bag and the sand will shake off of the toys as you walk off the beach! Give it another big shake before putting it back in your car and you will remove a large portion of the sandy mess instead of dumping it in your car.
Dishpan
Fill a dishpan with a couple inches of water and leave it outside your camper door. Have everyone step in the dishpan to rinse dirt and sand off of their feet before entering the camper. Change the water as needed.
Door Mats
Dollar store door mats are also very very effective when it comes to collecting loose dirt and sand off your family’s feet as they enter the camper! We are big fans of trying to keep as much dirt/sand OUTSIDE the camper as possible.
Pool Noodles
If you have ever had the unfortunate experience of walking into the edge of a camper slide out, you know that it can really leave you with a headache. Grab some pool noodles from the dollar store and use them to create “bumpers”” on the hard edges of your slide out sides. Simply make a single cut down the length of the pool noodle and stick the cut around your slide out edge.
Shower Caddy
Yup, great for the shower, BUT think outside the box a little! These plastic caddies also make great easy-to-access spots for your campsite essentials – sunscreen, bug spray, firestarters, lighter, etc.
Shower Cap
These simple plastic shower caps fit right over your plates of food! Great for keeping bugs off of your food.
Shoe Organizer
Sure, you can use these to hold shoes, but think beyond the shoes! We use our shoe organizer in the RV bathroom to hold toiletries. I have friends who use theirs on their pantry/closet door for kitchen items like spices, utensils, etc. You could store first aid items, art/craft items, the possibilities are pretty endless!
Ponchos
Not really a hack, but oh-so-handy to have when you get caught in a rain storm. In addition to keeping people warm, ponchos can be tossed over tables, strollers, chairs and more to keep them dry when rain falls.
Mini Storage Containers
These little lidded containers are the perfect size for toting smaller portions of food like salad dressings, spices, etc.
Solar Light Stakes
Not only will these staked solar lights give a little decoration to your campsite, they are also a huge help with visibility. Use them to illuminate areas like steps, your firewood pile, rope tether lines coming off of tents, etc.
Lint Rollers
Use these lint rollers and roll them over everyone’s clothing to find loose ticks that might be crawling around.
Pill Organizer
These handy, little multi-compartment plastic pill organizers are perfect for storing small items including sewing supplies, safety pins, craft supplies, etc.
Baby Powder
Did you know that baby powder is a very effective and easy way to remove sand from your skin? We have used these on the beach for years! If you are going to be camping near a beach and anticipate any time in the sand, definitely bring along some baby powder.
Irish Springs Soap
Irish Springs Soap deters mice and other little critters who would love to make their nests in your camper! At first I thought this one was an old wive’s tale, but you know what? It really works! Pick up a few bars of Irish Spring Soap and leave them in the backs of your RV closets, storage compartments etc. We do this especially during the winter months.
Nightlights
We like grabbing nightlights for each kids’ bed bunk so that they have a light that’s easy to access for those middle-of-the-night bathroom trips, etc. If you want to spend a couple more dollars, check out this awesome motion-activated bathroom nightlight that we put in our camper bathroom.
Mini Snap-Lid Storage Boxes
Okay, we actually used these mini snap-lid storage boxes for all kinds of things! For example, they are perfect for storing basic first aid supplies in for mini first aid kits. For this post, however, I wanted to point out how great they work for storing card games and decks of cards!
That’s it! Do you have any dollar store RV camping hacks to share? We’d love to hear about it!
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I cut a noodle I bought from Dollar Tree and put on my canopy arm behind the door to the RV so when it opens it doesn’t slam against the canopy. I also use a noodle I cut in a “V” slanted shape and taped together to put on the edge of cabinet corner inside the RV to keep from bumping your head. It slides on and off.
Great ideas!
Love these ideas, thanks for sharing!!
I have a cabin, we have no electric so at night I use the glow sticks as night lights around the cabin. I place them on door knobs and under the beds. Once your eyes adjust to the dark they give just the right amount of light. No more stubbing your toes at night to use the bathroom. 🙂
I use square mini storage containers for sandwiches in day cooler, prevents crushing in a sandwich bag. A different color for each person so they get the sandwich made the way they like it. Or in the case of my grandson safe for his food allergies.
Joyce
That’s a great idea!
Skip the Irish Spring idea, mice love it! Just remember green in, green out!
I used peppermint soaked cotton balls they don’t like it. And you can buy peppermint scents from the store just for mice.
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I use the mesh laundry bags to store our sleeping bags in . Roll up bag and shove in a bag. So easy and you can add pillow or blanket if needed. Glow sticks or pool noodle used on tent ropes so we dont trip over the lines. I store cleaning supplies in the shower caddy with handle and keep it under sink. Also have shower caddy for feminine supply storage in bathroom . Recycles on old xmas popcorn tin to store paperplates and napkins in . Store pair of dice in a small plastic container with lid (salad dressing size)and the kids can shake the container and not loose the dice. Crayons and deck of cards fit in the travel soap box.
Most dinning chairs, the seats lift. Perfect to keep cards, placemats etc. crayons, paper.
Dollar stores have racks, that change your cupboards into two shelf cupboards. Use the wasted space.
We were at a camp ground last year a had an ant infestation. One of the workers at the campground told us to put baby powder on and around anything that would touch the ground. We didn’t have anymore problems
I dab tea tree oil on table, on ourselves & anywhere we don’t want mozzies or flies. They don’t like it at all. It will keep the whole area free of harassing bugs.