If you’ve ever camped before, you know how quickly things can get unorganized… and how annoying and frustrating it is! These tips for organizing camping gear will help you keep everything in its correct place, so you can quickly grab it when you need it!
Especially if you are tenting, nighttime can be tricky (check out our guide for sleeping in a tent!)
If things are unorganized and all over the place, you are sometimes just out of luck until the morning! It is difficult enough to find your way around with just a simple flashlight or lantern, but if you don’t even know where that thing is you’re looking for… good luck!
Camping is something we try to do as much as we can in the summer time. We only have a small car (with two dogs in the backseat), so organizing becomes extremely important to not only just find what we’re looking for, but to get it all to fit in the car!
I’ll admit, sometimes towards the end of the trip, things become more unorganized as we just toss them anywhere there is space in the car. But, hey, we try!
If you are looking for other awesome camping tips, check out this post about over 50 unique camping meals that require absolutely NO cooking- something that is very helpful when all your cooking tools are super unorganized in the trunk!
If you’re ready to finally tackle that pile of camping equipment in the garage, this list is for you! Let’s get started!
Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.
Part of any good organizational plan is a planner, and camping should be no different! If you know what you’re doing, when you’re doing it, and exactly what you’ll need, everything should go as smoothly as possible!
Planning also helps prevent you from packing too little or too much- which can be troublesome especially if you have a small car! You’ll know exactly what you need to pack- no more, and no less! Less is more when it comes to camping, so only pack what you’ll need!
This camping planner has 5 pages you can access through instant download, and you can print and reuse them unlimited amount of times!
Inside, you’ll find a simple and straightforward packing list, camping meal planner, daily activity planner, and a campground at a glance page to keep all important details in one spot!
The best part is, it is under $5!
Start your camping trip off on the right foot, and make sure that not only your equipment is organized, but your plans and details are as well!
Cooking while camping is not always the easiest task. You’ve got your cooler, grill, all your food and condiments, silverware and plates, cooking equipment, etc. It can get messy and unorganized really quick!
One of my favorite hacks for organizing camping gear is this camping table. Not only does it give you a solid place to cook and prepare food on, but it has waterproof and insect proof storage underneath!
When you roll up to your campsite and start unpacking, you can place all the things you’ll need to cook right in these compartments. Once dinnertime comes around, you’ll have everything you need all in one spot!
Just be sure to put food away at night time if you are in bear country!
PS. Need meal ideas? Check out this list of camping meal ideas that require NO cooking!
Another one of my favorite ways of organizing camping gear is with this hanging camping organizer! When camping, there are a lot of things you just always seem to need on hand: flashlights, bug spray, lantern, cell phone, water bottle, sunscreen, hat, water bottle etc. All these little things can easily get lost in your campsite!
This hanging organizer can be hung from a tree, and you can hang all your important items you need on hand, all in one place!
My favorite part about this hanging organizer is that it comes with a storage bag, that you can place small items in that you can’t really hang up.
This is a great way to store all your grab and go items you use frequently throughout the day!
This is another great hack for organizing camping gear. If you have a small car, you know that utilizing any and all space is important. However, we often forget about the ceiling of our car!
This car ceiling cargo net attaches to the ceiling handles, and can really be a great way to store just a few extra items! Here, you can store umbrellas, flashlights, extra clothing, kids toys, snacks, and more!
Don’t neglect your car’s ceiling space, especially if you are tight on space to begin with!
This organizer is actually made to use in your trunk or backseat, but we use something similar to this one inside our tent for more organization!
Everything in a tent gets unorganized really quickly, so it is important to have something to store items in, in an organized way. This organizer is one you can put right on the floor of the tent, so you don’t have to worry about a hanging organizer that could potentially get too heavy.
It also has insulated areas which is great for storing drinks and snacks during the day or night (just be sure to put food away if there are bears in your area!)
Keeping food stored away will also prevent bugs from getting into your tent!
You can use this for clothing, flashlights, water bottles, hats, sunscreen, bug spray, extra blankets, snacks, and more! Keep your tent neat and tidy with this simple organizer!
Another one of my favorite ways of organizing camping gear is by using packing cubes. Packing cubes are an efficient way to pack no matter where you are going, but they make it especially easy when camping!
My favorite way to use them are to pack clothes. Use one packing cube for each day, so you never have to worry about finding all the matching pieces to your outfit! Put everything you will need for each day in one cube, and be sure to label each day. Then, you can easily grab your “Saturday” outfit, and not have to worry about finding your other sock!
Another perk of packing cubes is that you’ll have a space for dirty laundry. Let’s face it- you’re clothes are going to get dirty and smelly while camping, and you definitely won’t want to put them back in a bag with all your clean clothes!
Simply put your dirty clothes back into that packing cube, and you won’t have to worry about your dirty laundry mixing with your clean clothes!
If you don’t want to use packing cubes, check out this guide for washing your clothes while camping!
This is a great hack, especially if you are camping with kids! Simply give them their daily packing cube, and there will be battle to try to find everyone’s clothes!
While you might not be expecting to take a shower or practice your typical daily hygiene while camping, you will need some items. I have this toiletry bag that I use every time I travel or go camping, so I LOVE it!
You can fit pretty much everything you might need for camping, such as toothbrush, toothpaste, baby wipes, hair brush, face wipes, tissues, bandaids, first aid, medicine, etc. It might look small, but you can truly fit a LOT in here!
The best part is, is that it also hangs up. You can hang it in your tent, bring it to the campground bathroom, or hang it outside somewhere! This bag makes it really easy to freshen up and feel like yourself again, without taking up too much space!
If you are camping with your partner, you both can fit all your toiletries in this bag- it fits all our stuff every time we need to go somewhere!
Another easy way of organizing camping gear is by using clear storage drawers. You’ve probably seen this one before, and there’s a good reason for it- you can see everything that’s inside the drawers, so you don’t have to rummage through them!
Now, if you have a small car like us, storage drawers might not work so well for you. They can be on the bulkier side, and they are difficult to maneuver into small areas. In this case, you might want to use them for organizing camping gear at home, such as in the garage.
For smaller cars, I recommend using tote bags, which is what we use. We have specific bags for specific items, such as a red bag that has all the dog’s items in it, a maroon bag that has all our cooking stuff in it, and a green backpack with all our hiking gear.
PS. Going on a hike during your camping trip? Check out this hiking packing list!
Bags are much easier to squish into small spaces in the car, though, drawers and totes would be much easier!
These toiletry pouches are typically used for one reason: to put liquids in when you go to the airport. However, they can have so many other uses, especially for a camping trip! You probably already have one or two of these laying around, so put it to good use!
These pouches are great, because you don’t have to worry about leaks. So don’t just think of the obvious toiletry items- think everything else!
You can pack liquid food items in these bags as well, such as containers of milk, juice, condiments like mayonnaise or ketchup, or even yogurt or a salad dressing!
These pouches can easily be put into the cooler, and you won’t have to worry about anything leaking or dripping all over the place!
Of course, use them for your other liquid items as well- sunscreen, bug spray, shampoo or conditioner, etc. It will be much better if the leak happens in the pouch rather than all over the backseat of the car or on the only pillow you brought with you!
Bringing your precious pup with you camping? Of course you are! I don’t know about you, but our dogs love camping! All we have to say is, “Want to go camping?” or, “Go in the tent?” and they are ready to go!
This travel bag makes organizing all your dog’s gear easy and accessible. It holds their food, bowls, toys, leash, and whatever else they might need for a camping trip (or just traveling in general!)
Having all your dog’s items all in one place will make it easy once feeding time rolls around, or when you are desperately looking for their favorite toy to keep them busy while you cook dinner!
PS. Check out these other tips for camping with your dog!
Want More?
I hope you found these camping tips helpful! If you are interested in more camping tips, be sure to visit our camping tips page!
Also, be sure to check out our camping planner to help you keep all your details and activities organized!
Platinum Campers
Sunday 5th of November 2023
Platinum Campers & Off-Road Caravans stock a large range of off-road, all-terrain camper trailers & hybrid campers to fit any budget. Designed in Australia for our tough conditions and backed with a 5-year structural warranty, our campers are ready to join you on your next adventure.