15 Helpful RV Campsite Setup Ideas For You and Your Family

 

Whether you’re a seasoned camper, a fan of outdoor activities, or a nervous novice looking for an RV supplier, there’s one universal truth to remember: there’s no such thing as being overly equipped for camping. Thus, having a reference to check out for an RV campsite setup ideas would definitely be helpful.

Your encounter will be safer and more fun if you are well prepared. In this post, we’ll look at some of the stuff to bear in mind when setting up a campground.

Need more space in your RV? Check out our travel trailer hacks to create more space.

If you are beginner check out our 5 motorhome tips you should know here.

Ideas for RV Campsite Setup For All Kinds Of RVers

Here are some portable, lightweight, and space-saving campground setup ideas to help you turn your RV outdoor space, campground, or the dirt area next to your trailer into an open-air living room.

1. Add string lights

Photo Source: Casey Kiernan

It’s never out of style to use lighting to decorate your RV, and there are so many entertaining options to pick from.

Camco produces these plastic clips that are intended to attach on RV awnings (and may be left intact even when your awnings are rolled up) or you can use these hooks to fasten the lighting along the border of your awning fabric to hang your lights.

What if you don’t have an awning? Weatherproof sticky hooks can be used to hang lights directly on your RV, or they can be hung from long shepherd’s hooks, which can also be used to hang plants.

You can also add up an RV awning to further extend and beautify your area just as how you envisioned it.

The string lights in the image were built by the RVer who provided it with me and were influenced by some bear lighting his grandparents had on their RV back in the 1980s.

He gathered artificial honey bears and tied them to a line of huge bulb Christmas lights to produce these lights.

2. Add extra weather-resistant throw cushions and other accessories to complete the look

Photo Source: Brit + Co

A few basic decorative items and some patio throw pillows can convert the space outside your RV into a peaceful outdoor living area.

3. Consider adding step coverings

Photo Source: The Drive

These RV stair covers were recently discovered and I wish I’d known about them sooner.

These step coverings, which clip to your stairs with a flexible bungee hook, not only look great (and are available in a variety of colors), but they also help reduce filth and debris being dragged into your RV.

They can also be left intact during travel, which means you’ll have one less thing to pack when it’s time to leave.

4. Invest in an outdoor rug

Image Source: Place Of My Taste

I must admit that when we first started RVing, I didn’t understand the use of outdoor rugs.

They appeared to me to be unneeded if you have a porch and are difficult to clean. But now that I’ve seen these photographs of how an exterior rug can alter a place, I can see why people desire them.

Outdoor rugs are also ideal to place right over the top of rubble, sand, grasses, or dirt to provide a smooth texture and prevent you from tracking mud or sand inside your RV when you’re camping somewhere without a patio.

If you’re worried about the effects of a plastic rug, Fab Habitat sells carpets from used and sustainable sources of materials, including recycled plastic outdoor rugs.

5. Add a personalized sign or a garden flag

Photo Source: Sheryl Ann Armstrong

Lawn banners and greeting signs are a simple and inexpensive way to spruce up your campground.

You can get a wide selection of them at any store that sells lawn and garden items, including on Amazon, but I like customized and handmade ones.

On Etsy, you may find a variety of individualized garden flags and handcrafted welcome signs.

6. Create a screen room

Photo Source: Wallpaper

If bugs, rather than the sun, are your issue, a screened room can help you enjoy your time outside. One of our readers fixed this problem by buying a screen canopy to place next to her RV.

A screen room can also be purchased to completely cover your RV awning.

7. Plants can be used to decorate

A few swinging plants may make a huge difference in the appearance of outdoor space. Keeping your plants in the sink of your RV while traveling is a smart idea.

Tip: As lovely as ready-made swinging flower baskets are, it’s usually less expensive to pot your own in the long run.

Also, unless you are alright with watering each day or are staying in the summertime somewhere that receives a lot of rain, I prefer self-watering pots with a drainage plug, because hanging baskets are likely to dry out quickly.

Note that you can’t carry plants into California, and you’ll have to get them inspected if you travel from the US to Canada with plants. Check out my article on mobile gardening for more ideas and information about RVing with plants.

All of the decorations in the photo above may be packed up fast and take up little room.

I hung potted plants along the edge of my patio with shepherd’s hooks and strung lighting along the sides of my RV with weatherproof sticky hooks.

Because we were parked behind trees, I kept our awning pulled up so that my plants could get some sun.

8. Construct a makeshift patio

One resourceful RVer desired a patio but didn’t want to commit to anything too long-term, so she made one out of scrap timber and plywood.

She even proposed building a DIY wood patio like this moveable in two pieces and connecting them with hinges.

She eventually used acrylic paints to stencil her patio. She suggests finishing with a clear coat to preserve the wood from the elements.

Another RVer who intended to spend the entire summer in the same area did something similar, rather than using plywood, he created a temporary deck out of pallets with deck planks screwed to them for easy removal.

9. Add a screen for privacy

Trellis panels, such as the ones pictured above, can be utilized to provide aesthetic appeal, cover “ugly” sections of your Trailer, provide cover and seclusion to a motorhome’s frontal areas, create storage beneath a fifth wheel’s tongue, or add protection around a patio.

Even a single panel of cheap and lighter lattice leaning against your camper’s front entrance would be a wonderful spot to display plants or decor.

10. Add a deck

Photo Source: Karen Jones

Some RVers have erected a deck or porch near their front entrance since they are parked regularly and always returning to the same location.

Sunrise Decks produces a lightweight, entirely movable RV deck or porch that can be built up in under half an hour for RV owners that travel from place to place or don’t have DIY construction skills.

11. Consider hanging curtains from your awning

Photo Source: Tiny Revolution

The RVers in this photo put additional draperies along with her awning, which could be closed to screen the sun or provide more privacy.

If you don’t have a bar to hang drapes from, I suppose you may use a grommets punch to put holes in a piece of translucent fabric and hang it with these drapery clips along the border of an awning.

If you don’t have an awning and want to drape curtains around your patio, run a bit of rope among two tall shepherd’s hooks and hang curtains from there.

12. Purchase some bird feeders

Birds circling around feeders are entertaining to watch, and it’s much more so when you’re traveling across the nation and encountering species you’re unfamiliar with.

Bird feeders have been directly mounted on the walls of my RV. I hung my hummingbird feeder with this suction cup hanger, and it just never fell down.

I also hung standard bird feeders wherein my cat could see them with heavy-duty sticky hooks. I only advocate using these hooks to hang lighter-weight bird feeders because one of them broke after several months of carrying a huge, heavy feeder.

If birds are crashing into your windows, decals can be used to keep them safe.

13. Include a fence

Photo Source: Outdoorsy

If you do have pets or small children, a mobile pet cage is a fantastic way to allow them to get some fresh air while also helping you build a pleasant patio.

14. Create a relaxing ambiance with a fire pit

Without a campfire, what is camping? You may have to bring your own fire pit because not all RV sites and campgrounds have them.

A propane fire pit is ideal if you’re traveling in an area where burning is prohibited or simply don’t want to deal with firewood.

A portable propane fire pit is ideal for RVing because it is tiny, requires little fuel storage (unlike a wood-burning fire pit), and is simple to set up and take down.

15. Make use of furniture that serves multiple purposes

Photo Source: Brooklyn Limestone

If you don’t have a lot of space, you don’t have to have separate seats for indoors and outside. A vintage-style rattan seat might be utilized as furniture pieces and can be carried outside when necessary.

Using flexible wooden sets of tables and chairs is also a good addition to your RV campsite setup. 

Sustainable RV Campsite Setup Ideas You Can Also Try

The RV of one of my old RV park neighbors, whose campsite gardening truly pleased me, is shown here. She and her spouse were retirees who had made the RV park their home.

This campsite really pops because of the brightly colored garden! I adore how well-organized everything is in this setting.

Photo Source: Kimberly Chenette

I love how they are arranged together with flowers as the main attraction.

Below is another beautiful RV setup inspiration to look out for, You would definitely want to stay longer in this kind of ambiance.

I couldn’t decide which shot of this next beautiful patio to use, so I combined the two.

Because the RV’s owners are permanent residents, they constructed the patio pavement and created the majority of the furnishings themselves.

Are you fond of a beach camping? Check out our tips for a beach camping here.

Have you just purchased your dream trailer? Check out our guide on setting up a trailer for first timers.

Are you taking your little ones to your trip? Here are toddler camping tips to keep them safe and happy.

Are you the owner of pop up trailer? Here are pop up camping tips to survive in a pop up camper.

More Camping Tips

Top 7 Campervan Hacks and Tips Every Traveler Should Know

Top 10 Best Travel Trailer Hacks For More Space in Your RV

24 Pop-up Camping Tips To Survive in a Pop-up Camper

Step-by-step Guide on Setting Up a Travel Trailer For First-Timers

21 Tips for Beach Camping To Have A Fantastic Time All Throughout 

Bonus Idea: Decorate Your RV With a Welcome Message or Quote

You may also customize your travel trailer or camper entrance with a happy camping message if you enjoy staying at the campsite and connecting with everyone you meet.

You may make your own template using web drawings, sketching it out onto the RV with copy paper, and then coloring it in with Marker pens. If you like vinyl, though, you can find it on the internet.

Do you wish to send us a picture of your campsite? We’d be delighted to see your best moments in the comments area.