Dollar Store Camping Hacks That Will Blow Your Mind

Planning a camping trip on a budget? These 21 dollar store camping hacks are about to make your life so much easier. From simple organization tricks to clever campsite upgrades, you’ll find budget-friendly camping ideas that actually work. Think cheap camping gear, DIY camping essentials, easy storage solutions, and smart ways to stay clean, cook, and relax at the campsite without overspending. Perfect for family camping, beginners, or anyone who loves frugal living and outdoor adventures, these dollar store finds turn into must-have camping supplies in no time. If you’re looking for cheap camping tips, camping hacks, budget travel ideas, and easy ways to upgrade your next trip, you’ll want to save every single one of these.

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Frugal Camping Hacks from the Dollar Store

I am a HUGE fan of family camping – tent or camper.  I really love camping in our VW van but also love the feeling of sleeping in a tent and being really outside.  They’re both so good.

Since having our toddler, we mostly camp in the van.  It’s easy to take all the gear we need and she just loves it in there.

Whatever kind of camping you love to do, the Dollar Tree is a great place to stock up on camping essentials before you go, including camping ideas for food! I am all about the Dollar Tree frugal camping hacks!

Before you plan anything more, make sure you head over here to grab this camping checklist. It’ll help you get organized and make sure you don’t forget any essentials!

For camping food ideas, check out these easy camping recipes that will make you want to get your campfire lit.

And since I love sharing money saving tips, I wrote this post camping on a budget: 5 tips to know to save money this season – it’ll save you LOTS of money on your family camping trips!

Related post: Pre-Made Camping Meals for People Who Don’t Want to Cook Outside Forever

Related links:

• Dollar Tree haul – travel books and toys for kids
• Why I love camping (plus what big animal did we wake up to outside our tent! – video)
• 50 frugal summer activities for kids
• Why it’s great for your kids to play in the sand
• Road trip hacks with kids
• How to survive long road trips with toddlers

Dollar Store Camping Hacks – What You Need to Know Before Your Trip

When I say “dollar store”, you’ll find most of these camping supplies at the major dollar stores: The Dollar Store, Dollarama, Dollar Tree, etc.

These are our favorite dollar store camping hacks:

1. Cutting boards

One of our camping hacks is to have a separate cutting board that we keep just for camping. 

At home we use wooden cutting boards, but it’s plastic all the way for camping trips. 

You might not have the luxury of washing your cutting board as squeaky clean as you do at home, and plastic in this case is more food safe than wood. 

So I feel better having a separate cutting board for camping.

2. Plastic table cloth

This is something we never buy or use, except for camping! 

We have come across way too many gross picnic tables at campsites over the years, with squashed bugs and bird poop all over them. 

Especially if you camp with little kids who put their hands in everything, a table cloth at campsites is one of the best camping supplies. 

Throw it over top of a picnic table and voila – clean surface to eat off of – yay!

3. Toilet paper

Many campgrounds with flush toilets or outhouses do have toilet paper. 

But we have on occasion come across ones that aren’t stocked and you don’t want to be caught with your pants down and no t.p. in those cases. 

Bring a few rolls; there is enough room in the car and you’ll be glad you did.

4. Long lighters

I’ve just discovered how useful these are. 

This is one of our frugal camping hacks that I love the most – use long lighters for camping instead of matches. 

When it’s wet or windy out, it’s so easy to start a fire with one of these lighters. 

The long ones are handy for not getting your hands burned.

5. Essential frugal camping hack: Flip flops!

(Or as my daughter used to call them, flip floppers)

This is one of my favorite frugal camping hacks. 

If you are camping in an RV with a shower then maybe flip flops aren’t totally necessary, but if you will have to use a campground shower, GET YOURSELF A PAIR OF CAMPING FLIP FLOPS! 

Yup, all caps, it’s that important.

Campground showers are not known for being the cleanest, most sparkling place you could have a shower. 

Your feet will thank you when you wear an inexpensive pair of flip flops in the shower. 

I keep a separate pair just for traveling.

6. Plastic totes

Plastic totes are so useful to keep things organized when you’re camping. 

I keep a tote with our basic camping supplies in our basement year-round. 

That way we’re not hunting around each spring and stocking the exact same things up every year from around the house. 

It’s easier if they just stay in the bin and we add what we’ve run out of and we’re ready to go.

7. Aluminum foil

Tin foil is so wonderful for cooking when you’re camping. 

Foil from dollar stores doesn’t work any differently than foil from any other store.

Throw some veggies or fish or sausages or whatever in tin foil, wrap it up in a packet, and cook over a fire. 

You can even eat right out of the aluminum foil, making clean up a breeze.

Related post: Best Cheap Ways to Travel If You Have Big Wanderlust (But a Small Budget).

8. Flatware

We have a separate set of cutlery for camping. 

It cuts down on the amount of waste we produce since we’re not using plastic cutlery for each meal. 

We also don’t use our main cutlery set from home. 

You never know when you might misplace some when you’re away and I want to keep out main cutlery set intact. 

A cheaper set for camping works well for us.

9. Small containers

We use these little containers for salad dressings, jam, butter, any extras you might want with your food on your camping trip. 

We also try to remember to bring a plastic container to keep our bar of soap. 

Makes it a lot tidier than throwing the soap into a plastic shopping bag after it’s wet.

10. Lanterns/lights for the tent

Camping lights that you can hang up or clip on are great for tents if you want to read before bed. 

You can also bring these with you to the washroom or outhouse if you gotta go after the sun has gone down.

11. A fun camping hack: Glow sticks!

No these don’t need to be for an impromptu dance party in the woods with your kids (though that sounds fun).

Dollar Tree’s glow sticks are one of the best frugal camping hacks when kids are in the mix. 

You can get glow bracelets and necklaces and it will help with seeing your kids when you’re all still moving around after the sun goes down. 

It helps for safety when walking to washrooms/outhouses.

The glow sticks can also help little kids feel braver that might be apprehensive about the dark/different sounds when you’re camping outside.

12. Water bottles

I always make sure we have a LOT of water bottles when we go on any road trip or camping trip. 

We don’t like buying bottled water so we make sure to bring several BPA-free water bottles.

We bring more than one water bottle each – two or three large water bottles per person.

13. Mesh bags

Another of the best dollar store camping hacks is to pick up a bunch of mesh bags for your camping trip. 

Mesh laundry bags are so handy for keeping dirty laundry (so it gets a chance to air out if it is days away from when you can wash it!) 

We also like mesh bags to organize clothing, like clean socks in one, all my 7 year old’s t-shirts in another, etc. 

It cuts down on hunting around when you’re living in a small space for a while.

14. Hand wipes

Access to a sink with running water might not always be an option when you’re camping. 

Picking up a package of hand wipes is a useful frugal camping hack for cleaning up before or after eating, or even wiping off sunblock at the end of the day so you don’t feel like a greasy mess as you climb into your sleeping bag.

15. First aid kit

Of course you always hope that you won’t need to use it, but it’s important to be prepared. 

Bandaids, antiseptic wipes, gauze, cotton balls, are some of the first aid basics you should have. 

We also always make sure we have tweezers, just in case we get bitten by a tic and have to remove it (ew ew ew, they creep me out so much!!!)

16. Hand Sanitizer

Hand sanitizer is cheap at your local dollar store, and something I always bring into an outhouse.

Many of them are not stocked regularly with hand sanitizer, so bring your own (once in a while I splurge on that one, because mint).

17. Plastic Rain Poncho

Pack rain ponchos for everyone.

Just having rain ponchos available will appease the rain gods so you will probably have beautiful weather for your camping experience.

And if it does rain, throw on those cheap ponchos when you have to go use the bathroom. You can also buy extra and use them to let your kids splash in rainy puddles.

There is only so much tent time kids can have on a rainy camping trip!

18. Bug Spray

I am not someone who uses bug spray a lot. I find the chemicals in it icky, and the smell too.

However:

Bug spray can be a huge lifesaver on a camping trip if the bugs are eating you alive.

I don’t mind using it a little bit, a few times a year. The dollar store has small bottles of bug spray – the perfect size as we don’t need a lot.

If you want a more natural bug spray, this one is DEET-free.

19. Solar Stake Lights

If you can find solar lights at your local Dollar Tree, pick up a few.

It’s nice to have battery-free light around your campsite.

20. Shower Caddy

Picking up an inexpensive shower caddy from the Dollar Store is a great idea for those less-than-clean campground showers.

There are not always convenient hooks for your towel, and a shower organizer will keep things like your toothbrush or razer off of dirty counters or the shower floor.

Well worth bringing!

21. Ice Packs

Pick up some ice packs for the cooler to keep your camping food fresh.

Dollar Store Camping Hacks For Food

Dollar stores are GREAT places to stock up on camping food. 

We usually eat fresh food at home, but more canned food will not hurt you for a week when you’re camping and is so convenient. 

Some great thrifty camping ideas for food that you can pick up at Dollar Tree:

• Cans of tuna and chicken (here are 10 delicious recipes using canned chicken)
• Canned vegetables (peas, corn)
• Baked beans
• Ketchup, mustard, relish
• Oatmeal
• Granola bars/protein bars
• Trail mix
• Hot dogs/hot dog buns

Also pick up a small can opener while you’re there.  We keep a separate one just for camping.

This will help you with your camping meal plan:

Frugal Camping Hacks For Preschoolers & Kids

One of the best parts of camping is getting kids interacting with the natural world. 

Pick up a few new outdoorsy-related toys for your kids before your camping trip. 

One of the Dollar Tree items that my daughter LOVES is a simple plastic magnifying glass. 

She loves looking at leaves and flowers and dirt under the magnifying glass when we’re out for a hike.

Other thrifty camping ideas for kids are pails, nets, scoops, diggers. 

You don’t need fancy when you are camping. 

It’s also a good idea to have a game you can play inside the tent or camper if you’re having a rain day.

We like the basics:

• cards (these ones are waterproof for rainy days or damp tents)
• Connect 4
• Guess Who

They’re good camping games for kids of all ages (and adults of all ages).

Love camping? Check out 25 of my favorite camping quotes to get you excited about your next camping trip!

Other frugal camping hacks to pick up at dollar stores:

• Sunglasses
• Umbrellas
• Rain ponchos
• Beach toys
• Towels
• Kites
• Bubbles
• Hats
• Sunblock
• Trash bags
• Dish brush

3 Camping Items I Would Never Buy From Dollar Stores

I don’t skimp and pinch pennies on everything. 

Frugal doesn’t mean being cheap. 

It means being thoughtful in your purchases, and making sure they align with what you want for your life. 

It means fewer mindless purchases.

Some things are worth spending more on. 

I shared the best Dollar Tree camping supplies; now for the 3 things I wouldn’t buy there (and would spend a little more money on).

Your list might be different from mine but these things I would absolutely pay a bit more on:

1. Rope

Rope is very useful to have on a camping trip but this probably isn’t something I would buy from a dollar store.

You can hang it between two trees as a clothes line and dry wet bathing suits and towels, or tie down a tarp or tent.

Rope is generally not very expensive, and I would rather have better quality rope that doesn’t break in the wind. 

Nylon is very durable, like this rope.

2. A headlamp

This is a camping game-changer. 

I haven’t seen these at most dollar stores, but I would not buy one from a dollar store. 

I’d spend more and get a much better quality headlamp. 

It’s nice to have light and be hands-free so we ALWAYS bring headlamps on camping trips.

Black Diamond makes high quality outdoor gear, including their headlamps. 

This headlamp has a whole bunch of light settings, from reading level to super bright. 

It is dustproof, waterproof (you can wear it in the rain), and very highly rated.

3. Reusable camping dishes

We have a couple of sets of plastic (BPA-free) dishes that we use for camping.  I’m not into the idea of using throw away paper plates and single-use plastic cutlery.

This set is SO great for camping, I absolutely love it!! 

The lid is used as a plate, the bottom part is a bowl for oatmeal or soup or whatever. 

The two smaller containers snap shut tightly and I put snacks in them like trail mix or fruit and they don’t spill.  There is a spork which I loved but also quickly lost. 

I use this set for everyday, non-camping lunches as well!

I’ve bought two more of the same set in different colors.

Happy camping!  🙂

Check out 50 Free or cheap Summer Bucket List ideas (with free printable checklist!)

For frugal hacks to garden on a budget, check out this post. And here are 5 easy tips to save money on landscaping (I especially love the first tip!)

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What are your favorite Dollar Store camping hacks?