14 Little Camping Luxuries That Seem Way More Expensive than They Are

I love car camping because it’s one of the few opportunities in the outdoors to give efficiency the middle finger. For most adventures, I’m shaving a few grams wherever I can, optimizing storage space, and constantly making decisions about what stays and what goes. Car camping? Nope, I’m not doing any of that. If it fits in the car, it’s coming with me.

It’s a chance to bring all the little bits and bobs you’re normally forced to leave behind, turningn your campsite into a camp home. However, what you soon find out when you adopt the “going overboard” mindset is that car camping gets expensive, fast. A couple of clicks later, and you’ve dropped $1,000 on a fancy camp mattress and a veritable backcountry mansion to put it in.

If your wallet has taken a hit on big ticket luxuries, we’ve got your back: fill up the rest of the nooks and crannies of your car with these car camping accessories that all come in under $100. Spend wisely and you’ll still have some cash left over for a Wagyu steak and a nice bottle of wine to celebrate getting out of the house and into the wild.

The Rechargeable Mini Hozuki light is a do-it-all tool that can find a home in any campsite. Use it to light your camp kitchen, hang it from a hook in your tent for reading time, or grab a few to add an ambient glow to your camp site—these versatile lamps are perfect to have on hand for any car camping adventure. They’re rechargeable and last for 60 hours at full brightness, so you don’t have to worry about them going dark on you.

REI Co-op Flexlite Camp Chair

This camp chairm from REI is light enough to tote around but comfortable enough for long nights spent around the fire. And, since it packs down to almost the size of a 32-ounce Nalgene, it won’t take up much space in the car.

Nomadix Car Seat Cover Towel

A towel is an oft-overlooked piece of camping kit. As tempting as it is to toss your favorite beach towel in the backseat, we’d recommend opting for something a bit more technical. This towel dries fast, doesn’t attract sand or dirt like a conventional cotton towel, and is designed to be wrapped around your car seat after a quick swim.

Rumpl Original Puffy Blanket

We love the classic Rumpl puffy blanket for all things outdoors. It’s durable enough to drop on the ground when you need somewhere to sit, and you can pick it up, dust it off, and throw it over your shoulders when the sun goes down and the campsite starts to chill out. Then, once you’re in bed for the night, it’s a perfect layer to drape over your sleeping bag.

LifeStraw Go Series 650ml Water Bottle

Friends don’t let friends drink dirty water. The LifeStraw Go Series Water Bottle is an easy way to ensure that everyone in your camping party has clean water to drink throughout the trip. Dip it into the water source and sip straight from the bottle: no squeezing or straining necessary. Its membrane microfilter protects against bacteria, parasites, microplastics, sand, dirt, and cloudiness, while the charcoal filter improves the taste.

Opinel No. 10 Corkscrew Stainless-Steel Folding Knife with Bottle Opener

No campsite is complete without a knife, but if you’re car camping, odds are pretty high that you’ll need a bottle opener and a corkscrew too. This 3-in-1 knife from Opinel is going to become an essential part of your camp kitchen. The 3.9-inch blade is long enough for chopping veggies or doing odd jobs around the campsite, and, as with all Opinel knives, its looks are second to none.

Sea to Summit Camp Kitchen Clean Up Kit

Cooking chef-worthy camp meals means having a restaurant-worthy pile of dishes at the end of the night. This is where Sea to Summit’s Camp Kitchen Clean Up Kit comes into play. It comes with a 10L sink that’s big enough to really get your hands into, a brush/scraper, a washcloth, a DryLite towel, and a refillable bottle of biodegradable Wilderness Wash. Once you’re done, it all packs into itself to save space and stay organized.

Nestout 15000mAh Power Bank

When you’re car camping, you probably have at least a few devices on hand (like the aforementioned Snow Peak lights). Thus, you need a powerful portable battery to keep everything charged up and ready to go. This charger from Nestout is waterproof, dustproof, and shock-resistant, so you don’t have to baby it. Once the battery is fully charged, it can recharge a smartphone three times before needing more juice, and it pairs well with Nestout’s lineup of lights, solar chargers, and fans.

Exped Mega Pillow

One of the first things to go when backpacking is the pillow, so when we head out on a car camping trip, a luxe pillow becomes the first thing added back into the kit. The Mega Pillow from Exped is made in the same design as its uber-comfortable Mega Mat, giving you a soft spot to rest your head at the end of the night. Car camping is not the place to sleep on a balled up sweatshirt.

Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 4

One of our favorite car camping accessories is the Ultimate Ears Everboom, but it is just a bit too spendy for this list. In its stead we recommend the Wonderboom 4, the Everboom’s more affordable sibling. It provides 360° sound (perfect for that outdoor projector), and is fully waterproof. Plus, it floats.

Black Diamond Stella R Headlamp

Another accessory that every person in your crew should have is a quality headlamp. The Stella R from Black Diamond is the ideal car camping companion, not only because it lights the way to the cat hole at 3am, but it has multiple color modes, including color vortex, to get the party started. It’s a fun upgrade to the traditional headlamp.

Luno Gear & Shoe Storage Bag

Whether you’re camping in your car or next to your car, this storage bag is an underrated hero of the campsite. Its powerful magnets let you affix it to the side of your car, providing a place to store your shoes or anything else you want to keep off the ground.

AeroPress Go Travel Coffee Press

When you’re car camping, instant coffee just won’t do. If you want a real cup of joe to kick off your day, bring along this Aero Press. It is durable, easy to use—you just need coffee grounds, a filter, and boiling water—and packs into itself for simple storage.

Lodge Camp Dutch Oven 6 QT

Finally, one of the best parts of car camping is skipping the ultralight cookware in favor of real stuff you’d use in your kitchen at home. Case in point: the Dutch oven. At 14 pounds, you’d never dream of taking this thing into the backcountry, but if you’ve got your car right there, you might as well bring it. This thing is tough, durable, and cooks a mean camp meal.