How do you keep everything organized?

[Shelle&Dave]

We just got back from an overnight trip in a pop-up. Within a couple of hours everything was a mess. It seemed like every flat surface was covered with stuff. Snacks, keys, cellphones, clothes everywhere! If this happened to us with an overnight trip I can only imagine what the camper will look like after camping for a week at WDW in September. DFiance's daughter went with us this weekend, but in September it will just be the two of us.

How do you keep everything organized? Have you been camping so often that everything has it's place? I know one thing we did wrong was we threw everything into plastic bags since we were only going overnight. For our September trip I was thinking about packing everything in those big plastic totes. Maybe I should get those stackable drawers instead.

What are your best tips to keep everything organized inside your camper and out?

 

[ftwildernessguy]

We have been camping for over 20 years and we still haven't figured out how to keep things organized. It might be easiest just to give in and ignore the mess!

 

[parmtoo]

Nothing is really to organized for us while camping either. We tried though. One thing that helps is to give eveyone an area or container to keep thier things in.
After a week long trip there is just no help for the mess. Everyone has bought things, there are shoes everywhere, ect.....Good luck, and above all, have fun!

 

[VAN]

Here is what works for us. Each person gets a duffle bag (medium size) and all their clothes MUST be kept in the bag. When people are sleeping, the bags are stacked on the counters, etc. During the day, we loosely roll the sleeping bags, place the pillow and pj's on top ... then the duffle bags get placed on the beds for the day.

If you have kids and they have books, tape players, etc, I will also have something like a small, soft-sided cooler (one that zips) that they have to keep their stuff in.

The above items are KEY to keeping things tidy.

I also have a hard plastic box that I keep the sink stuff at -- this includes contact solution, lotion, toothpaste, toothbrushes, reading glasses, etc. That way they don't get knocked off the counter and are easy to temporarily move aside when you need more room at the sink.

The food items are either in a Rubbermaid box or some other type of hard plastic box ... try to keep the breakfast things in one box or close to the door, etc. I have a separate hard plastic box where I keep paper plates, silverware, can opener, etc.

All of these plastic boxes can be stacked and then you can put your fan or reading lamp on top of them in the evening (or the duffle bags).

At WDW we eat our meals outside and I have a dining canopy. Under it we have our picnic table with a small table at the end that I keep the coffeepot and toaster. We put a tarp over both tables at night to keep the dew off. In the a.m. we just take the tarp off for the day and we have dry seating.

We have been camping with a small pop-up for 10 years and just this past year graduated to a larger one, so are really enjoying the extra space. Over the years, we have found items that work well for us. I also am always picking up ideas from others at the campground and usually add a new thing or two each year that I think will work well.

Some other things I do, I use a clothes pin to clip a face towel and a dish towel to the skirting around the ceiling of the pop-up (near the sink area). I also use a large safety pin to pin a tall kitchen bag on this same skirting near the door for garbage. You don't want to let it get too heavy though ... it is good for used tissues, and other miscellaneous things that add clutter.

Another thing that has worked well for us at WDW is to put up a small (easy to set-up) tent where we have kept the chairs at night as well as our food boxes (with the lids securely in place). If you are camping in Michigan, you would not want to do this because of the animals, but we have not had a problem in Florida during all the time we have camped.

I hope this have given you something to think about. It works for us.

 

[PenskeSth1]

Double post

 

[PenskeSth1]

I am a neat freak so everything stays organized or I loose all sense of control. Yes even on Vacation!

For laundry: We have a hamper that sits inside the shower, all clothes get put right into there when we undress at the end of the day. I wash clothes every night to keep up. Fortunately we have a washer and dryer in our fifth wheel that makes it a little bit easier.
For Clothes: Everyone has a cabinet that all their clothes had best be in.

We have a couple cabinets in the bathroom so all toiletries and sunblock etc. stay in there until needed.

Shoes: We have a carpet right inside the door and all shoes are NEATLY placed there when you walk in the door. Although we do have a carpet outside that we also leave shoes on.

My DS and DD's stuff like toys, they have rubbermaid tubs they keep all that stuff in.

All pool toys and etc. is kept in the belly of the trailer until needed.

I guess it is al little easier when you have an RV.

Chips and cookies, etc go in the Microwave.
I am pathetic, because if we make something to eat, I immediately do dishes. I cannot stand dishes left out, and Clutter drives me in sane!

 

[Disney Campers]

we have cupboards galore in our trailer but yet it still seems unorganized at times, its best that everyone have some sort of designated space or drawer

 

[Ellen aka Snow White]

We have camped in a popup for 12 years now. Clutter can be a problem. I have used the clothes in a duffle bag - kids could not stick to that one! Then we went to clothes in storage boxes in the back of the truck - to lazy for that one - boxes ended up inside. I think we have finally found our solution: we purchased stackable baskets. These are easier to trasport then the stackable drawers because they stack together in a smaller space. The first thing we do when we set up camp is set up the baskets. Each family member is "assigned" 3 baskets. I use one for the bathroom items and one for snack items, one for breakfast foods. Yes that would be 15 baskets! We have one long cabinet that is too narrow for any other use, but the baskets fit perfect on.

Dirty clothes are put into the laundry bag, kept either in the in the screen room or back of truck.

Shoes are kept outside in a plastic box. We do have a screen room that attaches to our awning - in that we keep the coffee pot, food in plastic boxes, crockpot, dishes, etc. It works really well for us.

I also have several smaller baskets to catch things like change, cell phones, etc. I have found it is easier to move a basket out of the way then to handle all the little items.

One thing I have seen and used in the last year is putting bungee cords under the beds for a clothesline. I had a wooden towel rack that would fall over if you looked at it!! It is gone now!!! I put two rows of bungees under each bed with a few clothes pins it works great!

Hope this helps.

 

[my3princes]

We camp all the time and we have 3 young kids. I have a place designated for everything and everything must be in it's place. It is much easier for all of us to get out the door in the morning if everything is where it is supposed to be. We have gone from tent to pop-up to small motor home to a 30 foot travel trailer. When we had the pop up camper I invested in plastic dressers with 3 drawers. Each kid has a drawer for his clothing. The were the perfect height as we could collapse the trailer with them on the floor and they did not interfere with anything. When we were set up they the dresser would sit on the shelf and was easily assessable. I have a wicker type basket that all of the shoes go in when we enter the trailer. We are fortunate to now have a large closet which the dresser fits in. I can hang the kids clothes above and use the drawers for non hanging items. No matter what you choose to use, make sure that everyone knows where everything is and make sure that things go back as you use them as this reduces the clutter. We have a hamper that dirty items go into and I wash as necessary, but can easily do a 3 or 4 day trip with one hamper. At wdw I usually wash once or twice during the 2 weeks that we are there. We often use the public showers as they are much roomier than those in the camper. I purchase the small shampoo type containers at Walmart and put shampoo and liquid soap into a couple for each person. I have small bags that hold the shampoo, soap, toothbrush, small tube of toothpaste, brush/comb and any special toiletries that are person specific. Each person has their own bag and it is easy to grab on the way to the shower. I store them in an over the door plastic/mesh shoe holder. Each person also has a mesh backpack (found them at Walmart for $3 in the sporting goods section). They are great for the pool or bathroom because if you put wet items in them they are mesh and dry very quickly. We plan to use them in the parks too this trip as you can see through them and should make the security checks much easier and they are very light weight. I'm sure I have more tips, but too many to list. You can PM me if you have other specific questions.

 

[loriandmatt]

go to your local dollar or deep discount store. gather up some plastic or metal bins, baskets and such.

These helped me immesely. 0ne on the counter by the sink keeps everyones toothbrushes, toothpaste, toiletry items, contacts, bug spray.......use it and toss it back in the bin. no clutter there.


one or two on each of the other small counter spaces. (the most helpful ones here are the ones that stack. - more stuff can be organized this way) These hold all kinds of stuff. Gameboys, wallets, cameras and extra film, backpacks or fanny packs for each person, souvies.

We generally do not use the dinnet area in our camper for eating. (we set up our picnic table under the awning or under the screenroom - if we bring it) In the indoor dinnet area, we remove our table (ours in completely removable - a big bonus) set the seats up instead of laying them flat like a bed, and each person gets part of one of these benches to stack up their clean clothes. dirty clothes are kept in a colapsable hamper in the back of the van.

Tidy up a bit at least once a day. - keeps the mess from getting out of hand.

Most all of our other camping supplies are kept outside of the camper in a very large plastic bin. (almost the size of a foot locker) It holds all of our "always packed" camping supplies and because it snaps tightly closed, also holds our non refridgerated food items. Keeps that clutter out of the camper.

camp a few more times before the "big trip" - take along a pen and tablet with you and take notes of things that might make things run more smoothly next time. after a few trips you will have it down to a science.

- lori

 

[Memph1s]

We camp in a medium size popup (Coleman Cheyenne). It has a vanity that folds down from the ceiling over and just behind the sink that has a mirror, 3 shelves with built in toothbrush holders, a paper towel holder and a place at the bottom that you can put a dish rag or towel. The shelves hold dish soap, hand soap, meds, sunglasses, ect. Our camper has very little counter space and this vanity really helps get the clutter up out of the way. We also use a stack of plastic drawers that we used when we were in a tent. It fits perfectly on our counter and has a flat top so we don't really lose the counter space. It has large drawers at the bottom and two thin drawers at the top. We use the top drawer as a catch all for keys, wallets, small flash light, cell phones, family radios and a lot of small things that would other wise just be sitting around. The other small drawer holds some card games and our toiletries, deodorant, shampoo, soap, sunscreens, and other things of that nature. We each have a bottom drawer for shorts, underwear and socks. Our camper also has a fold down clothes hanger bar that we put most of our clothes on. We camp mostly in shorts and T-shirts and I can easily put 2-3 shorts and 3-4 T-shirts on 1 hanger so the 3 of us can put a weeks worth of clothes on 6 hangers that are up and out of the way. I also use a 3 tier hanging wire basket that hangs from the A/C brace on the ceiling that we put potatoes, onions, tomatoes, and other fruits and veggies that do not require refrigeration. The rest of the food is in stackable drawers that sits on one end of the couch. We used to use large rubber maid bins but the drawers make it much easier to get to stuff without having to dig through everything in the box. Its great to have chips, cookies, and bread that is not mangled from all the handling. We keep a popup clothes hamper just outside the door under the awning for dirty cloths. We do wear our shoes in the camper but when we take them off we put them in a plastic bin just outside the door. We tried the no wearing shoes in the camper rule but it was just too much trouble. We put a large piece of indoor/outdoor carpet under the awning with a door mat in front of the door with another one on the door step and yet another one just inside the camper. These really keep the dirt out of the camper and they are very easy to just pick up and shake off. I set up a cooking table outside under the awning opposite the stove and keep the toaster and coffee pot on it. It also has a row of hangers on one end where I can hang the pots and pans as well as the cooking utensils. This setup works great and keeps all the cooking heat out of the camper. While I would never call our camper neat looking, we do keep everything in its place and still have room in the camper to move around without having to constantly move things to have a place to sit or work.

 

[bjsmico]

We used a pop-up for years with our 4 kids and what REALLY works the best is to pitch another little dome tent. That way ALL your suitcases,boxes of dry foods,extra camping gear will be in one place and organized.

 

[house_of_princesses]

We used an over the door shoe holder for aspirin bottles, toothpaste, loose change, cell phones, etc. We bought a horizontal shoe holder that attaches to the side of your bed. Actually used it for shoes and I think we bought it at Camping World.

www.saltwatercanvas.com had some great mesh shower bags. Each family member had their own bag w/ their own stash. (I love their whale beach bag, too!) They hung in the tt shower to dry after each use.

Love my camp kitchen! Bass Outdoor store (is that the name?) carries it, but I found it cheaper on line somewhere.

Most of all, enjoy!!

 

[jnke1]

I am not sure about a camper because all the times I have gone we camped. I do however make sure that everyone has their own crayon/pencil box holder (you can get these for like 75c at walmart) filled with a small tube of toothpaste, toothbrush, a little container filled with shampoo & conditioner (I keep the full bottle in the trunk or car under the seat in case anyone runs out), and a small soap bar. Only bring the necessary makeup in a small makeup bag so that you use less space. Everyone has their own duffle bag for clothes (unless your staying for a long period of time you really dont need that much as you can always wash what you have) and any of the kids cd players or game boys stay in their duffel bag. I have taken my kids the last four years and honestly it wasnt till last year that I realized that bins, drawers/little nec. holders made everything so much easier and alot more organized. As for any beach toys..those all stayed in the trunk until ready to use.

 

[sheilap]

It took a WHOLE LOT OF CONVINCING by my DH to get me to try camping at all. We bought a 10-person dome tent and all the "stuff" that goes with camping and did it once at a Jellystone Park here in MI (Silver Lake, to be exact). Well, I was hooked. Loved camping and knew we were going to do it more, so we promptly went out and bought a popup (Jayco 12A). Took two short (weekend-long) trips, then a week long trip. By the end of the week long trip I was ready to tear my hair out - the clutter was driving me to insanity!! We are a family of only three (me, DH, and 8yo DD) but we do spoil ourselves and tend to purchase goodies (aka "more clutter"). After the repacking of stuff to go home, then unpacking it all again to clean out the popup, we upgraded to a hybrid TT. So far we LOVE it! (Jayco Kiwi 21C) It's light/small enough that we didn't have to buy a new transport vehicle, but big enough (read: more storage) that we actually do have a spot for everything.

Sure, the cost was a factor - a huge factor - but the cost:enjoyment ratio is priceless. Just my opinion!