My new to me motorhome was sitting on the driveway, itching to be let loose on its first trip. The under-seat storage is empty, there is nothing in the overhead cupboards. It was time to fill them up. But what to choose?
What Are the Best Motorhome Accessories? There are plenty of accessories to add to your motorhome or campervan, to make your trip enjoyable. Choose anything from leveling ramps to solar panels, from an outside chair to plastic plates – what to buy and what to leave at home.
We all love accessories and adding things to our motorhome and campervans. It’s easy to spend a significant amount of money and even easier to exceed the payload of your van. Here is a selection of things I chose and some things that I didn’t – listed in no particular order. And can you guess the single item it would be very unlucky leave at home?
31 Motorhome Essential Accessories – And What to Leave at Home
1. Leveling Ramps
While most campsites have level hard-standing, just as many have pitches that are less than flat.
The easiest solution is to use one or more leveling ramps and drive onto them. Pick up a bag to put them in, as they could be quite wet, muddy, and dirty by the time you are ready to move on.
A more expensive solution, by a long way, is to install electric leveling, which will work on all four corners and give you the perfect night’s sleep.
2. Wi-Fi Booster
Despite the need to be away and exploring the world, we still all crave access to the internet.
Many campsites have free or paid-for wi-fi, but the signal can often be very weak inside a motorhome that is some distance away from the source.
One solution is a wi-fi booster aerial placed on the outside of your motorhome. That (may) pick up the campsite wi-fi and make it available in your motorhome to several devices at the same time.
With an increasing number of unlimited data packages on mobile phones, you may not need this one.
3. Internet Dongle
Everyone in the van will want wi-fi for whatever purpose.
I use a mi-fi box, which works on 4G with a data SIM card. This picks up a 4G signal and distributes it as a wi-fi signal to several devices.
With the mi-fi, I have an external aerial fitted to the roof, which gives a good signal pretty much anywhere. I use the mi-fi when I am driving for traffic updates on my iPad app, for listening to the radio and podcasts on an Amazon Echo Dot.
4. Amazon Echo Dot
One of my favourite motorhome accessories!
Powered from the cigarette lighter and connected to either a mi-fi device or a mobile phone, I use it to listen to pretty much any radio station or podcast while I’m driving. And, being an Amazon Dot, it is hands-free.
5. Sav Nav for Motorhomes
When you drive out of the driveway, you could flip a coin and turn left or right and find wonderful wild camping overnight stops.
Alternatively, it is more likely that you know where you are heading, so it’s time to switch on the sat-nav. These come in all shapes and sizes.
Personally, I use a second-hand iPad Mini 3 and Co-pilot for Caravans, where the size of your vehicle can be entered. There is a wide range of specialist sat-nav boxes you can add. Some come with live traffic alerts, but you will need some form of internet connection for that and probably an annual fee.
6. Apps on Your Phone
The best thing about apps? They don’t weigh anything!
There are apps for campsites, wild camping, places to park in towns during the day, satellite navigation, for watching television, and dozens more.
Check our special article on motorhome apps.
7. Maps and Guidebooks
The question here is, how many do you need? If you have a sat-nav, do you need maps? Well, yes, probably. If your sat nav stops working, a map book is essential. I generally carry one covering the UK when I’m traveling.
Otherwise, maps and guidebooks reside on my iPad and weigh nothing. They can always be downloaded to a mobile phone too and are ideal for walking around town without the need for a paper book. A selection of motorhome books.
8. Motorhome Awnings
Extended members of the family coming to stay? Grandkids on the way?
An external awning will give you loads more space. There are various designs, some of which fix to the side of the van, others which are self-standing, allowing you to drive away and return later.
9. Windbreak
Windbreaks, by inference, are there to break the wind.
Many motorhomes use them to mark their territory on campsites. Others use them to keep their dogs inside but off a lead.
Whatever you use a windbreak for, remember to take a rubber mallet to hammer them into the ground.
10. Outdoor Chairs
The sun is out and the birds are in the sky. The wine is chilled and there is a book waiting to be read.
Time to break out the folding chairs and soak up the sunshine. When looking for camping chairs, consider how much they weigh and where you can store them. If they are too large, finding a spot may be difficult.
11. Outdoor Table
A fold-up table can be a useful addition to the accessory list.
As with outdoor chairs, make sure you have somewhere large enough to store them when not in use. Look for a lightweight table, to save payload.
12. Gas or Charcoal BBQs
The sun is out, there is plenty of gas in the bottle and it’s BBQ time.
A gas BBQ is always going to be faster to bring heat than charcoal, although you could go that way if you prefer. Some motorhome BBQs can be quite heavy, so it is wise to look for one which won’t compromise your total payload.
On a campsite, it is worth checking whether they permit the use of a BBQ. On some sites you may be able to use a gas BBQ, but not one which uses charcoal.
13. Corkscrew
Yes, you guessed right – this is the accessory not to leave at home! And yes, unlucky 13 if you forget to pack one – who says I don’t have a sense of humour?
14. LPG Gas
Gas bottles. Those nasty, cold heavy things you always seem to need to change when it is raining.
Rather than lifting the bottle in and out, I changed mine for two fixed LPG bottles from GasIt. An external filler on the side of the motorhome means I can fill the LPG bottles at many service stations.
Although there is an upfront cost for the bottles and regulators, the cost of LPG is significantly lower than those heavy blue or red bottles.
That said, many UK petrol stations are removing their LPG tanks.
15. Trackers for Motorhomes
Second to your house, if you own one, a motorhome could be the most expensive thing you own. It would be a crime to lose it.
And crime is just where it could go, so protect your pride and joy. A tracker can be set up to text you when the motorhome moves and should give the location to help you or the police track it down. There is a wide range of trackers, some of which require a regular subscription, and can also advise the tracking company of unauthorised movement.
Fitting a tracker may be required by your insurance company, so check your policy.
16. Steering Wheel Lock
One very easy and quick visual deterrent for the opportunist thief, it to fit a lock on the steering wheel of your motorhome.
A simple ‘crook lock’ bar takes seconds to fit and is locked by a key. An alternative is a full wheel cover which locks over the entire steering wheel. They spin and give no grip on the wheel and generally also have a bar to prevent other movements.
When you park up in town or at a supermarket even for ten minutes, a steering wheel lock is quick and easy to use. Some typical steering locks.
17. Wheel Lock
A wheel lock can look just like a wheel clamp applied if you park in the wrong place. They have the same effect; they help to stop your motorhome from being stolen without significant work by a potential thief.
These locks take a couple of minutes to fit but are ideal when you are in the driveway at home, as a deterrent. Depending on the value of your motorhome, your insurance company may require the fitting of a wheel clamp when you are at home. Here are some different wheel locks.
18. Water Hose
Of all the accessories you can choose, this must be number one.
There are various grades of hose, but your garden hose isn’t suitable. You need to look for a hose which is known as ‘food grade’. This means, unlike a garden hose which will have loose plastic pieces on the inside, a food-grade hose will be smooth.
Buy a variety of attachments and converters for the tap end of your hose, as there are a surprising number of fittings at campsites and other places.
To make life easy, use a reel to keep your hose tidy when stored away in your motorhome.
19. Electric Cable
An electric hook-up cable for your motorhome is one of your top five accessories.
The special plugs at each end are designed to make an easy and water-resistant connection between your motorhome and the electric point at the campsite. Sometimes, the electric point can be further away from your pitch as you may expect, so aim for a 25-metre cable.
When traveling in Europe, you may find a different fitting on some sites, so buy a couple of converter plugs.
To make life easy, use a reel to keep your electric cable tidy when stored away in your motorhome. Always unwind the cable fully when in use and don’t leave any part coiled on the reel, as it can heat up and potentially cause a fire. Electric cables are available online.
20. Roll Out Awning Stays
Many motorhomes and campervans come with a rollout awning fixed to the side of the van.
When unrolled, there are fold-down legs that you can fix to the ground with a tent peg. That is fine if there is no wind. However, with even a mild wind, the roll-out awning can become unstable.
A set of awning stays securely fixed to the ground can act as guy lines and prevent the awing from being damaged, or worse, torn from the side of the van. This is a small investment to give you peace of mind. If you are leaving the motorhome for a trip out and the weather looks changeable, it is advisable to roll the awning back into place.
21. ACSI Camping Card
A Camping Card ASCI will save you money at over 3,000 campsites across Europe out of high season.
You will always know the price you will pay and there are five fixed levels. The ACSI cards are valid for a year. More on ACSI cards can be found here.
22. Rotary Airier
Traveling for any length of time and it’s going to be clothes washing time. Your campsite for the night may have a washing machine, but many either don’t have a dryer, or they are ineffective. Meanwhile, you could have been swimming and need to dry the towels before putting them back in your motorhome.
Fold up airier to the rescue. These come in all shapes and sizes, with some clipping onto a bike rack and others that are free-standing. Look for one which is going to be stable enough not to blow over in the wind, or can be guyed to the ground.
23. Bike Rack
Adding a bike rack on a motorhome is very popular.
You park up on the campsite, but it is a little way out of town. Time to break out the bicycles and pedal into the centre of town. Don’t forget your padlocks.
Styles and bike capacity vary depending on your needs. If you are off on a trip without your bicycles, simply fold up the bike rack. Alternatively, many can easily be removed and left at home, saving you weight and fuel.
24. Satellite Dish
If you want to watch satellite channels, then a dish is going to be essential.
There are several types. One style is to fit a fully motorised dish fitted to the roof of the motorhome. This can be set to automate finding a satellite signal. The main alternative is a dish at ground level set on a stand. You will need to find the satellite signal manually with this setup.
Your television will need to be capable of receiving a satellite signal, or you’ll need a separate interface box.
25. 12-Volt / Mains Inverter
Mains power is needed for some items in a motorhome.
A mains inverter is designed to connect to your leisure battery and convert the 12-volt DC power into standard AC mains.
These come in a variety of power sizes, the more powerful the more expensive, and the faster they will draw power from the leisure battery.
26. Solar Panel
I fitted a new solar panel to the top of my Hymer Swing motorhome. This feeds a controller and charges the leisure batteries.
The panel charges in direct sunshine, although the charge rate goes down when the sun is at an angle to the flat panel on the top of the van. The advantage of an outside fixed panel is it will charge while you are on the road and once fitted, you can pretty much forget it.
An alternative is a fold-up panel which is stored away as you drive. When you are on-site, the panel can be set up, pointed directly at the sun, and connected through a controller to your battery. You may have to move it around as the sun tracks across the sky.
27. Television
Corrie fan? Prefer East Enders? Hate both?
Most motorhome owners like to relax in the evening and watch some TV or watch a DVD.
There is a range of 12-volt televisions with a variety of screen sizes. Alternatively, a TV can be run from an electric hook-up or an inverter. Some televisions are dual 12-volt and mains, giving the best of both options. I have yet to find one which runs off-gas 😊
If you carry a laptop with all your movies loaded, then look for a TV which has a suitable input socket to plug-in to the laptop.
28. Television Aerial
Have television – need aerial.
Most motorhomes will come with a TV aerial already fitted. If you are buying a second-hand motorhome, then check to see if it still works. Mine didn’t.
29. E-Book Reader / Kindle / iPad
I weighted a paperback book just now – 350 grams. How many books do you have in your motorhome right now? Five? Ten? That could be three kilos of your payload.
A large mode iPad weighs 723 grams (two books) and a Kindle Fire 375 grams (a book and a bit).
Taking an iPad or Kindle means you can have hundreds of books to read as you sit and enjoy time in your motorhome. Plus, with an iPad, there are hundreds of other apps to download, none of which weigh anything!
30. Kettle – Mains, 12-volt or Gas?
Fancy a cup of tea or coffee? Of course, you do!
You are hooked up to mains electric, so using a mains kettle is OK, yes? Well, no. Most mains hook-ups at campsites have very low amps available and an electric kettle can blow the fuse. Or of course, you may not have mains electricity.
OK, a 12 volts kettle then? These will work, but generally, take a fair time to boil and will be a heavy draw on your leisure batteries.
That brings us to what I use – a kettle on the gas hob. These heat the water fairly quickly and produce a lovely whistle when the water is ready. Rather than carrying three kettles depending on what is available, why not just go for one to use on the hob?
31. Vacuum Cleaner
A little muddy inside the motorhome today?
A stiff brush and a dustpan are often enough, although a 12-volt vacuum cleaner is an option. Most 12-volt versions are nowhere near as powerful as your home cleaner and the length of the cable can be a lot shorter than you might expect.
A plastic dustpan and brush are an accessory to carry in any case.
And What to Leave at Home . . .
You don’t need anything like all the motorhome and campervan accessories featured in this article.
Choose the ones which will work for you and consider the weight of each item, so you don’t exceed your motorhome payload. When you have been using your motorhome for a while, go through those accessories take out all the ones you haven’t used and leave them at home.
Just remember the corkscrew!
RELATED QUESTIONS
What are the best Android and iOS apps to take as motorhome accessories? I have reviewed over 30 different apps and the details can be found here.