10 Fun & Useful Beach Camping Accessories

Going camping at the beach or a lake? Here are great beach camping accessories that are both fun and useful…

When people think of camping, they often think of being out in the middle of the woods. But a lot of camping is done on ocean beaches and lakes.

In fact, Jennifer and I often find ourselves on the beaches of Florida and the Great Lakes. They’re two of our favorite destinations!

That’s why I decided to put together a list of fun and useful beach camping accessories that you can easily pack into your RV. I’ve got everything on this list, from beach games to giant beach blankets and everything in between.

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10 Best Beach Camping Accessories

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As you can see from the video, Jennifer and I have spent a lot of time beach camping. We share our favorite campgrounds along the Gulf Coast, where you can put the following beach camping accessories to good use!

1. Portable Beach Tent

This tent is designed to provide shade and a sand-free lounge space on the beach. It only has three sides, leaving the front open for the gorgeous ocean views.

The extendable floor helps keep sand away from your snacks and drinks in your shaded area. Well, at least as much as you can keep sand out of anything.

2. 4 Pack Microfiber Beach Towel with Bag

Bulky beach towels can quickly eat up the limited space in an RV. That’s why this compact bag of microfiber towels is an excellent solution.

The quick-dry towels are soft and absorbent, made without any chemical dyes.

3. Extra Large Beach Blanket

This 10’ x 9’ oversized beach blanket is lightweight but durable. It rolls up into a bag you can carry with one hand.

It’s waterproof, easy to clean, and tear-resistant. It comes with stakes to secure it to the ground, too.

This blanket is perfect for the beach, but you can also use it at your campsite. So, win-win wherever you travel!

4. Extra Large Mesh Beach Bag

This mesh beach bag has two big perks. The first being you can easily see where your items are in the bag. No more digging around to find your sunscreen.

The second is it doesn’t carry sand back to your RV. The mesh material allows the sand to pass through and fall back where it belongs: the beach! It also helps air out any soggy towels or clothing as you travel back to your RV.

Oh, and I just realized there’s a third great perk! Because it’s mesh, it collapses down to hardly take up any space at all in your RV.

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Mike and Jennifer’s RV Lifestyle hat collection

Who needs a hat? You do! Dad hats aren’t just for dads. This comfy one’s got a low profile with an adjustable strap and curved visor. Just the thing to wear on your next RV Lifestyle adventure.

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5. Bottle-Sized Compact Chair

I have a whole list of the best camping chairs for your campsite, but this compact chair is perfect for the beach. It saves you from lugging chairs across the sand since, when collapsed, it’s only the size of a bottle.

This design was actually made into reality because of crowdfunding. It’s the “most funded portable chair in crowdfunding history.” It sets up in 5 seconds and supports up to 300 lbs on its aircraft-grade aluminum structure.

6. Kids Mesh Shell Collecting Bag

If your kiddos (or your wife) love collecting sea shells, these mesh bags are for them. They’re much better than carrying around a beach pail that fills up with wet sand.

The bags have zippers, too, so you don’t lose the shells. Plus, you can rinse the shells without removing them from the bag. 

You get 3 bags in one set, and can choose from a few fun color combinations.

7. Collapsible Cornhole Game Set

This super lightweight fabric cornhole game is perfect for playing on the beach. I actually included it in my list of 10 Best Outdoor Camping Games. So, it’s perfect for the beach and any campground you travel to.

It comes with two collapsible game boards, bean bags, and stakes that all fit into a small bag with a carry handle.

8. Slammo Game Set

This is also from my best outdoor games list, but it’s perfect for the beach! Playing on the soft sand enables you to play harder than you can on the hard dirt at campsites.

It’s a great, active game that multiple people can play at once. Perfect for beach day with the family!

9. Coolers Like YETI But Cheaper

I wanted to include a great cooler on this list, but choosing just one is too difficult. Different people need different coolers depending on their plans.

So, instead, I’m linking to an article I recently wrote that lists coolers like YETI but without the huge price tag. They still work great, but don’t take away from your fuel budget!

10. Dig-git Beach Umbrella Sand Anchor

This cool gadget was actually featured on USA Network’s America’s Big Deal in 2021. It’s a shovel that also serves as a beach umbrella anchor. 

It works with any standard beach umbrella. Not to mention it comes in handy when your kids want to be buried in the sand!

I wish more people would use this because I’ve always had an irrational fear of beach umbrellas blowing away and impaling someone. 

BONUS: Kids Life Vest

You know, I’m surprised how few kids wear life vests at the beach. Everyone wears them at lakes, but not at the beach with crashing waves and rip tides. Why is that?

I think parents could rest a lot easier at the beach and enjoy their time even more if their children wore life vests. So, here’s a great, Coast Guard-approved, high mobility option.

This brand offers different sizes in various colors. They’re not overly bulky, so kids won’t feel restrained, and they’re easier to store.

Beach Kites

Kites can be used on the beach or back home. There are so many cool ones to choose from these days! And they are easy to store in an RV.

Mike and Jennifer’s Favorite Places in Florida – all 3 ebooks!

We RVers may wander far and wide but it’s true for most of us that we end up with some favorite “Go-To” places – places that draw us back again and again.

Florida is one of those places for us. And we know it is for many RVers looking to get away and explore during the winter. 

That’s why we’ve created three guides, covering Florida’s Atlantic Coast, the Gulf Coast, and the Keys. 

Each of these guides is a seven-day guided exploration of one of the coasts. And each stop is a curated view of the best things that we’ve enjoyed on this trip and want you to experience.

Altogether these guides are over 300 pages of content! 

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FAQ’s about Florida Gulf Coast beaches of interest to RVers

What is the weather like along Florida’s Gulf Coast?

The weather along Florida’s Gulf Coast can vary depending on the time of year and the specific location. In general, the area experiences hot, humid summers and mild, pleasant winters.

The Panhandle region can be quite cool in January. It is seldom below freezing, but daytime highs are typically in the 50s. It warms up about 10 degrees each month.

You can also generally add about 10 degrees for every 150 miles you travel south down the Florida peninsula.

By the time you hit Naples, daytime highs in January are in the comfortable 70s.

Did Hurricane Ian destroy many beach campgrounds on the Gulf Coast?

While it severely damaged almost two dozen RV parks and campgrounds, about 8-10 campgrounds in the Naples-Ft. Myers area were completely destroyed. Most of the damaged campgrounds have been repaired and reopened.

Check with the Florida Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds if you have questions or concerns.

Are there any websites that can help me get a reservation for a Florida beach campground?

One of the best resources we can recommend is called Campnab. This service monitors parks for cancelations and sends you an alert when an opening matches your criteria. That said, it isn’t magic. The app doesn’t create availabilities. 

The service works – but it is not free.

Campnab offers two ways to use the service. The first is individual pay-per-use scans. These watch for vacancies at a specific park for a specific date. These work well if you know exactly when and where you intend to camp. Pay-per-use scans cost $10 – $20, depending on how frequently you want them to check availability.

The second way to use the service is through a membership. These typically run monthly and are tailored to those who camp more frequently or are looking to maximize their chance of finding a site. Membership allows you to scan multiple parks and/or dates simultaneously. With memberships, you pay a monthly recurring fee ($10, $20, $30, or $50), depending on your needs.

Are there places in Florida where you can literally camp on the beach for free?

Not many. And they are very pricey. If you want to sleep directly on the sand in an RV, you’ll have to stay at a developed commercial campground like Camp Gulf on the Emerald Coast or an RV resort like Big Pine Key Resort in the keys. Some state parks like the Gamble Rogers State Memorial Recreation Area in the Atlantic Coast or  Bahia Honda State Park in the keys or Fort Desto State Park near St. Petersburg have beachside sites, too.

But are there free, unrestricted RV beach camping spots in Florida?

Sorry, none that I know of that would work for RVs.

There is unrestricted camping on wild beaches on a couple of islands, but you need a boat to get there, and it is for tent camping only. If you want to sleep directly on the sand, there is Anclote Key offshore Tarpon Springs, and Shell Key in Pinellas County. Another favorite is Keewaydin Island between Naples and Marco Island but that area remains pretty devasted from Hurricane Ian.

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