We’ve found that with such limited space and weight constraints in our RV that the holidays have gotten a little strange as we don’t really want gifts. Gifts usually mean we have to throw something we already have out to fit it in the RV. In fact, this year we asked our friends and family not send anything.
This post is NOT a hint so please DO NOT buy anything just because you read this. I’m providing a list of things we’ve enjoyed in the past for other people who might be thinking about full-time RVing or know someone getting into it.
NOTE: We are not being paid by anyone to recommend these items. Nor do we get any commissions if you do buy these items. This is just our attempt to help others.
Old Hat RVer Gifts:
- Hiking Socks (think Darn Tough, Bombas, etc). Seems like an on-going need.
- Hats. Baseball cap, ski cap, cold weather beanie, or packable sun hat.
- Clothing Gift Certificates (think REI, Kuhl, Patagonia, Titlenine, or Athleta)
- Shoe Gift Certificates (DSW, Zappos)
- Amazon Gift Cards. Amazon lockers are one of the best ways that full time RVer can receive physical items.
- eBooks or Better yet, book recommendations are awesome!
- eNews subscriptions, particularly those that allow for content to be downloaded and read off-line (like “the Week” or the “Wall Street Journal”)
- Streaming Subscriptions (Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, etc) or Better yet, watch recommendations!
- Podcast recommendations.
- America the Beautiful National Park Pass (link to buy here). Typically, this is an annual pass until you turn 62 and then you can get a lifetime pass, which we bought this year. Now we won’t need one ever again. Done and done.
- Skincare Products, specifically sunscreen, picaridin bug spray, O’Keefe’s health feet balm (its amazing), or Avon Skin So Soft all in one sunscreen/mosquito repellent. All are available at Amazon. No matter what other cosmetics or skin care products someone is using, these will always get used up on the road.
- Sunglass Straps. These are great for boating, cycling, or hiking as you often take your glasses on and off and they’re a lightweight gift.
- Coffee. Why? Ummm..it’s coffee. Enough said.
- Pajamas or Slippers. Why are these different from clothes? I don’t know…somehow they seem like a typical holiday gift whether you live in an RV or not, and your old ones are easy to donate even if they’re in good shape.
New RVers,
There are so many items that are needed, but here’s a few fun gifts:
- Instapot (available at Amazon). You can read a ton of blogs about how this one pot can be used to make so many types of different meals.
- Presto Liddle Griddle (available at Amazon). This cute little electric griddle is great for breakfast foods, toasting bread, etc.
- Kindle eReaders. You gotta go electronic in the RV to reduce weight. Get a library card and the Libby app to go with it and you’ll have plenty to read.
- JBL Flip Bluetooth Speaker (Amazon). When you’re in the middle of nowhere with no cell signal, thus no internet, and no TV, if you’ve downloaded some tunes, you can use this speaker. The sound quality is great for the size!
- Binoculars. We got these as a gift a few years ago and have gotten a lot of use out of them.
- Clip on USB Charging Fans (similar here). We could not live without these in hot weather. Sometimes there just isn’t a breeze and these really make a big difference at night when the a/c can be too loud.
- Toadfish Non-tipping Can Holder (Amazon). Who knew we even needed these? We got these as a gift and just love them!
- CleverMade Collapsible Laundry Basket (similar here). Like stackable plastic bowls and stackable plastic measuring cups, this is a real space saver!
- Radiate XL portable campfire (link here) This is essentially a huge candle. The downside is that its extremely heavy. The upside is that we can use it anywhere (even boondocking when there’s no fire pit) and more importantly, our entire RV and all our clothes don’t smell of smoke!
- A Small Weather Station. It’s nice in the RV to know what the weather is outside your door when getting dressed in the morning.
- An Electronic Picture Frame. Then you can take pictures of your family with you on the journey.
- A National Park Passport Stamp Book (link here). Free stamps are available at each National Park. These are fun to collect.
- USB Charging Cords and Headphones / earbuds. You’ll use both more than you think.
- If you want to go big for someone starting out think eBike (my Liv bike here), Alpaca Pack Raft (link here), personal snorkeling gear, a dog bike basket, or this Pau Hana backpacker’s stand up paddle board (link here).
Gifts That Don’t Translate That Well to Full-time RVing
Here are some items we used to get as gifts that don’t translate as well in an RV due usually to space constraints and the difficulty in shipping items to us.
- Clothes and shoes. We get limited quantities of each so we’re picky about what new items we add and when.
- Bath products. Navy showers are the new norm.
- Perfume / cologne. Bugs are bad enough without smelling pretty.
- Candles or plants. Space and weight constraints.
- Puzzles or games. Space and weight constraints.
- Holiday gift baskets. Hard to ship to us and tough to dispose of baskets when done.
- Alcohol and associated products like carafes, stoppers, mixes. Space is limited and we like to eat. We only have room for a six pack, a bottle of wine, one hard liquor and two martini glasses.
- Holiday ornaments or decorations. No place to store these when the holiday is over.
The Best Gifts for a Full Time RVer
- Your love and support. Phone calls, FaceTime, text messages throughout the year are always appreciated!
- Your willingness to host. If you have space in your driveway or on your curb, an offer to park for a few days when in the area is a great way for us to decompress and gives us a break from planning our next stop.
- Your willingness to accept our mail. We often have our mail forwarded to friends and family so we can deal with physical things like RV registration tags, new credit cards, etc.
So to all of you who have provided the above gifts, and to those of you that intend to, thank you so much. We have greatly appreciated it!
Generosity over the last few years! 
Happy holidays guys!
