While RVs make camping more comfortable, most campers still prefer to spend the majority of their trips outside. So, once you have the inside of your RV ready for camping season, it’s time to explore RV patio ideas to make your outdoor living area as comfortable and decorative as possible.
Consider its function, too. Your camper’s outdoor patio should entice you to spend more time soaking in your surroundings. Perhaps it’s the right mat to keep your patio cleaner, or maybe it’s a portable griddle to move cooking outside. In this collection of campsite patio ideas, you’ll find RV-specific exterior decor, outdoor cooking appliances, and camping furniture to help you create your ideal RV patio space.
Key Takeaways
- Comfort & Function First: Elevate your RV patio with essentials like a durable mat, comfy chairs, folding tables, and shelters for shade or bug protection—making the space functional and inviting.
- Decor & Ambiance: Add personality and nighttime charm with mini string lights, color-changing LED strips, and solar path lights to reflect your style and make your site feel like home.
- Outdoor Cooking Essentials: Maximize time outside with gear like portable fire pits, patio heaters, cooking tables, and griddles or smokers—creating a full-featured patio kitchen for meals and relaxation.
RV Outdoor Living Space Ideas
Let’s begin with some RV outdoor setup ideas you can use as soon as your camper is level and stable on your site.
Start with a Patio Mat
Many RVers start with a foldable mat when setting up their outdoor patio. It creates a cleaner surface underneath your awning and offers a friendlier touch on your feet in gravel campsites. An upgraded patio mat with LED lights can even help you find your site after visiting a campground neighbor. Patio mats for camping are easy to use and easy to clean. Consider a mat that comes with heavy-duty stakes to secure it from blowing around on windy days.
Select Patio Furniture
Outdoor living can be just as comfortable as indoor living if you choose the most comfortable camping chairs and the right patio furniture for your RV. Your ideal camp chairs should be comfortable enough to spend an entire afternoon reading or watching games on your RV’s exterior TV. They should also be lightweight enough to easily relocate around the fire ring and compact enough to fit in your RV’s underneath storage.
Campsite chairs are a must, but other patio accessories will enhance your patio space. A folding side table provides a place to rest a book, beverage, or charcuterie board. Some RVers love the idea of adding a folding ottoman to their RV patio setup for added comfort and relaxation. Depending on the chairs you choose, you may also equip them with a side tray, sunshade, or heated seat pad.
Interested in a camp chair review? See what users said about the GCI Outdoors Rocking Camp Chairs.
Consider a Portable Picnic Table
Most developed campgrounds have a picnic table at each site, but you won’t always stay in a maintained campsite. When you go off the beaten path or boondock, you’ll need to create your ideal RV outdoor living space with whatever you pack for your trip. That’s why a portable folding picnic table is one of our favorite RV patio ideas.
The best option is to find a folding outdoor table with built-in benches. This gives you the freedom to enjoy outdoor meals wherever you roam. Most portable picnic tables pack into a briefcase-style package with a handle for easy carrying and quick storage. As long as you have the space to keep it in your camper, a portable picnic table is a smart addition to your RV patio essentials checklist.
Add a Shelter for Rain & Bug Protection
Some prefer the ease of an instant canopy for added shade and rain protection. Others upgrade to a fully screened-in shelter, which can be especially useful for spring camping in particular buggy regions. In either case, these RV patio ideas expand your covered outdoor living space and make camping more comfortable, sometimes in spite of the weather.
While useful, some pop up tents for RV camping are quite bulky. So make sure you have the space to store it between uses. When comparing shelters, consider a model with a wheeled storage bag, which adds versatility to where it can be deployed. Instead of limiting its use to your campsite, you can roll it down to the beach for added shade when lakefront camping.
Interested in a shelter review? See what users said about the Gazelle Portable Gazebo.
RV Outdoor Decorating Ideas
With the bones of your camper’s outdoor patio space set up, turn your attention to the decorations that will truly make it the place to be in any campground you visit.
Mini Lights
Many RV campers don’t prefer the bright LEDs under their awning as their primary patio light source, so string lights have become a popular RV patio idea. There’s something about the soft glow at night that encourages relaxation. Choose your ideal decorative design, from tiny lanterns to firefly mason jars to palm trees and flamingos.
Interested in a string light review? See what users said about the Enbrighten Camper Lights.
Color Changing Strip Lights
If you’re looking for a light source that’s a little bolder, a little more fun, and a little more exciting, explore LED strip lights. String them around a picnic table, up and down your RV ladder, or anywhere else you like. For a truly customizable RV outdoor light display, select color-changing LED lights that can easily transition your patio space from a tranquil campfire lounge to an upbeat RV tailgating party.
Solar Path Lights
Experienced RVers know the pain of running into a picnic table or accidentally kicking their solid steps when coming back after dark. Especially useful for extended stays, solar lights can illuminate your site for added safety without needing to be plugged in or having batteries regularly replaced. Our favorites resemble miniature tiki torches, but you can explore to find your ideal solar lights!
Flagpole Kit
Display your home state or favorite team’s colors proudly with an RV-mounted flagpole. Some of the best designs allow you to string up multiple flags. There’s even a model with a remote controller and programmable camp location functions.
RV Patio Ideas for Warmth and Ambiance
We all love a good campfire, but with burn bans and undeveloped campsites without fire rings, it’s always smart to have a campfire alternative to add warmth and ambiance to your RV’s outdoor patio.
Portable Fire Pit
When it comes to RVing, none of us are strangers to items that pull double duty. The best propane fire pits for camping provide additional campsite lighting while producing ample heat to take the chill off on colder nights. Plus, they give you the freedom to enjoy a campfire when burn bans are in effect, and with much less setup than a traditional wood fire.
Traditional models require propane, but with the right adapters and hose length, they can hook up to an RV LP quick connect for hassle-free setup. Some options offer a smokeless design that can burn wood or pellets without leaving your clothes smelling like a campfire for the rest of the trip.
Check out these portable fire pit reviews:
Patio Heater
For a more lightweight and portable option than most propane or wood-burning fire pits, a patio heater can also take the chill off. These heaters typically require the smaller green LP containers, but they can safely and effectively be employed on a campground picnic table or on the ground in front of your camp chairs. Most have an electric ignition for quick, easy starts and an adjustable heat control system, so you’re in charge of the temperature.
RV Patio Kitchen Ideas
Unless you have a camper with an outdoor kitchen, setting up an outside cooking space can maximize your outdoor time. Here are a few camping accessories you can use to set up a portable RV kitchen.
Outdoor Cooking Table
Every good patio hangout involves food, but you need a place to prep that food. Ideally, that isn’t the picnic table everyone is planning to eat at. For the outdoor chef in your crew, a folding table specifically built for outdoor cooking can be a game-changing RV patio idea.
These tables are typically constructed with a central place for a portable grill or griddle and multi-level side tables for grilling utensils, plates, and anything else they need. We all know that a more organized camp kitchen leads to better meals, so why not add a compact, foldable outdoor cooking station to your RV’s patio?
Grill, Griddle, or Smoker
Choose your weapon—grill, griddle, or smoker—or keep one of each in your camper, if you have space. For outdoor RV cooking, a portable grill, griddle, or smoker is essential. Some will debate the effectiveness of grills vs griddles, but some manufacturers are now making griddle models with removable flat-tops so you can enjoy grilling capability or griddle cooking at your leisure.
Discover RV griddle reviews:
Collapsible Trash Can
Every responsible camper has a place for trash tucked away somewhere in their outdoor living space. While we’ve seen many RV owners simply hang a trash bag from the corner of the picnic table, a dedicated trash can is the best way to keep trash collected and contained. But of course, you don’t have room for an oversized trash can in your RV! That’s why lining a collapsible storage container with a trash bag is one of the most overrated RV patio ideas out there.
If you’re looking for a better camping experience, upgrade your outdoor patio area with one or several of these camper outdoor patio ideas. But fair warning; in a world full of outdoor enthusiasts, you might find yourself making new friends before the season is over.
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What are your favorite RV patio ideas and outdoor essentials? Tell us in the comments below!
