Practical camping gadgets

Designed for general use while camping, these gadgets will make pitching up a breeze and help you to have the best experience possible.

Coleman CHT+ 80 Headtorch

This lightweight headtorch weighs just 74g including its battery and has a strong 80-lumen beam, allowing you to keep your hands free while moving around the campsite, whether you're setting up a tent or searching for a bottle opener. With a 10-hour runtime, this Coleman headtorch runs off AAA batteries.

Buy it here: Coleman CHT+ 80 Headtorch  

Royal Leisure Glow Tent Pegs

While tent pegs aren’t as flashy as some of these other gadgets, these ones are definitely as useful – they glow in the dark to help you avoid tripping over guyropes when moving around after dark. Perfect for those late night trips to the toilet block!

Buy it here: Royal Leisure Glow Tent Pegs  

Terra Nova Titanium 1g Skewers

More tent pegs? Absolutely – these innovative pegs weigh just 1g each, well below the industry average, making them perfect for lightweight backpacking and wild camping trips. They’re built from titanium, too, so that light build doesn’t mean you’re missing out on performance or security.

Buy it here: Terra Nova Titanium 1g Skewers  

Coleman BatteryGuard 800L Lantern

Emitting a powerful 800 lumens, this lantern is perfect for use around the campsite, providing 360° illumination. The LED bulb in this camping lantern has a lifetime of 40,000 hours, so you can rely on the Coleman 600L to keep pace with your adventures. What's more, Coleman's patented BatteryLock technology prevents the batteries from draining while the lantern isn't in use, helping you to stay on the move for longer.

Buy it here: Coleman BatteryGuard 800L Lantern  

Olpro 44L Travel Cabin Backpack

We’re potentially pushing the boundaries of the definition of a ‘gadget’ with this backpack but it is infinitely useful for camping trips, so it’s worth including. The water-resistant finish keeps your other gadgets protected from the elements while you’re out for the day, while there’s plenty of handy pockets for stashing accessories, as well as a padded laptop sleeve. Adjustable compression straps help to keep the bag comfy on the move, and there’s reflective tabs on the shoulder straps for visibility when you’re wandering back to the campsite after dark.

Buy it here: Olpro 44L Travel Cabin Backpack  

Outdoor Revolution Cyclone Valve SIM Pump

Featuring valve attachments designed to fit the cyclone style valve on Outdoor Revolution's Self Inflating Mats range, this rechargeable air pump is compact enough to stash easily in a rucksack and powerful enough to quickly inflate your sleeping mat. Avoiding the need for both wires and manual effort is a big win!

Buy it here: Outdoor Revolution Cyclone Valve SIM Pump  

Cooking gadgets

Cooking up a feast in the great outdoors is one of the most exciting parts of going camping, so make sure you’re set up as well as you can be with these camping gadgets.

Campingaz Camping Kitchen 2 Multi-Cook

The Camping Kitchen 2 Multi-Cook stove combines hob cooking and grilling in one, with three independent burners, including one with a grill plate, allowing you to individually control the heat. It lets you simultaneously boil, fry and grill – so, no need to keep parts of your meal warm while you finish.

The Flameguard technology is designed to protect the cooking flame in windy weather and the entire stove folds closed to become its own case for easy transport. The pan supports and grilling plate are all removable for easy cleaning and the piezo ignition makes starting quick and simple.

We were so impressed, in fact, that this stove won Best Camping Stove in the Camping Awards 2024!

Buy it here: Campingaz Camping Kitchen 2 Multi-Cook  

Hydro Flask 16oz All Around Tumbler

Not only does this handy tumbler feature Hydro Flask’s impressive insulation to keep cold drinks cold and hot drinks hot, and the powder-coated finish that makes these flasks and bottles comfy to hold, it also can be used with multiple interchangeable lids. That’s the selling point from a camping perspective – you could use the classic coffee lid while driving to the campsite, then give it a quick rinse and add the press-in straw lid, which is perfect for a tentside G&T!

Buy it here: Hydro Flask 16oz All Around Tumbler  

Campingaz Twister Plus PZ Gas Stove

While screw-on camping stoves are fantastic, allowing you to easily attach them directly to a gas bottle for a quick brew in the great outdoors, they’re not exactly unique. What makes this option from Campingaz even better, though, is the piezo ignition system built into it – just click a button to ignite it and use the controls to accurately adjust the temperature. At just over £20, this is a steal.

Buy it here: Campingaz Twister Plus PZ Gas Stove  

Electronics

These days, your phone is as essential to camping as a multitool – through it, you can access maps, weather information, your wallet, a camera and much more. Make sure yours, and the rest of your electronics, are kept powered up with these gadgets.

Goal Zero Nomad 10

Camping friendly solar chargers come in many shapes and sizes, with plenty of deviation between the highest and lowest performing models. This 10W solar panel from Goal Zero is one of the better options that we’ve encountered for campers – it folds in two to stash easily in your rucksack and features a tough outer case to protect the monocrystalline cells from damage. You can even strap it to your tent or rucksack, too.

Buy it here: Goal Zero Nomad 10  

Goal Zero Venture Jump

Pair the above solar panel with this hugely impressive power bank from the same brand. At just 18cm tall, it’s compact enough to take camping and will charge your phone several times over, recharging itself in just six hours from the Nomad 10. What makes this power bank different is that has the capacity (and arrives with the right cables) to jump start a car. You’ll never get stuck in the great outdoors again!

Buy it here: Goal Zero Venture Jump  

Vango Midge 100 Light

There are few aspects of camping that we don’t enjoy but insects that bite coming out after dark is definitely a bugbear of ours (sorry). This light from Vango is fantastic for solving that problem. Not only does it serve as an effective light for sitting around and playing cards in the evening, the UV light attracts bugs, which are then effectively zapped and collected within the plastic cage surrounding it. Every tent should have one of these!

Buy it here: Vango Midge 100 Light  

Cool camping gadgets

Sometimes you don’t need a clear reason for a gadget when you’re camping. It doesn’t need to be a stove, or charge your phone, or anything vaguely practical. Sometimes it just needs to be fun.

Wacaco Nanopresso

The reason we've added this portable coffee maker in this section and not with the cooking gadgets is that it is an extravagance – there are plenty of ways of making coffee without splashing cash on an espresso maker. You will struggle, though, to produce an espresso as smooth and delicious as the Nanopresso when you're camping. It packs down into a highly compact carry case, too, so you can make a high-quality brew wherever you are.

Buy it here: Wacaco Nanopresso  

Leatherman Rebar Multitool

There are definitely some features on this multitool that you'll never use – 17 tools is more than anyone needs and there are precious few occasions when you'll need a wire stripper while camping. You will, however, use some of the more common tools – like the bottle opener, knife, can opener and pliers – very often and you can trust a Leatherman multitool to outlast years of regular use. Plus, are you really a camper if you don't have a multitool?

Buy it here: Leatherman Rebar Multitool  

XGIMI MoGo 2 Pro Portable Projector

How about this as a new, highly portable way to watch TV or films in your tent, or even outside it with a portable screen? The beauty of the MoGo 2 Pro projector is not just its high-quality 4K imagery but its portability. It measures just 11cm by 12cm by 16cm and weighs just over a kilo, so you can tuck it away in even the smallest tent. It features built-in Android TV (via WiFi), or you can download the Netflix app; but you will need a 230V power supply (it doesn’t have a built-in battery). There’s an HDMI port, too, for connection to other devices.

Buy it here: XGIMI MoGo 2 Pro  

This article features affiliate links, which we may make a commission from – this doesn't influence our choices, though!