This guide covers everything from weight distribution to the best storage products, with specific tips whether you’re hiring for a weekend or heading out for two weeks. The principles work just as well if you’re in a compact campervan as they do in a larger motorhome.
Weight Distribution: The Foundation of Safe Packing
Before you start loading anything, understand one thing: how you distribute weight in a campervan affects how it handles on the road. A van that’s heavy at the rear or loaded unevenly side to side will feel sluggish and can be genuinely unsafe, especially on motorway driving or when towing.
The golden rule is to keep heavy items low and central. Think about your water containers, tins of food, tools, and anything else that weighs more than a few kilograms. These should sit as close to the floor as possible, ideally between the two axles rather than over the rear one.
Here’s a rough framework to work with:
- Heavy items (water, tins, tools): Floor level, central zone between axles
- Medium items (clothing, bedding): Under-bed storage or side lockers
- Light items (toiletries, snacks, paperwork): Overhead lockers or the cab area
- Fragile items (electronics, glasses): Padded bags in accessible, low-vibration spots
If you’re hiring a motorhome and the rental company gives you a maximum payload figure, take it seriously. Most campervans have a payload of somewhere between 500kg and 1,000kg once passengers are factored in. Spread the load and you’ll stay within the legal limit as well as keeping the handling predictable.
The One-In, One-Out Rule for Clothing
Overpacking clothes is the single most common mistake people make. It’s understandable: we pack for every scenario, including a black-tie dinner that never materialises. A practical guide to packing clothing for a campervan trip comes down to one principle: pack for the actual trip, not the imaginary worst case.
How many clothes do you actually need?
For a one-week trip, most people need three to four outfits. Campervans are not hotels; there’s limited hanging space and almost no surface area for folded piles. Many campsites have laundry facilities, so even on a two-week trip you rarely need more than five or six sets of clothes.
Roll, don’t fold. Rolled clothing compresses into tighter cylinders and sits neatly in storage bags, making it far easier to see what you have without unpacking everything. Compression packing cubes are genuinely worth buying: a set of four costs around £15 to £25 and halves the volume of your clothing instantly.
Layering beats bulk
Rather than packing a heavy winter coat and a lightweight jacket separately, pack merino wool base layers and a mid-layer fleece. Add a waterproof shell on top and you’ve covered most UK weather in three lightweight items rather than one enormous one. This approach also works well on mainland European trips where temperatures swing significantly between day and night.
Kitchen and Cooking Kit: Less Is More
The kitchen area of a campervan is usually compact. Most hire vehicles come with basic cooking equipment included, so before you pack your entire kitchen, check exactly what’s provided. A good hire vehicle will typically include a two or three-burner hob, pots, pans, cutlery, plates, and sometimes a small oven or grill.
What you might genuinely want to add:
- A sharp knife (hired sets often include blunt ones)
- A small chopping board
- A cafetiere or portable coffee maker if you’re particular about coffee
- One good quality non-stick pan if you cook eggs regularly
- A collapsible colander or bowl to save space
Avoid bringing: a full knife block, multiple matching pan sets, ceramic plates (they smash), glass bottles of olive oil, and anything that needs to be stored upright.
For food storage, decant dry goods from their original packaging into zip-lock bags or small screw-top containers. Breakfast cereal, for example, takes up enormous space in a box but compresses down significantly in a bag. Spices are best stored in a small roll-up spice wallet rather than individual jars rattling around in a locker.
Storage Solutions That Actually Work
Once you’ve reduced what you’re bringing, the next job is storing it intelligently. Campervans have more nooks and crannies than people realise, and the best van packers treat every cubic centimetre as usable space.
Under-bed storage
Most campervans have a fixed bed with storage underneath. This is prime real estate for bulky items you don’t need during the day: sleeping bags, spare bedding, outdoor chairs, and wellies. Use large flat bags rather than rigid suitcases here as they compress to fill the space rather than leaving gaps.
Over-cab storage
The overhead locker above the cab in a coachbuilt motorhome is ideal for lightweight, bulky items like pillows, lightweight jackets, and a bag of snacks for the road. Never store heavy items overhead; anything over 2kg in an overhead locker is a safety risk if the door opens while driving.
Door pockets and cab storage
The cab area is often underused. Door pockets take maps, sunglasses, water bottles, and small snacks. A magnetic phone holder with a USB port mounted on the dashboard keeps devices charged without cables snaking across the cab. A small over-seat organiser hanging from the headrest works brilliantly for rear passengers on longer driving days.
Hanging organisers
A fabric shower caddy hung from a hook in the bathroom or kitchen area holds toiletries, cleaning products, and small bits and pieces without cluttering surfaces. Surfaces in a campervan are precious. Keep them clear and you’ll feel like you have far more space than you actually do.
Outdoor Equipment: Prioritise and Minimise
Bikes, kayaks, outdoor chairs, a gazebo, a portable barbecue: the temptation to bring every piece of outdoor equipment you own is real. The reality is that most of it will stay in the van or on the rack for the entire trip.
Be ruthless. Decide on your top two or three outdoor activities before you start packing and only bring the kit for those. If you’re planning coastal walks, bring walking boots and a rucksack. If you’re planning cycling, bring the bikes and helmets. But not both unless you have a genuinely large vehicle and external storage solutions like a bike rack or rooftop box.
Folding chairs and a lightweight camping table are almost always worth bringing. Look for chairs that fold to around 90cm x 15cm; they’ll slot behind a seat or in a narrow locker easily. A good folding table weighs around 3kg and opens to seat four people comfortably. These transform a parking spot into an outdoor living space and are well worth the weight allowance.
What to Pack in the “Daily Access” Zone
One mistake that causes constant frustration is packing things you need every day at the back of a locker behind everything else. Create a daily access zone: a specific area of the van, usually a locker nearest the door or a small bag that stays on the passenger seat, where everything you reach for multiple times a day lives.
This typically includes:
- Phone charger and cables
- Travel documents and hire paperwork
- Snacks and water for the driving day
- Sunscreen and sunglasses
- Hand sanitiser and a small first aid kit
- Dog lead, treats, and poo bags if travelling with a pet
Everything else can be packed tightly in the main storage areas. The daily access zone should be repacked the same way each evening so you always know where things are.
If you’re planning a trip and haven’t sorted a vehicle yet, browse campervans and motorhomes available near you to see what storage layouts different vehicles offer before you commit.
Packing for Specific Trip Lengths
Weekend trips (2 to 3 nights)
Keep it to one bag per person and one shared kitchen bag. You don’t need the full complement of outdoor furniture for two nights. A pair of lightweight camping chairs and a blanket is enough. Simplify food: three or four easy meals that use the same base ingredients rather than separate shopping lists for each day.
Week-long trips
This is where compression bags earn their place. Pack as if you’re going for five days and use the spare capacity for any shopping you do along the way. A week-long trip in the UK will almost certainly involve at least one supermarket run, and you need space to bring food back into the van without chaos.
Two weeks or more
For longer trips, plan to do laundry at least once. Most campsites across the UK and Europe have laundry facilities and it typically costs between £3 and £6 per wash. Factor this into your planning and you can genuinely halve your clothing load. For longer adventures, it’s also worth reading up on exactly what’s included in your campervan hire so you know what’s already on board and what you genuinely need to bring.
The Pre-Trip Pack and Repack
Always do a test pack the day before you leave. Load everything into the van, check that weight is distributed correctly, and then close all the lockers and drive around the block. You’ll immediately hear anything that isn’t secured properly: rattles, bangs, and sliding objects are all signs that something needs to be wedged, strapped, or stored differently.
Items that slide on countertops need to be packed away or held in place with non-slip matting, which costs around £3 a roll from any pound shop or hardware store. A roll of this stuff on every shelf and surface is one of the cheapest and most effective campervan packing tools available.
For first-time hirers, it also helps to read through a guide on everything you need to know before hiring a campervan to make sure the packing side of things fits into the broader picture of your trip preparation.
And if you’re weighing up different vehicle types, it’s worth knowing that a campervan and a motorhome offer quite different amounts of storage space, which will affect your packing strategy significantly.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I stop things sliding around in a campervan while driving?
Non-slip matting is the easiest fix and costs almost nothing. Line every shelf and surface with it before loading. For items in lockers, use rolled-up towels or clothing as padding to fill gaps and prevent movement. Heavier items should always be placed at floor level where the vehicle’s motion affects them least.
Should I use suitcases or soft bags in a campervan?
Soft bags almost always work better than hard suitcases in a campervan. They compress to fill the available space, fold flat when empty, and fit into irregular-shaped storage areas that a rigid case simply won’t. The only exception is if you have a specific under-bed area that’s a standard rectangular shape and a case fits precisely.
What’s the maximum weight I can pack in a hired campervan?
This varies by vehicle, but most hire campervans have a payload (the maximum weight of everything including passengers, luggage, food, and water) of between 500kg and 900kg. Your hire company should be able to give you the exact figure. As a rough guide, assume each adult passenger takes up around 75kg to 80kg of payload, and plan your luggage accordingly.
Is it worth bringing a rooftop storage box on a campervan hire?
Only if the hire vehicle has roof rails fitted and the hire company explicitly permits it. Fitting a rooftop box raises the vehicle’s centre of gravity, which affects handling, and also increases your vehicle’s height, which can cause problems at low bridges and in car parks. It can also void your insurance if not approved. Check with the hire company first and consider whether the extra storage is truly necessary before adding the complication.
More guides for your trip
- Best time of year to hire a campervan
- Best time to book a campervan
- How much campervan hire costs per day
- Do I need a special licence?
- What documents do I need?
- What insurance do I need?
- What is included in campervan hire?
- How to drive a campervan for the first time
- Campervans with and without a shower
- Six apps for your campervan holiday
- Trying van life in the UK
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