We hope you love our recommendations! Some may have been sent as samples, but all were independently selected by our editors. Just FYI, BuzzFeed and its publishing partners may collect a share of sales and/or other compensation from the links on this page.
1. A "smaller-than-an-iPhone," rechargeable portable misting fan for those particularly hot and hazy days spent outside playing never-ending games of kickball in the unforgiving sun. Campers can cool down for up to six continuous hours on a three hour charge. Cool!
Promising review: "My daughter was the star at summer camp with this! It works really well. Stayed on the whole day; we charged it at night. During those hot and humid days a camp, it was needed. My daughter made a lot of friends; everyone kept coming up to asking for it." —Nobodysbi
Get it from Amazon for $12.99.
2. Or a misting squeeze water bottle that will not only pour water into one's mouth but also spray them in the face with a cooling fog of H2O. Every camper could use this! And so could you. Have you ever thought, "Is my current water bottle really doing enough for me?" Well, now you know the answer!
3. A rolling duffel bag because how else are they going to lug all of their stuff to camp, especially the sleep away variety? Plenty of pockets for all of their essentials (and non-essentials too).
Promising review: "My daughter has several camps this summer and was needing her own bag to pack everything. She is at her second camp now, and this duffel bag is the perfect size to pack all her stuff and still be easy to move around. The wheels come in very handy when the bag is weighed down. Lots of room and stylish." —alice james
Get it from Amazon for $33.29+ (available in four sizes and in 32 prints).
4. A pair of slip-on Native shoes that, like, every kid at camp (or on the playground) seems to wear. There's a reason for that: they are that damn good. Odor-resistant so they won't stink up wherever the kids leave them and easy-enough to hand clean and keep looking like new-ish.
Promising review: "This shoe is perfect for summer camp! My son can run around and play, and also go swimming, and then put it right back on and keep going. I’ll be buying a second and maybe even third pair." —Michelle E.
Promising review: "My son's summer camp does not allow open back sandals such as Crocs, and so while looking for a replacement, found these perfectly comfortable water shoes. He wears them on the regular. Happy son — happy mom!" —Juba
Get them from Amazon for $34.95+ (available in 27 colors and in sizes 1 toddler–12 big kid).
5. Or, for a completely new and original look, a pair of fully waterproof but quick-drying, durable slip-on Kane Revive kids' shoes with a colorful/changeable pull-back tab to make putting them on super easy for little hands. Bonus: you can even throw these in the dishwasher!
6. A durable and breathable, locking drawstring mesh laundry bag with an ever-important "name tag" so campers can keep their stinky clothes from getting mixed up with others campers equally stinky clothes.
Promising review: "I bought this to send with my son for summer camp, and it did the job. Durable enough that he dragged it across grass, cement, dirt, and sand (because he is lazy), and it did not wear or tear at all. Its size was perfect for a week's worth of laundry as well!" —KiKiBree
Get it from Amazon for $7.02.
7. An emergency weather radio because the "emergency" is that one of your kid's devices needs a recharge, and there are no power outlets outdoors. They can use the hand crank or solar panel for an impromptu power-up! Let's not forget the flashlight or SOS alarm, either!
8. An Uno Emoji game that takes all of the fun from the original version and adds an entirely new element: Players have to make funny faces! This might be the ultimate card game for kids!
Uno Emoji puts a twist on the regular game with a new type of action card; when you play it along with an Emoji face card, the next player has to make and hold the face shown on that card! If they don’t hold the expression for two turns, they have to draw four cards! The first player to reach 500 points wins. When you’re down to one card, don’t forget to yell, "Uno!"
Promising review: "This was a great addition to my surprise summer camp backpack for my daughter. Almost everyone knows how to play Uno, and the fun emojis made the kids laugh." —Onthego247
Get it from Amazon for $7.
9. A bedside storage caddy with eight different pocket sizes so campers can keep their most important items (phones, chargers, flashlights, snacks) organized and at-the-ready. Works best on headboards, bed rails, and particularly well on top bunks.
Promising review: "Excellent purchase for summer camp! Great for those odds and ends campers need to keep up with but don’t have the cubby space for. For my camper, it held four books, two large spray cans of sunscreen, a large can of bug spray, a small flashlight, two small Kleenex packages, a Chapstick, a small bag of fidget toys, a Rubik’s cube, and a small bottle of hand sanitizer. The velcro is strong, thank goodness, and the caddy easily attached to the bunk bed. Delivered without damage and on time as promised. Price point was perfect too. Would recommend to any camper!" —M
Get it from Amazon for $9.99.
10. A Label Daddy Camp Pack to stick on every single piece of clothing and gear headed to camp with your kid this summer. No more markers! Just some amazing options for some really cool name tag designs!
The labels come in a variety of sizes for everything from T-shirts to backpacks and sunscreen to cellphones. The labels are ~waterproof, microwave, dryer, dishwasher, and freezer safe.~ To personalize the labels, enter your child's full name and your contact info in the boxes before adding to cart.
Promising review: "Best labels ever. I have been ordering labels for at least seven years. There are always amazing. They are strong and stay on after long summers away at camp. I refresh each year." —Jennifer Merced
Get a pack of 154 from Label Daddy for $52.
11. A 3-pack of battery-operated portable LED bulbs with a carabiner clip that campers can attach to their backpacks, bunk beds, or even tree branches. Three lighting modes (high, low, and strobe) offer up to five straight hours of illumination at the max setting. Great idea!
12. Or a super bright, water- and impact-resistant headlamp because if you really want to see in the dark, it's probably better to have both hands free. With a runtime of up to 10+ hours (on the low setting) taking late night bathroom and snack breaks and telling ghost stories becomes so much easier!
13. A personalized fill-in-the-blank notepad that'll hopefully give parents some idea about how the camp time of their usually tight-lipped kids is really going. Just tell them it's like an arts and crafts version of texting!
The notepad comes with 50 sheets. In the notes section during checkout, please specify the following: ink color, name of your child, quantity and color of envelopes, and if you would like to see a proof.
Modern Pink Paper is a small biz based in Houston, Texas, that specializes in personalized stationery and wedding cards.
Promising review: "Perfect for a young first time camper to keep in touch with friends and family." —Joy Anderson
Get it from Modern Pink Paper on Etsy for $18+ (available in larger quantities and with the option to add envelopes).
14. A small but durable waterproof kids' sport backpack for any campers who haven't passed the four-foot mark yet. Lightweight? Yes! But it can also hold a whole lot, what with its multiple pockets, exterior elastic cord for easy access, and two mesh side pockets for water bottles.
15. A four-pack of chemical free cooling towels! All you have to do is soak the towel, ring it out, and snap it. It'll stay chill for up to three hours! SCIENCE! IS! SO! COOL! (and now campers can be too).
Just soak the towel in cold water, wring it out, and give it a couple of snaps to feel instant relief.
Promising review: "Really works and cools you off. 🧊Saw a mom post about these in a mom group and had to get it. My daughter’s summer camp is outside all day, and the last week was brutal with the temperature in the high 90s. I ordered them hoping they would arrive fast, and they were here within two days. I like how they came with four in different colors with the plastic pouch and colored clips to match. I wet two of the towels and put one in the freezer and one in the fridge. In the morning I put the frozen one in with her lunch. She told me that a bunch of other kids at camp all had these towels and she was really glad she had it. She must have liked it and because she asked me to always pack it on hot days." —Jessica
Get a pack of four from Amazon for $19.99.
16. A camp version of Mad Libs for telling some of the silliest, zaniest, most outrageous campfire stories all summer longer. Especially great for when the Wi-Fi drops out in the woods!
Promising review: "Was looking for cute items to send in summer camp mail. You can't go wrong with Mad Libs. The kids find them hilarious, and this camp version was perfect as a summer camp gift. I love the fact they are also getting quick grammar review when they are doing these Mad Libs." —Joy
Get it from Amazon for $4.99.
17. A DEET-free, nongreasy, nonsticky plant-based bug repellent to keep mosquitoes (aka: the vampires of the insect world) from bugging otherwise happy campers with their insatiable thirst for blood.
Promising review: "This is truly THE BEST bug repellent out there! I order 4 bottles at the beginning of each summer and that's usually enough for my family to get through. My kids and I are all mosquito magnets and this spray does a great job keeping us from getting all bitten up — even in the hottest, deathly humid Maryland summers. I'm not super paranoid about chemicals to begin with, but I like that this is chemical free. That said, I used DEET based products for years and I still say this one works better. The scent is STRONG and will linger on your body and clothes for a long time, but that's a good thing too, right? And it's not like lemon/eucalyptus is an offensive smell or anything. I'd rather smell like this than a lot of other summer smells!" —Amanda Stenger
Get a pack of two from Amazon for $16.10.