The Ultimate Guide to Full-Time Van Living

Full-time van life is one of the most liberating experiences you can have whether you’re pitched up in one location or choose to travel around different pitches. Having your home on wheels gives you the flexibility to travel wherever you want whenever you want, and those who have lived it can vouch for the many benefits it brings.

It’s a trend that has caught on massively in the past few years with younger and older generations alike. There are countless vlogs of people ditching the traditional mortgage in favour of a roof over their heads on four wheels.

Whether you buy a van already kitted out with the latest mod cons or decide to customise and build your own van interior to live in, there are lots of tips and tricks when learning how to live in a van to make every day amazing.

In this article we’ll take a look at the pros and cons of living in a van, tips to help you get the most out of van life, how to live in a van full-time and hear what those who walk the walk have to say about full-time van life.

The Ups and Downs of Van Life

As you can imagine there are so many positives to living in your own van, but if it’s something you’re seriously considering then it’s a good idea to think about potential drawbacks as well so you can be properly prepared for a life on the road.

Ultimate Flexibility

Vanlife offers you lots of flexibility including your work schedule if you’re self-employed or are lucky enough to work from home and only require an internet connection. You can take advantage of seasonal travel and choose to park up in rural or urban settings.

Travelling Freedom

One week you could be parked on a campsite with other van lifers and the next you’re a stone’s throw from a beach enjoying sunsets. With apps like Campernight you can discover over 20,000 amazing locations to pitch up in Europe and overseas.

Save Money

By living in a van you do have the initial outlay and basics like fuel, insurance, vehicle maintenance and road tax to pay for, but you’ll likely be saving thousands of euros each year on rent or a mortgage. What’s more, you don’t have energy bills to pay for.

Embrace Nature

It’s a stereotype that van lifers have a nature-loving spirit, rejecting the modern way of doing things that everybody else seems to be trapped in, but it’s no secret that when you live in a van full-time you’ll spend much more time enjoying nature and outdoor pursuits.

Go Minimal

When you live in a house it’s common to accumulate a lot of ‘stuff’. However, when you only have a small area to live and work in with not a great deal of storage you learn to live without the extra things that you never really needed or used anyway.

Those are just a few of the main upsides of full-time van life and there are many more, but let’s have a quick look at a handful of the cons of living in a van.

Houses are spacious with multiple rooms and tall ceilings, but when you convert to van life you have to get used to living and sleeping in a much smaller space.
In a van there isn’t usually any room for essential comforts such as toilets or showers so you end up depending on public facilities which can vary.
Travelling long distances might seem great at first as you experience a great deal of independence, but it’s common to miss friends and family if you’re travelling alone.
Security is also another concern, and unless you park in a dedicated area for overnight stays in a van you could receive fines.
Any van lifer will tell you that in many countries it’s hard to keep your van warm in winter and cool in summer.

Van Life Tips to Save Money on the Road

Managing a budget when you live in a home is hard, but there are new challenges when living in a van. Van lifers with experience living on the road can offer a unique insight into how to make van life much more affordable. Check out these top van life tips for saving money:

Set aside an emergency fund for breakdowns as some parts like a new clutch can cost well over a thousand euros
Plan everything in advance from where you will sleep to what you’ll eat and how much you’ll spend on fuel
Use an app like Campernight to find cheap or even free places to park up for the night to save hundreds of euros each month
Only drive when you need to as fuel costs can quickly spiral and emit more pollution if you’re travelling around the country a lot, especially if your van is heavy
Invest in solar panels as it can reduce the amount you spend on heating and cooling the van, and also allows you to live off-grid
Buy a gym membership from a nationwide chain so you can work out and use the showers there as often as you like
Spend time in nature as it’s free to roam compared to a meal out or cinema visit in a town or city which can quickly add up

Ready to Experience Full-Time Van Life for Yourself?

Whether you’ve just been toying with the idea or are actively making plans to make full-time van life a reality, there’s lots to think about before you take the plunge. We hope this post has been informative and got you thinking more about the reality vs the fantasy of living in a van. Yes, there are real challenges to overcome but there are so many positives you can get out of it.

Where you park your van each night is perhaps one of the most important things to think about. With the Campernight app you can discover thousands of suitable places to stay across Europe by reading reviews, looking at pictures, and planning your own routes.