Van life, a short practical guide.

By definition, “van life” is a lifestyle that consists of living in a vehicle. When we hear “van life”, we immediately imagine a perfectly converted vehicle, idyllic landscapes and absolute freedom.

After almost a year and a half living in a camper van, this label feels too narrow to me. It now seems to be given to anything and everything, and tends to become a trend rather than a real lifestyle with everything it implies behind it.

A short practical guide before throwing yourself fully into “van life”.

Fantasizing over Instagram posts that depict a life of freedom, adventure, travel and discovery is easy. There is no shortage of that on social media. But between fantasy and reality, there is a whole world, and that is what I want to talk about.

Ask yourself the right questions first.

Changing your lifestyle to live in a converted vehicle and roam the roads is absolutely possible. I would be the first to tell you: where there is a will, there is a way. But you need to sincerely ask yourself whether it is made for you.

• Are you ready to give up the comfort of an apartment, a house, or a fixed place? Are you organized enough to live in such a small space? Are you aware that in a vehicle you will have to manage your water and electricity consumption every day? Are you ready to separate yourself from your microwave and other energy-hungry household appliances? Can you say goodbye to your king-size bed? To your 35-minute hot shower?

• Are you ready to drive regularly to find places to spend the night? To live daily in a space probably smaller than your current bedroom? To become a true meteorologist to avoid spending 15 days under the rain wherever you go? To think about filling your water tank regularly and minimizing your daily consumption? To sleep with the sound of rain or storms?

If your answer is yes to almost all of these questions, then I hope reading this article will help you make the idea growing in your head a reality.

On the other hand, if you are already starting to grit your teeth a little while imagining no longer having this comfort… then maybe “van life” is not for you. And that is okay. Everyone should be free to live their life as they wish. You simply need to be aware of it.

The camper van in Brittany <3

5 tips for choosing your vehicle well.

When we say “van life”, we of course mean a converted vehicle. This is an essential point that you will have to sit with and think about before starting this adventure. Because your vehicle will quickly become your life. And to choose it properly, you need to ask the right questions. To help you understand, I will talk about my own case.

• Define your project: I chose to live in a vehicle permanently: no apartment, no separate car, just a home on wheels. So I had to think long term, which is very different from a period of one week to several months, whether in terms of space, heating or insulation. Summer is hot, winter is cool.

• Identify your situation: we are two people with a dog. Our space needs are very different from those of a couple alone, and even more so from someone travelling solo.

• Define your main needs: in my case, I need to work. This is not a gap year or a holiday. That implies many things to think about: equipment, connection, energy consumption.

• Question your budget: this is an essential point to define beforehand, but it is not everything, which is why I mention it last. For example, I knew I did not want to start this adventure by paying back a loan, so buying used was obvious. But what you need to avoid above all is your budget conflicting with your needs. You will always have time to find ways to buy a vehicle; your needs, however, will not change.

By answering all these points, I ended up buying and renovating a 1996 Ford overcab camper van, with 92,000 km on the clock when I bought it, which suits me wonderfully!

8 points you should think about before living in your vehicle.

There you are. You are not naive about the reality of this life, and you are aware of what you want. You may even have a well-defined idea of the vehicle you want to buy, your savings are growing little by little, and you are in the final stretch. Congratulations.

But are you sure you have thought of everything before setting off for good? Here is a small list of essential things you may not have considered before leaving on the adventure, because yes, it is quite an adventure.

• Have a tax address: if you keep a place of residence in parallel, everything is fine. But if your vehicle becomes your only home, I am happy to announce that you will now be considered without a fixed address and will have to carry out a few small administrative steps to be in order with the CCAS.

• Find out about the different standards between countries. If you plan to travel outside France and your vehicle uses gas for heating, for example, pay close attention to current standards and do not hesitate to plan suitable regulators in advance.

• Adapt your phone plan: if you need to work from your vehicle and that requires an internet connection, I advise you to take a phone plan with a lot of data and use tethering. Simple and economical. I have 250 GB per month for 14 euros per month, and it is more than enough in my case. As for 4G, unless you are lost in the mountains, you will almost always have network coverage.

• Estimate your energy consumption: think about analyzing your energy consumption before finding yourself on the road. Fiber internet in your apartment, a computer plugged in from morning to night, a TV running in the background, a microwave… all of that will quickly be turned upside down, or even become impossible. So start getting used to reducing that consumption as much as possible and changing a few habits so you can quantify your minimum need. And yes, living in a vehicle brings us back a little to the essentials. Without even talking about ecology, it is an interesting personal process, isn’t it?

• Sort through your belongings: it is very likely that before starting this, you have already accumulated some things: furniture, appliances, clothes, and so on. If you plan to live the adventure fully and no longer have a fixed “home”, think about renting a storage unit or piling things up at a friend’s or relative’s place if you are not the type to sell everything. Otherwise, like me, take a good month and get rid of as many things as possible before hitting the road. You will see, it feels strangely good to feel lighter. Maybe the beginning of a feeling of freedom?

• Anticipate always having something to repair things: plan to always have a small drill, screws, tape and something to make seals. Honestly, that is already a very sufficient minimum, and it should not be neglected. You never know, you might someday have to repair a water leak in your vehicle… Just saying.

• Plan time for conversion and settling in: do not think that once the keys to your vehicle are in your hand, you will instantly be off to roam the four corners of the world. With the camper van bought in early September 2021, I was sure I could renovate it to my liking in three weeks. In the end, we hit the road at the end of October: 15 days quickly turned into two months. Do not neglect this time. It is when you will become familiar with your new living space and put in place what you need for daily life.

• Install the “park4night” app on your phone. Driving is good; finding decent places to sleep or resupply is better. This kind of app lists all sorts of places where you can stop, with a filter system that lets you access exactly what you need. A very useful help in the long term.

There you are, already better prepared to fully live the adventure, with everything it implies in terms of compromises, changes in habits, time and preparation. I hope I have helped you find a few answers.

In conclusion!

If we had to summarize this guide? I would tell you it is worth being patient and not rushing into this life because you fantasize about other people’s. The everyday personal process is more than important: it is by going through it that you will shape a lifestyle that looks like you and that you will manage to live peacefully, on the road or not. And above all, there is not just one “van life”; build something that works for you. If you liked this article, do not hesitate to share it with your friends and/or leave a comment!

I will still leave you with a few photos. Because yes, even with all these things to take into account, “van life” is still pretty stylish.

Cabin in the vineyards near Perpignan