Living in a van means Freedom!
This is by far the answer I hear over and over when I ask van dwellers why they chose to live in a van.
I’ve been living in my van off and on for several years now. I don’t do it out of necessity as some do, I live and travel in my van to experience the real America. So yes, I agree with the majority of van dwellers, I do it for the freedom as well. I don’t want to stay in hotels or motels or paid camp grounds or camping resorts, but to sleep in my van where and when I please.
I’m on my 3rd van since I retired and decided this was the way I wanted to travel and see North America. In the beginning, I wasn’t really sure as to what type of van I wanted or or needed for living in. I chose a mini-van or as some refer to them; “soccer mom vans.”
I removed the seats and built in a bed and put all my camping gear inside and off I went. This lasted a year and I decided it was too small. I sold that van and purchased a RAM Promaster City. This is a small cargo van.
I had it converted into a mini RV so I could travel in more comfort than I had in the mini van. After a year of that, I decided it too was too small. I wanted to be able to stand erect in it.
I had seen and talked with many other van dwellers by this time and it seemed the van of choice for converting to an RV was the RAM Promaster High Top. I sold the Promaster City and bought a RAM Promaster High Top. I had learned a lot as to what I wanted in a van and did the conversion myself. I now have a very comfortable van that I can stand erect in and move around quite freely. I have running water, a very comfortable bed, a refrigerator, roof fan and enough room for all I’ll ever need for anything I want to carry with me as I travel.
Vans, as opposed to the larger motor homes provide the flexibility of a lifestyle that’s becoming more popular every day. They cost much less than a larger motorhome, less costly to operate, easier to maneuver, especially in towns and can be parked in a regular parking space. I’ve met several people that have as many as 4-5 family members living in a van. Since I’m a solo traveler, I have all the room I will ever need.
In addition to what I just mentioned, there are other benefits to living in a van. Location independence is huge. You would be surprised to learn the number of people who live, travel and work out of their vans. They have the means to work online to sustain themselves. A much lower cost of living means: no mortgage or rent payments, no fighting traffic to and from home to work every day, no utilities, you can boondock and simply park where you want (for the most part) at no cost. Basically your costs have now been reduced to food, your phone bill and gas when you feel the need or want to travel from one location to another. You’ll also find you will save lots of money by not buying impulse items. Living in a van means you don’t have extra room for storing needless items; you’ll find yourself becoming a minimalist.
This is just a small sampling of benefits you’ll realize by living in a van.
If living in a van appeals to you, I’m sure if you’ll just give a little thought to this article, you too, will be able to think of many more possibilities that the van living lifestyle has to offer.
Source: Most of the photos in this blog are provided courtesy of Unsplash and pixabay.
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