Is Vanlife Worth It?

Giving up space and amenities to live in a converted van is a huge step. If you’ve never tried vanlife before, you might be wondering: is it even worth it? The answer comes down to what you’re looking for. You should consider vanlife if you meet these conditions:

• You want to travel: Living in a van makes it easy to travel to new places. With both a vehicle and mobile home on your hands, you can move from state to state without worrying about finding transportation or lodging (although parking can be a challenge).
• You want to save money: While the initial costs of vanlife can be high, trading a traditional home for a van saves money over time (which is part of the reason for it’s popularity in recent years). In addition to not paying rent or a mortgage, electricity and water bills are essentially non-existent.
• Minimalist living interests you: Minimalism is taking the world by storm. More and more people are trying to reduce waste, support the environment, and focus on the value of items over quantity.
• You need a break from the modern world: Vanlife encourages people to step away from screens and embrace nature. If you’re looking for an opportunity to build fires, explore campsites and just live in nature, vanlife gives you one.
• You’re looking for an adventure: Living in a campervan has been popular for almost a 100 years, and doing so essentially means saying goodbye to a traditional lifestyle (for a time) and seeing where the open road takes you. For most people, it doesn’t get more adventurous than that.

Related: Is Vanlife Legal?

Ultimately, vanlife does have downsides. If you’re not into traveling or minimalist living, it’s definitely not for you. The lack of stability, difficulty in accomplishing simple tasks like receiving mail on the road, and the potential negative stigma is just too much for some people. But, if you find yourself drawn to the idea, try it out first by renting a van. If that goes well, you have your answer.