When I was first researching how much money I would need to save to start Van Life, all I looked up was how much the actual van conversion project would take. As someone who recently quit their full-time job and was living off savings, this was obviously a very important aspect for me. Now, two years later, I realized I never really looked into just how much I should expect to pay in “living expenses” each month. Of course, I no longer have automatic bills like rent and utilities, but I do have gas payments, wifi payments, and many other things that I never really thought about when I trans ..read more

When you think of Van Life, what do you imagine? People in beautifully decked out sprinter vans? Backdrops of the ocean on a sunny day, snow capped mountains or sunsets over the desert? Traveling full time, spending everyday hiking, climbing and skiing while working remotely in order to sustain this lifestyle? What would you say if I told you that not all vanlifers live that lifestyle? Traveling full time is not something that everyone is able or wants to do. Don’t get me wrong, if you want to make it happen you probably can, but for some people it’s not possible, not a priority o ..read more

When you picture where you’ll be spending your time when starting van life, you almost always picture huge open public land in the mountains of Montana, the deserts of Arizona, or the beaches of Oregon. One thing we didn’t picture was just how much time we would actually need to spend in cities and larger towns. Whether it’s refilling your water tank, stocking up on weeks of groceries, or even wanting a nice hot shower and a night off from cooking, cities are actually a huge part of life on the road.  Sometimes finding good cities where stealth camping is easy, water fill ups are prese ..read more

I am a writer, podcaster and traveller fascinated with what it takes to thrive in a more alternative lifestyle. After years of trying to fit the mould, I ditched the 9-5, moved to Canada to work as a ski instructor, and have been living a little differently travelling the world ever since. I now live in a bus with my partner and our pup, exploring Canada and the US all while discovering what it takes to thrive in this unconventional nomadic lifestyle > FOLLOW CLAIRE HERE Whenever anyone asks me, “what is vanlife really like” I remember one moment vividly. It was about a year into life ..read more

When you’re just starting out in van life, things can seem really overwhelming really quickly. How do I find friends? Where do I park? How on earth do I know what potable water is? I have to fill up my gas tank this many times?! When we were first transitioning to life on the road we had SO many questions, but luckily over the last year we’ve collected a handful of apps on our phone that help us answer and solve just about anything that gets thrown our way. Below are some of our absolute essential apps to download when you’re starting out van life! > FOLLOW GENE & SHAY HERE iOverla ..read more

In 2017, I quit my stable job in what appeared to be a “good career” to go see the world with my then-boyfriend. We had no idea what we were doing and very little money but we were ready for a change. Together, we learned a lot about budget travel, jumped into the world of social media and decided the next adventure to take on would be van life. Once we just started to figure things out, we came back to Canada and started exploring the idea of a van build. Now, we were in the same boat again – in over our heads with a small budget and a big dream.  So we hopped out of Pinterest, and on ..read more

Prior to Van Life, my partner Gene and I, had lived in the city of Philadelphia for years, working seven days a week just to be able to afford our overpriced rent and spend money on things we didn’t really need. All the while, our apartment was filling up with material items that didn’t actually spark any joy in us. As our rent was coming to an end, and we had to decide if we would renew for another year, we started talking about transitioning our life into an alternative style of living where we could use less and work with the resources of the land. > FOLLOW GENE & SHAY HERE Our ..read more

TABLE OF CONTENTS Full Map Campsites Restaurants + Cafes Groceries Experiences Pet Care Things You Might Forget to Bring Please Note: All addresses are Google Maps plus codes. The titles are also exactly as seen in Google Maps so you can entire those in as well. Everything is in categories and within each category, it goes from north to south in order. CAMPSITES Alisitos K58  44F7+9Q La Fonda, Baja California, Mexico Costs $10USD or $200 pesos per night. This was the first campsite we stayed at in Baja. We knew the group would likely get separated at the border so this w ..read more

When you begin the process of building out a van to become your home, it can seem really overwhelming when you start to add up all of the potential costs in your head. Between a bedroom, a kitchen, and a bathroom, things can really add up. If you’re anything like me, you’ve dreamt of this moment forever, but you definitely don’t have the savings account to pour tens of thousands of dollars into your new space. I live in a 1984 Dodge Campervan that I was able to convert into my dream home for a total of $7,000. Here are some ways I was able to get everything I wanted in my van build at a fra ..read more

Before my partner and I moved into our van, we spent the six months building it, constantly going back and forth on whether or not we would be bringing our two cats, Bean and Sprout. We had often seen pictures and videos online of van dogs living their best lives on the open road, but weren’t sure if our 3 and 4 year old cats, who knew nothing other than the inside of our city apartment, would adjust with that same ease.  Eventually we decided that leaving them with our parents just didn’t feel right, and we packed them up and moved them into our newly converted home on wheels. Today ..read more