In the same way that you’ll find #vanlife communities online, #Airstream is also full of stunning images - albeit not nearly as many. Airstreams are RVs but with an aerodynamic style and a cool, retro-chic outside. If you want to have your comfort and your coolness, too, then an Airstream would be the option for you. As long as the weather is good, their daughter can play outside when Suzie is cooking, but she knows they won’t be able to pull off van life too much longer. But their daughter is now eight, and they are beginning to feel the tight space. Somehow, they’re the hip people you’d expect to opt for van life. Black and Mohr, both surfers from Australia, worked as ski guides in Whistler for years. There’s certainly a coolness factor in #vanlife, and maybe that’s important to you. If you opt for a previously owned Airstream, though, you aren’t likely to get the same savings as on a typical used RV or van, as Airstreams tend to hold their value. Black says that although her husband did the work on their sprinter van himself, you can buy ready-made kits to outfit your vans from places like Adventure Wagon in Oregon, which start at $12,500 apiece. On the other hand, buying a used RV can be less expensive than a van, unless you manage to find a second-hand van. Likewise, our gas bill was lower than it would have been in a larger vehicle. When my daughter and I took an eight-day surf trip along the California coast last August, the low-budget van we bought - outfitted with a fold-out bed that was so complicated we left it open, as well as a sink and a Coleman stove in back - cost much less than what we would have paid for an RV. If you’re planning to rent a vehicle, a van will likely cost less than an RV to rent. While he did hire someone to get the electrical done - installing three golf cart batteries that regenerate when they are driving - he would be able to fix them on his own if needed. Black’s husband Matt Mohr did most of the work for their sprinter van, building out the interior.
Road tripper vs generator#
She recommends ensuring the refrigerator works, there’s enough water, the heater is functioning, the generator works correctly, and so on.įor some, this could impact whether they opt for a van, since often vans are tricked out by their owners.
“Make sure everything works before you leave” is Thompson’s top piece of advice to anyone setting out on an RV trip for the first time. How handy you areīoth RVs and vans can break down, and mechanical hiccups are an issue you will hear from pretty much anyone who spends a lot of time in these sleep-ready vehicles. We can park anywhere, and we just look like a delivery van - with mountain bikes and surfboards,” she says. “Sprinter vans are more conducive to our kind of lifestyle,” says Black. Vans, on the other hand, don’t require advanced reservations much of the time. However, she notes that there are plenty of other places to stay as well, such as BLM land and national forests. “It’s kind of frenetic outside national parks because there are so many RVs,” says Thompson. Especially this year, when so many people were on the road, Thompson and Worple say they had to plan in advance where they wanted to stay in the RV. Given the size of RVs, you’re more limited in where you can park, which can require making reservations in advance. Whether you’re a planner or spontaneous matters here. Photo: Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock The lack of a shower can catch up with them in some spots, says Black, laughing that, “Five days without a shower and then we’re all pretty gross.” But most of the time they can find a campground or a HipCamp to stay at when they need to. They’ve been traveling from Seattle to Southern California and Utah, and then will head back to Seattle. Suzie Black and her husband Matt Mohr are taking their eight-year-old daughter “roam schooling” in their sprinter van this fall since her classes are online anyway. Not everyone sees the RV amenities as a necessity, even on a longer trip. With comfortable beds and warm showers, Worple appreciated being “able to pull up into an RV park and have your world right there.” “I loved it,” said Worple, who said the family was self-sufficient, not eating at restaurants or going into stores.
For them, an RV gave them control over their environment, something Worple found appealing during the pandemic. After making it all the way to Southern California, they turned around and went back, picking up their daughter in Boston and then exploring the Northeast, reaching Maine - logging over 16,000 miles. Becca Worple and her husband sold their house in Ohio and set out West with their son and two big dogs.
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