After a lot of thought, you’ve decided to live in a van full-time. This new chapter in your life will take you from one place to another, and you’ve planned for it for a long time or even years. It’s likely that telling your family, friends, and co-workers your plans will take some of the wind out of your sails, even if you think you have covered all your bases and left no stone unturned. I don’t care if they’re the most free-spirited people on the planet, or even if they’ve spent time in a van. They’ll always find it weird when you first try to explain to them.
You not only will have to explain the basics of Vanlife but also the pros of living a Vanlife.
We have prepared a list of the benefits of Vanlife that you may use to prove your point.
Related Link: Kev’s Vanlife and Travel Essentials
Lots of freedom.
One of the seemingly endless reasons why people are now choosing to live on the road is that it gives them a lot of freedom, as well as the chance to meet new people and have new experiences. It’s a lot more beneficial than bad for most people who already live in a van to do so.
Freedom to travel
One of the best things that you can tell them about living in a van is that you can go on road trips. If you drive a Sprinter for 300,000 miles or more, you could drive around the country about 27 times. The US is 2,800 miles wide, and the average Sprinter lasts about that long. Some people drive their vans across international borders, like the ones between Canada and Mexico and between Central and South America, to do things like go to a new country. It costs between $ 1,000 and $ 2,000 for traveling outside of the United States.
Living in a van allows you to experience the world on your own terms, which is ideal for exploring new places. It is impossible for you to stay in one place for a long time because you are always moving. If you fall in love with South Dakota or Florida, you might want to stay for a few months to see how things work out. If you don’t like it, you can just leave the next day.
If you live and work in your van, it’s amazing to be able to move your home base every few months and get to know the country you live in (or nearby countries) better.
People who live in a van are very different from people who drive other types of cars. You’ll focus on staying in beautiful places and waking up to some of the best sunsets in the world while on your trip. You will get used to slowing down and going off the main road. It also means that you will get a lot more out of your trips to the places you visit.
Traveling is something that most of whom you would explain Vanlife would want to do, and if you do it right it will make them fall in love with Vanlife.
Lower cost of living
Even if you live in a van, you may have to pay just as much or even more money to live there than if you lived in a normal home or apartment. However, it is for those people who have no budgeting in place. But that doesn’t have to be the case. It costs as little as $ 3,000 to buy a used cargo van from a second hand market. Keeping your trips to a small area and only camping in places run by the Bureau of Land Management will almost certainly cut your overall cost of living.
According to a survey, 42% of people who travel by van have a weekly budget of between $ 50 and $100 for each person. Over half of those who answered said that fuel costs between $ 101 and $300 a month. The majority (38 percent) said that they spend nothing on campsites. You definitely need to include this point when you are trying to explain Vanlife to your friends, family or coworkers.
Connection with nature
Nature plays an important role in the van life, with midnight bonfires and endless views of snow-capped mountains on the horizon. However, in the desert areas of the United States, it’s possible to be without phone or WiFi service for a long time. You don’t need to mention the internet problem since people whom you are explaining the benefits of vanlife, this might seem counterintuitive. Cooking, cleaning, and going to the bathroom outside will become the norm.
Doing something together with nature, like camping, makes you feel like you’re part of it. According to a poll it was found that half of the people who answered said they usually sleep in public places, like national forests or grasslands. It’s not unusual to spend the night in a Walmart parking lot.
There will be many who would want to escape the hustle and bustle of city life and want to experience nature. Including this point will greatly act in your favor.
Related Link: Kev’s Vanlife and Travel Essentials
Minimalism
According to the US Census Bureau the average square footage of a single-family home in 2021 was 2,301 square feet, which is about the same as last year. Inside space in midsize motorhomes, like the Ford Transit or the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, is on the order of 60 square feet on most occasions.
When it comes to moving your things into a small home on wheels, you’ll almost certainly have to cut back a lot. When you have a small living space, it’s important to keep things simple. One of our biggest regrets from the building process was not having enough storage space. People who live in vans often have this problem, and you’ll get used to it as time goes on.
However, living on less has long been thought to be good for one’s mental health. A 2020 research found that adopting a minimalist lifestyle provides “a wide range of well-being advantages,” ranging from enhanced autonomy and competence to mindfulness and an overall feeling of happiness. People who are materialistic, on the other hand, have been found to be more likely to feel lonely in many studies. Though explaining minimalism to some people might be daunting and it will take a bit of effort but if you can quote the aforementioned study you could easily prove your point.
You will be prepared for anything, always.
Many people call van dwellers “minimalists,” but they are also known as the “huge packers’ ‘ of the traveling world. Some people only take their bags and luggage when they go on vacation while a van life will always have a first aid kit, kitchen supplies, and some sets of clothes are always in the vans, so they’re ready for anything. With all of it in place van dwellers make it possible to make even the most unfamiliar places feel like home.
Learning experiences
If a van has a lot of miles on it or has been owned by many people, it is likely to have problems. You might get stuck because of a mechanical problem or get lost on your way to a faraway campground on a Forest Service road that hasn’t been used in a long time. Such stumbling blocks will only make you more confident in your own abilities. Living in a van helps you learn a lot of important life skills that you can’t learn in a normal family. These skills include carpentry, mechanics, navigation, first aid, space saving, and more. While explaining this point you need to be careful to not scare them but rather make them believe that these skills are something that everyone should have.
You’re Joining a Community.
Unlike some stereotypes, people who live in vans aren’t always weird or weirdos. They are adventurous, gregarious, and outdoorsy people who are also free-thinkers and creative thinkers. They are a group of people who are friendly. Having a van is also a great way to get to know new people when you meet them while on a trip. Whether you live in a van or not, you want to learn more about it. Human beings are social animals and they always want to belong to some kind of group, even if they are introverts. With this point you are tapping on one of the most basic desires of humans.
Minimize Your Carbon Footprint.
When it is done with care, van life is good for the environment. When you live away from home, you use far less electricity and water than you would at home. During grocery shopping, your kitchen and cabinets get smaller. This allows you to be more efficient while shopping and results in less food going to waste.
As a bonus, those of us who have reused an old used car have kept all of that garbage from going to a junkyard.
No More Packing
If you don’t like having to pack your bag or luggage, you’ll enjoy the ease of traveling in a van. After all, it’s your new home, right?
There are only a few storage spaces in the van, but you can put everything in them. You only have to think about repacking when you’re ready to sell your things on the secondary market.
Even better, because the camper is so small, it is almost impossible to lose any of your things for a long time, and everything is always close at hand.
It takes just seconds to stuff a few essentials into a daypack when you’re out exploring, and it takes only minutes to “tidy up” after yourself.
Ability to work remotely
You can do your job from the comfort of your own home or on the road. There are a ton of freelance websites that will help you earn while you are on the wheels. It’s important to keep in mind that even though this sounds great, it may not always be easy to find reliable cell service and internet connection, as well as power to charge all of your gadgets.
It will strengthen your relationship with your partner.
You may be in a loving relationship with your spouse, but living conditions might be cramped. And when you fight in a van, there isn’t somewhere else for them to take place.
Despite the fact that this might seem like a disadvantage, there is an upside. Being forced to spend time together will help you figure out how you can avoid talking about a disagreement in the normal course of things, which will be very useful.
It will also make you more contemplative and introspective because you will have to come up with new ways to make more space to meditate and think.
If you spend a few nights alone at home, you might be taking up space. In vanlife you might have to go on a solo trek while your partner goes alone to do some writing in a café.
It will make you value your alone time, which will make you value your time together even more.
You need to be cautious while explaining this point to your relatives and friends because they might perceive it negatively. You will need to stress on the fact that fights happen even when you are at home but the beauty of vanlife is that since you will have to stay together you need to sort it someway or the other.
Related Link: Kev’s Vanlife and Travel Essentials
