VANLIFE - LIVING ON THE ROAD
- Lexie
- Aug 6, 2024
- 14 min read
So… you want to live in a van ? Good choice !
I’m well seasoned in doing just that, so read on to find out what it’s like to live on the road. 2016 was the year I moved my life into a tiny van after quitting my job and giving away all of my possessions.. I was so excited at the prospect of life on the road that I didn't care about anything but the adventure. This was before the vanlife fad began and you'd rarely see these epic houses on wheels driving around.
Since then, the whole thing has blown up into a world-wide phenomena with people completely engineering their spaces and even creating a business out of this trend. But rightly so, with the cost of living so high, and so much to see in our lifetime getting outdoors has never been easier. After so many years of experiencing this lifestyle, I'm here to tell you some of the ins and outs of life on the road.
DO IT WHILE YOU’RE YOUNG
Since day 1 on the road, the number one advice I've received is "do it while you're young".
And that's exactly what I've been doing, and I can tell you now that I have zero regrets... you will learn so much about yourself when you step away from your comforts and embrace the outdoors and living so closely with nature. You will learn how to find your way through society and adapt to not having a specific place to call home anymore. In fact you'll never imagine that your backyard could be so big.
Obviously this comes with sacrificing some comforts and being confronted with feelings such as loneliness/solitude - but trust me, laying in bed and looking out your back door while the ocean laps the beach metres away from you and the stars fill the night sky is one of the greatest feelings.
While you're travelling around you'll want to experience all that’s on offer. And just like you do while you're travelling around overseas, you can explore things to do and epic ways to meet people.
BELOW;
Ocean Safari tour off the Daintree
Sailing/boat tours around the Whitsundays
K’gari (Fraser Island) 4WD tours
Book your day-trips like these at BACKPACKER DEALS
PS.. obviously I’m not saying that you should only be young if you want to adopt this new lifestyle. This is just the advice that I have been given over the years and it’s always from an older person who has loved this lifestyle and loves to encourage people to get out and live.
THE BUILD
Keep reading for a few of my recommendations for fitting out your van. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy or over-the-top. Don’t get too daunted by all of the YouTube videos of the craziest builds you’ve ever seen. I’m no expert builder and I ALWAYS get compliments on how adorable and homey Javier (my van) is. Try not to copy everything you see and instead, make it as functional as you can for what YOU need. Storage is key, so is space to move. Personally I need a little ‘office’ area to make my jewellery. I wanted a big kitchen, a big/beautiful bed space and room to stand up and get dressed.
PS.. you’ll see the evolution of my van throughout these photos. Everytime I can get my hands on tools, I will renovate again.
The basics of making sure you have a comfortable living space start from the sky. Yep.. the free power that you will harness from that bright, golden light beaming down on you.
Solar panels that feed energy into a couple of deep-cycle batteries will be the first step to freedom. And the first bill you can forget about paying moving forward !
A deep cycle battery is the one you’ll need to power your mini off-grid system. I recently upgraded to a Lithium battery system from my old AGM’s and it’s a game changer !
A fridge/freezer.. think about how much food storage you would like or how long you are planning to stay off-grid. There are plenty of options for sizing and whatever kind of fridge yoúre after
Wiring, plugs, cables. So much of this is tricky if you have no idea about running a battery/solar system so it’s possible using YouTube or hiring somebody. Search the guys I’ve tagged below for 12V options
Gas oven/double burner cooker. This was my choice but there are many ways to go about your cooking equipment. Make sure you’re confident with gas or get somebody to install it
Water tanks, pumps, hoses/connections, shower and toilet equipment. It’s popular to attach water storage underneath the vehicle, or above in pipes.. by painting the pipes black and allowing the sun to heat them during the day, you can source warm water by night
A fan ! Please, if you’re going to be locking yourself in your van at nighttime and even cooking inside you should invest in a Maxxair fan. I have the option to suck air out or draw it in. And I wouldn’t survive in humid/hot climates without this baby
It's hard to know where to start, but I sourced so much of the above list from these guys OUTBACK EQUIPMENT
They're incredible for your outdoor needs and you can get your hands on some serious equipment.
I really recommend investing in a comfortable mattress.. the first van I lived in had a bed so small that we would fold the front seats forward just to be able to have a little bit of room to stretch our feet. Sometimes you need to wake up early to move on before any council or rangers can find and fine you. So a good nights sleep is always welcomed.. and you can snag a mattress from NEWENTOR. It makes it so much easier to enjoy this lifestyle when you invest in the main comfort.
MAKING MONEY
You will become determined to fend for yourself and never have to work for anybody else again. This is where it's important to educate yourself on how to monetise something whether it's selling something, or your own product, or investing money. You should definitely invest in yourself and learn something new and learn how to monetise it. There are so many ways to make an extra dollar online, whether it’s a remote job or creating your own business. Keep evolving yourself and trying things that you enjoy until you find something that works.
I have enjoyed growing my jewellery business, this online blog and print store. I’ve found that I enjoy the physical product that I create but as time goes on I’m always trying to find a way that wiggles me towards more freedom. That’s essentially what we are craving.. I mean look at that office view.
CAPTURING THE WORLD
This lifestyle has given the opportunity to see so many places and capture more pockets of Australia than I ever thought I would. You are going to see and experience soooo much on this journey. And there’s absolutely no way that you’re going to skip out on capturing things as you go. Trust me, the most nostalgia I experience is when I look up at one of my photo memories hanging on the wall. It instantly transports me back to a time/place.
I use a Sony A7rii to capture my photos and videos. And prior to this, a Sony a6000. These sorts of cameras are amazing if your’e just getting into things.
I also use my DJI drone to capture videos from above and my GoPro for water content.
Camera House are my go to. They have a huge supply and can even print your photos for you ! I love to hang mine on the wall inside the van. This is also a great way to monetise your travels, if you put in the effort to grow an account and work with brands that suit the lifestyle.
When it comes to keeping all of my equipment charged, including my iPad where I run this website from; I have had the same Anker battery charger for the past 4 years and it has never failed me. I take this with me everywhere because I love photography and need it whenever I go hiking. Highly recommended ! They have so much available including portable projectors which would be so much fun in a van ! You could hang a white sheet and watch movies outside with friends.
WHERE TO PARK ??
This is the most obvious question and the one you will get asked in every car park. “Can you stay here for the night ?”, “Are you sleeping here tonight ?”
And to be honest, when it comes to nighttime it feels like it’s every van’er for themselves. Why would someone give away their secret spot to somebody random ? Although that sounds a little harsh, people usually like to find their own quiet corner to park up without disturbance. If you’re not paying for accommodation, you’re essentially risking waking up with the council knocking on your door (which is the worst feeling). So if there’s a big congregation of campers in one spot it makes it so obvious. So respectfully, if you’re choosing this lifestyle please be prepared for what you’re willing to do because sometimes you will find yourself driving around at 11pm without knowing where you’re going to sleep.
Your options may be;
Have a look around on google maps for a quiet road
National parks. You’ll probably pay less than $10 per head/per night
Download apps like CamperMate, HipCamp or WikiCamps and search for caravan parks or free camps
Pre-book into a caravan park or campsite
Backpacker hostels/caravan parks
Street sleeping (very respectfully)
If you’re not prepared to pay to stay somewhere, be prepared for possible fines or street sleeping. Times have changed so much, along with the laws (different states have different laws on camping). They may require knocking or they may not and you could randomly end up with a fine in the mail.
So be smart, try not to disturb people and respect everybody. You may meet people who will invite you to park on their property or in front of their house and invite you in for a shower/meal/laundry. This has happened so many times over the years and I have such fond memories of these beautiful humans.
WHERE TO TRAVEL ??
If you’re lapping Australia, I’ll leave it up to you to google your seasons. Keep in mind cold and heat, humidity, flies, wind or wet season.
So… what are you into ? Do you like nature and photography ? Do you like to connect with people or do you prefer the solitude ? Do you like to go out and party ? Do you love to jump on day tours while you’re in an area ? Do you like to bounce around cafes to work from ?
You’ll definitely find yourself hanging out in ‘day areas’, parks, by the ocean, sunset spots, etc. So as I mentioned earlier, download those apps like WikiCamps to find the places you can park. And leave room for curiosity. I used to google things like ‘Australia’s tallest tree’. It doesn’t always have to be the instagram locations. You’ll hear about a lot of incredible locations purely through word-of-mouth too.
Jump over to my other blog posts about a couple of other destinations that I’ve written about if you’re wanting more info;
(Don’t judge the bent rear hahah, it’s nearly 7m long and every now and then it bumps something)
THINGS THEY DON’T TELL YOU
Alrightyyy… here’s the raw stuff.. this lifestyle has its moments. You may go a week in a completely unglamorous situation but the next day you’ll be parked up with a million dollar view, making your morning coffee or eating lunch in front of a waterfall and it makes it all worth it ! So here’s my top list of things to keep in mind before you jump into this;
Weather. Oh my goodness.. you might be in an area that is forecast to rain for a month straight (and mould is not your friend). And you can’t really move anywhere in particular because the whole of the East Coast is raining too. Make sure you have van activities to keep yourself entertained and plan your routes seasonally.
Toilet situations. Do you have room for a toilet in your vehicle ? If not, what is your plan ? Especially as a female. We are obviously more restricted and have to plan better. Luckily Australia is made for this lifestyle and has toilets just about everywhere. But they also have closing times sometimes.. it’s 7pm and you need a toilet but they’ve just locked them, what do you do ? Just something to think about.
Showering. You might skip a shower some days, but usually because you’ll be swimming in the ocean, showering at the beach or swimming in a beautiful creek or under a waterfall. My solution has been becoming a member of a gym if I’m living somewhere for a season. It forces me to workout while also providing a nice warm shower. I also have a large pipe on the side of my van as a backup. If I’m in the forest or somewhere that I can have an outdoor shower, you bet I will. It helps you adapt to cold showers and there is actually no better shower moment than being outdoors looking at the stars.
MESS. Holy guys, please take this into account. This has been one of my main points over these past few years. Factor in space for mess because it can get out of hand quickly. Let’s say you cook breakfast and you scoot off for an adventure, your clothes are dirty because you’ve been hiking, you come back and need to cook lunch but you left the dishes from the morning. Now you have dirty laundry and dishes everywhere. And if you’ve parked up somewhere dusty or dirty, you can feel this in your van space. A laundry basket and getting into the habit of cleanliness are an absolute must. My van has 2 bins, one recycling and one for the rest.
Feeling like people are intruding. When you hit the road, you think you’re going to be the most open and engaging person. Ready to meet everybody ! But the novelty wears and there comes a point where everybody who walks past is gawking and poking their heads into your space that it begins to frustrate you. Forgive me if this doesn’t apply to you. But I love my personal space and by making my home SO public, this is obviously going to happen and it’s just a feeling that I have had to get used to.
Concentration. You have a million things to do, you work from your van space but nature is awaiting, the sun is shining and it’s a glorious day ! Or there are good vibes outside where you’ve parked up for the day. You get along great with your van neighbours and they’re inviting you to do something. Learning discipline and the ability to say no comes in so powerful. I have had to say no to so many catch-ups and fun things to do purely because I have work to do. Sometimes it doesn’t necessarily look like you work so people will always ask you to do things. Set your boundaries with yourself so you can concentrate.
Decision fatigue. This is a HUGE point I’d like to make. When you’ve wiggled your way to more freedom though your choice of lifestyle, all of a sudden you have so many things that you can do with your time, that you have no idea what to do. Which direction ? Where to today ? A lack of routine/purpose/direction can leave you feeling so scattered. I personally feel like it’s so important to have some sort of routine. For me, it’s exercising and diving into my creativity. Call your friends and family or whoever you like to have long chats with. This will help you talk through some decisions rather than being stuck in your own head.
Fuel. The price of fuel has absolutely skyrocketed in the past couple of years and it’s made the carefree moving with no worries a little inconvenient. It may depend on your budget or whether you’re making money while you’re moving, but there is no denying it’s made us all more cautious of how much fuel our vehicles are drinking. Lugging around a house-on-wheels obviously causes more consumption. Slow travels and well-planned routes is the way to go and you can search the price of fuel on the internet.
Solitude. If you do not like to be alone, you better be good at making friends. Regardless, there are so many lonely moments. Moments that are so stunning that you wish you had someone to share them with (obviously this is if you’ll be travelling alone). Luckily there is so much online community around this lifestyle. Here is one of my great friends that I was blessed to meet because we had connected online first. Love you Em !
I have lived this lifestyle for so long that I wasn’t sure if it was ever possible to integrate smoothly back into a ‘normal’ living situation, to find love and a solid community (one that isn’t moving). But I’m happy to say that I managed to meet my beautiful lover, to spend a year and a half in Noosa and enjoying house-life for a moment. And to engage in a lively community of people in this area. I’m not ready to settle yet however, and we will keep Javier moving again.. I feel so blessed to have met my man ! I’m just adding this in here to let you single travellers know that it’s possible to find love on the road.
LET’S FINISH WITH THE GOOD STUFF
I hope that last section hasn’t swayed you from choosing the vanlife, but I also wanted to be very transparent with you. And to bring up some points that you may not have considered. So naturally, there are pros and cons and I’d love to share some of the amazing pros before I wrap this up.
Feeling closer to LIFE. After this past years experience of living in a house again, I must say I feel more disconnected from life. I feel like it takes so much less to survive and things are so easy. The comfort and convenience means it’s easy to be lazy. This doesn’t mean I haven’t been grateful for it.. but I love vanlife because you’re living in the rhythm of nature. You see the stars, the moon cycles, you can hear the ocean, the bugs and the birds.
The views ! Sometimes I cannot believe my eyes. My back door will look like a framed picture except it’s real life and it’s right there. You open your curtains and the sun is rising in front of you. You walk 20m with your morning coffee and you’re at the beach. You’ll be cooking lunch while there is literally a waterfall out your back door. You wake up to pee at nighttime and the Milky Way is beaming above you !
You make friends everywhere. It’s so nice to have friends spread all over the place. Including internationally - and you really cross moments with people just living their lives or on their dream holiday. People can be very interesting. I love joining the gym or sitting in cafes to work or else I find myself spending all of my time alone.
You can change towns if you’re not enjoying the one you’re in. Have you ever felt when a place is almost trying to kick you out ? Or like you’re not supposed to be somewhere ? Like a couple of bad things happen and you take this as a sign and move on. Well this has definitely happened to me.. but more or less it’s just whether you’re vibing where you are and you have that choice to move which is amazing !
You can be free. Parking somewhere with no people, you can play your music, dance around, lay outside on a rug, shower naked or do whatever. The feeling of being so free is like no other. I love my music and I love having my moments where it feels like it’s just myself and the sunshine.
You have all of your things on you ! This is my favourite but it can also mean separation anxiety from the van haha. It makes it really easy to be able to plan a day though - you can hike, come back and eat/shower, change clothes and cook. You can keep working and charging your technology. You can chill and watch a show or have a nap because you also have your bed with you. Just 2 days ago I was watching whales and dolphins, people surfing and sailing and watching the ocean looking glorious right out my door while I was eating my breakfast. Truly spectacular.
It may be more affordable than a house. I’ve been trying to figure out if this lifestyle is actually cheaper than living in a house now that I have a comparison. And I’ve been SO lucky to be paying only $200 a week rent, but sharing a house with 5 other people. I don’t move the van much at all in Noosa so I haven’t been paying for fuel. So in saying that, the price of fuel may balance out my rent if I were to move around a lot. Typically I was spending about $70 on fuel per week when I was living/driving around small towns like Airlie/Port Douglas.
Cheap holidays ! This one speaks for itself. As you’re moving about, living in paradise locations and you realise that you could’ve been paying for accom/transfers/flights/having no car/etc. Instead you’ve got your whole life in a vehicle, enjoying a location slowly and in depth.
Book your day-trips at BACKPACKER DEALS
So there you have it friends ! Cheers from a happy van gal who has just made a fresh smoothie and is drinking it by a pristine, fresh creek (above). I could probably write about this topic endlessly but I’ll leave it at that. I truly hope this has helped in some way.. Comment below your thoughts ! Have you lived this lifestyle too ? Did I miss anything ? Would you like to know anything else ?
Lexie x
This post does contain affiliate links, so if you feel like this helped you and you feel inspired, feel free to use them. I highly recommend all of those brands.
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