Imagine traveling or exploring a new place in a camper. Many people are taking advantage of the new ideology of living in a camper and dumping their old lifestyle.
Living in a camper is different from all other types of travel.
Sometimes you will face new challenges, and sometimes you will feel like living in a camper is the most amazing thing ever!
If you are thinking of living your life in a camper, you will need to make some drastic changes to your lifestyle.
Whether you are traveling in a camper or an RV, there are some essential things you need to consider. So let’s get real and dive into everything you need to know about how life will change when you live in a camper!
This is a guest post in collaboration with Camperlife… I hope you enjoy it!
You will have more control over your budget
Traveling in a campervan or an RV allows you to get control over your budget.
We are not saying that it is cheap.
Suddenly you started cooking your favorite dinners instead of eating out.
You can also make your coffee and forget about paying those heavy bills in a hotel or a cafe.
You will grow as a person
If you live in a guest house, other people will take care of you – like if your air conditioner is not working in your room, your owner moves you to another room.
But if you are traveling or living in an RV or a campervan, you need to take care of yourself, and you need to take that ownership, like fixing a repaired air conditioner or buying a new RV sofa bed.
You will get more confidence and feel more empowered when you solve the problems yourself. All these things make you grow as a person.
You will travel slowly and deeply
Traveling with your home on the backside is not an easy task and all of a sudden you notice that you can’t go fast as you go with a suitcase. It is exhausting. But believe me, you will get a fantastic experience.
When you are sitting on a bus, you might consider traveling to eight cities in eight days. But when you are sitting in the driver’s seat, you get the opportunity to see all those cities and the in-between.
If you are in the driver’s seat, you will drive on the small roads and get a glimpse of the people living in that area as you pass by them, which gives you a more complete experience than if you skip the in-between.
You will appreciate traveling slowly and notice the beauty of the day.
Packing gets more complex in a campervan!
When you are going on a road trip and planning to pack your things, you only have one suitcase.
It can be a nail-biting puzzle with no correct answer. It seems that all your problems may be solved if you have an eighty-foot camper van!
But that’s hardly the case. Sure you have more space in your campervan when you compare it with your suitcase. But it is a bit more complicated than that.
You will need to pack your campervan with all the stuff you need to make it a fully functioning home.
You can pack more in a campervan, but this leads to new decisions. You need to pack your campervan with the stuff that makes you comfortable, like a fluffy pillow. But obviously do not pack your campervan with unwanted stuff as it consumes space and is not helpful for you.
Consider having a big clear out and declutter of all your regular stuff (this is an amazing way to get started) before you even think about what to take with you in the campervan.
Personal space is no longer personal
If you are going with a companion like your partner or your children or your friend or your pets or all the above, you need to adjust to the space left inside the campervan.
If you are living in a tiny space, then you need to sacrifice all of your privacy. You need to give up the ability to pass gas without anyone knowing!
But the beautiful thing about giving up personal space is that you will get quality time to spend with your companions. Hopefully your companion is the one who you love to spend time with!
Your consumption will be visible
If you are in a resort or hotel there’s no need to worry about how much water you use for your twently minute shower. But when you come to a tiny space, even a tiny consumption is magnified.
You will suddenly notice the exact amount of water you are using to clean the dishes because you are the one who physically empties the wastewater instead of letting it drain underground.
When it comes to a small space, you will become serious about how much you are consuming because this is not something you ignore.
Everyday things become luxuries
Here in the campervan, you may need to bathe with lukewarm water, which does not give the same satisfaction as the hot shower you’re used to at home.
If you are thirsty, you won’t always have access to perfectly chilled water.
All these ordinary things which you do in your home seem luxurious to you now!
Many people around the world are living without all these luxuries. It is also a good thing to take notice of all this stuff once in a while.
You will interact with the locals
When you stay in a hotel or travel by public transport, you can pretty much keep yourself to yourself.
But if you are traveling in an RV or a campervan, you need to interact with the locals and get the details of the places to visit in their area. This might mean you have to get out of your comfort zone a little!
You need to make sacrifices
If you use business class flights or stay in a hotel room with fine dining and large rooms, you need to make some adjustments when traveling in a campervan.
But you will get beautiful rewards.
You will feel the wind blowing through your hair on the open roads!
All in all, you will get an adventurous life that many people dream of. All the small sacrifices give you a big reward.
You will learn to appreciate little things and value simplicity.
Most of all, you will experience freedom!
If you want to sleep tonight in the mountains and near the ocean tomorrow… no problem.
Living in a campervan gives you an entirely new meaning to freedom.
I hope you love it as much as I do!
