Van Life | Your Complete Guide


If you're thinking about Van-Life or just interested in what those crazy people over there are doing, you've come to the right place.

Here are some of the most helpful things we have found on living in a van.


  1. Parking
    • Most RV parks do not take vans or older cars, our luck ran out in that department rather quickly
    • The most quiet places to sleep are Bureau of Land Management areas such as national forests
      • You can use freecampsites.net to find a list rather easily 
      • You can also call the National Forest/Lands visitor centers are they are rather friendly and let you know where you can over-night park
    • A pretty safe (security wise) place to sleep is at a Love's Travel Stop, TA Travel Center, Rest Areas/Stops, Flying J Travel Center, or Pilot. Really any travel center will work, but call just to be safe. We are two young women and didn't feel unsafe at any of these. 
    • A louder and less secure place is Walmart. Pretty much any Walmart allows you to sleep over night, except a few in large cities like Las Vegas and L.A. We just called around and ended up finding one that would take us. I didn't like Walmart as much because it can get annoyingly loud late at night sometimes. 
    • If you have a membership at Planet Fitness they allow you to over-night park there for typically a max of two nights. The staff is super chill but you may get a few confused "uhhhh"s when you ask. 
    • In a pinch we have stayed at the back of motel parking lots and hospitals, but did get a knock at your window telling us we can't sleep there. Unfortunately sometimes there is no other option, but it's up to you if you want to risk it. 
  2. Showering
    • We have found that Planet Fitness has the the best thing we have ever gotten a membership to. It's clean, has pretty hot water, and is very safe. We also get a nice hydro-massage almost every time we go which has been so nice after days of hiking and exploring. 
    • If you don't want to go for the membership lots of RV campgrounds will let you shower there for a small fee. 
  3. Bathroom Time and Dumping
    • I bought a small portable toilet that you can find on Amazon, Walmart, or and sports store. It has been pretty nice because you feel like your going to the bathroom in a normal toilet. The biggest downfall I would say is that it gets full REALLY fast so you have to dump it pretty regularly. 
    • Honestly, if we do this again we are gonna get one of those camper bucket toilets because it will hold more waste and be slightly easier to dump. 
    • As far as dumping goes, besides being disgusting to do, sanidumps.com has been incredible for finding dumping spots. We also try to find the free ones and that has been a pocket saver for sure. 
  4. Cooking and Propane Fill ups
    • We have a propane stove that is connected to a propane tank that we fill up. 
    • Firstly, 5 gallons of propane has lasted us over 2 months of cooking and possibly more (can't be sure since we have not ran out yet). 
    • Secondly, where to find propane can be tricky. 
      • Love's, TA, and other travel stops usually have propane 
      • RV campsites 
      • Sometimes you can find propane companies in the area that will fill it up for you but they are usually only there early in the morning
      • Gas stations in through towns typically have propane as well
  5. Water 
    • 7-11, Love's, TA, and travel centers have been our go-to for filling up our potable drinking water. 
    • National Park Campsites have water available  
  6. Charging Devices
  7. Laundry Spots
    • Travel Centers (really a one stop shop) like TA, Love's, Etc.
      • These are nice because you can do all your other things needed while you wait
    • Local laundromats 
    • RV campsites for a small fee
    • Friends and Family in the area, even if you don't know them all that well
  8. Heat and A.C.
    • For a heating source we have our lil' buddy from Mr. Heater, but be sure to open up a window a crack for safety. It warms up the car quickly and really makes it warm. The only downfall is that you do have to open a window a bit so if it's windy or raining it's not always feasible. 
    • Blankets were super useful and we had temperatures down to the teens while traveling. 
    • After a while we both got acclimated to the temperatures really well and were relatively comfortable the whole time. 
    • If it got below 15 degrees we would have to book a hotel somewhere nearby, such as when a snow storm blew through Utah while we were there. It's always better for your wallet to hurt than to end up in the hospital or worse. 

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