Why Rent an Adventure Van?

Before jumping into the deep end of full time vanlife

If you’re considering making the big life transition from a sticks and bricks, nine-to-five, traditional American Dream sort of lifestyle into full-time vanlife, questions like “where do I start?” and “how do I know if/when I’m ready?” might be putting the brakes on your dream.

The reason it feels like a daunting undertaking is because it is a HUGE change from the lives most of us lead in the US. Not only does it require significant downsizing of our wardrobes, our Christmas décor collection, and our myriad kitchen gadgets that make life so much easier, it’s also a significant downsize on basic comforts like power usage, accessibility and function of showers and toilets, and temperature regulation. Most vans don’t come with air conditioning. Most van toilets must be emptied after they are used. Most van showers are hardly preferable to being a stinky creature from the black lagoon. But if you’ve never gone 4 days without a shower, even that can be a sticking point.

Before you start cruising the web looking for the perfect adventure van, or even more dramatically commit to turning an empty shell of a cargo van into your custom-built dream home on wheels, you might want to answer the question, “will I even like vanlife?”

That’s where a rental van comes in.

Renting a van through a platform like Outdoorsy or GoCamp, gives you an opportunity to try before you buy into a whole new lifestyle. There are so many things to learn when you are first hitting the road. From how and where to camp for free to how to grocery shop when your refrigerator is 4 cubic feet. These things take practice.

Questions you want to answer when you’re in a rental van:

Can I live in this small of a space?

When I moved into my first van, I had already downsized my life three times in the past two years. Once when I left my apartment to move to Yosemite National Park, taking only what fit into my Hyundai Elantra (but leaving the rest in my parent’s garage), once when I went to hike the Appalachian Trail with only what fit in a backpack (but again, leaving boxes behind), and then finally when moving again from an apartment to a shared room with a friend in Arizona. Each of these times, I shed a surprising number of objects. More than you might think would fit in an apartment. Many carloads to Goodwill, furniture sold on Craigslist, books and clothes offered to friends.

Moving into a van might seem as simple as getting rid of 90% of your belongings, but the actual experience of existing in a tiny space presents it’s own challenges. You no longer have the option to shut your messy bedroom door and hang out in a clean living room. You don’t have the luxury of leaving dishes in the sink for a day or two, because you need the only pot again to cook your next meal, and the only plate to eat it. And for the first few days, you might find yourself turning in circles and bumping into things as you navigate where things belong and how to stay organized throughout the day. If you’re going to be sharing the space with another person, no matter how much you like them, learning the intricate dance which is preparing a meal, or trying to get work done during the day is an exercise in relational patience.

Can I handle the challenges of the road?

Depending on how you plan to travel, finding places to sleep every night can be very stressful or no big deal. If you’re moving fast, seeing new places every day, or traveling on a tight budget, nightly camp spots can be a real hassle. There is loads of free camping to had, especially in the western half of the US, but learning how to find them and how to vet them doesn’t happen overnight. If you’re planning to stay in national parks, state parks, and commercial campgrounds, the stress of finding a place can be much lower, but the cost adds up fast. These kinds of places also tend to book up quickly and far in advance, meaning a certain amount of commitment to a route and a plan is necessary, stealing away some of the carefree, whimsical feeling of the open road.

Living on the road also comes with it’s fair share of unexpected adventures. Road closures, weather events, and mechanical issues can all conspire to leave you scrambling without a plan. If you’re the type of person who handles unexpected challenges with a deep breath and a spoonful of grace, you’ll be just fine. If not—this is an opportunity to let vanlife teach you a new skill. While you hopefully won’t have to deal with any mechanical issues when renting a van, you could very well face other unexpected obstacles to your road trip plans and what better way to test your ability to problem solve.

How will I handle my hygiene?

When people find out I live in a van, the first question they ask is inevitably hygiene related. They are always curious where I go to the bathroom and where I shower. Americans are accustomed to daily showers and a certain level of toilet luxury, so it’s not a surprise that we have anxiety around the idea of not having those things. Lots of vanlifers opt for the gym membership route which guarantees a certain level of shower accessibility. Truck stop showers and campground showers are often available in areas between your fave gym chain. It is also possible to build a shower into a van, but the sacrifice of space and energy for water pump there are some pretty nifty portable shower kit options for outdoor showers.

Can I navigate finding showers/toilets/emptying toilets/refilling water tanks?

How do I want my van build?

When building out a tiny space for a full life, there are many considerations about space limitations and efficiency. Professional builders take a lot of time and care in the planning of a space, but even then, each little detail may not specifically fit your needs. When I had my custom Ford Transit built, I had specific requirements, like enough power to run a Vitamix blender AND a cabinet that was sized to hold a Vitamix blender. (We all need our one luxury, but to me Vitamix is not a luxury, it is life.) I traded in kitchen storage space for a larger fridge/freezer combo because eating fresh fruits and vegetables was a priority to me. Everything in my van was right where I wanted it to be, and when I tried letting my partner share the space with me, we quickly realized that my very specific layout wasn’t conducive to a whole other person and their things—if we were going to live together full-time, we would need a very different van build.

So, when you’re renting a van, you get to practice figuring out where each of your non-negotiable must-have items is going to live. There are little details that you might not realize are important until you’re in a tiny space trying it out, like where you want to be able to reach your light switches from. You’ll want to think about the big picture stuff, like do you want the bed to fold into a couch, or do you need room to store mountain bikes, or do you want an electric pump for the sink, or a manual one? And the little stuff, like does the passenger seat need to be on a swivel and where will you store your toilet paper?

What to do next?

Test-driving vanlife by renting one, or a few, custom built rigs can help you think through all the little details and avoid the annoyance of realizing too late that you forgot to plan a place for your shoes to live. After an amazing trial in one of N2 Explore’s rental fleet, you’ll be stoked to hit the road for good—or customize your own rig for shorter trips in the future. That’s where we come in, again! N2 Explore has a well-equipped, full-service shop in Phoenix, Arizona where we can offer every level of assistance to get you into your own van. We offer fully customized builds to meet your specific needs. We are also excited to offer DIY support—from the planning stages to the final touches. If you’re interested in building the van yourself, while learning new skills and using our tools and knowledge along the way. We will be right there to consult and offer assistance. Cutting a hole in a perfectly good van or calculating the amount of electricity required for your lifestyle can feel complicated and overwhelming. Let us lead the way!