#Vanlife is a travel movement that is becoming more popular by the moment. Its central tenet is the idea of converting a van into a living space to use while travelling. Something that can help keep costs low when on the road. Of course, more ways to keep costs in the #vanlife movement down are springing up all the time. A topic you can read all about in the post below.
Invest in your van
Vanlife is definitely a brilliant way to see the world, while only spending the bare minimum on travel. After all, your vehicle is also your home. Therefore, you do not need to pay for accommodation, and you can even take all of your belongings with you from place to place.
Of course, to enjoy #vanlife, you will need to make sure that your van is as comfortable as possible. Otherwise, you can end up spending additional money on the road both on repairs, and accommodation if things go south. Something you want to have planned for and will invariably end up costing you more than you would like.
With that in mind, it’s well worth investing the time and effort into your van conversion before you go. Now, I know many people do work on their vehicle in waves making sure they have the money saved for each job before they start to do it. Something that allows them to get to the end of the project without incurring any debt at all.
Of course, depending on your personal situation, this isn’t always possible, and if you do come to a standstill, the key is not to panic. In fact, you actually have three options here. The first is to just suspend work until such time as you can find the money you need to continue. The downside of this being that it will likely delay your leaving date as well.
The second option is to take out a short term loan that you will pay off before you leave to pay for the work. Something that even those folks with bad credit can do if they choose to use a firm like Buddy Loans that work on a guarantor system. They will even provide a loan for any purpose, so it can make unique need like #vanlife conversion easier to fund.
While the third option is to try and find the parts and materials you need for free by scavenging them from places like Craigslist. Something that means you will be dependent on luck, and you’ll also have to do any adaptation and installation work yourself. Although, many #vanlife aficionados see this as all part of the fun of the moment!
Choose a location with a clement climate
Next, if you want to live your best #vanlife without spending a fortune choosing the locations you will visit carefully can help. In fact, it can often work out much cheaper to pick places where the weather doesn’t get scorching or freezing.
The reason being that van built to survive in extreme weather conditions are more expensive to convert and more costly to run. After all, insulation, heaters, and air conditioners aren’t cheap. To that end, by picking places where you are unlikely to need additional detailing and cooling, you can definitely keep your costs as low as possible.
Shop around for fuel
Obviously, when you are living your #vanlife on the road, one of your highest costs will be your fuel. In fact, you can expect to pay a fair bit more than you would when driving in a car from place to place. The reason being that most vans are more substantial and they will be heavier too as they will have your living accommodations built into them.
With that in mind, there are two steps you need to take to keep fuel prices at a minimum. The first is to be as minimal as possible with your possessions. Something that shouldn’t be too hard, as you will only be working with a small amount of space in which to store them anyway. Just remember to regularly go through everything you have with you and sort by need rather than want.
Secondly, being savvy about when and where you buy our fuel can save you a great deal of money. Happily, you will find websites that regularly update where to get the cheapest fuel by the litre all over the world. Something that means you can plan where to fill up and still save money at the same time.
Swap your time for food and space
Next, if you are looking to have an incredible #vanlife adventure but keep your cost to a minimum consider volunteering as you travel. In fact, by offering your time and labour to farms and landowners, you can often strike a deal to receive free parking and even meals. Something that means you will have somewhere free of charge to stay, full bellies, and you will be working in the fresh air and on the land as well.
Go solar
Finally, when it comes to saving money while your van is on the road, it just makes sense to use solar energy. Of course, tech isn’t quite at the point where we can use solar to refuel a vehicle at the mo, but getting some panels fixed to the roof can still save you a pretty penny.
In fact, with roof-mounted panels, you can ensure they will be charging up all day even when you are on the road. Something that means you won’t have to plug into the grid when you stop at campsites to run your kettle, charge your laptop, or even have your lights on.
Of course, once you have paid for the panels, then the power you will be collecting will not just be cheap, but totally free as well. Not to mention the fact that it’s a much cleaner and renewable energy source, and so better for the environment. Something that therefore makes solar panels a must-have for those #vanlifers that are looking to survive on a pretty minimal budget.
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