Next phase of life travel on the road in a RV thinking camper van. Sprinter or smaller

Only as an occasional guest, but I don't recall any of my RV friends trading for something smaller.

 

Will you be alone? If so it only depends on your comfort level. If your wife/girlfriend will be along it ALL depends on her comfort....

In other words if she ain't having fun NOBODY is having fun.

 

When my daughter was about 6 months old my wife and I rented a camper van in Ireland and spent 2 weeks traveling the countryside and coast..... enough to get a dose of van life.

If I lived out west with sweeping vistas and variable landscapes within a day or two I would definitely own one.

A few thoughts:

• It's very similar to boat life. EVERYTHING needs to have a very specific place, and everything needs to be put away immediately after use. Clutter does not work. Minimalism is key.
• Navigation of 2 people inside can be frustrating....doors need to open and close to allow passage, and you're constantly shrinking into nooks and crannies to allow the other person to pass.
• A good and quickly deployed outdoor setup is awesome, especially when you're feeling claustrophobic - tables, chairs, awning, cooler, etc.
• Depends on your specs and setup, but we never once had to charge a battery or refill propane, and we ran the heater many nights and mostly cooked our own meals. I was very surprised at the efficiency. We boondocked the entire trip and never once pulled into a RV park or campsite.
• Bathroom casette needed to be emptied ~every 3-4 days. It wasn't terrible, but the wife was definitely NOT doing that task. Quick and painless in public restrooms, porta potties, and once or twice in the woods.

I've got a buddy selling his if you feel like a roadtrip to Maine.

 

I have been thinking about a class B or B Plus Sprinter-based camper for the wife and I. I think that would be perfect for us. The question is whether we would like to have no bump / slide-outs or whether a slightly larger version built on a Sprinter cab / chassis would work better. No dry camping for us. The thing has to have a toilet and shower. Preferably a separate shower rather than a wet bath that has shower / toilet all in one space. You can even get Sprinter-based campers in four wheel drive, but they are quite spendy.

 

I don't know why RVs appeal to people. Sounds like hell too me.

 

Following this thread with interest. Really thinking of buying a camper van and living in it for a while.

 

I did this for my entire childhood with my family. Started with a 20' class A motor home and the last year before I left home my dad purchased a 36' Class A. Had a blast traveling around the country for many years with the family for weeks and sometimes months during summer break. Even went several times during Xmas break on trips down south. My dad and mom absolutely loved the motor home life and retired as one of those snow birds who would spend summers in the north and head south for about 5 months during the winter and live in it along the Texas coast. After all those years living at home helping my father maintain and prepare it for every trip I can tell you that as soon as I moved out of the house that was never going to be on my to do list in the future and certainly not when I retire. It takes a special person to do this in my book. Minimalism, cost and time required for maintenance as well as preparation for a trip was enough to turn me away. I certainly appreciated every minute that my dad and mom spent doing what they did for us kids but no way in hell was I going to pursue it any further once I was on my own. Lets face it the two biggest expenses as well as headaches that most people are going to deal with are vehicles and their home and now you want to put a home on wheels and take it with you. Not for me!

 

Down by the river?