How we chose the right van for us

Our choice of van fell on the VW California Ocean. Why? Simple, because both my boyfriend and I have always been used to travel “on the road” or staying in campsites in tents.

I come from 15 years of experience in a caravan and a few years camping, he comes from about ten years, perhaps more, experience camping with a tent.

So, we had clear ideas about the best type of vehicle for our needs and, above all, for the needs of our 3 four-legged friends!

The VW California Ocean was the most natural upgrade after the holidays in a tent, but not too bulky as a caravan.
We knew we had many advantages over the tent, but we had to make compromises compared to a caravan.

Tent vs Van vs Caravan

Pro over the tent:

• a dry place in the rain
• a warm place in winter
• a fridge always available
• a kitchen that can always be used, even in bad weather
• easier movement between a city and another, between a lake and another, between a forest and another

Contro to a motorhome:

• less space
• no hot shower inside the vehicle
• no toilet inside the vehicle
• less water always available
• need to open the upper compartment to be able to stand up

Why choosing a van instead of a camper, then?

Simple. We wanted to be able to reach any places as you would with a car or with a tent, but a caravan doesn’t really allow it because of its size.
And if camping will be forbidden..we can easily close everything and our vehicle becomes just a car that

we can park even in the city centre or closed to any kind of lake! With less than 2m in height and the size of any 7-seater car, it’s all easier!

And then, let’s be clear, we are a bit wild. We like to live in the countryside and we are not afraid to take a shower outside or pee on a portable toilet with lake view!

How to get ready for the first weekend in van

As I said, we both come from camping, so we were prepared to the worst when we went for our first van weekend! But despite it all, we had a few snags!

Anyway, here is the list of the essential equipment for a short holiday in van:

• A small fold away gas stove for cooking (we have the kitchen on the van, but what if the gas runs out?).
  In our case, that we still didn’t have the gas bottle for the kitchen, the extra stove was essential, but remember a small can of gas to spare for this too! Ours sold out just as soon as we finished cooking dinner!!!

• camping pots and dishes: avoid any dish, glass, or tableware too bulky, heavy or delicate!
  We use the Quechua multi-pot set we already had and some IKEA children’s tableware.
  Yes, IKEA also for camping!

• a multi-purpose knife: Essential for any case. For cutting, chopping, uncorking wine, and much more. We chose e swiss model, obviously, but there are so many different kind on the market.

• a water canister: when travelling with a van, it is essential. Especially if you don’t have the opportunity to constantly supply water. In case of emergency, 20 litres of extra water can literally save your life!

• tools for storage: Especially in a small van like ours, organising your space in the most efficient way is crucial. For example, I chose IKEA containers to keep the kitchen cabinet organised and to keep the food apart from the cleaning products, the pots and everything else.
  They are perfect even when traveling, because everything stands in place without any risk of breaking itself or bothering the driving with unpleasant noises!

• Power extender: essential for recharging internal batteries if you plan to stay for more than two days without putting the van back into motion. Remember to pick one of the cables up with the industrial plug if you don’t want to carry useless weight with you. We have a very simple extension one like this in the picture..

• Outdoor shower:  As I said, we are a bit wild and our intention is stay overnights away from campsites. It means, we need to adapt to take a shower, too. That’s why we bought an outdoor shower. My tip is to opt for one of these black bags (the water will heat up faster under the sun) as it won’t take up space when it’s empty!

• Extra Lights (better if USB):
  1. 99% of vans don’t really have an outside light, which is essential as soon as you stop.
  2. extra internal lights build up the atmosphere even inside
  3. if the internal battery is running low and you can’t put the vehicle back in motion, well at least you won’t be left in the dark! That’s why better if the lights are with batteries or USB (if you have a series of power banks ready to use, like us)

• Travel vacuum cleaner: it definitely save our life!
  With 3 dogs, their hairs during the trip (and not only) literally go everywhere. The travel vacuum cleaner is the best solution! Even better if, as in our case, it has a long cable and a bag to store it away.

• A little brush: I would have never thought about it, but my sister (with a dog and traveling with a camper) gave me the idea. It’s very useful to take the soil off the shoes, the dogs’ paws and any other object. And..it takes up very little space!!

Hey, but something’s still missing!

And I’ll give you another couple of tips, maybe less important for some, but essential for others!

Music, and music and music again..
Bring an outdoor speaker for the music, because the radio takes battery to the engine and the important thing is always not to run it out! But we can’t live without music, so we use the speaker everyday!!

External equipment: a table and two chairs at least. Why didn’t I mention it before? Just because they are already included as standard in the VW California Ocean! But, we will always have an outdoor carpet to not carry the soil around and a beautiful hammock to relax!

Any other advice? Give me time to plan my next trips and we’re sure to get more posts and useful tips!
In the meantime, leave me your comments and advice below!

For the born traveller, travelling is a besetting vice. Like other vices, it is imperious, demanding its victim’s time, money, energy and the sacrifice of comfort.    – cit.  Aldous Leonard Huxley  (& me)