Looking to rent a van from Outdoorsy but want to have the best experience? Learn from my ten beginner van life mistakes!
This van experience was hosted by Outdoorsy. As always, all my opinions are my own. Thank you to Outdoorsy for giving me this unique experience! If you'd like to rent a van of your own, check out using code TORY10 for a discount!
In July, I had book events on back to back weekends on the eastern side of the state and it didn’t make sense for me to drive home or get a hotel for that length of time.
Enter my van rental from Outdoorsy.
I spent five days and four nights living and working from a Noovo Plus van that was generously provided by Outdoorsy so that I could better enjoy the outdoors and not have to pay for a hotel for almost a week.
I had never solo camped before. I had never even spent that much time solo before – most of my solo trips are just a three or four day weekend.
I loved it.
I have romanticized van life since 2019 and this was my second experiment at van life (my first was driving the Ring Road in Iceland with my husband in 2021). I was a little nervous to try it solo but I had the BEST time.
Despite how great a time I had, I learned a LOT about what I would do differently next time for van life.
If you’re thinking about your first experience in a van rental, here are ten mistakes I made and how to fix them!
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Driving a Van is Harder than Driving a Car
I knew this but I didn’t think how it would manifest. When building my itinerary, I had three hours of driving on the first day. Not a problem for me (drove around the entire state last year to write my book) so three hours feels like an hour. In the van, it felt like five.
Driving the van was very physical. I felt like I was driving with my whole body because the van is very sensitive to wind (holding to steering wheel tighter) and was breaking and accelerating with more than just my foot. By the time I got to my campsite, I was exhausted (and my watch told me I was stressed out the whole time). By day five, I was more comfortable driving the van, but it was still very physical
Where you might pick up time in a car, leave extra time to get places in the van. I was late to at least one meeting because I hit some traffic and spent too much time cleaning up my van to get it ready to hit the road (see tip number eight). Which leads me to…
Interested in checking out the van that I rented? Click on the above video for a van tour or check out the listing on Outdoorsy!
Don’t Move around Every Night
I made the mistake of picking a different campsite for every single night of the trip. I was in a van and had the power to go around anywhere!! Why wouldn’t I take advantage of that?
Do NOT do that.
I spent way too much time driving and had a lot less time than I thought than for fun. I would say minimum at two nights at a campsite and if you’re working from the van (like I was) maybe even three. The constant driving was really exhausting and tiring on my body (see #1).
I also barely got to explore at all in each place. The whole point of my van trip was to explore new places and in five days, I only was able to fit in a hike twice. I will definitely not be making this mistake again!
Looking for the best campsites in Pennsylvania? Check out my guide to the best places to camp in Pennsylvania, including some of the places I stayed during this trip!!
Don’t Fly by the Seat of Your Pants
Have a solid plan for your van trip. I was kind of flying by the sea of my pants a little bit. I did things like: changed my campsite last minute the night before I was supposed to check in, meaning I lost money on a reservation.
I also didn’t put everything in one itinerary document. That meant that every time I rolled up to a campsite, I had to figure out what time check-in and check out was and where my site was located. Having all of my reservation information in one place (that was accessible without cell service!) would have save me a lot of time and energy.
Plan Ahead when Looking at Campsite Check In and Check Out Times
Related to the above, make sure you especially note your campsite check-in and check out times when planning your trip. Especially if you’re working remote, try to have as little gap between your check out and check in times.
Luckily for me, state park campgrounds are both check-in and check-out at 3pm, which makes it really convenient for switching campsites.
Unfortunately, private campgrounds are not that convenient. One of the days, I had to be out of my first campsite at noon and couldn’t check into my next site until 3p. I ended up working from a Sheetz parking lot because I had to take a meeting (which was great for grabbing lunch, but bad for a scenic place to work). One time, I had to find a random parking lot to pull over and take a call from because my campsite wasn’t ready.
That kind of things just adds more stress to a van trip. It would have been a lot easier if I wasn’t working because I could have planned a hike or adventure during that time. However, I still highly recommend creating an itinerary document in a Notes app or spreadsheet with all of your campgrounds and the rules on check-in and check-out time.
Do Everything You Can to Prep for the Trip Before the Trip
Like I mentioned, I was kind of flying by the seat of my pants on this trip and did not really plan ahead. I had planned to stop and get some groceries before picking up the van but I was running late. Then I was going to get them right after I picked up the van, but was too nervous to try to park so just kept on going to my campsite.
On day 2, when I had some more confidence driving the van, I finally got some groceries. Navigating a busy grocery store parking lot with a 21 foot van was a little bit scary (and it would have been worse with a bigger vehicle!) So I wish I had gotten groceries before the trip
I also wished that I premade some food. I spent a decent amount of time every day figuring out what to eat and then making it. I wish that I had premade some meals for myself at home so that I could have spent more time enjoying the van and the scenery and less time cooking!
Pack Less than You Need
This is something I really should be good at since I am a carry-on queen when flying. But road trips? Forget it. I pack my entire car for three days.
Even though I knew I would have less space in the van, I still brought WAY too much. I should have packed half the amount of clothes, especially because I kept rewearing things.
Packing less reduces van clutter and therefore annoyance when you can’t find things. There were so many times when I was digging through things to find something and was just very annoyed at myself. Trust me – pack less!! You will thank yourself.
Love a good road trip? Check out my guide for the top ten mistakes to avoid when planning your cross-country road trip!
Dress for the Outside Temperature and Being Active
You are very outside when doing van life. Somehow, for my July trip, I packed more pants than shorts and realized quickly what a mistake that was. I ended up wearing one pair of shorts the entire trip (and had to wash them in the shower on Day 3 to keep them clean!) If I did this in winter, I would be packing way more warmer layers.
Van life is also very active. I was always moving around to do van chores like unroll and reroll the bug nets, carrying the extension cords, lifting or moving things around, etc. Because it was warm in July and I was constantly moving around doing chores, I only existed in my workout shorts and tank tops. I had packed nice clothes for the trip (not sure why) but didn’t wear any of them for obvious reasons.
Quick Tips on What to Pack for Your First Van Life Adventure (in Summer)
- Comfy shorts - I lived in these REI shorts
- Tank tops - I lived in two of these Calia support tanks
- Comfy t-shirts in a material that doesn't smell, like merino wool
- Rain jacket - I love this one from Stio
- Sturdy shoes
- sweatshirt
- Joggers
- Comfy pajamas you wouldn't mind being seen walking around a camppground in
- Easy to put on outside shoes, like Birkenstocks or Tevas, for hopping in and out of the van
- Shower shoes for the campground - mine are also Birkenstocks
- Quick drying towel
- Toiletry kit
- Pack everything in a smaller backpack or duffle since vans don't have a lot of room for luggage storage
Be intentional about where things go and then put them there all the time
This is just good life advice, but is especially important in the van. While it seems like there is not a lot of space in a van, it was actually really easy for me to misplace my smaller items. As I got used to the van’s layout and storage areas, I kept trying to “optimize” by putting things in new places.
This does not work. You won’t find anything. Pick one place for your things and keep putting them in the exact same place. Even if you think there is a “better” place to put them, don’t do it. I actually thought I lost my microphones during this trip and turns out, I just squirrelled them away in a cupboard I didn’t open for three days.
I also recommend putting more things away regularly than when you are at home. Because I was driving around a lot, I had to do this. However, even if you aren’t, the van can feel very cluttered very quickly because it’s such a small space. Taking one minute after every task to put things away will help improve your van experience a ton.
Build in Time Blocks for Van Chores
Unlike at home, almost all of the van chores have to be done every day, especially when you’re driving around more. Even if I was just driving to a trailhead for a hike first thing in the morning, I had to secure everything. At home, if I have coffee before a hike, I usually leave my cup out so that I can have coffee when I get home. In the van, I’d have to secure all the coffee supplies before I hit the road so that it didn’t clank around in the back while I drove. This added a little more time to my morning routine that I didn’t account for.
I also didn’t want to cook in the van at all because I was so burned out from doing all the other van life things – securing my stuff, driving from campsite to campsite, and just the mental labor of traveling solo and being the one to make all the trip decisions. So any of my groceries that required cooking, I didn’t eat and I mostly just snacked on easy food.
Secure All Your Belongings, Including Closing Drawers and Cupboards
This one is self-explanatory! My van came with locking drawers and cabinets. When I pressed the knobs on the drawer, the drawer or cabinet door would stay shut. When I pressed it again, it would pop out to become a handle and open. The first time I drove after being camped, I totally forgot to reclose them. I realized VERY quickly that this was a mistake when everything started clanging around during my first turn.
Make sure your other items are not lose as well. I left my laptop on the dinette seat, forgot about it, and only realized when it was on the floor after a drive. Oopsies. This is something you never have to think about at home and I really had to be intentional about it in the van.
Make Friends with Other Campers
Because I was traveling solo as a woman, I tried to stick to myself and not engage with other people. I don’t ever want the wrong people to flag that I am traveling solo and draw too much negative attention to myself. However, everyone I chatted with at each campground was very friendly.
I do think it would have been nice to just alert someone who seemed safe that I was solo to have another pair of eyes looking out for me. My advice for solo female travelers is to look for families, couples, or other solo women nearby that you can have a nod or chat with.
I also feel like I missed out on the community aspect of campgrounds by keeping to myself too much. Especially at private campgrounds, a lot of people come back to the same place every year so it does really feel like a neighborhood. You’re also so close together that you have to be friendly with each other or the experience can be ruined. I will definitely be more involved in campground community on my next trip!!
Looking to plan your own van adventure and not sure where to start? Leave your comment below or send me a DM on social media @torytalkstrails and I’ll get back to you!