The REAL reason everyone is quitting #vanlife
You’re probably here because you’re seeing fewer vans on the road, and wondering - “where is everyone?”, or maybe you keep seeing vans going up for sale and everyone seemingly giving up on the lifestyle.
While there are many different opinions on this topic, and there’s an equal number of reasons for why different people might quit vanlife - here’s my take on the biggest reasons why it might seem like vanlife is losing steam!
Before we get into the reasons WHY people may be quitting vanlife, I think it’s important to first look at who the people who do vanlife are, simply because it is far from a homogenous group.
The long-timers. These folks have been experimenting with alternative lifestyles and nomadic life from long before the pandemic. They’ve been living in their truck campers, overlanders, and vans even in 2019.
The COVID crew. These folks took the opportunity that COVID provided - lost jobs, closed international borders, and more importantly, remote work and took up van conversions and hit the road to gain freedom and explore the country.
The COVID bandwagon. These folks saw “how awesome” vanlife can be from YouTube videos, blogs, and Instagram posts in 2020 and 2021, and decided to jump on the bandwagon and build or buy a van of their own! Though the vanlife hype was starting to level off in 2022, these folks jumped in with an influx of excitement!
I’m sure these 3 categories are highly generalized and can be further broken down - but at a high level, #vanlife breaks into pre-COVID, COVID, and post-COVID (if that’s a thing).
So let’s see why it may seem like #vanlife is dead.
1) For many, it was an experiment.
Vanlife has been around for decades! Remember those VW vans? Yup! Those were also vanlifers! But the vanlife became incredible visible and popular thanks to the COVID conversions. For many, it was an experimental lifestyle, and folks who traveled around, especially full time, for a year, or two, are now returning to their routines and planting roots again.
2) Remote work is harder to come by
While there are actually MORE remote jobs in 2023 than there were in 2020 - many folks who hit the road in 2020, were forced to return to the office. In many cases, for couple vanlifers, one person is remote, the other one has a job that cannot be done remotely. During COVID, for many folks, one person would continue working on the road, while the other person might have been laid off, taking a break from work, etc - but they were not forced to go back to work, whether it’s simply because their company no longer offers remote work, or because they got a job again that they couldn’t have during the pandemic.
3) Communities have cracked down on vanlife
2020 and 2021, unprecedented numbers of vandwellers flooded parks, cities, national forests, etc. Given the lack of amenities, as well as lack of knowledge about proper vanlife ethics - sadly, many people trashed the places they stayed in - leaving trash, feces, and making neighborhoods loud and annoying the locals. Since then, many communities passed ordinances banning overnight parking, camping, sleeping in vehicles - and many federal and state properties restricted or limited camping opportunities. Even BLM land, notoriously known as “free for all camping” - in many cases now restricts camping in certain areas.
As someone who has been doing part time vanlife for 3 years - I can say that it’s incredibly more challenging and stressful to find a spot to sleep than it was 3 years ago.
4) Gas, food, and maintenance are expensive
Rent and mortgages are expensive. But so are car loans, gas, repairs, maintenance, and having to pay premium for groceries in many cases. With inflation at all-time highs - the high price of travel has discouraged many from spending months on the road. In 2021, we could fill up our van for $55. I just filled up at a gas station in California - total cost $135. In addition, many folks who bought ALREADY used vans in 2020, are now faced with expensive repairs.
5) Burnout.
This one varies person to person - for example, I (Anton) have no issues being in the van part time, exploring the country for months at a time. Others, however, struggle to adjust to living in small places, struggle without a routine, without knowing where you’re sleeping every night. And that’s PART TIME van life. You can imagine - for many folks who have been experimenting with this alternative lifestyle for 2-3 years, they’ve “been there, done that”. Many folks are tired of living in a tiny space, tired of moving around - they’ve seen the country not once, but twice, or more times, and are ready for a break.
6) International travel is a hit
While COVID continues to be an issue in certain places, and at certain times of the year - for the most part, the world has re-opened, and many folks have been putting off their international ambitions. Many people might still have their vans, but they are choosing to spend this year exploring internationally.
That said - I actually don’t think vanlife is dead - we’re just in a transition period.
1) Many folks who converted their vans in 2019-2021, are now realizing that they want something different - smaller, bigger, newer, etc. Having lived in their vans for 2 years, they know what works, and what doesn’t. And while I know some people straight up quitting vanlife - I also know just as many who are “taking a break”. Maybe they are settling into a new job, or thinking about a new van build.
2) Many COVID vanlifers are quitting - but that doesn’t mean there aren’t new folks entering the scene. Vans have been prohibitively expensive, and as more go up for sale and prices drop - more folks will gain interest in the lifestyle. We’re simply in a transitional period.
3) The look and feel of vanlife will change, rather than go away. I doubt there will be the same raw number of vans out there at any given point in time - it was not sustainable to begin with. It’s likely that in the future, we’re going to see more part-time vanlife folks, and fewer full time, but the numbers will always fluctuate as people come and go.
In summary
Vanlife has been around for a while - and COVID provided it a kind of revival. As the world finally exits the pandemic, we’re going to see a transitional period, but I do hope that folks continue to enjoy this lifestyle, because there’s nothing like exploring the country in your little house on wheels. Vanlife may have its challenges - but the sense of freedom, the sense of adventure is something that everyone should consider adding to a list of their life experiences.
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