Vanlife During The Coronavirus Pandemic

The Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has been particularly difficult on the full-time Vanlife (and RV and vehicle-dwelling) community. The number of people living in vehicles full-time has grown into a not-insignificant population in the last decade. Some by choice, and some not. Some motivated by desire to travel, some looking for an alternative to renting, and some have just fallen on hard times.

Read our post on: Why People Choose Vanlife.

But during this Coronavirus pandemic we find ourselves in a tough situation. When your home is a 50 sq ft vehicle, it suddenly becomes a lot harder to only stay at home. Like many, our “normal” way of life has been disrupted and we find ourselves needing to adapt and restructure our daily lives.

Jake and I had our whole summer planned out. A beautiful road trip through the Pacific Northwest and up through Canada. But will those plans ever come to fruition with this pandemic? Politicians and scientists may speculate about the trajectory of COVID-19, but with limited testing in the US, I’m not sure if anyone truly has the answer.

If you need help, information, guidance during this time, please check out the resources at the end of this article.

Misconception Of Vanlifers “Home”:

Many full-time vanlifers don’t have a stationary home to go back to. So during this pandemic, what “home” are they supposed stay at if they don’t have a physical address? Choosing a “life of constant travel” puts them in a unique predicament with regards to a pandemic like Coronavirus.

The big question for us and our fellow vanlifers is, where is our “home”, where should we self-quarantine during this time?

For example, we lived in Colorado for 5 years together, but don’t/never actually owned a home there. Emily is from the midwest and Jake is from the east coast originally. But our vanlife travels have been primarily in the western US.

We worked in Sedona, AZ for two months and for that time called it “home”, but still just living out of the van full-time.

In March, we began what was supposed to be a long summer road trip. We got as far as Jake’s brothers house near San Fransisco, CA when the COVID-19 pandemic reached a tipping point.

San Fransisco and it’s surrounding counties were one of the first places in the US to issue a “shelter in place” order for 3 weeks.

What are vanlifers doing during this pandemic?

Living with family and friends:

Many of us have reached out to family and friends for a place to shelter. Which is what Jake and I are currently doing with his brother.

A circumstance that puts extra burden on their personal lives, especially in a one-bedroom home. But we’re lucky to have family willing to take us in during these abnormal times.

Their home provide us resources that we don’t have in the van like unlimited water, bathroom, internet, and storage for enough food and supplies to “shelter in place” for weeks at a time. But we still sleep in the van, so they still have their home to themselves at night.

For vanlifers who were traveling in different countries, many flew back to family and friends. Once it was clear that the “lockdowns” weren’t only going to last a couple weeks.

It’s not a good time to get stuck in another country, where you might not speak the language, have access to healthcare, or be able to work if you need money. So putting their vehicles in storage and flying back to stay with family is the best course of action for many. But, not everyone has that option.

And the looming question is/was, have we come in contact with the virus? Because nobody want to go to a friend or family member’s house to only spread the virus to them. Especially if there are people who are in the “at risk” category.

Many vanlifers only possible place to call “home” is their parents house. But older folks are the ones who are the most “at risk”. So it’s a difficult decision to make.

If you find yourself stuck, without a place to go, check out this resource that’s helping to match willing hosts with vanlifers and RVers. Or please consider helping if you or someone you know wants to offer up their driveway to help those in need.

Living off-grid:

If vanlifers don’t have family/friends to stay with, their only option is to shelter in their campervan. And in some ways, vanlifers are well-prepared for social distancing.

We are already accustomed to living off-grid and rationing out limited resources. A lot of vanlifers live for this moment because their favorite activity is to get off-grid away from people and get out in nature.

The van is simply their home, so it doesn’t change much except for how they stock up on supplies. They can try to buy more supplies at one time to limit their number of shopping trips, but with limited storage space, its hard.

Many campgrounds and parks are closing/closed because the communal facilities and employees are at risk for spreading or contracting the virus.

BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land is still available for vanlifers, although near smaller towns, they are advising you to leave BLM for the locals. Because many small towns have small hospitals, limited resources in their stores, and simply can’t handle tourists at this time.

But many parks, campgrounds, and businesses are being closed during this time. These are areas the vehicle dwellers often rely on. So it’s tough to adjust without those places as resources. But this is the reality for Vanlife during the Coronavirus Pandemic.

Urban Dwellers:

This pandemic is be especially tough on urban vanlifers (people who live primarily parked on city streets). They are probably the most used to relying on public places and businesses.

So when the gym that they used for showering closes down, they are left without a place to shower. And in heavily populated areas, it’s hard to get fresh air without running into many people.

You can’t exactly set up an outdoor shower on city sidewalks like you can when you’re at a campsite in the middle of nowhere.

So many urban vanlifers who have no work, may feel pressure to leave cities and head out to parks and campgrounds. But the increase of people in rural areas put excessive strain on nearby small towns.

How is this pandemic different for Full-time Vanlifers:

During this pandemic, the disadvantages of vanlife are profound.

Limited supply of water
Small storage space for food. Especially produce, because we have small fridges and coolers
Which makes us need to expose ourselves to the virus by visiting grocery stores more often
We may rely on public places for WiFi, like libraries, coffee shops, McDonalds, etc.
Places we usually visit for showers are closed (gyms, campgrounds, etc.)
Many of the places we get outside for recreation are shut down
More trouble with hot or cold weather, because many vanlifers don’t have a heater or air conditioner and normally beat the heat/cold by going inside public places, or to work, or outside the van

Advice to Vanlifers During The Coronavirus Pandemic

Avoid small destination towns where supplies is limited/and hospital capacity is low
Try to stock up on supplies in larger cities and towns where there are more resources
Self-quarantine/stay put for as long as you can
Avoid contact with others
Wash hands extra/sanitize hands whenever in contact with something unfamiliar
Disinfect commonly touched areas (steering wheel, handles, gear shifter)
Avoid driving to keep gas stations visits down
Stay “in network” range for your health insurance coverage

Avoid popular destination areas, if you need to get out for fresh air, go away from all people if possible
Make changes to extend the amount of time you can survive without re-supplying

Look into remote jobs you can do right from your van or anywhere in the world!

12 Remote Jobs You Can Do From Anywhere In The World

Moving Forward:

I don’t think anyone can say that their life has been unaffected by the Coronavirus. We have all had to make changes to our daily lives and future plans.

But if there’s any advantage that vanlifers and RVers have, its that we are good at adapting to new situations and living with less. But like everyone, we can’t wait for things to get back to “normal” so we can get back to enjoying life as we had planned.

I can honestly say it is weird to go from traveling full-time to staying put. Worrying about where to get water, where to shower, where to dump our toilet, etc. became normal in our everyday life. But now we are happy that those are the last of our concerns during a time like this.

I believe most vanlifers are weighing their options, and deciding which place to self-quarantine is best for them.

On a positive note, most of us are saving tons of money on gas by staying put. You can now save that money for more epic travels in the future!

Take this time to self-reflect, pick up a new hobby, or get that much needed exercise you have been putting off! And don’t forget that social distancing doesn’t mean we cannot connect on the phone, video chat, or over social media.

We wish everyone good health and sanity during these trying times.