It's been just 12 months since our decision to buy turned our entire lives upside down.
That much is certain, we have never regretted it. Quite the opposite! In March 2021 the time had come, after extensive research we decided on our new home on four wheels: We had to get an INNOVAN! Perfect for our needs, dynamic and agile just like us. You can read more about what made us choose the INNOVAN in this blog article (link)
But first, let's take a step back: Why Vanlife?
Many friends have asked us that. We have always been long-distance travelers and mostly traveled by plane, except for this one time in New Zealand, where we spent 3 weeks exploring this diverse country in a van.
"From then on, we were hooked. Infected, so to speak, by this feeling of freedom and endless flexibility."
Du to our long-distance travels, we hadn't really seen much of Europe yet and therefore there were still many great places left on our bucket list to discover, so road tripping ahoy!
VANLIFE HERE WE COME!
Reason enough for us to hit the ground running. Half measures are out of the question for us! We decided on the Innovan, gave notice on our flat, quit our jobs and then the time had finally come. We camping newbies with 3 weeks of experience under our belts ventured straight into full-time van life. Brave, isn't it?
Our first stop was somewhere in central Germany, to get from Austria to the Netherlands. The first time emptying the toilet, draining grey water or turning on the gas cooker. I remember it like it was yesterday. Of course, we had to test everything first and the other campers must have enjoyed watching us beginners doing it.
Of course, we also had several unnecessary purchases that didn't make it into the van. Classic, right? For example, a great travel washing machine, yes, that's right, a travel washing machine. Because there are no launderettes or washing machines on campsites and we have endless storage space. Well, if you need a travel washing machine, feel free to send me a direct message.
OUR FIRST WOW-MOMENT
Then we experienced our first WOW moment, at this first campsite somewhere in central Germany. The first red-tinted sunset, the sun's rays reflected in the small lake from which we had set up camp just a few metres away. We sat on our camp sofa with a glass of wine in our hands and just thought that we had done everything right. Spoiler alert: there were many more moments like that to come. In any case, this evening will always remain in our memories.
So from Germany, we went to the Netherlands for a soft opening, then briefly back to Austria and then from Italy, we went to France for 8 weeks, Spain, several weeks in Portugal and then back again to try winter camping in Austria for the first time.
At the moment we're escaping the winter in southern Italy and it's working out quite well. Looking back, it was a really moving and exciting year for us.
So many fantastic impressions, encounters, experiences and on top of that our independence, more is almost impossible! Truly a rollercoaster ride, I think that describes it best.
THE IDEAL COMPANION
With the Innovan we have found a wonderful companion that takes us to the most beautiful places without any problems and at the same time these 10 square metres mean security and home for us in a foreign country.
With all its features it was the best decision for our European adventure. At 6m long, it's very agile when it comes to finding a parking space and its extremely low fuel consumption also worked to our advantage. We are also incredibly grateful for the skyroof, it has often helped us to enjoy rainy days inside without getting depressed.
But this decision to travel through Europe with a van has done even more to us. We have learned to use resources like electricity and water much more sparingly and consciously and no longer take them for granted. This life has also taught us how little you actually need to be happy and what a liberating feeling it is to have so few material things. Such a minimalist lifestyle just feels totally right and good to us.
If you want to read more about our exciting story from the purchase to our little adventures, please scroll down to the blog overview page and follow our whole story!
For now, we're going to enjoy the sun in southern Italy for a few more weeks and then we'll decide what to do next. But one thing is already certain for us: a conventional lifestyle is no longer an option for us.
Cheers
Fabian & Alexandra
*In cooperation with LMC Caravan - my opinion remains unaffected by that.