Living in a motorhome

30 March 2023

The housing market has gone crazy, prices are skyrocketing and holiday homes or tiny houses also have their drawbacks and challenges. So more and more people are opting for the open sea: they are going to live in their motorhomes. Just like a house, but on wheels. And that's how it went for me too. From a luxury flat with a spacious roof terrace on the river Maas in the heart of Rotterdam to a cute city farm with a spacious garden in the countryside. I tried it all, but it never really felt like home to me. Until I made the decision to leave everything behind and start living and travelling in my motorhome.

Introduction

My name is Claire (35) and I live in my Adria campervan. As an independent entrepreneur in online marketing, I can work from anywhere in the world. As long as the sun is shining (good for my spirits as well as electricity) and I have a hefty pile of local gigabytes of internet, you won't hear me complain.

For the past few months, I have been living, working and holidaying a bit in Spain with my motorhome. And in this series I take you on an adventure. Here you can read all about travelling, living and working in your motorhome. Would you like to follow all my adventures? Check out my Instagram on @typicalcamper.

Checklist: will vanlife suit you?

There are so many types of motorhomes, and an even amount of considerations when making the choice to live in a motorhome or not. For example, for a family with school-age children, it is a very different consideration than for a single man or woman. And with a steady job in construction, it also becomes difficult. Do you think your situation is suitable for motorhome living? And are you already secretly scouring the internet for the best interior design tips for your motorhome? Then the questionnaire below can help you. Can you answer YES to more than half of these questions? Then perhaps full-time vanlife is for you!

You want to see the world
You are prepared to live in a small(er) space
You like driving and travelling
You like to seek out the sun in the winter months, for example, or the mountains
You can combine motorhome life with work
You are willing to change your work for it or learn something new
You can manage long(er) periods without family and friends from home
You enjoy meeting new people all the time
You dare to give up renting your home, sell your house or rent it out
You can get along well in English (and the local) language
You are handy and/or know that something can always break down
You may be willing to get your C1 driving licence
You like living in a different place all the time

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Where does your mail go when you are in your motorhome?

If you are going to live in a motorhome, you do not have a fixed residential address. You need a postal address / mailing address, an address where your mail arrives. Having your mail forwarded is not an option if you are travelling around. I arranged this with my parents, for example. They open my mail and forward it to me digitally. That way, I don't miss anything. The idea behind it is that you are always accessible to the government, insurers, and more agencies. Because, even though it is 2023, many such bodies still do not use a digital variant of letter mail. Rules differ per country, so please check this out before just vanishing from the face of the earth. You might just be violating domestic laws.

Next time, I'll tell you more about furnishing your motorhome. Whether you have a factory motorhome or a home-made one. You can always use some smart tips!