Are you looking for a great vacation with freedom and comfort? Then camper vans are just right for you!
Vans, camper vans or panel vans – call them what you want, but they all are camper vans! These real homes on wheels are the latest trend in touring vacations and have definitely sent to the attic the much bulkier motorhomes, which despite looking more luxurious, have numerous issues that are not always what you’re looking for when going on vacation.
The truth is, camper vans boast road performance comparable to that of a simple minivan and allow you to go on vacation with family and friends in an agile and inexpensive way. The perfect RV vacation for you who love to travel, without sacrificing the comforts of home.
Camper Vans: What They Are All About
What makes camper vans so special compared to all other types of campers, is that they are unique. In practice, we are talking about a real van, the inside of which is equipped with ad-hoc appliances, able to meet all your needs to live a vacation on the road, without having to give up comfort.
The most characteristic camper vans are the iconic Westfalia, real little houses built inside a simple commercial van (Volkswagen, Ford, or Mercedes). If, on the other hand, you prefer something slightly larger, then you’ll find the perfect camper vans set up on Fiat Ducato vehicles, which are compact enough to ensure perfect manoeuvrability even on the roughest routes.
Either way, though, forget about having to curl up to stand inside: in vans you can stand comfortably, so you can move from the living area, to the kitchen, from the bathroom to the sleeping area. Are you surprised? You don’t have to be, in van campers, everything is there!
Until some time ago, these vehicles were rather spartan: very often they offered only two beds and even the living area was rather small and uncomfortable. Occasionally, they didn’t even have a bathroom! But this is no longer the case.
In modern camper vans, even four people can sleep comfortably: sometimes there are two hidden beds, to be pulled out only when needed, other times there are two double beds, typically bunk beds, in which you can rest comfortably without bothering each other.
The living area is equipped with every comfort. In smaller camper vans, the table seats appear thanks to a sophisticated system that allows them to be rotated until they disappear completely while driving, while in the larger ones they are fixed and allow you to eat at the table in comfort.
In this area, there is also a kitchen, small and reduced, but equipped with everything you need to prepare meals for you, your family and why not, even for any guests, that when you travel on the road, you are never missing anything. But then again, that’s the beauty of a camper van vacation!
Of course, there is no shortage of bathrooms, which of course, will not have the same tub as your home, but is usually equipped with a shower, toilet, sink and, often, hot water. For clothes and accessories, then, it is not a problem.
Just like smaller sailboats, camper vans are equipped with dozens of compartments, bays, hatches, and closets in which you can cram anything and everything.
Including surfboard and sports equipment, which you certainly won’t want to do without during your vacation. In short, the best RVs are the van ones, and the reason is quickly explained.
What are the Best Campers? Camper Vans!
Does making this statement seem far-fetched to you? Here are 8 valid reasons why you’ll be convinced that these vehicles are the best RVs for your vacation!
Perfect size – this is the first parameter that makes camper vans the best means with which to go on vacation. Small and compact, without for this reason forcing you to give up any comfort, they allow you to travel safely even on the most difficult, narrow and uncomfortable roads.
Their compactness, in fact, is well suited to tourism in the art cities, which, by their nature, often do not have large parking lots near the sites of major historical and artistic interest. In fact, their length, usually between 4 and 6 meters, allows you to park comfortably in historic city centres, thanks to the fact that their appearance allows them to be mistaken for a simple van and you to go unnoticed.
Robust interior – in terms of safety, camper vans are an unbeatable choice. These living vehicles are fitted inside the body of a van, the body of which is made of steel and has numerous vertical and horizontal reinforcements. Considering, therefore, the fact that traditional motorhomes have an aluminium or fibre cab mounted on an external platform, it is easy to see how in the event of a road accident, camper vans offer you greater protection. For you and your loved ones.
Furthermore, because of the vehicle’s greater strength, it will be more difficult for you to do serious damage to it in the event of a collision or rear-end collision. In these unfortunate cases, moreover, repairs will still be faster and cheaper.
Excellent drivability – because of its drivability, the camper van will appeal as much to you, who will appreciate the performance on the road, as it will to your wife, who will love its manoeuvrability. Driving a camper van, in fact, is like driving a large minivan, and for that reason, you don’t need any special license.
Easy to drive and park, this vehicle is ideal for going on vacation without the worries and anxiety of driving a huge motorhome. It is therefore perfect for adventure camping, relaxed and itinerant, as well as for a comfortable trip over long distances. There’s no point in going round and round: if we look at manoeuvrability and stability on the road, the best campers are those with vans!
Reduced consumption – the more automotive design and the curvature of the walls that ensure an aerodynamic profile, make the camper van the most fuel-efficient vehicle, especially when compared to expensive motorhomes or mammoth overcabs. The design and low weight of the vehicle, in fact, allow for lower fuel consumption and, at the same time, greater travel speed. You may not be in such a hurry if you are traveling for pleasure, but don’t count on it: you may want to arrive at your destination just in time to enjoy the sunset over the sea!
Besides, less gas costs automatically translate into more opportunities to go to a restaurant or buy that souvenir that would look so good in your living room, don’t you think?
Unparalleled versatility – let’s face it: a camper van goes everywhere! If it is the best vehicle for entering historical city centres, it is also the best vehicle for driving in the small villages perched in the mountains, where the narrow and impervious roads are impracticable for large motorhomes.
Camper vans, moreover, are perfect for getting to unlikely places, like that out-of-the-way beach at the end of a dirt road, or the top of a hill at the end of a winding road not marked on maps. Small and compact, in fact, they lend themselves to getting anywhere and giving you that escape from the civilized world you’ve been waiting for all winter.
Outdoor life – once you open the hatch of the camper van, it will be like being outdoors. An advantage, this, that will not only be useful for you to change the air inside the van, but also to be able to live in close contact with nature, just as you like it.
With a camper van, you can enjoy the outdoor life you love so much, without having to enter a campground and share space with others. In splendid solitude, all you have to do is pull out a table and chair or attach a hammock to the next best tree, to enjoy nature in the most inaccessible and, for this reason, most fascinating places.
And when you want to fall asleep breathing in the scent of the sea, don’t worry: you can leave the large door open and let the night in, with all its smells and magic.
No seepage – although traveling in traditional RVs is like living in a house, these vehicles often have issues with seepage into the living compartment during storms. And no, we’re not talking about when your child forgets to close the dinette window, but when joints and seals fail. In camper vans, however, this problem does not occur.
These vehicles, in fact, are real vans, they have no joints, and therefore it is less likely that, as a result of vibrations, these can come off. The seals, then, are automotive type, designed precisely to reduce this inconvenience. And you want nothing more than a vacation without any kind of issue, right?
Suitable for touring vacations – if you’re not the settled type, if you love adventure, driving for miles and miles just to find the view that excites you the most, the best RVs are the vans. Practical, agile, compact and versatile, they are the only ones that allow you to go from a small perched village to a beach, from the top of a mountain to a city of art, without any difficulties.
You can stay in the campsites or in the equipped areas when you feel like having company or sharing your experiences, or stay in the middle of nature, far from the noise of civilization for as long as you want. You will have no limits, you will know no impediments. Your vacation will be totally in your hands.
Excuse me? Did someone tell you that camper van vacations are uncomfortable? That’s a lie!
Camper Vans: Let’s Dispel Some Myths
Camper van detractors, as well as proud owners of large attic vehicles, claim that the camper van is only suitable for couples. This is obviously not true. The evolution of fittings and the most modern innovations have made it possible to equip these vans with 4 comfortable beds, the ideal number to accommodate a family that loves to live outdoors, without having to give up the comfort offered by a real house.
Furthermore, It is false that there is little space. There’s everything you need when you’re on vacation: there’s a kitchen, there’s a bathroom, plenty of space to carry all your sports equipment, including bicycles. What else do you need to relax and enjoy yourself?
Equipped with hot water, then, will allow you to meet the needs of your partner, who just does not want to know to wash her hair with ice water, as well as the expectations of your children, who gladly follow you on vacation, but do not want to give up the comforts to which they are accustomed.
And what about heating? The most sceptical claim that camper vans are not suitable for winter tourism, Even this statement is not correct. Vans are equipped with a heating system and made with insulating materials, which allow you to protect you and your crew as much from the cold of the bad season as from the heat of the summer months.
Plus, if it’s hot, you can always hang a hammock from the nearest tree! Tell the truth, you can’t wait.
Camper Van Vacation
Traveling with a camper van means, above all, traveling in freedom. Forget about schedules: you’ll stop to sleep when you’re tired, you’ll leave when you feel like it, and you’ll enjoy the privilege of being able to stop at any place that fascinates you, even that isolated beach that pops up just around the bend!
And then, do you want to wake up in the morning, get out of the van and have your coffee in the middle of nature, away from the noise of the cities, surrounded only by your fellow adventurers? In fact, these campers are also suitable for driving along rough paths, which allows you to reach inaccessible places, where you couldn’t get with any other means.
In short, if what you’re looking for is an easy vacation, but you want to avoid giving up the comforts of home, you have no choice: you have to leave with a camper van!
And if you are still undecided, the best advice is to try the van life experience with a rented camper van: Yep Campers‘ fleet certainly has the camper van of your dreams, allowing you to combine a great Sardinia vacation with testing what, who knows, will become your future travel companion!
