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Not Luxe ☼ Travel
  • ABOUT NICK & RAYCHEL
  • WHY “NOT LUXE”
  • Cambodia
  • Australia
  • Travel
  • Teaching ESL
  • Move Abroad
  • Travel Insurance

ambulance conversion

    a van life van sitting by a view

    Van Life Essentials List | What We Can’t Live Without

    by Nick & Raychel November 3, 2021

    This year, we packed up our stuff and moved into a retired ambulance to live the van life full-time. Ditching the mortgage and moving into a van seems to be becoming more and more common as time goes on, and we’re so happy we chose this lifestyle. Below, we’re sharing our list of van life essentials: some unique items & buildout ideas that have allowed us to live this lifestyle with ease and freedom.

    You could also find this essentials list on our YT channel 

    Battery Powered Clip Lights

    Although we have 3000w of solar energy, two auxiliary batteries and a 650w inverter in our van, we’re always looking at ways to save power.

    We love these battery powered clip lights because we don’t have to turn our overhead lights on first thing in the morning, or if one of us stays up later than the other to read or work. They’re great because you can clip them almost anywhere in the van – so trust us when we say, they are totally worth the tiny investment. 

    Wall Grid + Attachments

    Originally we worked this wall panel into our build using it for purely aesthetic purposes, meanwhile we had the feeling that it would probably come in handy in the future. It turns out that we were right, and that’s why it made our van life essentials list.

    Now, it has become a pleasing way to store our go-to items, like baby wipes, chargers, my journal, CBD oil, whatever! When you live in a tiny home on wheels, every little inch of storage is useful.

    Hooks + Umbrella Stand

    Living in a van through Canadian winters means layering up. Specifically, living in a van through a Vancouver winter means layering up and keeping dry. It was a last minute decision for us to add hooks to our build, and we even incorporated an umbrella stand. Coat racks or options are seldom talked about, so we’re happy that the light bulb went off before we drove away from the shop – the hooks have been such a godsend that we’re considering adding more.

    Shoe Rack

    Ditto to basically everything I mentioned just above here. Seldom talked about, hella useful. We adore our little plywood shoe rack and can’t imagine living without it – I guess that would complete the definition of a perfect “van life essentials” item.

    Toilet + Emergency Pee Bottle

    You heard that right. We could not make a Van Life Essentials list without including our beloved Dometic portapotty + emergency road trip urinal. There are so one too many van builds where there are absolutely no bathroom options and we cannot imagine a life without our backup options – especially this year, a time when many public bathrooms are closed. 

    We considered a composting toilet given our budget, decided to settle for our portapotty, which has done the trick. In addition to that, we also bought a bottle for when we’re (Nick) is in an emergency pinch.

    A Carpet

    This carpet was, strangely enough, one of our first purchases when building our DIY tiny home on wheels. While cruising Amazon, we bought it without measuring the dimensions and it ended up fitting perfectly when we finished our build. Talk about serendipitous! 

    Aside from it’s beauty, the main reason we love this carpet is because it keeps our feet warm in the mornings and it makes the whole van really feel like home.

    Plastic Mason Jars

    If you’ve seen a lot of van builds, you’ve probably seen hanging mason jars in some vandwellers’ tiny kitchens. We had the perfect amount of space to add some at the end of our build, and we’re so happy we did! It’s as simple as emptying the contents of our bulk foods/coffee/cereal into them and ditching the packaging. They are such a space saver!

    Our favourite part about these ones is that they’re plastic! So if something were to ever go wrong, we know they aren’t going to smash and break our induction stove sitting right underneath them.

    Baby Wipes

    Most full time vanlifers mention them because most vanlifers love them. Sometimes you can’t find a shower, ‘nuff said.

    French Press

    Having a good cup of coffee is definitely a van life essential for us, or, you know, just an essential in general. Coffee is a MUST and using a french press in the van is just so easy.

    Counter Space

    Because of the structure of our retired ambulance, we have a big ol’ electrical box that pokes into the drivers side of our van. This forced us to build an L-shaped countertop, which I’m not sure we would have done otherwise. It turns out this fluke ended up being the best thing to happen to us, because we have so much counter space!

    The thing is, we are even finding ways to build more. So if you’re like us and you love to cook, consider your counter space + double it in your build. That’s just our advice.

    Propane Heater 

    Remember when we told you that we live in Canada? Yeah. The winters get very cold. That’s why our Little Buddy heater made this list. These propane heaters work well and have an automatic safety shut off for safe use. So in addition to our wool blankets, slippers and big comfy sweaters, this heater is definitely a beloved item.

    Plastic Wine Glasses

    Ok, maybe drinking wine isn’t essential – but we’re going to do it anyway, and we didn’t want any glass breaking all over our tiny little off-roadin’ space. Basically, we love anything unbreakable, but these take the cake.

    ___

    What about you? What are your non-negotiable van life items? Let us know in the comments!

    We talked about the items in the van – let’s talk about items in our lives! Find this article here on things we find worth buying as minimalist nomads. 


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Nick & Raychel
Nick & Raychel

In 2018, we sold everything we owned and moved to Cambodia to teach English.

Let’s make this clear: this journey didn’t start with money. This journey started with a desire to see the world and to do something different for a change.

We’re not going to fool you with photos of floating breakfasts and private jets. We know what it’s like to be on a budget. Although we like to take pretty pictures, we aren’t going to wake up at an ungodly hour to give you unachievable travel jealousy. We aren’t going to censor ourselves or lie to you.

What we are going to do is stay in cheap hostels, find ways to make money, give the advice that we would want to hear, and share our experiences with you honestly.

Are you in?

Not Luxe

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ABOUT NICK & RAYCHEL

About Us Hi! We’re Nick & Raychel, the Canadian travel couple behind the brand ‘Not Luxe’. Far before we were married (and on a mission to see the world), we were working…

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Instagram

  • We’ve lived nomadically as full-time travellers for 5 years. This is how we save money & afford to travel.

•Travel slowly - spending 6+ months in many of our travel destinations 
•We don’t have a stationary home - we travel in our self-converted ambulance
•We fly on a budget (budget airfare guide in our story highlights)
•Offering our services as house/petsitters (also in our story highlights) 

Any questions? ⬇️ 

—

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 

Tags: #notluxe  #camperlife #camperlifestyle #vanlifeproject #vanlifeculture #tinyhome #tinyliving #vanlifediaries #travelgram #livetoexplore #traveltips #budgettravel #cheaptravel #budgettraveltips #gapyear #travelblogger
  • What it’s like stealth parking in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
(Spoiler: it’s like stealth parking just like anywhere else.)

Nick and I spent our first 1.5 years of van life stealth parking in British Columbia. We got really used to finding parking spots where we wouldn’t be disturbed & given that we used to live in the city, we’re used to the sound of cars, sirens, and people passing by.

To us, stealth camping is just a part of van life & we absolutely love staying in an otherwise expensive area (like Cabo) for free.

Any questions about van life in Mexico? 

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 

Tags: #notluxe #vanlifecouple #vanlifecouples#tinyhome #vanlifers #vanlifevirals #vanlifemovement #vanbuildout #vandwelling #vanlifediaries  #vanlifemovement #homeiswhereyouparkit #vanlifemexico #vanliving #travelcouple #budgettravel
  • TWO MONTHS IN MEXICO >>> 

The other day we celebrated our two month anniversary in Baja and we honestly feel like it’s just beginning.

Nick and I have always been advocates for travelling slow, taking it in, and calling (almost) every place we travel home. I can say that after two months, we’re starting to get the hang of things.

Now that we’re planning our travels for the rest of the year, we have decided that we have more of Mexico to see (hello Mainland? 👀) before we gear up for our next international adventure.

What are your travel plans this year? And where would you like to see us go? ⬇️

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 

—

Tags: #notluxe  #camperlife #camperlifestyle #vanlifeproject #vanlifeculture #tinyhome #tinyliving #vanlifediaries #travelgram #livetoexplore #vanlifeculture #budgettravel #vanlifemexico #travelcouple
  • Remember how in the last video our 3 day total was $0? Well, it’s looking a little different this time as this was a very expensive day while travelling in our van in Baja California Sur.

Would this be more or less than you’d expect for a pricey van life day?

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 

—

Tags: #notluxe  #camperlife #camperlifestyle #vanlifeproject #vanlifeculture #tinyhome #tinyliving #vanlifediaries #travelgram #livetoexplore #vanlifeculture #travelblogger #vanlifestyle #travelcosts #vanlifetravel #vanlifemexico #vanlifebaja
  • What we ate in a day as a couple living in an ambulance in Mexico. 

Some days we cook all of our meals in the van, but on days where we’re in a bigger city (or an even bigger one like Cabo San Lucas), we like to switch it up. 

What looks the best to you? 🌱 

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 
__

Tags: #notluxe #vanlifecouple #vanlifecouples#tinyhome #vanlifers #vanlifevirals #vegantravel #plantbasedrecipes #plantbasedvlog #veganeats #mexicotravel #veganvanlife
  • This is what an evening is like sleeping for free on a beach in Mexico.

Evenings usually consist of a few things:
✨ Finding a place to park using iOverlander
✨ Cleaning up our van to make it as cozy as possible
✨ Stretching our legs one last time before heading to bed
✨ Drinking wine & watching Survivor 

Evenings in a van aren’t that different than evenings in our old apartment, just a few adjustments help us feel right at home.

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 

__

Tags: #notluxe  #camperlife #camperlifestyle #vanlifeproject #vanlifeculture #tinyhome #tinyliving #vanlifediaries  #livetoexplore #vanlifeculture #budgettravel #vanliving #livingoutdoors #campinglife  #vandwelling #vanlifemexico #vanlifebaja #eveningroutine
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