“I FEEL MY ENTIRE SOUL IS CHANGING.”

Erica Commisso pulls up to the side of the road of #VanLife and explores Canada’s great new open-aired travelling trend

“Live, travel, adventure, bless and don’t be sorry,” said American writer Jack Kerouac, often regarded as a pioneer of a nomadic life and one Instagram search proves that there’s a growing, worldwide community that took his words to heart.

“Van life saved me. This lifestyle has changed the way I think and feel as a person,” says one of the converts, who goes by Dingles on social media, documenting her travels as @a_dingles_story on Instagram. “Suffering from ADHD and a mood disorder, I found day-to-day life a struggle. I just didn’t feel like I belonged. I felt like something was missing from my life, and I didn’t know what it was, but I knew I wanted to travel and see the world and get away from the tiny island I had grown up on.”

The solution, she decided early on, was #vanlife, as it’s affectionately known. Van life is a concept that turns consumerism on its head, forgoing a life of materialism in favour of living in an outfitted camper van with the bare necessities and whatever can be safely used while respecting the earth, and it’s turned into a growing trend.

Canadian influencers like Eamon & Bec, Matt and Em (who go by @claysanabus on Instagram) and Julien and Karolina (@GoVanLife on YouTube) showcase that the lifestyle is adoptable in Canada, as they all set up camp from coast to coast, absorbing all the nature from the Nova Scotian changing leaves in Cape Breton to the snow-capped mountains in Whistler, British Columbia.

As for Dingles, her tiny home island is the 22.5mile-long Isle of Wight, off of the southern shores of England. Growing up, those 22.5 miles were treated like thousands, and a half hour drive was deemed a long way away, one that should be avoided at all costs. The comforts of home were never too far away, which was perfectly fine for a young Dingles, who was resistant to change and needed a structured lifestyle in order to be at peace.

Each influencer is part of a growing movement that sees people—singles, families, couples, friends—give up a physical address in favour of the asphalt arteries that span countries and traverse the globe. The community has grown so quickly that there are even summits, both in-person and online, connecting international nomads and preaching the bible of a transient lifestyle. Ford even came out with a way to monetize the trend, unveiling a 2023 Transit Trail van with a price tag that beginning at $65,975 USD.

The Transit was long-loved as a commercial vehicle, but in November 2022 it got a travel-friendly makeover that included beefier tires and trail-ready features like a hardcore face and splash guards. Essentially, Ford realized they could tap into a whole new customer, appealing to the 26% of Millennials who expressed interest in making a purchase in the camper van space. In fact, the Class B van segment shot up 30% in 2022, and the Transit Trail seems a direct response to the interest— a turnkey version of the Transit that lets people customize the inside to maximize the #vanlife experience.

Van life, Dingles says, was her escape from it all. She started her photography business, called Photolife Photography, at a young age and saved a significant portion of her income to be able to travel for eight to nine months of the year, returning for wedding photography. (She takes pictures and her partner, Thorin, is a wedding videographer.) The minimalist lifestyle, reconnecting with nature and near-constant change (at her own pace) all appealed to her and have become her new safe space.

“We don’t need a flashy car, expensive clothes, the best hotel or villa. We just need our little home on wheels, our camera, the open road and each other,” she says. “Isn’t that what life is about? Making memories and finding happiness in the birds singing in the trees or finding a hidden waterfall or just cuddling under the stars and being present in the moment.”

It’s the very life that called to Charlotte Yeatman and her partner, Nico. Escaping the shackles of their 9-to-5 life, they converted a van into a fully liveable space, named it Maui and set their sights on the open road.

“We wanted more out of life, hence Maui! We both love to travel, but it’s expensive. We tried to find a way that enabled us to work and travel while having everything we need with us,” Yeatman says. “The answer was a camper van! We take our office with us everywhere we go.”

Before Maui, Charlotte and Nico both lived in London, England, working as the head of marketing for a British sports brand and a graphic designer, respectively. Days were mundane, beginning with a pre-work cup of coffee after rising at 6:30 a.m. Both spent their days toiling in the office until at least 7:00 p.m., saving just enough energy to head home, eat a quick dinner and hit the sack. After a while, that setup got boring.

With van life, the duo is fully remote, with Nico owning a graphic design business and Charlotte running a YouTube yoga channel called Hello Spirit and they document their travels on their Instagram, @mauiandus. Their new life, they say, is much more zen, though it still begins with a 7:00 a.m. coffee. The cup of joe is followed by time spent tidying Maui, working, a lunch break, and an evening stroll exploring whatever surroundings they find themselves in, all bookended by a movie or time spent under the stars and their twinkling lights.

The nights spent surrounded by trees and oceans and connecting with nature and scenic views in far away countries sounds idyllic, but does not come without its adjustments. “It’s exciting, but it takes a lot of energy,” Yeatman says. “You need to make sure that it’s OK to stay overnight, that there’s food, gas and water, so we try and stay somewhere for a week at a time and get into a routine. Not having a routine has been the biggest adjustment.”

Both Dingles and Yeatman say that the difficulties—which also include finding a way to have packages sent to them without a physical address—are worth the reward. “You get to see the world in a different way from the norm and it allows you to explore places you wouldn’t usually visit. Travelling definitely opens your mind to more things that you may not have thought of before,” Yeatman says. “Being in a van, whether you are on your own or with a partner, makes you think in a more unconventional way. You don’t need a lot of ‘stuff’ like we are conditioned through media and TV. I wear less than half of the stuff I have packed in the van.”

Dingles credits #vanlife for her perspective shift, too. “My mental health and attitude towards life is getting so much better, and I feel my entire soul is changing,” she says. “I have grown so much and I have this way of life to thank. I live true happiness and I continue to work on myself daily and having the freedom and simple things in life is really all that is.”