Gear up for your next big adventure, with the whole family in tow
Van life isn’t just for adults — you can bring along the whole family. Van life with kids can be a super fun (and sustainable) way to travel, experience nature, and learn about the world. You get to enjoy the adventurousness that comes with overlanding, and avoid the less-fun aspects of travel, like airports and taxicabs.
While van life with kids can be very rewarding, it does come with challenges. For example, you want to make sure your children are entertained and safe during the journey.
In this article, we’ll discuss the highlights of van life with kids, as well as share advice for the more challenging moments. These are the pro tips we’ve picked up over the years to make your journey more fun and less hassle.
Designing a Camper Van with a Child-Friendly Interior
Van living as an adult is relatively simple. However, when a kid is involved, you suddenly realize that your van may need to be modified to be more child-friendly. Here are some ideas.
Flexible Seating and Sleeping Arrangements
- Install extra passenger seats: if you are going to be traveling with your kids, you can’t just have them bounce around in the back like pinballs. You will need extra passenger seats with seatbelts. (Depending on your child’s age, car seat compatibility may be critical.)
- Share the bed: if your child is old enough, sharing the main bed in the van may be the simplest solution.
- Mattress in the garage: the space beneath the main sleeping platform, commonly referred to as the gearage, is a good spot for additional sleep space.
- Pitch a family-sized tent: Want more space? Parked in a wonderful campsite? Why not pitch a tent to air out and spread out?
- Try a front-cab inflatable mattress: With a purpose-built front-cab inflatable mattress, you can utilize the front cab as a sleeping area.
The LV7 is our largest and most family-friendly camper van >>
Kid-Proofing Materials
- Install seat covers: installing seat covers is the ideal way to increase the longevity of your van’s upholstery.
- Use durable, easy-to-clean fabrics: when it comes to blankets, bedding, and other fabrics, we recommend easy-to-clean and dark fabrics.
- Carry spot stain removers: the ability to do laundry may be few and far between, so packing stain removal products is a good way to do some stain cleaning before getting to do laundry.
Storage Solutions
- Use packing cubes: your clothing may not seem that bulky, but when you add in additional family members, the amount of space clothing garments take up becomes significant. Packing cubes is the best way to keep your clothing streamlined.
- Travel with a toy bin or box: if you get to travel with your adult toys it’s only fair that the kids have the same luxury. Designating an area in the van for a toy box is a good way to travel with toys and stay organized.
- Install seat back organizers: the vertical hanging space behind seats is super important. Seat back organizers are perfect for storing smaller items and keeping them within arm’s reach.
Safety Recommendations
- Consider car seat compatibility: If your child is of the age where they need a car seat, do your due diligence to ensure the seating arrangements in your van are compatible with the seat. The foldaway rear seat on our DMVans is child seat-compatible and RVIA compliant to ensure comfort and safety.
- Use child locks: child locks exist for a reason! Use them if you have a curious kid who likes to open and close things.
- Secure storage for sharp objects: Depending on the age of your children, things like kitchen knives and scissors should be kept in child-proof storage areas.
- Proper seatbelt usage: Road tripping is a great opportunity to talk about the importance of seatbelts and form good habits with seat belt usage. Our LV7 van comes equipped with a foldaway rear seat with two additional seatbelts to ensure safe travel for up to 4 total passengers.
Everyday Adventures with Your Lifestyle Vehicle®
Before we get into the nitty gritty of full-time van life, we also want to note the perks of having a Lifestyle Vehicle® at your disposal for everyday adventures. Whether you’re heading to the grocery store, the park, or a youth soccer game, having a climate-controlled living room with you at all times is a game-changer.
Grocery Store Trips
Imagine running errands with the convenience of ample storage and a comfortable space to relax. Your Lifestyle Vehicle® can keep your groceries fresh in the fridge, making it easier to take your time shopping without worrying about perishables.
Park and Playground Visits
When taking the kids to the park or playground, your van becomes the ultimate base camp. If the weather turns sour, retreat to your cozy van to wait out the rain. On snowy days, your heated van provides a warm place to regroup after building snowmen or sledding.
Youth Sports Events
Attending an all-day soccer tournament? Your van is the perfect spot to cool off between games. With air conditioning, you can escape the summer heat and enjoy a cold drink from the fridge. You’ll be the hero of the sidelines with a cooler full of Gatorades, orange slices, and even ice cream!
More Perks of Everyday Adventures
- Stay Organized: With ample storage and smart design, you can keep all your sports gear, picnic supplies, and grocery bags organized and accessible.
- Comfort On-the-Go: Your van’s comfortable seating and sleeping arrangements make it a great spot for quick naps or relaxing while waiting.
- Family-Friendly: The spacious interior and kid-proof materials ensure a stress-free outing, no matter where you go.
Embrace the versatility of your DM Vans Lifestyle Vehicle® for all your daily adventures. From running errands to family outings, your van is equipped to handle it all, providing comfort, convenience, and reliability. So, next time you head out, think beyond the road trip and make every day an adventure!
Full-time Van Life with Kids: Advice for Adventurous Parents
If you’re ready for it, van life with young children is the adventure of a lifetime. You’ll get to grow closer as a family, use the outdoors as a classroom, make core memories, and tackle challenges together. But preparedness is key to avoid mid-trip meltdowns, and other, well, inconvenient surprises.
Here’s our best advice for having a blast, staying safe, and keeping kids entertained through the ups and downs of life on the road.
On-the-Road Entertainment for Long Travel Days
On long travel days, kids and parents alike can get restless if they don’t have enough entertainment.
When it comes to avoiding mind-numbing boredom and meltdowns, the easiest solution is to keep long driving days to a minimum. If you must drive for a while, we recommend stopping every two to four hours to break up the journey and for potty breaks.
Here are some ideas to help keep everyone entertained while on the road.
- Pack some interactive maps and travel journals: maps can be a fun way to learn about geography. In addition, travel journals are great ways to encourage kids to track their journey.
- Download movies, audiobooks, and podcasts: Family-friendly movies, podcasts, and audiobooks can be excellent sources of entertainment for long drives. Packing a pair of headphones for everyone is also convenient when folks want to listen to or watch their own media.
- Play road trip bingo and go on nature scavenger hunts: Create lists of items for kids to spot during the road trip. Then, when you pull over at rest stops, go on spontaneous adventures or scavenger hunts to explore.
- Bring games and puzzles: portable toys, games, and puzzles are must-haves for van life with kids. If it were up to your kid, every toy in the closet would get packed inside the van. However, as a parent, you want to be strategic about which toys have the highest value in terms of sustainable entertainment. Pro tip: refrain from busting out all the toys in the first few hours of the trip. You’ve got to think long-term!
- Tell stories and gaze at the stars: Call us corny, but nature is often the best teacher (and source of entertainment. While on a road trip, you can utilize the open sky for celestial observations and bedtime tales.
Making the Outdoors Your Backyard
One important thing to realize about van life with kids is that you will spend a lot more time outside than you’re used to. That’s because when you travel in a van, your campsite, city parks, and national parks (and every outdoor space in between) function as extensions of your living space.
For example, when the weather is nice, you may opt to picnic outside for lunch instead of eating inside the van. Or when it’s playtime, you may unpack some toys at the campsite and play outside rather than inside.
Hiking and Nature Walks
Hikes and nature walks are great family-friendly activities. They offer valuable opportunities to explore nature, burn off some energy, or stretch your legs after a long stint of driving.
- Start with short, easy hikes or walks to build confidence. For longer hikes, you may consider a child carrier
- Let the kids lead the way. Child-led hikes are a great way to slow things down and create leadership opportunities for your child. (Plus, it feels good to stop making decisions yourself!)
- Bring lots of water and snacks, even on short hikes.
Beach Days and Water Play
If you are traveling near a coastline, you’ve got to go to the beach! Day trips to the beach are fun ways to explore, and they also offer super practical van-life resources like parking and public showers.
- Store all your beach toys and clothing in a single tidy organizer in the van.
- Install hooks in your van’s “gearage” to hang up damp clothing. Or travel with clothes line you can rig up to let clothes dry.
- A pair of flip-flop sandals, crocs, or water shoes are perfect for beach days, waterparks, and public restrooms.
Biking and Scooter Rides
If you can fit them, traveling with bicycles or scooters is a must. With everyone in the family on a bike or scooter, you can cover more ground exploring campgrounds or visiting public parks. Some considerations:
- Every rider should have a properly fitted and functioning helmet.
- For children who are too young to ride by themselves, a compact bike seat like the Shotgun Child Bike Seat and Handlebar Combo lets everyone enjoy a bike ride.
- An external hitch-mounted bike rack allows you to travel with bicycles without taking up valuable interior space. (PSA: Rigging scooters to the bike rack may require some ingenious parental ingenuity.)
Camp Cooking Outside
Cooking a delicious and nutritious meal inside your van is totally possible. However, when the weather is nice or when you want to spread out a little more, camp cooking outside can be the way to go.
- If you plan to cook outside, be sure to travel with a portable camp stove (and fuel) or a campfire grill grate.
- If you love to be the master chef while at home, use van life as an opportunity to simplify. Easy meals are easier to prepare and often require less work to clean up.
- Incorporate child-friendly tasks into the food prep or cooking processes. For example, packing child-safe utensils can allow your child to cut, scoop, grate, or mix while avoiding injury. Having older kids help with cleanup is another valuable opportunity to enrich the learning process.
Socializing and Making Friends While Living in a Lifestyle Vehicle®
Van life with kids can be a very insular experience. That’s because you have everything you might need, including your family, inside your van. While that sounds convenient, sometimes it means you miss social experiences.
Socializing and making friends is important for the whole family, not just the kids. So, while traveling or living on the road as a van family, it may be necessary to seek out social environments.
- Connect with other families: campgrounds are great places to encourage kids to make new friends. Spontaneous play is great, but if you are at a campground long enough, organizing play dates with other van life families is a great way to encourage socialization.
- Visit family and friends while traveling: depending on where you plan to travel, the chances are you’ll have family or friends along the way. Reconnecting with family or friends throughout your travels is an ideal way to interact with others and strengthen familial bonds and friendships.
- Seek out local activities and events: Going someplace specific? We recommend researching family-friendly events ahead of time so you can devise a plan before you arrive. Local events like festivals, country fairs, and farmers markets in different locations throughout your trip are perfect for interacting with cool people.
Education on the Road
Ever heard the quote, “Nature is our greatest teacher?” Well, as Class-B Lifestyle Vehicle® outfitters, we like to replace “nature” with “the road”– the road is our greatest teacher. While there may be no school for hundreds of miles, you can learn so much not only about our natural environment, but also about self-sufficiency, sustainability, and embracing new experiences.
Hands-On Learning
Van life with kids provides unique learning opportunities. In our opinion, it’s one of the most fruitful ways to learn, especially for hands-on and experiential learners. While traveling, you can visit museums, National and State Parks, and important historical sites.
On a rainy day, the nearest public library can offer a reprieve from the road and a learning opportunity. (Not to mention libraries have solid parking, offer great free wifi, and have public restrooms.)
Pro tip: While visiting National Parks with your kids, look into the on-site Junior Ranger Programs. There are even online Junior Ranger Program offerings.
Roadschooling
Roadschooling is going to school while traveling. Essentially, it’s where homeschooling and van life meet– you travel with the curriculum and school materials and attend school while living on the road.
Now, there are a ton of details about roadschooling that will vary based on your family’s needs, your child’s educational needs, and the educational institution. So we won’t go into details about all the stuff. But just knowing that roadschooling is an option is a good place to start.
Real-time Learning
Besides the more traditional forms of education, van life with kids can also offer a ton of opportunities for learning practical things. Here are some ideas of things you can transform into valuable learning opportunities (depending on your child’s age).
- Logistical trip planning
- Budgeting
- Changing a flat tire or other van repairs
- Pitching a tent
- Building a campfire
- Leave No Trace ethics
- Navigation
- Grocery shopping and planning meals
Spoiler Alert: Not Every Day is Epic
Look, as much as we want to say that every day on the road is epic, we’d be lying if we did. That’s because doing van life as a family unit can present some unique challenges.
Things like operating in a small space and disruption of normal routines can be obstacles. Or running out of snacks on the trail. (Never run out of snacks). Plus, there can be parental pressure to craft the adventure in such a way that it’s super positive and remarkable for your kids.
(Not to mention, we all probably have a distorted view of what family van life really looks like, thanks to social media creators constantly posting about the amazingness of traveling by van.)
So, to boil it down, just know that some days will be a struggle. On the other hand, other days may absolutely meet or exceed your van life expectations. That variability is one of the beauties of van life!
Create a Fun Family Adventure with DM Vans
While the youngsters in the family may not be able to help out with the driving responsibilities, you should absolutely include them in your next van life adventure!
Van life with kids may be one of the better ways to travel. You get to explore beautiful areas, spend a lot of time outside, and learn to function as a close-knit family unit.
Why do we think that? Well, because some of our best memories as kids are of our own road trips with family. Creating DM Vans is just one way that we hope to pay that forward and help other families experience the same joy and create equally long-lasting memories.
See you on the road -Dave and Matt
