Van Life Australia: 21 Tips for Living the Van Life

Van life in Australia is one of the best experiences for people of all ages. However, there are many things one should know before getting behind the wheel and heading on a long road trip.

Besides, the journey of van living in Australia is half the experience; It’s not always about the destination! Therefore, ensuring you are ultimately prepared for this expedition is the best way to guarantee an enjoyable time on the road.

So, continue reading to unveil the best van life tips, including essentials, why you should live the van life and additional resources.

Disclaimer: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means that I may earn a small commission on purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you. You can read my full affiliate disclosure here.

Why Live the Van Life?

Firstly, van life gives you the freedom to travel whenever and wherever you want; Practically at all times. Plus, it’s also really nice to have the ability to take all your belongings wherever you’d like to go. And, your life is encapsulated in a compact yet (hopefully) functional space.

Not to mention, if you live without a few luxuries, van life in Australia is likely to be cheaper than rent in most cities. Therefore, making it an epic opportunity for young travellers wanting to explore the country.

Finally, with your tiny home on wheels, you can live remotely for multiple weeks at a time, providing you have an excellent solar set-up and decent food and water storage. Therefore, making it amazing for lovers of the outdoors and nature.

Van Life Essentials

While living on the road, there are some things you just can’t go without. These are also some van life essentials that you’ll need to consider for your build.

A few of these essentials include:
-Camping stove
-Fire extinguisher
-Solar set up
-12v fridge
-Solar or in-built shower
-Well-built van

21 Van Life in Australia Tips

Plan According to Your Needs

To start, different people have different requirements. Therefore, keep this in mind when purchasing an already-made van vs building one yourself.

To illustrate, things like fixed bed design vs transformative couch are things you will need to consider. Also, will you need a high top van for headroom? Or, are you happy to crouch with a low-top van?

Additionally, you will need to consider a decent solar panel setup if you wish to have a fridge and other electrical devices running while living in a van.

Pack a Set of Basic Tools

A basic set of tools like this one from Decare may come in handy more than one might expect. Consequently, having a few pieces of equipment to fix a loose screw, take a measurement or lending a helping hand will be more helpful than you realise.

Furthermore, don’t forget other small necessities such as duct tape and even a headlamp like this one. Headlamps are practical for setting up camp in the dark, early morning hiking or navigating your way outdoors.

Reduce the Weight of Your Load

Reducing the weight of your load is crucial for safe braking distance, staying within the legal load limit and conserving petrol. Not to mention, this also comes with increasing your storage space.

Therefore, avoid taking large and bulky camp chairs and instead opt for a compact and lightweight camp chair like this one from Amazon.

Stay Powered by the Sun

Keep your devices charged and ready to go for safety measures and work on the road. Plus, this can be achieved with a power bank like this one from Charmast.

Furthermore, you could look into getting a set of Jackery solar panels to charge up your power bank, lithium batteries and devices. Finally, living in a van in Australia requires adequate sources of power. So, don’t be caught stranded, and get yourself prepared.

Magnetic Screen Doors Are Your New Best Friend

Keep that airflow coming in whilst warranting flies, mosquitoes, spiders, and other insects stay out. Hence, get ahold of one of these magnetic screen doors that will ultimately make your quality of life on the road that much better.

There is nothing worse than having a fly buzzing around your head while trying to relax or get some work done indoors. Not to mention, living in a van in Australia is notorious for dealing with numerous creepy crawlers and insects, especially in warmer climates.

Download Useful Apps to Your Phone

Before embarking on your journey around Australia, be sure to make way for some practical applications on your phone. Moreover, these may involve offline maps, walking trails, emergency apps and facility finders. Many of which are crucial in supporting your Australia van life adventure.

Therefore, check out the list of apps below to find some to add to your device.

Useful iOS Applications:
– WikiCamps
– PetrolSpy
– AllTrails
– Emergency Plus
– Yelp

Read more: 10 Best Travel Apps Australia

Consider a Satellite Phone or Device

Not only will having a satellite phone or device give you better peace of mind, but it will ensure you’re always ready in case of an emergency.

Besides, there are plenty of fantastic satellite devices available, guaranteeing you can select the pick of the bunch. Also, if you enjoy hiking or backpacking for many days in unchartered territory, you’ll be very much aware of the fact that there is often little to no mobile service in those areas.

So, take ahold of your welfare and grab one of these for future adventures for van living in Australia.

Keep Up Your Hygeine

Travelling often involves getting dirty and, in a majority of cases, staying dirty.

However, we have incredible access to convenient hygiene products that don’t necessarily need to impact the environment. Therefore, a product like a solar shower will do the trick!

First, simply fill the bag with up to 20L of water, and lay it in direct sunlight to heat up during the day.

Additionally, keep your clothes smelling fresh and clean with the use of laundry sheets. Alas, there’s no need to carry heavy laundry liquid as you can easily travel with small and lightweight sheets that do the trick!

Maximise Your Clothing Storage

Pick up a set of these storage cubes to maximise your clothing space in the van. The square shape ensures they make use of all possible space and the viewing window makes it easy to see inside.

Not to mention, the handles make it easy to slide in and out of small space. Finally, storage cubes are essential to living the campervan life in Australia since they make organising clothes effortless.

Read more: The 10 Best travel accessories

Join Social Media Groups

While using social media may seem like the opposite piece of advice for van lifers, it truly has its benefits. Firstly, joining Instagram or Facebook van life groups can encourage travellers to meet up, share information and support one another in times of need.

And, joining a Facebook group like ‘Van Life Australia’ is ideal for travellers living this lifestyle to ensure people stay connected. Not to mention, many of these people live the van life full-time and have lived it for many years, indicating they have plenty of knowledge and years of experience to help others.

Finally, don’t be afraid to make new friends and meet people. Something as simple as striking up a conversation with other travellers in a caravan park can lead to lovely friendships and fantastic memories. So, step outside of your comfort zone and get to know new people!

Keep Your Space Organised

The organisation of your vehicle is ultimately one of the most crucial habits to staying sane while living the van life. Firstly, van lifers live in extremely small spaces. Therefore, you don’t have to do much to create an absolute mess in your tiny home on wheels.

So, keeping everything in a specific area is more important than ever, not to mention, it’ll make it much easier when everything has a home.

Hence, create a space for everything, including where you want to store your sunglasses, where you’ll put your keys while parked up, shoe storage, where to hang your bathing or beach towels etc.

Also, be sure to keep an eye out for storage cubes, organisation containers and other little knick-knacks that will make your life easier.

Always Carry a Spare Wheel

Firstly, living the van life in Australia means one must always carry a spare wheel at all times; Considering you never truly know when disaster strikes.

Besides, you may be in the outback of Australia, on some extreme corrugated roads with no service, then wind up with a popped tyre.

Therefore, avoid the situation and stay prepared with a spare tyre at all times. And, this ensures you won’t need to wait hours for help to get to safety quicker.

Finally, I would recommend getting some form of roadside assistance for peace of mind.

Decide on Your Camping Location before Sunset

There’s nothing worse than driving down dark roads and being unsure of camping illegally. Therefore, make it a priority at the beginning of every day to choose a camping destination where it’s safe to pull over and sleep the night. Also, this ensures you avoid any frustrating parking fines.

Learn How to Use a Camera

You’re likely to see some pretty incredible things while living on the road and travelling full-time. Therefore, brush up on your photography skills before embarking on your big journey.

While you don’t need to be a renowned Instagramer, professional YouTuber or amazing photographer, having some breathtaking photos of your road trip will be fantastic to look back on in many years to come.

Create an Essentials List

Australia is a vast country. With that being said, there’s the likelihood of going without necessities in between small towns. And, everyone has different requirements, some of which are more important than others.

So, spend some time a few months before leaving, creating a list of essentials. Things like prescription medicine, menstruation products and sunglasses/prescription glasses should be at the top of your list (providing you need them). And keep track of all these items at all times, ready for restocking.

Learn How to Cook Simple Meals with the Addition of Spices

Living the van life in Australia doesn’t mean that you need to sacrifice delicious food. Also, cooking and van life can go together, hand in hand.

However, the last thing that many travellers wish to do after a long day of travelling is cook up a buffet. So, keep the menu simple, and stock simple shelf-stable items such as beans, rice, pasta etc. Therefore, when it comes time to cook, you only need a handful of ingredients to create something delicious.

Furthermore, one of the best van life tips is to keep a small collection of staple spices. These may include oregano, basil, cumin, thyme, garlic powder and paprika. Of course, you can adjust these to your taste. Not to mention, you’ll soon be surprised that the basic meals are often most cherished (and they always taste better in nature).

Finally, when travelling through a small town, stop over and support the local cafes and restaurants. Also, this is a fantastic way to treat yourself and enjoy something you mightn’t have while living the van life, think of roast dinners, fried dishes and baked goods.

Consider a Camping Toilet

While this item may not be at the top of everyone’s list, you may be grateful to own one on more than one occasion. Consequently, a portable camping toilet could potentially save an awkward accident while travelling on the road.

On the other hand, coming up with something a little more unique like a pee bottle may also be another option for you. No one wants to consider the need for these items. However, they’ll save getting out of your vehicle amid the night to find a public toilet or go in nature.

Insulated Window Covers Are Essential

Not only are window covers exceptional for keeping heat out of the living space, but they’re also fantastic for privacy and any nosey individuals.

So, consider creating your own DIY window covers or find some online to suit the windows of your vehicle. However, I would recommend finding a set with insulation properties to keep that heat out. Otherwise, you’ll find your living space heats up quite quickly (which is not ideal).

Finally, these are essential for van life in Australia since the climate can often reach high temperatures, and the summer days are excruciatingly long in warmer regions.

Insure Your Belongings

In the unfortunate case of one of your items being stolen or damaged, you’ll be glad to have taken up an insurance policy before your trip. Besides, if you’re someone who wants to travel with plenty of tech gear, including laptops, phones, cameras and drones, it’s not a bad idea to look into insurance for these in case these items get damaged, lost or stolen.

Moreover, it’s crucial to have vehicle insurance since living out of the van full time. Don’t get on the road without at least having vehicle insurance.

Nonetheless, there are many companies and policies available, so rest assured you’ll find the best agreement.

Pack a Handful of Basic Medication and First Aid Kit

Don’t get onto the walking trails or start your adventure without a basic first aid kit or supply of medication. Unfortunately, you’ll likely spend a little bit of time sick at some point.

So, keep a small stock of basic paracetamol, aspirin and antihistamines. Additionally, stock your van with a basic first aid kit. It should include bandages, gauze pads, wound cleaning pads, scissors and safety pins.

Finally, a basic kit like this one will come in handy on those occasions of minor accidents. If you have any serious accidents, cuts or wounds, seek medical help immediately.

Allow Plenty of Time for Your Trip

Last but certainly not least is the advice of allowing plenty of time for your trip. Avoid being a typical tourist that stops for 5 minutes at an attraction and then leaves.

Therefore, spend some time soaking up all the place has on offer and appreciate it since there’s a chance you mightn’t return. Also, this goes hand in hand with ensuring you have enough funds to make this possible.

So if it means that you need to spend an extra few months building up your funds to enjoy this trip for longer, absolutely do so!

You’ll realise just how much you enjoy travelling around Australia once you get out there. On the other hand, if you aren’t able to increase the length of your holiday, it’s likely best you shorten the length of distance. Hence, create a shorter route but enjoy spending an extra day or so in those locations.

Campervan Australia Hire

Another great way to test if van life in Australia is really for you is to hire a campervan for a night or two. Moreover, this is a great way to test the waters and see if it’s something you actually enjoy!

Check out the list of companies below in which you can hire a professionally fitted van. Also, some of these van builds are unique, giving you that true van life experience!

List of companies to test the Australian campervan life:
– Camplify
– Apollo Camper
– Britz

Wrapping Up

In conclusion, van life is a fantastic journey, though not for everyone. And, there are many things you need to prepare for living on the road, especially when it’s your full-time living situation.

Nonetheless, van life in Australia is easily one of the most epic experiences and is highly rated among many local and international travellers. It gives you that nature-based experience without the high cost.

However, take your time considering this lifestyle and do plenty of research on campervan life.

What intrigues you about van life? Have you discovered a new van life tip that you find practical?