Van life has well and truly become part of our life and if anything I would like more adventures in the van!

Before we purchased our campervan we had spoken to others who had vans and we were warned they can be a labour of love. We are lucky (touch wood) not have had major issues to date (and long may that continue) but had the odd thing, but what I have found is that there are always things to buy – some you need and some you just want.

I wrote a blog post previously on essentials for van life that you can read here. It is Christmas shopping time for sure and if you have a campervan and looking for inspiration or looking for a gift for someone with a campervan then take a look at some suggestions below:

• Games – we always have some games on hand in the van and our favourites are normal playing cards of course but also Uno and Monopoly (much quicker than the board game Monopoly).
• Tripod fire pit from Aldi, £44.99 – this was an amazing find in store and it doubles as a fire pit and grill and packs away so slim and easy in a bag with handles. We very often light at night and have used to cook on also.
• Dry robes, from £140 – we both have Dry Robes and always have them in the camper van when we go away. They fold down relatively small and are useful for changing, after wild swimming, for toilet/shower runs on camp and for all year round.
• Physion Mini Massage Gun, £59.95 – when we are on adventures in the van we often take our bikes or go hiking and this massage gun is compact, easy to take with us and use after being out all day.
• Adventure journal, £25 – I don’t have this but have seen it online and looks like a great way to document adventures and memories.
• Grounded book, £16.99 – my son got this for me last year and it is such a good book all about how having a connection with nature can improve our mental and physical wellbeing.
• Camping and Campervan membership, from £45 – we are members (feels like a very grown up thing) and definitely has been worth it, giving access and information on campsites and discounts. We have found campsites where you have to be a member and all have been sites we would recommend.
• Brit Stops, £32 – not a membership as such but by signing up you get access to stay at certain stopovers (not campsites) and I have used this in a pub car park when doing the King Alfred’s Way bikepacking. You announce your arrival and have somewhere safe to stay – there is no charge but as I found we got a drink and food ahead of staying.
• Big Bobble Hats, £22 – always useful to have in the van for cold days and nights and to keep adventuring all year round. Use code FATGIRLFIT20 for a 20% discount.
• Camping Blanket, £77 – not something I have but will be going on my list.
• JBL mini speaker, £29.99 – we got this on one of our ferry crossings on our trip to Sweden in June and it is fab, small and compact, easy to carry/store, sounds great and can charge by USB.
• Jet Boil, £139 – I looked at this for a very long time and finally purchased at the start of the year and it is worth every penny. We have used for cooking and for drinks both when we are pitched and also on hikes – fab item!
• Ordnance Survey app, from £4.99 per month – my husband has this and we very often use when out and about, very handy!

Happy Camping!

When we got our camper van we purchased it already converted you can read more on the spec of the van and upgrades we have made here.

For our first trips we would load up with things from in the house but soon realised our preference was to not have to move things to and from the house so we gradually started getting things that we leave in the van. The idea is that we are basically good to go whenever we want!

Our Van Essentials

Here are some of the items we have purchased that we use on every trip and find super useful:

• Vango double sleeping bag – this was a bit of an impulse purchase as we had started by loading up the van with our duvet and pillows from home and then saw this in the bargain bin at Go Outdoors. This is a double sleeping bag and has another layer that you can either use as a mattress topper or for extra warmth. I have to say we love this sleeping system and it was a great investment.
• 230V electric cable – to use when we are on sites and require electric hook up. However, we do have solar panels and have found we can camp for quite some time without the need for electric hook up but this is still good to have in the van just in case.
• Mains convertor lead – to use with the electric cable.
• Gas bottle – we don’t keep ours in the van when we are not using it but necessary for using the hob. They come in many different sizes so we opted for one that sites nicely in the cupboard out of the way.
• Thule Levelers – these are amazing for when you have a pitch that may be on uneven ground and allows you to position under the wheels to make sure the van is level (and yes we have a spirit level in the van to check ha ha).
• Fire extinguisher – for obvious reasons, compact and made for car/van use.
• First aid kit – as above.
• Carbon monoxide smoke alarm – you are cooking and using gas in a confined space so this is an essential in our view.
• Plates/Cups/Glasses – we opted for melamine as it is durable and easy to clean and also got ours from Dunelm as we found the difference in price with normal shops and camping specific shops to be a lot.
• Cutlery – we purchased some bamboo travel sets, which have been useful although we also got some stainless steel sets too as the wood is not best for all food.
• Kitchen utensils – my husband stumbled on a travel set and it is perfect, and stores away neat and tidy.
• Pots/pans – we have a small saucepan but also found a pan from Ridgeway, which is multi function and means we can make most things when in the van.
• Camping mug – this has been with me on the bike also. I have one that I picked up in Starbucks but there are many out there that serve the same purpose.
• Kettle – call me old fashioned but I love the sound of the kettle whistling when the water is boiled. My husband is more of a coffee drinker so we also have a hob top single cup coffee maker.
• Windscreen wrap – once pitched this is an inexpensive way of covering the windscreen and keeping out light when sleeping and adding some more privacy for when you are in the van itself.
• Tyre inflator – this is for the obvious times you may need to inflate tyres but also for terrain where you may wish to deflate slightly for better ground coverage and traction.
• Recovery tracks – these are more one of those items you hope you will not need but ground is not always even and these can help if you end up on terrain where tyres get stuck.
• Tupperware – we keep a lot of non-perishable goods in the van like coffee, tea bags, snacks and have these in tupperware containers to save any spills and keep them fresh. Plus they are easy to store and fit easily in the cupboards.
• Cupboard essentials – things like fry light, washing up liquid we also keep in the cupboard.
• Thule straps – we also attached Thule straps to keep certain things in place like the gas bottle and other items.
• Chairs – we have a captains chair and also the bench seat but it is nice to sit outside and we purchased two chairs that we keep strapped in the boot area.