Two years ago, we stood in a quiet town in the Netherlands called Hoogeveen, holding the keys to a Fiat Ducato Burstner A646. We had two kids, aged 6 and 8, two backpacks each, and a dream that felt both exciting and slightly terrifying. We weren’t just taking a holiday; we were moving into a motorhome to travel Europe with kids, vanlife style…
Fast forward through 24 months, dozens of border crossings (some involving very confused guards in Eastern Europe), and countless sunsets – we’ve learned that vanlife with kids is nothing like the polished reels on Instagram. It is messy, cramped, and occasionally involves a “pothole-first” mindset. But it is also the most profound education and experience our kids could ever receive.
If you’re thinking about trading the white picket fence for a set of wheels, here are 10 things you need to know about living in a motorhome with kids, based on our two-year journey across Europe.
1. Living in a Small Space: The Art of the ‘Family Huddle’
Transitioning from a house to a few square metres is the ultimate test of family dynamics. Luckily for us, we’d already been backpacking and travelling with backpacks and kids for a few years to get to this point. Because in a motorhome, there is no downstairs to escape to. If one person is grumpy, everyone knows it!
We learned quickly that in a small space – and especially when that small space is a motorhome with kids – your “living room” has to be the outdoors.
I’d say the biggest challenge isn’t physical space; it’s the mental load. You have to become masters of flexible daily rhythms.
Plus, we (me; I) found that if the van was messy, our heads felt messy.
Our rule plan became: never wake up to a messy van. Washing up and tidying before bed was non-negotiable. It kept the cabin fever at bay when the rain set in and we were stuck inside working on schoolwork or watching movies.
2. Setting Up the Van: Making it a Home
Setting up a van with kids in Europe requires a mix of cosiness and organisation. So when we first bought our motorhome, our first stop wasn’t a scenic Alp; it was Hema (the Dutch equivalent of Kmart).
We used tried the KonMari method for clothes – folding everything into packing cubes and storage boxes so we could see exactly what we had without digging. The reality though, is that is harder with high cupboards and limited shelves you can actually see. Wall nets and mesh bags became our best friends for toys and shoes.
For the kids, it was important to have a sense of “their” space. Even if it was just a small shelf for their treasures, having a dedicated spot helped them feel grounded while our backyard changed every single day.
3. The Bed Equation: Vanlife with Kids
One of the most frequent questions we get is: “Where do they sleep?” In our Burstner, we had options, but the kids quickly claimed the alcove (the bed over the cab).
For our kids at the time, aged 6 and 8, the alcove was the ultimate. It kept them out of the main living area during the day, meaning their unmade beds weren’t in our faces while we were cooking or working. But it also meant that when they went to bed, we still had the living space in the evening.
Our van originally had a single seat table with two facing bench seats at the back. But we made this into a small double bed with a triangle corner that folded out into our bed at night. It had loads of storage space underneath and meant it was 80% set up during daytime.
We think if we did it again, we’d buy a slightly bigger van. Just one size up. But with bigger kids we’d look to build bunks and the back. And with a slightly bigger van the alcove would be a little bigger and just right for us.
- Tip: If you’re buying a van with kids, look for one where you don’t have to make the beds every night by converting the dining table. Having fixed beds (especially the alcove) saves your sanity at 8:00 PM when everyone is exhausted.
Want to learn more about the logistics of buying a van in Europe? Check out our guide on Buying a Motorhome in Europe as a Non-EU Traveler.
4. Homeschooling: Learning in the “Morning Rhythm”
We chose homeschooling as our primary education method, but we fast had to ditch the idea of a “school day.” Trust me, it wasn’t like the images of that happy family spending hours studying in a parked van. Trying to force a child to sit at a tiny vanlife table for six hours while adventures await outside the window is a recipe for disaster.
Instead, we focused on “learning bursts.” We found that doing lessons first thing in the morning, right after breakfast (and coffee), worked best. We kept it simple: 20-minute blocks of core subjects like maths and English. The beauty of a 1:2 teacher-student ratio is that you can accomplish in an hour what takes a classroom all day.
We had workbooks from New Zealand that were perfect for those core subjects. We only did maths and English by textbook. And truthfully, we didn’t do it every day. Some days were travel days. More were for exploring. If we were parked up for a longer pause somewhere we made that a learning burst too.
The rest of the time we did reading, and they did journals (nearly) daily. We didn’t follow any set curriculum or homeschooling plan. We kinda winged it. But that’s what we’d do again – and will do – for the next time. 🙂
5. Worldschooling: The World is the Classroom
While homeschooling covered the basics, worldschooling was where the real magic happened. Why read about the Roman Empire in a book when you can walk through the ruins of the Colosseum?
I will forever be grateful that our kids had the opportunity to learn currency conversion by buying bread at markets in Serbia, history by seeing the scars in the Balkans, and biology by hiking the beautiful Norwegian fjords.
Worldschooling isn’t about following a curriculum; it’s about following your child’s interests. If they become obsessed with the “pothole-first” mindset of driving in Moldova, that’s a lesson in infrastructure and economics! 🙂
6. Meals and Food in a Motorhome with Kids
Cooking for a family in a van requires a strategy. Our fridge was tiny, which meant we couldn’t stock up shopping for two weeks at a time like we did at home. (Actually, we weren’t particularly good at that at home either; but you know what I mean!).
We had to shop 2-3 times (or more) in a week, which actually turned into a highlight of our travels. Visiting local markets in places like Romania or the Women’s Market in Sofia, Bulgaria, allowed us to eat fresh, local, and cheaper food.
We kept meals simple: Gav was a MasterChef at one-pot wonders like mince or pasta.
And our best vanlife tip? Eat outside whenever possible. It’s less stressful, the crumbs don’t matter, and a picnic mat can turn any parking spot into a five-star restaurant.
7. Drinking Water and Logistics
In Western Europe (France, Germany, etc.), Sani-Stations are everywhere. In Eastern Europe, you have to be a bit more of a water detective.
We relied heavily on the vanlife Park4Night app to find freshwater fill-ups and grey-water dump points.
Then in the far east, like in Moldova, we literally stopped at wells on the roadside and filled our tanks from a bucket!
Managing your resources – water, gas, and battery power – becomes a daily game of logistics that the kids eventually started helping with. It taught them a lot about sustainability and not wasting resources.
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8. Hygiene and Showers: The “Van Wash”
Let’s be real: you won’t be showering every day. Our motorhome had a shower, but we used it sparingly to conserve water. We became masters of the “van wash” (a flannel and a bowl of warm water).
When we stayed at official campsites, we’d make the most of the long(er), hot showers.
In the wilder parts of the East, we learned to embrace a little bit of dirt. It’s a transition, but you quickly realise that you don’t need a 20-minute shower to be clean.
9. Toys and “Less Stuff”
When we started vanlife, the kids wanted to bring everything.
Ha! I’m actually kidding. ALL of us wanted to bring everything. But with the kids and toys we had to be ruthless. We focused on “open-ended” toys: LEGO, art supplies, and a few favourite (small) stuffed animals.
I am a firm believer that kids with fewer toys play more creatively, and we saw this firsthand. Ours were pretty well used to backpacking and we have always had to carry a small bag of toys that can fit in their daypack anyway. But in the van things do start to accumulate.
Every few months, we’d do a “toy cull” to make sure we weren’t accumulating clutter.
10. Driving Days and Screen Time
Some vanlife days in Europe involve long hauls. Whether it’s navigating the vignettes of Slovenia or dodging unlit horse carts in Moldova, driving can be intense.
We managed long driving days with a snack box in the front cab, and as for screen time? We didn’t ban it. We used it as a tool for “down-time.”
While we were driving, the kids read and watched some downloaded Netflix series. If we’d had a park-up with WIFI we’d make the most of it. We had to be prepared with that as we didn’t have WIFI on the move. After a big day of exploring a new city, the kids would have an hour of screen time to decompress while we (mostly Gavin) prepped dinner, and I’d work on our website and videos for YouTube.
We used a 5G roaming setup to keep our mobiles connected, but it meant we didn’t have unlimited data. So, wherever we were and whatever the data situation, the rule was always: screens stay inside. When we’re outside, we’re present.
Final Thoughts: Is it Worth It?
Living in a motorhome with kids is a series of extremes. It is the frustration of a broken wheel bearing in Bosnia and the joy of waking up to a Norwegian fjord as the view from your bedroom window.
It is the “brutal truth” of long driving days and the “beautiful truth” of seeing your children explore and become the global citizens we have all read and fantasised about.
Our kids were 6 and 8 when we started vanlife in Europe; they are now 11 and 13. They have seen more of the world than many people do in a lifetime. They are resilient, curious, and close-knit because of the time we spent huddled together in that Burstner. We miss that vanlife a lot!
If you’re on the fence, our advice is simple: buy the van. The potholes will be there, the water will run out, and the van will be messy – but the memories you build in that small space will last forever. Just do it.
Want to learn more about the logistics of buying a van in Europe? Check out our guide on Buying a Motorhome in Europe as a Non-EU Traveler.
Read More About Travel & Buying a Motorhome in Europe
- Choosing The Perfect Morocco Itinerary For A First Trip.
- 20 Things To Do In Bucharest, Romania.
- Driving, Motorhome Parking & Finding Free Camping In Spain.
- 20 Things To Do In Podgorica, Montenegro.
- 14 Things To Do In Belgrade, Serbia.
- Border Crossing: Serbia to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
- Border Crossing: Bosnia to Montenegro.
Useful Links for Your Travels In Europe and Beyond
These are the companies we use and can recommend for planning and booking travel.
- Booking.com – The best all-around accommodation booking site that constantly provides the cheapest and lowest rates. They have the widest selection of budget accommodation. It is easy to filter and sort into price and availability with all the extras you are looking for personally.
- 12GoAsia – Book trains anywhere online.
- Skyscanner – This is by far our favourite flight search engine. They are able to search small websites and budget airlines that larger search sites often miss. We book all our flights through Skyscanner.
- GetYourGuide – Get Your Guide is a huge online marketplace for tours and excursions offered all around the world. Everything from walking tours, to street-food tours, cooking classes, desert safari’s and more!
- SafetyWing – A global travel insurance that covers people from all over the world while outside their home country. You can buy it short or longterm; and even if you are out of the country.
- World Nomads – Make sure you have insurance before embarking on the adventure of vanlife in Europe with kids!
