My husband and I traveled cross-country in a camper van with our toddler. We were surprised just how hard it was.
- My husband and I went on a 734-mile road trip with our toddler in a camper van.
- While it was a great experience, we learned a lot of things on the road with our little one.
Is it really a vacation if you return looking worse than you did when you left? This was the question we asked ourselves during our 734-mile journey in a camper van with our 2-year-old daughter.
This wasn't our first rodeo. We'd traveled across the country in the middle of the pandemic with an infant and an elderly dog — once by car to Tennessee and once by plane to New York. But this trip proved to be both more challenging and more rewarding.It all started when our friends offered us one of their versatile built-out Sprinter vans, complete with a comfortable elevated mattress, a refrigerator, and a power station with five days' worth of off-grid power. The romantic #vanlife images our traveling child-free friends posted on social media ignited our curiosity.But we weren't childless; we had to decide whether bringing our toddler on the road with us was a good idea. How difficult could it be, we thought?In six days, we visited Buena Vista, Crested Butte, Gunnison, Ouray, and Hotchkiss — all in Colorado. Our campsites overlooked the Arkansas Valley, the Collegiate Peaks, a rushing creek, the Maroon Bells, and a blooming apple orchard. We stayed at designated campsites where we'd lounge after a day of adventuring.It was magical, but it wasn't all Instagram-worthy. There were toddler tantrums and parenting arguments. Here's what we learned about van life with a toddler.
The first thing we learned is that planning is important, but we can't account for everything
I did as much planning and packing as I could before we hit the road. I even used small packing cubes for each person for a little organization. I also brought our daughter's little potty in the hope that it would make peeing convenient.
However, I, of course, missed some things. I wish we'd brought doggy pee pads to put in my daughter's car seat for the two times she fell asleep and peed.We learned it was better to take our time and stop when needed to instead of rushing
As adults, we were searching for the most beautiful, remote places to camp. But all our daughter spotted were playgrounds. She wanted to stop for all of them; she wanted to sit and play, which is difficult when you have a destination in mind.
While we were eager to explore new trails with great views, she often wanted to just sit in the sand and watch the ants. We learned that there was time and room to do both and keep everyone happy.
Sometimes it was worth it to splurge on a hotel room
One evening, after a day full of stops, we got to our destination so late that the campgrounds were full, so we decided to get a hotel room. Another night, we needed a shower, so we booked a room again.
It's not how we imagined our camper-van adventure, but we needed to adjust. Booking a hotel room isn't cheating. They allow you to recharge and it becomes a part of the grand experience.We eventually learned that we all must check in more frequently with each other
Traveling in a van offers the freedom to go and stop wherever and whenever you desire. But sometimes our emotions ran high. We felt like three smelly, exhausted individuals trapped in the van. At times, it challenged our stress levels — especially for my claustrophobic husband.
When we learned that we had to communicate how we were feeling more frequently, most things in the van became easier.In the end, we learned we must embrace the present
Several times on the trip, we caught ourselves saying that we wished our daughter was older so that this would be easier. We also wish we had the opportunity to travel in a van before we had our toddler.
But when we took a step back, we reminded ourselves just how lucky we were right then. The trip reminded us to enjoy the here and now.
After all of it, our daughter wants to do it again
Whenever my daughter sees a Sprinter van along the road, she says, "I miss it!" In many ways, we do too: the cozy sleeping quarters, the freedom of the open road, and the time we spent bonding.
There was nothing quite like waking up as a family in a heated van next to a cool rushing stream and staring at a 14,000-foot peak as we drank our morning coffee along with the breakfast we made right in our van's mini kitchen.The van magnified the strong and the weak aspects of our team and challenged us to get out of our comfort zones — that is priceless.