This came up in passing in another thread and I thought it would be fun to start a thread with our camping setups.
DH and I -- finally pushed over the edge after years of talking about a better camping setup by covid and the prospect of a summer in which we couldn't really DO anything -- bought a used minivan back in June to use as a mini #vanlife setup. I have to say, it really hits the sweet spot between being a very comfortable place to sleep and a car you don't feel ridiculous taking to the grocery store. It's just the two of us and a dog, so for camping we take out all the seats and have a bed platform in the back. The bed is just smaller than a double (and we could squeeze out a little more width with some construction ingenuity, if either of us possessed that), and there's a TON of storage under the bed and in the roof box.
Here's the beginning of building the bed platform. Doing it with metal struts vs wood makes it store really well in the garage (with the legs off it takes up very little space), plus it's pretty light and easy to take in & out.
Done, kind of! We ended up shortening up the legs a bit for more headroom. DH is almost 6'2" and he's pretty comfy back there.
We also... got it lifted. It is by no means an offroad vehicle but the extra 3.5" of clearance is a game changer for getting to dispersed camping spots and trailheads.
In action up near Bighorn Canyon this past summer. If you look closely you can tell how much room you get in the back for coolers / water jugs / etc when you take out the 3rd row seats entirely instead of just folding them flat.
SO ANYWAYS, it's worked out really well, and I love having a vehicle that's so comfortable to camp in without having to have a dedicated trailer or much bigger van (we live in a townhouse so not a ton of storage for that kind of thing). We camped more this summer than we ever have, partially thanks to covid, but largely thanks to the van.
What are you all using to get out there?
DH and I -- finally pushed over the edge after years of talking about a better camping setup by covid and the prospect of a summer in which we couldn't really DO anything -- bought a used minivan back in June to use as a mini #vanlife setup. I have to say, it really hits the sweet spot between being a very comfortable place to sleep and a car you don't feel ridiculous taking to the grocery store. It's just the two of us and a dog, so for camping we take out all the seats and have a bed platform in the back. The bed is just smaller than a double (and we could squeeze out a little more width with some construction ingenuity, if either of us possessed that), and there's a TON of storage under the bed and in the roof box.
Here's the beginning of building the bed platform. Doing it with metal struts vs wood makes it store really well in the garage (with the legs off it takes up very little space), plus it's pretty light and easy to take in & out.
Done, kind of! We ended up shortening up the legs a bit for more headroom. DH is almost 6'2" and he's pretty comfy back there.
We also... got it lifted. It is by no means an offroad vehicle but the extra 3.5" of clearance is a game changer for getting to dispersed camping spots and trailheads.
In action up near Bighorn Canyon this past summer. If you look closely you can tell how much room you get in the back for coolers / water jugs / etc when you take out the 3rd row seats entirely instead of just folding them flat.
SO ANYWAYS, it's worked out really well, and I love having a vehicle that's so comfortable to camp in without having to have a dedicated trailer or much bigger van (we live in a townhouse so not a ton of storage for that kind of thing). We camped more this summer than we ever have, partially thanks to covid, but largely thanks to the van.
What are you all using to get out there?
Last edited: