Taking the occasional break from full-timing?

[ganchan]

One thing I hear a lot of, when I tell people about my idea to hit the road full-time, is, "You'll get tired of it."

But I'm thinking, if I do get tired of it, what's stopping me from pulling into a nice town somewhere (or one of the big cities I've always wanted to see) and renting a room for a few months? i've always lived in apartments and rented rooms in homes, so it would seem like second nature to me.

Vandwelling doesn't strike me as necessarily being an all-or-nothing lifestyle.

What about you? Do you take occasional sabbaticals in local stick-and-brick lodgings?

 

[Reducto]

I work in surges of 1-3 weeks and will often get a room during that time. It's much more comfortable to have a climate controlled place to sleep and shower especially when I'm working long hours and sleeping well into the afternoon. Lately I have been getting rooms through airbnb.com and it's been great. Hopefully I will get some AC set up soon so I can stay in RV parks with electricity and showers, but I'm sure I will still get a room sometimes.

It's also handy when I want to redo something major in the van to be able to live somewhere else for a bit.

 

[ganchan]

I work in surges of 1-3 weeks and will often get a room during that time. It's much more comfortable to have a climate controlled place to sleep and shower especially when I'm working long hours and sleeping well into the afternoon. Lately I have been getting rooms through airbnb.com and it's been great. Hopefully I will get some AC set up soon so I can stay in RV parks with electricity and showers, but I'm sure I will still get a room sometimes.

It's also handy when I want to redo something major in the van to be able to live somewhere else for a bit.

That's an especially good point about climate control. I might decide to rent a room during the hottest and coldest months, and then boondock the rest of the year. I might not even need to insulate the van that way (although that's pushing it)....

 

[Reducto]

I'd be fine without much climate control if I were boondocking wherever I wanted and sleeping when I wanted. Trying to sleep during the hottest part of the day and waking up to adjust vents and fans makes it difficult.

I wouldn't advise going without insulation!

 

[akrvbob]

Never!!!! I don't have the slightest desire to ever live in a house again for any length of time!! YUCCKKKKK!
Bob

 

[Iggy]

I admit, I get tired of being on the road sometimes. But I'm fine with just staying in a town that I like until I get itchy tires again. I do stay in my van though, not rent a room. Haven't gotten bored of van living yet. The only times I've rented a motel room have been because a female companion insisted on it for a short break from van living.
If a person wants a change and can afford it, I say go for it! No reason to be unhappy. And likely you'll gain a deeper appreciation of the differences and advantages of both ways of living.

 

[SternWake]

I spend 3 weeks a year in a stick and brick when I visit family over Xmas and new years 2500 miles away.

Every time i come back it is like Ahhhhhhhh. A comfy bed, nice and quiet, and I control my diet.

I do enjoy watching Cable Tv again, East coast Pizza and hoagies, and some sit down dinners with the folks, but I gain too much weight, and lose too much fitness, and my digestive tract gets all messed up. I also drink too much and sleep way too late and do it over again the next night even when I don't want to. I get all irritated when I don't get my much needed alone time, and family can certainly press the wrong buttons.

Just got back recently. Glad to be home.

 

[Almost There]

I spent 14 years travelling and living in various sizes of vans and RV's and truthfully, never tired of it.

I did find living in an Astro mini-van more of a challenge than I would have preferred but it was okay. Mind you I travelled with the weather for the most part.

Some years I kinda settled down, renting a seasonal site and then commuting to my art/craft shows rather than being on the road 7 days a week. Both travelling continuously and having a home base were okay in my book.

The hardest part of moving back to Canada was having to settle down in a S&B home again. I've had itchy feet for just about all the 7 years since I did this but felt that my responsibilities outweighed my desire for freedom.

As of this coming fall, I'm making a compromise - I WILL spend my 6 months allotted US time travelling and then be stationary (well kinda..) for the other 6 months. I tossed around in my head the scenario of keeping my apartment but the economics of it just don't make sense. Soooo, a storage unit at least for the first winter to keep all the stuff that won't go on the road with me and either a seasonal campsite or a rental trailer in an RV park for the next summer.

I'm here in the depths of a Canadian winter and the only thing that's keeping me sane is the promise of spring and next fall when I can get back on the road again!!