Parental leave in a campervan
A summer in Sweden, three months around Europe or wintering on the Costa Brava—spending parental leave with your baby in a campervan and heading for places that you'd otherwise never find the time to visit. Today, that’s almost a standard wish on every new parent’s bucket list. And it really is a fantastic idea!
Tips for a successful family break
While not everything will go as portrayed in the 24/7 sunshine-filled, Instagram-inspired adventure stories, those months in the campervan can be a wonderful family break. What you need is a bit of camping experience, good holiday planning, and the right equipment for life with a young child. That way, the family time you want really will be relaxing. Here we share practical tips and advice—from parental-leave families for parental-leave families.
Vans and panel vans – travel vehicles for young families
Parents with a baby or toddler choose to travel in a van or panel van for nearly 80 percent of their family break time, and to all sorts of destinations—from sunny southern Europe to the far north. Reasons range from “cover a lot of distance in little time” to “we don’t need much”, right through to value for money when renting or buying the right vehicle.
On the other hand, this means there’s less storage space and you’ll need packing tricks and smart ideas—much more so than with a motorhome or caravan.
Travel tips from parental-leave couples
Both of our featured families spent their parental-leave break in a panel van. Nicole and Klaus as well as Ina and her husband Sebastian share why the time in the campervan was unforgettable for them, how important good planning is and what (baby) essentials they couldn’t do without.
Nicole and Klaus travelled with their daughter Lotta in a Fiat Ducato. Their first trip took them to Sardinia when Lotta was six months old—and many more tours followed in the years to come, as they spread their parental leave across several travel years. “Our main wishes were to spend time as a family, enjoy freedom, soak up the sun, and jump into crystal-clear water. There’s always something to do at home, appointments and obligations wait for you, and family time often suffers. With our campervan, we always had our home with us and could travel flexibly,” Nicole says about their reasons for spending their parental leave in a campervan.
Ina and Sebastian were also on the road in several stages with their then three-month-old son, with the two biggest trips taking them to the Netherlands and the UK. At that time, a Fiat Ducato was their home. “We didn’t always stay exclusively in the campervan—we also spent part of the time in holiday cottages. The campervan gave us a great way to take plenty of breaks on travel days. This way of travelling made our parental leave on the road much easier,” says Ina.
Camping experience is helpful and valuable
Both couples were already experienced campers before their parental-leave adventures—a real advantage. As always, experience and knowledge come to your rescue in unexpected situations or new challenges.
And all campers know: Something unpredictable always happens on a trip. “What’s important, in my view, is to be aware of the limited space in a campervan—especially with a baby. The best way is to have gone camping a few times before, because packing in a van takes practice too,” says Ina.
Choose destination and route carefully
Especially with a little one on board, both the destination and the route are crucial to a successful parental-leave trip. Even experienced campers ask themselves whether a journey to the North Cape or driving thousands of kilometres in just a few days really puts the parents’ wishes ahead of the much-celebrated family time!
Nicole and her family also chose their destination with care: “With our daughter only six months old, we chose Sardinia for our first trip because we’d already been there twice and knew the set-up of the campsites and pitches. We also knew a few places where we could spend the night off-grid. I always read up on new destinations, research important information in advance, and pick out places we’d like to see. We then adapt our plans on the road, based on new ideas, discoveries, and tips from locals or other travellers. That’s part of what it’s all about with a campervan.”
Ina and her husband also deliberately chose Holland. “We picked the Netherlands as it’s a wonderful place for camping, we’d already visited several times, and we knew it would work well with a baby.”
Choose safety measures on the road wisely
Travelling, with or without children, always makes safety measures a wise idea. For those on the road in a campervan, that means both technical safety features and steps to protect against theft and burglary. We recommend choosing safety measures in line with your route, the countries you visit, and your personal sense of security.
Pack smart and choose essential equipment
Young families travelling in a van or panel van generally need less in the way of special technical equipment or features. The core issues are: plenty of storage and clever packing. You can achieve this with DIY-shelves, storage organisers or space-saving ideas. If you plan on taking bikes, we recommend carrier systems with a swivel function, so you always have access to the rear doors—making it easier to reach under-bed storage. Want to make further conversions or gather inspiration? The AL-KO VT Accessories Webstore for Caravanning offers all sorts of useful kit.
LevelVan
The first hydraulic levelling system with carbon cylinders for panel vans
One special technical feature is likely to catch the eye of new parents on the road: LevelVan, the new hydraulic levelling system for panel vans. Thanks to its stable support, your little ones can sleep soundly while you move about the campervan more freely. The carbon cylinders keep the system’s weight low, so you have less to worry about in terms of payload.
Top 3 packing list essentials for on the go
Our featured families consider the following items to be the most essential equipment for travelling with a toddler: “Favourite toy, pasta, and ibuprofen—those can’'t be missing!” says Nicole. For Ina, these are must-haves: “Awning, extra compartment for changing items, and wet wipes. The awning proved very practical, as it allowed us to be outside even when it was drizzling or sunny.” Ina also has a pro tip: “We set up a compartment in the campervan just for changing essentials like nappies, wipes, creams and so on. This way we always had everything needed at hand and never had to search for long.”
Other baby gear must-haves for a parental-leave campervan trip:
- Pushchair
- Infant carrier or sling
- Baby bath or mini paddling pool
- Travel cot
- Changing bag and mat
- Travel highchair
- Play mat
- Toys and cuddly animals
- Children’s sun cream and insect repellent
- Any personal essentials
Note: Keep travel documents, vaccination records, and health card close at hand and up to date when travelling with a small child—so you can react quickly if needed. Appropriate travel or overseas health insurance is also essential for everyone.
What’s special about parental-leave time in the campervan – personal conclusions
And now the personal conclusion from our parental-leave travellers: What were the highlights of their travels, and why was the family time in the campervan the right decision?
“Thanks to the campervan, we were able to take unforgettable trips that we probably couldn’t have managed in our child’s first year with an ordinary car.” (Ina)
Ina fondly remembers waking up together as a special moment on their trips to the Netherlands and the UK: “Waking up together in the morning, looking out at nature through the window, and starting the day with a relaxed coffee—that was my favourite travel moment almost every day!”
“Because we could enjoy our shared freedom in special places.” (Nicole)
Nicole counts these as key moments of her travels: “At six months old, Lotta learnt to sit up in the sand at the beach—it’s hard to imagine a more beautiful setting. Plus, we made some lovely holiday friends on the road, and to this day one family is among our closest friends.”
We wish all parental-leave travellers unforgettable trips!
