Van Life vs Hotel Life vs a Connie-style Hybrid Nomad Life
I've been a van lifer for over 10 years. My cozy little home on wheels is a self-converted 2015 Ford Transit cargo van - which I've had from the get-go.
But something within me has changed over the years.
A Couple of Detours
I paused van life in 2018 to care for my Dad. In 2020, Dad passed away and I was back on the road in the van.
In 2021, I thought a travel trailer was a good idea. I towed it around the country for 8 months before selling it and happily moving back into the van. Life just wasn't simple anymore. The van offered a kind of freedom that the trailer just couldn't match.
This Past Year
Usually, I stay at a hotel for a couple days a year due to high heat and humidity (the van doesn't have air conditioning - other than when I'm driving).
But 2025 was far from an ordinary year. I've had to stay at hotels so much that I've already earned free nights from the hotel rewards!
The van needed multiple repairs and was in the shop up to a week each time. I had to find hotel accommodations while I waited.
This past summer was a doozy with multiple periods of high heat and humidity.
Wildfire smoke also drove me to a hotel for a couple days.
The Challenge of Staying at Hotels
I have Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) and hotels can be tricky.
But lately, I've had good luck finding hotels I can tolerate with few, if any, issues. I have no more MCS reactions than what I encounter in van life - because no lifestyle is 100% MCS-proof.
Wintering in South Florida
I usually spend winter at a campground in southeast Florida. I'm here from early December to late March visiting my daughter, enjoying the sunny weather, galavanting around the Florida Keys, and whatever I feel compelled to do.
This year, I just wasn't feeling like staying at the campground. I've had many fun experiences there and met lots of cool people. But something within me has changed.
I stayed a week at the campground and booked an extended stay hotel for the remainder of my time here.
Hotel Life
I've been at the hotel just over 2 weeks and it already feels like home.
I'm also loving hot showers, a full sized fridge with a freezer, a microwave, air conditioning, more space, and not dealing with the weather as closely as I had to in the van.
At this point in time, I have no desire to live anywhere permanently. My home is still where I park it - and that holds true even when my van is parked outside of my hotel window.
Parting Thoughts
I've known something within me has changed. I just can't pinpoint it yet. I'm simply going with the flow as the details reveal themselves.
I don't know if hotel life will be a thing for me, if I'll go back to full-time van life, or if I'll go hybrid - combining van life and hotel life to create a hybrid Connie-style version of nomad life.
What I do know is, I'm up for the adventure!
Connie 🌺
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