Voyager Campervans: Rent the Van Life

“Hey honey, our anniversary is coming up post-haste. What’s the plan, Stan?”

{grins a grin I’ve never seen before, clears his throat and says…} “I rented a van with a bed in the back and thought we could take it somewhere pretty.”

That, my friends, was a real life conversation between me and my husband a couple weeks back. My immediate thought was …Oh. Dear. God…

A) I’m not a camper. B) I like romance. C) Just…WHAT!?

While he has become quite the outdoorsman – taking guy trips to “just climb the Grand Canyon” – I am over here eating chips on our patio and taking the occasional one-mile run when I’m not whining about the cold weather. So it’s pretty obvious that “outdoorsy” isn’t in the top 3 adjectives my friends would use to describe me. However, he caught me in a moment of weakness or something and a “yes” slipped past my lips. So 11 years of marriage was going to be celebrated in a campervan at Perrot State Park in October. It was officially official.

He called up Voyager Campervans – a relatively new local Twin Cities company whose sole purpose is to get people outdoors, comfortably. They rent out the #VanLife. Instead of fully committing to this crazy new traveling phenomenon, you can live the experience without going all in. After a week or so, I was just as excited as he was – my hiking shoes and coffee creamer (it’s a luxury I refuse to leave behind) were packed and we were off on an epic, unique and not-long-enough kid-free anniversary adventure. You guys, even I can VanLife for a couple of days. 

Our plan included heading down the Minnesota and Wisconsin Wine Trail. Did you know this is a thing? It is. It’s called the Great River Road Wine Trail and it’s amazing. We stopped at wineries, restaurants, a vintage farm sale (my choice – muahahaha), and went on many a hike. If you ever get down to the Trempealeau County area, do it! We hiked up to Maiden Rock Bluff (not for the faint of heart) and cruised around Afton State Park, stopping at plenty of gorgeous pit stops along the way to Perrot State Park near Winona. The best part of the whole adventure was knowing we could stop at any time, open our back van doors, plop onto the full sized mattress and take in the scenery. Between the changing leaves and the lack of agenda, this was easily one of the most relaxing road trips I’ve ever experienced.

I’m going to take a minute and just talk up our sweet ride, ok? First of all, comfortable mattress. Plenty of leg room in the front. Comes with a coffee filter and pot, collapsible cups, silverware, stovetop, drinking water, two chairs, a built-in cooler, dish soap and more. Storage was a hollowed out shelf below the mattress, large enough to hold at least two large suitcases. We packed two of our own pillows and an extra blanket even though it came with those items (because I’m a freeze baby who has a thing about pillows). We wore hiking gear and sweatshirts the whole time, packed snacks, sodas, and coffee grounds and found the stovetop, lights and pull-out table to all be beyond simple, clean and creative.

We took our time getting to our campsite and arrived after 8pm, which in October in Minnesota is synonymous with “it was pitch black outside.” So we turned off the van, busted out the sweatpants, flipped on the interior lights (which dim…so cool), and had actual adult conversations before we both passed out at a ridiculously early time. My biggest fear going in was the cold. The inside of this van must’ve been insulated or something because it was NOT cold, like, at all. It was tight, however. I was only a little disappointed in one thing and that was the lack of headroom. It was hard to be in the van and not be able to fully sit up, ie. drinking on my side and having to roll out the side door to get out to pee in the middle of the night. But that’s my only knock of the entire weekend, and remember – I hate camping!

Waking up the next morning, we realized we were parked directly facing the lake. A family of ducks enjoyed infiltrating our view while we sipped hot coffee and laid in our van, propped heads and happy hearts. I slept so hard, the van was quiet and I am already asking to do it again. Nate suggested renting the four-person version (coming soon) so we can bring the whole family. That experience might not be similar in zen-like quality, but our kids would totally dig this adventure! So I’m thinking that’s going to happen sooner than later.

Voyager Campervans currently offers their “Minny” version, which holds and seats two. Depending on how long you rent, these range from $82-$99/day. They are coming out with their “Mondo” version soon though, which will hold and seat four and range from $146-$179/day. We can’t wait and are all in to do it again…and again…and again.

Don’t get me wrong – I still love a nice hotel room with my own bathroom and a warm shower, but when it comes to “roughing it,” this is a glamper’s dream alternative. I might come around to being outdoorsy after all! But, shhhh, don’t tell my husband.

READER DISCOUNT:
Think a Voyager Campervan would be a fun option for you? MinneMama readers get a $30 discount by signing up using the promo code: MINNEMAMAADVENTURE. Get out there and live life – rent one today!