I Put a Camping Module on My Van: Third Road Trip with My Home on Wheels

In 2019, my family took our first trip to Joshua Tree National Park in our converted modular camper. Like nomads, we planted our home deep in the desert. From that moment, I fell in love with the feeling of taking my home on the road. Later, I organized a group of fellow camper owners for a converted modular camper road trip around Florida.

Two years ago at this time, I recommended giving modular camper travel a try. No hotels, no crowded public transit, every meal cooked by yourself, zero contact with strangers, yet still drifting through ever-changing scenery, stopping wherever you please. I said modular camper travel was the ideal choice for anyone yearning to break free during the pandemic.

Who would have thought that years later, we still need this way of traveling.

Modular Camper Camping Is Easier

A set of modules turns an ordinary van into a tiny mobile home, sheltering you from wind and rain, giving you a place to live. A double bed, kitchen, and shower all in one—small but fully equipped. This saves you the hassle of buying separate camping gear and the steps of pitching a tent. When the vehicle stops, you are home.

Modular camper camping is more convenient. With a built-in 13-gallon water tank and 12V power supply, you have the water and electricity modern life cannot do without. Washing dishes, washing your face, brushing your teeth—none of these are a problem. Ventilation and insulation designs make sleeping outdoors comfortable in both winter and summer.

The kitchen module comes with simple cooking facilities, so starting a fire and making a meal is no issue at all. The shower space solves the awkwardness of not finding a place to wash up during wilderness camping.

Modular Camper Camping Is More Unique

These years of being confined have only intensified people's longing for nature. The same cup of coffee tastes better sipped between mountains, rivers, lakes, and seas than at home.

Driving a converted modular camper, stopping wherever you please, living with the flow. Plant your home in the scenery: open the door, and inside is life; outside is the world.

Is Modular Camper Travel Right for You?

I do not want to just recommend this to you blindly. Let me first talk about some practical realities to help you look at this unique way of traveling more objectively.

Travel in the conventional sense is something you are 'served.' Someone cleans your room; at a nicer hotel, they even turn down your bed at night. Someone cooks your meals; when hungry, you simply go to a restaurant or diner. Modular camper travel is absolutely not about being 'served.'

Not for People with Poor Hands-On Skills

Modular camper travel requires doing things yourself, managing a mobile home. Before every drive, you must secure everything, lock all storage compartments, and prevent items from falling due to road bumps. Close the doors, check the windows, and avoid scrapes while driving.

You need to monitor your modular camper's battery and water reserves, managing power and water use wisely. The battery can charge while driving, but the water tank needs an external hookup to refill. You also have to handle kitchen gray water yourself.

A modular camper moves your life into a micro mobile space, requiring cooperation from the whole family. If you are not handy, or if your partner is someone who does not help with daily life, modular camper travel may not be for you.

Not for People Who Cannot Accept Travel Diversity

The limited space of a modular camper means its amenities are not spacious. The bed is not as soft as a king-size hotel mattress, and the shower cannot fit a spa tub. If you feel this kind of travel would be physically uncomfortable, then staying at a hotel is indeed more enjoyable. But staying at a hotel means you cannot fall asleep inside flowing scenery.

Of course, a modular camper is undeniably far more comfortable than a tent. Anyone who can accept tent camping will find a modular camper is basically luxury outdoor living.

Modular Camper Detailed Guide

If you have read this far without losing enthusiasm, if you still long for this irreplaceable travel experience, then let us get into the detailed modular camper guide.

1.Interior Layout: Everything You Need Is in the Modules

Take my modular camper as an example: Sleeping area: a double bed with bedding and linens. Living area: a fold-down table and tall storage cabinet. Bathroom area: a sink and shower space. Kitchen area: a faucet, cutting board, and simple cooking facilities.

Our family's first converted modular camper trip started from Los Angeles, heading north on I-5 toward Joshua Tree National Park. Along the way, we hit the busy I-10, which was quite a challenge for my husband, still new to driving a converted modular camper. But after about an hour of getting used to it, he could handle it with ease.

Our second converted modular camper trip was in Florida—open roads, sparse traffic, all of which made driving easier. That time, we traveled with five other families, all of them first-timers driving a converted modular camper. One family even had a woman driving the entire trip, and everyone completed the journey smoothly and effortlessly.

This time in Los Angeles, passing through densely trafficked city streets, our friends who were operating a converted modular camper for the first time had no problems at all.

Automatic transmission, basically the same as driving a regular sedan.

Standard van size, but you need to get used to the vehicle width, especially when passing obstacles and making turns.

Also watch the vehicle height, and be careful of low-hanging branches on both sides of the road.

Before starting the engine, make sure all doors and windows are closed and do a final check.

2.What to Prepare for the Trip

Essentials: personal luggage, toiletries, flashlight or headlamp—very useful when connecting to water and power at night.

Pots suitable for a portable stove, outdoor table and chairs. Or purchase these together with the module.

Here are some quick, modular-camper-friendly dishes: curry over steamed rice, pan-seared steak, steamed seafood, steamed rice, stewed beef or stewed vegetables are all good options. Pasta, eggs, and frozen burgers work better for breakfast. After the kids fall asleep at night, we even made hot cocoa, gazing at the star-filled sky and the sea—utterly romantic.

3.About Campgrounds: A Modular Camper Cannot Do Without Water and Power

In recent years, the number of campgrounds across the country has been growing. Florida, California, Texas, and other states all have dense networks of campgrounds to choose from. You can stop at a campground just to refill water and power and then hit the road again, or you can stay overnight to rest.

Currently, there are several legitimate campgrounds with full hookups around Los Angeles. For a modular camper one-day or two-day trip, you can fill up water and power in one go, with no need for campground resupply. For trips longer than two days, make sure your route includes campgrounds along the way.

4.Route Recommendations Should Factor in Campgrounds, Road Conditions, and Natural Environment

The routes best suited for modular camper travel across the country are Florida, California, Texas, and Arizona. For a one- to two-day trip in and around Los Angeles, here are some places where you can park your modular camper right beside you for camping.

This module system is the VanUnit modular system. It outfits an ordinary van with a double bed, kitchen, and shower, a 13-gallon water system and 12V power, tool-free installation, no damage to the original vehicle, and the ability to switch between daily commuting and weekend travel at any time, all at a relatively affordable price.