We Spent 6 Months in a Sprinter — Here's What Actually Broke
After half a year in a Sprinter van across the Mountain West, here's the honest list of what broke, what cost real money, and what we'd build differently.
Real-experience travel, RV, and camping guides. No generic AI-tourism slop, no MLM scams, no points-blogger fairy tales — just intel from people who actually go places.
Read the cornerstones Browse categoriesEight verticals. Each hub has comparison reviews, tutorials, and listicles built from real trips and real gear failures.
Money-saving systems for flights, hotels, and cards. Real plays, not points-blogger fluff.
// rv-van-lifeBuilds, breakdowns, weekend rigs, full-time setups. From people who actually slept in them.
// campingTents, backcountry, car camping, campgrounds. Gear we put through real weather.
// florida-vacationsEmerald Coast, Keys, Orlando-adjacent. Local angle, year-round intel.
// national-parksItineraries, permit strategy, and the workaround when reservations close.
// budget-travelTrips under a number. Flights, lodging, meals — the math, not the vibes.
// travel-gearBackpacks, water filters, satellite messengers, sleep systems. We test, we report.
// beach-coastalBeach guides, safety, family-friendly, the months that don't suck.
Long-form pieces we keep getting emails about.
The trips, the gear failures, the tactics that earned a real writeup.
After half a year in a Sprinter van across the Mountain West, here's the honest list of what broke, what cost real money, and what we'd build differently.
Some of the most-Instagrammed places on Earth are still genuinely worth it. Here are seven we kept going back to and why.
October-December in Florida is one of America's best-kept camping secrets. 70-degree days, 50-degree nights, no bugs, no crowds.
Iceland is supposed to be expensive. Here's exactly how we did 10 days for $1,200 with two people, real numbers, no hand-waving.
Five filters, six months, three states. Sawyer, Platypus, Katadyn, Grayl, Steripen — the one that actually held up.
Underpowered panels, MPPT confusion, fused wrong, and the inverter that cooked the bank. Don't do these.