Most people who start van life regret one or two early decisions. Almost all of them are decisions that get made without enough information. This piece is the honest pre-flight checklist — the questions to think through before any money changes hands.
Question 1: Why do you actually want to do this?
Sounds soft. Isn't. The right van life answer for "I want to travel Ireland for a summer" is utterly different from "I want to live in a van full-time to escape rent". The right answer for "weekend escapism while keeping my apartment" is different again.
- Summer travel: hire is almost always the right call. Lower commitment, no winter to plan for, you find out if you actually like it.
- Full-time, no fixed home: commit to a vehicle you'll be in for 3+ years. Conversion makes sense; it has to fit your specific routine.
- Weekenders: a smaller, more compromised setup is fine because you're not in it 30 nights a month. A converted Berlingo or Caddy works for two; they're under-rated for occasional use.
- Working remotely from the road: add a separate budget category for connectivity (e-SIM, multi-network) and dedicated workspace. Most "van life setups" don't have a desk that survives a 9-hour Zoom day.
Question 2: Hire, buy, or convert?
The decision that shapes everything else.
Hire
Best first move for anyone who hasn't lived in a van. A week with Bunk, Indie, Roadsurfer or one of the smaller Irish operators (see the rentals comparison) tells you 80% of what you need to know — how cramped does it actually feel, can you cook in a 2-burner, do you mind the toilet routine, do you actually want to keep doing this for another week.
Cost: €700–€1,400 for a week in shoulder season for a 2-berth, more for July/August. A genuine bargain compared to the cost of buying the wrong van.
Buy a finished campervan
Used campervan prices in Ireland for 2026:
- 2010–2015 Fiat Ducato or VW T4 conversion: €15,000–€25,000
- 2015–2020 Mercedes Sprinter conversion: €28,000–€48,000
- 2020+ factory motorhome (Adria, Hymer, Westfalia): €42,000–€80,000+
The advantage: it's done; you can drive it home and sleep in it that night. The disadvantage: you inherit someone else's choices, including the dodgy ones. Always insist on a habitation check, a damp meter reading on every wall, a current gas cert, and a working leisure-battery test before signing anything.
Convert
Cheapest in materials, dearest in time. A second-hand long-wheel-base panel van costs €8,000–€25,000 (Ford Transit, Renault Master, Sprinter, Crafter). Conversion materials are another €6,000–€15,000 if you DIY. Time: realistically 200–500 hours, plus weekends watching YouTube.
Right for: people with time, basic carpentry/electrics confidence, somewhere off-street to do the work, and a strong opinion about how they want to live in it.
Wrong for: anyone who needs the van by the end of next month.
Question 3: Where will you park it 80% of the time?
A van that's parked outside an apartment block in Dublin is a very different van from one that's parked at a friend's farm in Wexford. Considerations:
- Dublin (and other big-city) apartments: parking on the street near apartment blocks is hard. Many city councils now have residents-only parking in the inner ring. Realistic options: paid storage compound, a friend's driveway, or an annual space at a marina/storage yard (€500–€1,200/year).
- Suburban driveway: if you have one, this is the dream — charge the leisure battery, work on the conversion, no storage costs. Most planning permissions don't restrict it; check yours.
- Rural / farm: generally fine. Sometimes neighbours object; always worth a polite chat.
- Touring constantly: you don't need a base, but you do need a registered address for insurance, vehicle correspondence, and the NCT. Family member or trusted friend.
Question 4: Have you read the law?
Wild camping in Ireland is a grey area. There's no national right to wild camp like Scotland's; on private land you need permission; on public land it's mostly tolerated outside National Parks if you're discreet, gone by morning, and leave no trace. The full picture is on the wild camping page.
The mistake new van lifers make: assuming "no signage" means "go for it forever". The behaviour that's tolerated is one night, low-impact, gone in the morning. Three nights stationary in the same coastal car park is what causes councils to put up signs.
Question 5: What's the actual money?
Three numbers worth pinning down before you commit:
- Setup cost. Vehicle + conversion (or finished van) + initial gear. €15,000 absolute minimum for something useable; €25,000–€40,000 for a proper setup; €50,000+ if you want new and spacious.
- Annual running cost. €10,000–€20,000/year depending on whether you're full-time wild-camping or full-time at sites. Full breakdown on the costs page.
- Exit cost. If van life doesn't suit you, what's the resale picture? Mid-aged Sprinter conversions hold value reasonably (60–70% of cost over 3 years if well-maintained); cheap DIY conversions on tired bases lose more.
Question 6: Are you ready for an Irish winter?
Most people start in summer. The first winter is when van life gets real. Planning notes:
- A diesel heater that works is non-negotiable. Don't try to stay warm with electric heaters; they'll empty any battery overnight.
- Damp is the enemy. A roof fan running on speed 1 continuously costs basically nothing in current and saves you from mould.
- Many "year-round" Irish caravan parks close November to March. The list of actually-open winter sites is shorter than the directories suggest.
- Daylight in December is 8 hours. Plan for short days; don't overschedule them.
There's a separate winter article that goes into the kit and the practical details.
The seven-step starter plan
- Hire a van for a week. Do a real trip in your real conditions.
- Decide hire / buy / convert based on that experience plus your actual budget.
- Read the wild camping and costs pages.
- If buying or converting, line up the right vehicle base and the right insurance — specialist motorhome insurance, not standard van.
- Build / buy. Allow 30% more time than you think.
- Do a one-week shake-down trip close to home. Things will break / leak / wobble. Fix them where you have your tools.
- Then do a real route. The routes guide has options for week-long, fortnight, and three-week trips.
You'll know within a month whether van life is for you. If it is, the second month is when you start enjoying it — the first one is mostly logistics. That's the part the Instagram reels never show.