How to Live Out Your Airstream Dream
From solar panels to low-cost campsites, full-time Airstreamers share their top tips for life on the road.
The wanderlust-triggering #AirstreamLife on Instagram is an enviable feed of people who swapped conventional dwellings for life on the road in the adorable aluminum campers. They make road-tripping for a living look easy — but they’ll confess to plenty of challenges. Heed their general road trip advice plus what to keep in mind when journeying in a travel trailer.
The Couple Who Ditched City Life
Lisa Kageyama and John Lloyd had worked high-pressure jobs in New York City for a decade when they began to reexamine their lives. “We’re like, is this it? Getting on the subway every morning, going to work, trying to fit in a vacation here and there,” says Lisa, 34. “Is that what our life is going to be? We weren’t satisfied with that.”
In January 2018 they decided to save up to quit their jobs and spend a year traveling. They bought a 1994 Excella 1000 Airstream from Flagstaff, Arizona; had it shipped to their house in upstate New York; and spent six and a half months renovating it. “We would drive from the city every Friday after work and usually worked Saturday and Sunday renovating, then drove back to the city Sunday night. It was exhausting,” says John, 33. They listed their home on Airbnb and hit the road in December with their two mini Australian Shepherds, and have visited 16 states so far.
Favorite gas-station snack indulgence
John: Doritos
Lisa: Gummi Bears
Go-to song to sing while driving
John: “Wildflowers” by Tom Petty
Lisa: “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” by Whitney Houston
Favorite unexpected stop so far
“We stopped along the Klamath River on the border of Oregon and California because we saw a ton of Airstreams, and we ended up crashing an Airstream rally and they invited us to stay,” says Lisa. “Community is the most welcoming thing that we find on the road.”
Road-Trip Advice
Research low-cost campsites. “We stay on public lands wherever possible,” says Lisa, which are generally free or require a small fee. You can look at the Bureau of Land Management website, and find free campgrounds on National Forest lands too. Airstream recommends Harvest Hosts and Boondockers Welcome (and the RV Dump Stations database and SpotHero for inexpensive parking). Lisa and John use Go Pet Friendly to find dog-friendly places, and “I [also] use “Campendium, Allstays, or Free Campsites to find places to stay economically,” Lisa says.
Invest in a tire pressure monitor. Since you’re towing the Airstream with your vehicle, Lisa and John recommend stopping every six hours or so on longer drives. “I’ve read about people having blowouts on the highway, causing thousands in damage,” John says. The tire pressure monitor “allows us to make sure we’re safe” and that the pressure isn’t too low to drive. An alarm alerts them if they have a leak or if a tire is getting too hot. “We keep a portable pump,” Lisa adds, “but use gas station pumps because they are faster.”
Portable solar panels are your friend. Adding solar to an RV can be expensive, “but the portable panels are a quarter of the cost” of having panels professionally installed on the roof of their Airstream, says John. “We store them under our backseat, and when we’re camping off grid we can keep our battery charged as long as there’s enough sun.”
The Solo Nomadic Surfer and Yogi
Two years ago Stacey Powers, 33, was running her remote business that offers social media, content creation, graphic design, and photography, but she wanted to take advantage of her flexible lifestyle. She’d been based in San Diego for about eight years, and thought, “If I can work anywhere in the world, why not take that on the road and be able to have a mobile office?” Her parents gifted her a 2016 Flying Cloud Airstream, she bought an F-150 truck, and she has worked from the road as a “digital nomad” ever since.
Powers, a surfer and yogi, has been up the California coast to Vancouver Island, Seattle; across country to Ohio to visit family; and throughout New England. She is part of the Wally Byam Airstream Club, an international organization that connects her with fellow Airstream enthusiasts who also offer courtesy parking all over the country. “I’ve had people let me stay for weeks at a time just based off of common interest,” she says.
Favorite gas station snack indulgence
Hard-boiled eggs, pickles, and string cheese
Go-to song to sing while driving
“Wildflowers” by Tom Petty (clearly a popular road song)
Favorite unexpected stop so far
“I’m not one for the desert, but a last-minute decision to see the super bloom at Anza-Borrego Desert State Park this past year had me in awe of its beauty.”
Her Road Trip Advice
Monitor battery consumption. If you’re planning to “boondock,” or go offgrid with your Airstream, Stacey says to make sure you have enough supplies like propane, food, and water, and that the battery is charged before you hit the road. “The batteries only have so many life cycles and each time they drop out well below 50 percent you’re cutting the battery life short,” she says. “Every time you turn on a light you’re using amperage. Without a generator or solar, you can go about two days of moderate use before you have to charge.” To up levels, you can look for campgrounds with full hookups, generators, or solar power. Another pro tip to save battery consumption is showering at a nationwide chain gym and using WiFi at coffee shops.
Use your space to eat local. “A nice thing about having a mini apartment” on wheels “is that you’re able to experience local things, but take it back to your own house,” says Stacey. “Going to a farmers’ market is one cost-effective way to not only be immersed in local culture, but allow yourself the freedom to plan out your meals. I love picking up local coffee beans and making coffee at home.”
If you get lonely, seek out things that remind you of home. Stacey says if she’s feeling homesick, she looks for familiar activities and amends her route to visit family and friends. “When I’ve been on the coast, just going surfing helps me ground myself back to being like, ‘Okay, I am home,’” she says. Stacey says it’s great to open yourself to new experiences on the road, but that she’s also found community through her hobbies. “Whether I met them out in the water or at a yoga class or we’re both working from the road,” she says, “the people I’ve met and have stayed in touch with are the ones that I have common interests with.”
The History-Loving Freelancers
A few years ago, newlyweds Govinda and Gabbi Tamburino were working remotely and living in Denver when it was time to renew their apartment lease. Buying a home in Colorado was too costly, and they were inspired by friends who were traveling and living out of an RV in nature. They fell in love with the classic design of an Airstream, and used money they’d been saving to buy a used F-150 truck and put a down payment instead on their 2017 Flying Cloud. “We loved the idea of buying something that would be ours versus an apartment where you’re paying rent forever,” says Gabbi, 27, a product manager. “When people see it, they’re like, ‘Wow, you’re going to have that for your kids and their kids,’” says Govinda, 27, a freelance software architect.
The Tamburinos have lived and worked on the road for two years and mostly use solar energy to power their Airstream. So far they’ve crisscrossing the country to Florida to visit family to New Orleans, to Texas, throughout the Southwest, and up the coast of California to Oregon.
Favorite gas station snack indulgence
Govinda: Flamin’ Hot Cheetos
Gabbi: Snyder’s of Hanover Honey Mustard & Onion Pretzels
Games they play while driving
“I have a playlist of covers versus originals,” says Gabbi. “We’ll listen to an original song and then the cover, and discuss which one’s better.”
Favorite unexpected stop so far
“We were passing through Fredericksburg, Texas, on our way to El Paso, and were enchanted with all the old buildings and German-style town square,” says Govinda. “We decided to stop and spend some time in the town and learn its history. Sometimes on these trips, we have a destination in mind and you’re so focused on getting there that you miss things along the way. If you have the time, stop and soak it in.”
Go-to app on the road
“GasBuddy helps us keep costs low, as gas is our largest expense.”
Road-Trip Advice
Learn about spots you’re passing through. Govinda and Gabbi don’t just research destinations but also the areas they’re driving past. “Govinda is usually the driver and I’ll be in the passenger seat looking up the history of the area,” Gabbi says. While passing through Navajo Nation recently, they researched Native American history, and when they see interesting names on the road, Gabbi says, “We’re like, what does this mean? Like we were driving through a city in New Mexico called Truth or Consequences (a small resort town between Albuquerque and Las Cruces named after a 1950s game show). I hop online so we can stay educated.”
Be flexible about where you stay. Changes in weather can delay your arrival, and finding spots at first-come first-served campgrounds can be difficult. “Plans fail most of the time,” says Govinda, so having a list of nearby backup spots is smart. If places are full, Govinda says they’ll look for a local Walmart, which Gabbi adds are well-lit and safe places to park and stay the night. Not all Walmarts might encourage RV parking, but Govinda adds that he calls “the store and I ask to speak to a manager, and a lot are receptive. You can say we’re car camping, and passing through for one night.”
Listen to locals. “A lot of our plans change when we hear something from locals,” says Gabbi. At a coffee shop in Raton, New Mexico, Govinda asked if they could use the shop’s WiFi and a couple who lived nearby approached them to introduce themselves. “They thanked us for asking permission, and gave us cool intel to go to Saint John’s Church, this tiny historic church on a mesa in Raton,” she says. “If you’re open, people will reveal themselves.”
About the author: Jessica Militare is a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in Glamour, Elle, Marie Claire, New York Magazine, and American Way. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and their terrier mix, Stevie (after rock goddess Nicks). You can find her on Twitter.
