As the skoolie trend has become more and more of a staple of modern society, people have had many different thoughts and opinions about it. You may not understand the appeal of living in a converted bus, with the thought of having no permanent address making you anxious. Or, you may romanticize skoolie life as a traveler’s dream, picturing endless adventures and indulging in wanderlust.
Many people just don’t know much about what it’s like to live in a bus full-time, making it easy for misconceptions to spread. Let’s debunk some of these common myths and learn a little more about what full-time bus life is really like!
1) You have to be rich to do a bus conversion.
When you compare the before and after pictures of a bus conversion, it seems like it would take a pretty hefty check to make that kind of magic happen. While you’ll certainly need to have a good chunk of savings to get started, it’s not out of reach for the average person. The average conversion costs anywhere between $10,000-$30,000, depending on the amenities you want. When you think about it, it’s not much more than saving for a down payment for a house.
2) You can park your bus anywhere.
While a bus conversion is certainly a flexible way of living, you can’t just drive and park it anywhere you want on a whim. Location restrictions and the need for resources can make it challenging to find a place that meets your needs, especially for a longer-term spot. You’ll need to take into account things like water access, electrical power, WiFi in some cases, etc., as well as the physical size of your vehicle. Not all campground and RV parks are made to accommodate buses, and some don’t even allow them.
3) Full-time bus life is just one big vacation.
A lot of people fantasize about what living in a bus conversion would be like, assuming it’s an easy, carefree life of nonstop travel and exploration. Although this is true to an extent, the skoolie lifestyle comes with its own obstacles and responsibilities. For example, you may have to figure out where you can park to sleep that night, find water, propane, and other essential supplies on short notice, or locate a place to dump your water. Don’t forget to take into account vehicle maintenance too, which is often a lot of time, money, and headache.
4) People who live in buses are weird.
Turning a bus into a tiny home is not a conventional way to live, but that doesn’t mean that those who do it are hippies or odd somehow. People sometimes hold prejudice against full-time bus residents, assuming they chose their lifestyle because they couldn’t handle responsibility or cut it in the “real world”. This couldn’t be further from the truth though. Living on a bus is fulfilling in different ways—an alternative to the traditional 9-5 lifestyle. Skoolie folk are just like you, they’re just not living exactly in the way that society expects.
5) A bus conversion is a lifelong commitment.
People often think you have to choose between the skoolie lifestyle and a traditional life with a house, career, family etc. Aside from the fact that you can have all of those things and a bus conversion at the same time anyway, choosing the bus life now doesn’t mean that has to be your life forever. Some people live in their conversion for a few months, a few years, and yes, some for the rest of their lives. Everybody is looking for something different out of their skoolie experience. You can stay for as long as you like, and are free to make a change if you decide the time is right.
If you think you’re ready to see what full-time bus life is really about, Northwest Bus Sales can set you up with the perfect vehicle to call home. Our inventory includes a variety of new and used buses in all different styles, including coach buses, school buses, shuttle buses, and more. Just tell us what you’re looking for in a bus conversion, and we’ll find the right bus for the job.
Contact us today to get started!