This Affordable Camper Van Is Somehow Under $50k
The giant EarthRoamers and Mercedes Sprinter vans are cool. It’s hard to deny the versatility and comfort of those big rigs, but the small campers are carving out a pretty cool space, too. This is doubly true when you take into account how much those big rig RVs cost. It may be small, but the Dailycamper is a super affordable camper van that has everything you need – even a toilet.
How much should you spend on a camper van?
This is a very subjective question and one without a “correct” answer. However, your bank account will likely help figure out your budgetary restrictions pretty quickly. Considering how EarthRoamers start around half a million dollars, most people don’t need much advice there.
But, the average market price for the new, built-out camper vans tends to be somewhere around the $80,000-$100,000 mark. So any camper that comes in at nearly half of that is noteworthy, indeed.
The Dailycamper starts at €38,900 (approx. US$45,700), and additional options include electrical and solar packages, a camp heater, LED lighting, and a dog crate. The base van comes with a 99-hp 1.6-liter MultiJet diesel engine, six-speed transmission, and three removable rear seats, and options include a 118-hp engine upgrade, trailer hitch, and roof rails. This affordable camper van is simple, sweet, and small.
Are small camper vans a good choice?
It all depends on what you intend to do with it. If you wanted to live in the Dailycamper full time, it might be a touch small for that, but for a city-savey weekend getaway machine, it’s perfect.
New Atlas reports that the founder of Dailycamper knows a thing or two about adventure travel. Thomas Kliem is a well-decorated world traveler. He spent years as a professional travel guide, travel writer, lecturer, and travel TV-programmer. He’s also done RV-related work with the TÜV Nord international safety certification agency. When he wasn’t traveling for work, he spent the last three decades traveling in an RV with his family.
All that to say, Kliem knows a good camper van when he sees one (or designs one, in this case.) All those many years of professional travel experience have led him to fill the affordable camper van market gap.
How big is the Dailycamper van?
Unlike many other small camper vans, or even like the Rivian R1T, where they make up for the lack of space by having deployable kitchen and dining equipment meant to be used outside, the Dailycamper goes about it like the big dogs. The Dailycamper has a fully indoor floor plan similar to what you’d commonly find on a larger midsize-van camper, only with slightly miniaturized equipment, fixtures, and furniture.
The tiny kitchenette has a single burner stove, a tiny sink with a 25-L freshwater tank, and a build-in 12/220-V Dometic cool box under the bench.
The affordable camper van has a roughly full-size bed that folds out of the rear bench seat. It will certainly be a cozy snuggle for two, but pretty impressive given how small this camper van is. Lastly, the tiny van might not have a full, built-in bathroom, but it does have a small deployable toilet. This travel John can be mercifully brought outside for campers to do their business away from the confines of the van.
At only 6’2, the Dailycamper is pretty short. This makes parking garages no problem, but the taller campers will have to do some crouching. Overall this tiny package really has everything you need. While there are probably a few things that would be nice to have, the price point makes up for a multitude of sins.
