I Swapped My Tiny Van for a Cottagecore Bus! (feat. Bus Off with Josie)

If you're new here, I'm Jessica and I travel solo and full-time around Europe in my campervan Frodo with my puppy Heidi. Two years ago I left my old life behind, quit my job, sold most of my belongings and started living nomadically, exploring beautiful places on the way and growing roots in the wild. Hi everyone, I hope you're doing well. Today is a very exciting day because I'm filming a much requested collaboration with Josie from Bus Stop with Josie and we are going to be swapping vans for 24 hours which will be super fun. So Josie and I have fairly similar lifestyles, we both do full-time solo female van life with the main difference being that I'm traveling in a tiny van and Josie has a big beautiful cottagecore bus that she calls her home and yeah it's going to be really fun having so much space just to myself and my dog of course. I used to live in a pretty big van but I was sharing it with my partner and it was still smaller than Josie's bus so I'm really looking forward to it. Today we are staying on this beautiful Wide With Consent campsite in Kent in England which we have all to ourselves and I think Josie is actually about to arrive so let's go and meet her. Meet Josie, a professional dancer turned van life Disney princess. Josie spent three years building out her beautiful cottagecore bus while working a full-time job and for the last couple of years she's been traveling the UK countryside with her pup Winnie and sharing her adventures on her channel and her travels have taken her from sunny Cornwall all the way up to the Scottish Highlands. I was really keen to try out Josie's bus but it turns out you actually need a lorry license to drive this beast and I only got my regular driving license three months ago so all I was allowed to was drive both the bus around the field to our camping spot. Well done! It's not as difficult as I thought, big pothole. It's an easy drive it's just the size of it. You have to push the accelerator you can really feel how much weight is being pulled. She goes maximum 30 miles uphill. How fast can you drive in this? Probably up to 60, 70 but then that's pretty good. It is good but you wouldn't want to drive like that because then you'll be eating the fuel like crazy. Yeah you actually can go that fast. Okay. Oh my god he looks absolutely gorgeous. I'm so excited. You too. Yeah well done. Wow you can really feel it vibrate throughout the bus. So let's compare our two vans because while we have a similar aesthetic these two vehicles are very different dimensions. Both the bus is a 2002 Mercedes Vario, 7 meters long, 2 meters wide and 3 meters high. Bo has 800 watts of solar, a 120 liter water tank and two big gas tanks. My van Frodo is a 2016 Box on Movano, 5.5 meters long, also 2 meters wide and 2.5 meters high although with my chimney I'm also just under 3 meters. Frodo has 300 watts of solar, an 86 liter water tank and the conversion is fully electric. Now it was time to get a closer look at each other's vans and do a little tour of the inside of the conversions. Oh it's so pretty. Heidi come look. Wow it's so pretty. So spacious my goodness. You can really tell that this bus is a couple of meters longer than my van. There's honestly not many vans where I feel like I could easily live here but this bus is definitely one of those builds. Wow. Oh look at this. The bed and the sofa. It's so nice to have a separate bed and sofa area. Oh I'm gonna be so comfy here. I could just fall asleep on the sofa. Oh it's so nice. This is ridiculous. Oh and the kitchen as well. It's like double the counter space I have. Oh lush. Feels like a luxurious van life holiday. Welcome. Thank you. Bed at the back. Yeah. Beautiful. It's so nice to have a fixed bed. It is a bit small though. Gas cooking. Yes. Matches in there. Fridge. I just love the light color scheme. What am I gonna need for the day? I mean cooking facilities. Yes okay yeah so everything is like stored under here. Put some pans and stuff like that. Cups. This is actually I've named her the deaf cupboard so you have to really be careful actually Jess and because we're on an angle like this it is gonna fly out at you. Oh no. Inside there yeah it's awful. Sometimes I have to navigate parking it so that way it's going down this way but it's like cups and all that stuff. Cups uh I'm gonna show you. You see it's quite heavy. I think I remember this bit from your van tour and then nothing happened. I think things will happen today. Oh that wasn't too bad. Not too bad. Cutlery. Matches. Anything else you need? Spices. Oh yeah I love that setup. Water. I don't really look in here it's awful but um. Well at least your running water is working. Yeah and there's labels and stuff so you'll be able to say you just put on fresh. What is that? Oh okay. And then there's levels to see how much water you've got but you'll be fine because I filled it up. Oh that's amazing I need something like that. Worst case I'll just shout. Cleaning stuff is all just shoved under here so if you need to like spray or whatever and then if you want candles in the evening this is my candle cupboard. Pantry. I don't know. And then this is just the toilet situation. It's a composting loo. I put all my loo roll on the back that's it really. They're a hot shower. There there is but I don't know if I've given you enough water for that actually. Oh no that was the one thing I was looking forward to. You could probably have a quick hot shower it's just that I haven't done that. I'll have a quick hot shower. Yeah okay. I don't want to heat up all your water. No don't be silly it's fine but um I'm just just pre-warning you that it might be a quick hot shower but it's also I have to say my eye mass also isn't like the best and uh it's a lukewarm hot shower. You have to click on here and then you have to click the shower pump in here but it's also a storage space so you have to get rid of everything out of there as well. Hello Hoover. Hoover's a necessity. I think I'm going to get rid of mine actually. What? I've been converted to sweeping. This is really handy for extra cooking space. Oh so you just put it between the counter spaces. Oh that is very cool. And for washing up it's really good. Oh for drying stuff yeah that's so much space. That's like three times the space I have in my kitchen. Like Josie's fan. Yeah? You want to move in here? We can move in here. Just for a day though. Heidi is right at home here. She loves it. Are you cosy? Welcome to your home for the day. I don't actually have running water for you today. Okay. I've had some issues with my water system because I'm literally just back from my Europe trip but there's backup water in my jerry can so you can use that for a day. Luckily it's very warm. So this is my hob. Kitchen is all electric so you have to be a bit mindful of electricity. I've got two kilowatts. This is the bathroom. You get in there? Yeah. It's tiny. I don't think you'll be able to stand up in there. No. I can sit down so that's all right. It's just for a sitting. Wait do you have a shower in there as well? Yeah. It's cold water only though. It'll actually be interesting to see how you find the vent. Is this way right? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's 160, no like 175 I think. Just check. I think you're gonna be hanging off this. Yeah. Definitely hobbit size. I'm like a little hobbit in a cabin having a cosy night to myself. Okay so I'm about to pack a few things before I move into the bus for the next 24 hours and I'm so excited. So a question that both Josie and I get asked a lot is, do you feel safe traveling alone in a van as a woman? And for me the answer is yes as long as I take a few precautions like locking the van at night, always sharing my live location with loved ones and above all trusting my gut. But probably the one thing that has given me the biggest peace of mind is my security camera from Reolink who are kindly sponsoring this video. Reolink are the vanlife community's go-to for security cameras but they also work in homes and businesses and any outdoor setup really. I've got the Reolink Go Plus which I've been using for a few months now and it's been honestly amazing. This camera is completely wireless, powered by a rechargeable battery and it runs on 4G so it keeps working wherever I decide to park. And when I want to charge it I just pop it out and connect it via USB for a few hours. Setting it up was really easy. I just fixed it here to the shower wall next to my cab. A lot of people prefer to install them on the roof but you can just do whatever makes sense for your space. And you can also hook it up to a solar panel so it runs completely off-grid. The picture quality is honestly so good. I can see what's going on in detail and it's still pretty clear at night thanks to the camera's infrared sensors. It's got smart detection which can tell the difference between people, cars and even animals so you don't get started by false alarms. And there's also two-way audio so if someone does get close I can talk to them straight through the camera. Everything is securely saved onto a micro SD card and I also like that I have full control over when the camera is recording. Everything connects via the Reolink app which means I can always check on the van even if I'm at the top of a mountain or on a hike and it also pings me if it detects any movement around the van which makes me feel a lot safer when I'm travelling alone. Reolink are running a full sale at the moment and some of their most popular products are reduced by up to 35%. I'll pop the link to their website into the video description and you can get an extra 5% off with my code JESSICA5. Thank you so much again to Reolink for supporting the channel and now let's pack our bags and move into Josie's van for the day. What do I even need for 24 hours? PJs, very important. I spend about half the day in them. Water bottle. Toothbrush. What else do I need? I can just quickly come over but I feel like that would be cheating so let's make sure I've got everything I need. My goodness the logistics of this. See that's the thing when you live in a van full-time you completely forget how to pack. I've always been awful at packing but I feel like I've gotten even worse. I think this is all I need. Oh underwear. I'm literally the most chaotic person ever outside the van. Inside the van I'm very tidy and organized. As soon as I leave my van it's chaos. All right, Heidi's food. All right, let's do this. For me, being in Josie's bus felt a little bit like Alice in Wonderland because everything is so much bigger than in my van and because I'm rather hobbit-sized it definitely took some time getting used to. Now that we were moved in Josie took Frodo on a little trip around the fields for a slightly different driving experience. You can move the seat back. You have to actually. Yeah I'm just really short. I don't know what that is. I don't know. I'm sorry Jess. I broke your car. Van. I've got an automatic that's my excuse. Beeping. While Josie was struggling with my van aggressively beeping at her, Heidi and I were having a cozy quiet time in the bus living out our most whimsical fairy tale van life day dreams. Every van comes with its little quirks and everything functioning in a unique way and honestly I had a lot of fun figuring out the workings of Josie's magical bus. It felt like exploring an enchanted little cottage with little easter eggs in every corner. I can't get it open. Josie help. I don't want to break your bus. Double push and you have to hold it. Oh okay. Let's just pretend that I did that. Oh key. Open the other door. And then for a while we just enjoyed the beautiful sunshine. Oh my goodness oh my goodness this is so high. Hang on. Do you want to come out? Go back in. Hold on, hold on. I'll jump. We're not tall enough for that. I could just live on this sofa for the rest of my life. It's ridiculously comfortable. It's so nice. I could just spend my days reading books by the wood burner. It would be dangerous living here. I would just never leave the van. Oh it's so nice. Just look at these like cute little details. Like you can really see how much time and work has gone into this bus. It's really incredible. I'm going to use the toilet. I remember that it kind of the doors kind of come out to form a new room. So this is the shower room. Oh there's lunch here. How do I? Oh there's a door here as well. Oh oh I wonder if you can see that. Oh this is so cool. And then I just yeah this is one door and then bye. Compost loo is a compost loo I guess. They're not too different from each other. You stole my dog. How are you finding it so far being in a smaller van? It's cute. I think it's lush. I love your bus. So much space. I like that it is compact. I think considering it's so small you haven't you're not missing anything though you know? Yeah. You've got everything in here. I managed to squeeze everything in just about. Really impressive. Oh thank you. This is comfortable as well. Just a bit short for tall hobbits like you? A little bit. Maybe I'm an elf. I've got some slowberries and rose hips which I foraged the other day and I haven't had a chance to process them yet. The other day I made a crumble with another batch of these and some berries and apples to kind of balance out the tartness and it was really nice. So I think I'm gonna make the same crumble for Josie. Make the most of the fact that she's got an actual oven and it also runs on gas. I don't have any gas in my van because I'm really scared of gas and I just wasn't really confident setting it up myself. Didn't want to pay someone else to do it. So yeah this is lush. It's not having to worry about how much electricity my meal uses. Right I need to find something to put the seeds in. There was one cabinet that Josie said tends to fall apart. I think it's that one so I think I should be fine. Okay this is flour. Sugar. Okay so that's that sorted. I need a cupboard. This is the dangerous cupboard. This is a cabinet. It's just so Josie to have a whole cabinet just for candles. I guess I'll use this. Oh I think this is so cute. It's got her logo on it. All right let's get rid of the seeds of the slows. I need a baking dish or something. Josie where are your baking dishes? The death cupboard. Oh no I've been trying to stay away from that. Okay thank you. I'm a bit scared. Oh nothing happened. I found what I'm looking for. This is so cute and whimsical and rustic. It's got all the things that I love about my van but it's different and that makes it really exciting. I actually need to boil these a little bit. It's quite funny because Josie obviously like built everything to suit her needs and how tall she is. This counter is actually really tall for me. I'm like really having to reach up which is quite funny. All the tiny little quirks you get like someone who's converted their own van. Let's see if I can I'm able to use this cooker. Which side is it? Yes! First try. Heidi is very confused I think. Are you okay darling? Is it confusing? It's like home but different. She's just been sniffing around the fields all day. She's been having a grand time. Okay let's make the crumble. Flour. I'm realizing that this is a pretty messy thing to be making in someone else's van. I'm sorry Josie. It is really nice to have a large sink actually. I had a large sink in my old van and oh there's a bit of dough here. That's kind of one of the things that annoy me about my van a little bit. Not that I would want to change it because I like the size of my kitchen and the sink is just a compromise I have to make to be able to have the layout that I want but we will say it is nicer to have a larger sink. I really do feel like a hobbit in an elf house. Like everything is just a little bit too big or too tall for me but I'm managing. I think I'm managing fairly well as hobbits we're adaptable folks. Josie honestly deserves a big shout out because while I was enjoying her functioning facilities she had to deal with my broken water system and the fact that I was low on electricity because my van is built to spend most of my time in Europe where sun makes a lot more appearances than here in England. But she handled it like a pro and cooked up a delicious dinner in my outdoor kitchen and luckily it was a beautiful day for it too. One of my favourite aspects of van life is connecting with people who chose to go down a similar path and just chat about this quirky lifestyle that we've chosen. While our vans or the place we visit may look very different we're all connected by our shared love for nature and desire to chase freedom and that I think is the beauty of our little nomadic community. I burnt my crumble a bit. It's really tragic. I was just chatting with Josie over dinner. She also told me that her oven isn't very powerful but it was more powerful than I thought so really it's all her fault. No it's fine. It's only burnt a little bit at the top so I can just scrape off those bits. I think she's making the bed right now. She's got to come back to the bus after that we're going to have a crumble together and then we'll wind down for the evening. Have you come for the crumble? I have come for the crumble and with bits and bobs. How did you find the bed? Yeah it was good once I figured out where the thing goes. It looks like a big bed though. You brought my cushions. I have. We're swapping. Why? You don't like my cushions? No not at all actually. They're very nice. I just think you've been a bit poorly so. Oh that's really nice. What's wrong with your cushions? No nothing. Just thought that I always like my own. I don't know. Do you like your own cushions? No I feel like I'm being weird. If you prefer your own cushions you're very welcome to swap them. I don't mind at all. Sorry that's trying to make it like I'm being nice to you actually. I just want my own cushions. I'm gonna get them. Josie is cheating. She's not really swapping. I'm just getting my own cushions. My two cushions aren't good enough for you. Not quite Josie. You've got a double bed. You need to have four pillows. So you forage the slowberries. I forage the slowberries and the rose hip. Oh yeah you've done a good job. Okay so I'm about to try Josie's hot shower which I've been really looking forward to because I've been fighting a cold over the last few days. There are a few steps involved. I need to take some stuff out of here. I need to take the bin out. Can you believe she's got a Henry Hoover in here? Okay so I need to turn on the heat. Okay let's do this. Apparently it only gets lukewarm not hot but it's good enough for me. That's actually more than lukewarm. Oh that's quite nice. It is hot. Oh that's lush. Oh my god that's proper hot water. I am having an amazing time here. Must be quick because I don't want to use up all of Josie's water. It's actually such an incredible luxury to have hot water like this in a van or bus. Josie you have an amazing shower. I slept so well. I think I do prefer sleeping lengthways in my van but I did also feel like I slept on a cloud especially because everything is so nice and light in here and because the bed is higher up it's a smaller and cozier space. It's super nice. We've been really lucky with the weather yesterday. It was like 24 degrees and sunny but autumn has made a swift return this morning. It's quite cold so I'm gonna make a wood fire. Josie and I we actually have exactly the same stove so it shouldn't be too complicated. Heidi is very confused about Josie being in a van. She's about to make a fire too now. She can't see us because Josie's got reflective windows whereas I can see everything she's doing. How was your stay in the pro day? It's been so nice Jess, like so nice. I think you've done a really good job in here. Thank you so much. It's tiny but you've got everything in here there isn't anything I wanted. Do you know what I mean? Like I could heat myself, I could go to the toilet. I love that you have a toilet in there. I think it's a little room as well. I found it interesting. I mean obviously normally you have your sink working right? Yeah. So I feel like normally that would be more convenient and then so that was that was funny like yeah so it felt a bit more camping vibe but I feel like normally you would you wouldn't have that vibe going on. We were saying because Jess spends quite a lot of time in Europe and stuff it's really nice to have that. It also makes it feel bigger because almost you're extending your space out into the open. Yeah absolutely. Because when you have a bit more confined space it is nice that you have that option. Yeah yeah I do have to say like your bus is a lot better for full-time van life in the UK. I am a bit jealous that you can just park. In a single parking spot. I know it's so annoying I avoid towns for that reason whereas I feel like I would venture into town if I had yours. Yeah I wish it was this size to drive my van. Yeah. I am jealous of that. Yeah. And just like that our 24-hour van swap was over and it was time to say goodbye. If you enjoyed this video make sure to give it a thumbs up and check out Josie's version of the story on her channel. And if you want to see more adventures in my little cottage van and learn about the magic hidden in Europe's landscapes do hit the subscribe button as well. Until next time take good care. Bye.