With so many people hitting the road in RVs over the last few years, it may seem unusual that a popular van lifer is calling it quits. Antoinette Yvonne needed to escape the stationary pandemic life to seek adventure and excitement. When she couldn’t go to Europe, she decided to live luxuriously in a van and travel full-time. But why is she selling her beloved home? Let’s dive in!
Who Is Antoinette Yvonne?
Travel creator and luxury nomad, Antoinette Yvonne, has been living the van life for two years. Her YouTube channel, Antoinette Yvonne, has over 53,000 subscribers.
She has sought to produce entertaining vlogs that capture the ups and downs of the van life and the full-time travel lifestyle. This solo van lifer has captured the hearts of viewers through her candidness and transparency.
Recently, Antoinette created LuxNomad Travels, a travel agency that provides purpose-driven luxury experiences. The agency’s website explains, “[Antoinette’s] passion for travel and love of gathering like-minded adventurers led her to curate luxury group trips with strangers to create memories for life…there’s nothing in life that should hold you back from seeing everything this world has to offer.”
The inaugural trip heads to South Africa in less than two months.
How Long Has Antoinette Yvonne Been a Van Lifer?
Antoinette had plans to move to Spain and live in Europe pre-pandemic. But when everything shut down, she got stuck in the United States.
She watched one video on the van life and was sold. She bought a van in Florida, drove it back to Indiana, and began her van life journey two years ago. It was a way for Antoinette to explore and be adventurous in a time when it seemed like everyone else was sitting still.
Why Did Antoinette Yvonne Get Into Van Life?
Because of Antoinette’s adventurous spirit, she saw van life as a way to see new places. Since she couldn’t move to Europe at the time, this was a way for her to still travel.
She never intended van living to last forever, but never made plans to do this for a certain amount of time. She simply used these two years to get outside, travel, and do things she had never done before.
Antoinette shares, “My adventures have been nothing short of amazing, and I will always remember and look back on this unique time and think that ‘Girl, you did that!’”
Why Is Antoinette Yvonne Quitting Van Life?
The main reason Antoinette is quitting the van life is this season of her life is over. She’s ready to move on and do new things. She explains in her video, “I gave van life my all, but now it no longer serves me.”
Instead of continuing to do something to entertain her followers or make other people happy, she’s gracefully exiting this season of her life and putting her energy towards new endeavors.
She wants to travel the world, learn more about other cultures and peoples, and use her knowledge to teach others about this diverse world in which we all live.
What Van Does Antoinette Yvonne Travel In?
Antoinette called her van Zion. It’s a 2019 White RAM Promaster 1500 with a high roof custom-built by Vandemic Vans. The van has a 3.6L gas engine, a 24-gallon fuel tank, and upgraded all-terrain T/A KO2 BF Goodrich tires. She upgraded to five 100 Ah Battle Born lithium batteries and two 175-watt NewPowa solar panels.
When Antoinette set out to travel, she never intended to do so on the cheap. Her goal wasn’t to save money. She wanted to be comfortable and travel in luxury, so she made several changes to her van.
The van has an 8-inch memory foam full-size convertible bed, a new Thetford porta POTTI, a 12V GE fridge/freezer, a Swiss Madison farmhouse sink, an Empova induction stove, a NewWave Brio air fryer, and a MAXXAIR vent fan.
Where Has Antoinette Traveled in Her Van?
Although Antoinette has traveled in luxury across the world, including countries such as Thailand, Dubai, Ireland, and Aruba, she hasn’t traveled to those places in her van. In 2021, she attended Skooliepalooza and met other van lifers.
She has spent much of her time camping on BLM land out West. Antoinette also camped in Baja California in Mexico and in the Rocky Mountains.
HOT TIP
Here’s everything you need to know about Skooliepalooza!
Popular Van Life YouTube Videos from Antoinette Yvonne
Many of Antoinette’s YouTube videos have between 10,000 to 20,000 views. All three of the videos we are featuring below went up in November 2021. They detail a day in the life of a van lifer and the ups and downs of the van life.
Luxury VAN TOUR | Solo Female Traveler Living Full-Time in a converted Promaster Van
In this video, Antoinette gives viewers a tour of Zion, her van. This particular video has been viewed over 480,000 times!
Antoinette explains the luxurious features she wanted such as the faux marble shower, Thetford toilet, and 12-volt fridge. She loves the gold faucet and gold accents around the sink.
Next to the sink is a two-burner induction stove. Vandemic Vans custom-built the van exactly like Antoinette wanted.
Solo Female VAN LIFE | Preparing for full-time travel | Is it possible?
Just a couple weeks after posting the van tour video, Antoinette posted this video about how she doesn’t know much about solo camping but is still doing it. Viewers watched this particular video almost 54,000 times.
She shares about prepping the van for full-time living, like putting out pillows, hanging eucalyptus, and adding photos. She also discusses the problems with getting her van repaired and extending her stay so the van can get a new transmission.
Finally, Antoinette goes camping for a night and discovers she has no shades on the windows. She realizes how much she doesn’t know about camping and that she still doesn’t have everything she needs for full-time van living.
WILD DESERT VAN LIFE CAMPING + Solo Female Van Life
This third video was posted in between the previous two in mid-November 2021. Antoinette goes camping in Sedona, Ariz., with her friend Jasmine.
They enjoy campfires at night and day hikes through the desert. They only stayed at this BLM site for a few days. The video is sponsored by Athletic Greens.
Where Else Can You Find Antoinette Yvonne?
Antoinette Yvonne is ready to take the world by storm. It’s bittersweet saying goodbye to Zion, but she’s ready to take her adventurous spirit all over the world.
If you want to know what Antoinette is up to, follow her on Instagram, Pinterest, or Twitter. You can also visit her website to get real-time updates about where she is and what she’s up to.
If she has captured your attention, she’s just getting started. So don’t miss out on her future adventures. Where will Antoinette go next? And who will be the new owner of her beloved Zion?
If You Want the Latest Travel News, Join Our Mailing List
Don’t rely on biased RV industry news sources to keep you informed. Stick with Nomadic News. We publish articles and breaking stories that matter to you every weekday.
