On the road and still at home: make your van a place of well-being

There is nothing better than being able to take off at a minutes notice in your van and spending some time wherever you feel like it. Living in a van promises a real sense of freedom - whether you're only on holiday for a few days or going on a long trip. All you need - apart from the van, of course - is a sense of adventure and the essentials to make yourself comfortable in your van. We'll show you how to turn your van into a mini home on four wheels.

A van parked by the lake with a table and folding chairs next to it.

Lunch with a view

Out of the van and immediately you are in the middle of the great outdoors! Camping furniture quickly transforms the space in front of your van into a dining room with a wonderful view.

A picnic table covered in a jungle print table cloth, with various food containers filled with food

A solar lamp and three food containers filled with food on a table

For serving meals, we recommend unbreakable and stackable plastic crockery that won't break. Also practical are storage containers and tins in which you can keep any leftovers.

For a real eye-catcher, use a woven planter that you can turn into a decorative cutlery or napkin container.

A KALAS mug filled with bread sticks and a small bowl filled with olives

Take the kitchen with you

A coffee maker sitting on top of the TILLREDA portable induction hub with a solar lantern next to it

An open door van with a picnic table inside

A large, upside-down wooden box can be turned into a kitchenette in no time at all, on which you can place a portable induction hob and cook outside. You can easily prepare a delicious pasta on it.

By the way: Did you know that almost all IKEA cooking items can be used on induction plates?

And if it gets chilly, you can make yourself comfortable inside the van.

Camping & on-the-go

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IKEA 365+ Food container, round/glass, 600 ml

Textiles to feel good

Warm blankets and cosy cushions create a homely atmosphere inside and outside your minibus. Colour-wise, rich mustard yellow and orange are on trend, but feel free to let your personal preferences guide your colour choice and create a colour palette to suit your own preferences.

Natural materials like linen go wonderfully with van life and are practical too, because they become even more beautiful when they start to wrinkle a little over time.

An orange and off-white cushion laying on top of multiple blankets in the back of a van

A women reading a book, while sitting by the lake on a mustard colored blanket

An acrylic plaid that you can snuggle up in on cool summer evenings is also part of the basic equipment for all adventurers. What’s even better, is that it’s machine washable and dries quickly.

Prying eyes? Not with curtains

Curtains are the perfect way to darken your van and protect yourself from prying eyes. The good thing about them is that they are simple to make. Just find the right fabric by the metre at IKEA in twice the size of your windows, fold the piece of fabric and sew the open ends together by hand or with a sewing machine.

To make things easier, simply attach the fabric rectangles to the car body with magnets. For a more elegant look, use magnets with hooks and punch holes in the fabric to attach eyelets for hanging.

The inside of the van filled with colorful pillows and blankets

The inside of the van with a view of the dining table with a jungle print tablecloth and a loaf of bread, an apple and a coffee maker layed out on a wooden tray

Expert tip: A tablecloth in the same colour or pattern makes for a thoroughly coherent van interior.

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Smart storage is key

Vanlife means living in the smallest of spaces. However, with a few smart and space-saving storage solutions, this is no problem at all and everything is always within reach.

A wooden board hooked to the front seats and two hanging containers hanging from the rail

A SKADIS pegboard mounted to the inside of the van

For example, you can make a DIY hanging basket out of plastic pots of different sizes that you can hang in the van or outside on a tree. Simply drill three holes in the sides of the pots at equal intervals and pull ropes through them, knotting them together so that the pots are the desired height. This will hold everything from toothpaste and shower gel to a flashlight.