For many vanlifers, they live a life of complete wanderlust and freedom. They have sold off their assets and have the plan of living full-time in their van for a very long time, no mortgages, loans or set monthly bills. Some living off there savings and have kissed work life goodbye with no plans of working a normal job whilst on the road and having zero desire to work if it’s not necessary.
For us, this was never the plan. It was never our plan to set off and never gain employment. Our plan was to work as we need and spend our earnings so we don’t bleed ourselves dry for when the day comes we decide to return home to Australia. We also never planned to live a life where we couldn’t spend a little extra when we felt like it or when spending the extra money will allow us to make the most of our time here on this beautiful continent.
Earning money on the road is great, it allows us to plan our next adventure on the road and not stress about making ends meet or stress about dipping into our savings. We really enjoy seasonal work, meeting new people and really learning and experiencing the culture of the country we are in. It is always such a cool thing to have friends from abroad. It’s a great option as foreigners and the chances of gaining employment are much higher than for you trying to gain a non-seasonal job when you speak non or very little of there native language.
When we decide it’s time to find a job and head back into the workforce, we always ensure that the potential towns we are looking at have plenty of jobs available, there is a campsite that provides a one-off seasonal fee at a reasonable price and that the town has everything we need there. When we are working, we find it so much better to stay at a campsite. This ensures we have water easily available and the option to plug into the electricity if our batteries run low. The last thing you want to be doing after work, late at night, is driving around looking for these essential things. You can also use their other facilities which usually include a laundry, showers, bathrooms and sometimes even a pool or sauna. When you pay for seasonal accommodation it is definitely a bucket load cheaper than paying for a nightly or weekly rate. Seasonal accommodation at a campsite is usually for at least 3-6 months which is perfect and fits hand in hand with working a seasonal job.
With seasonal work, we aren’t too fussy. We will apply for a wide range of jobs but are always hopeful we will be lucky enough to gain one that we have an interest in. In Australia, Lockie and I have very different professions to the seasonal jobs we look for and have had. It’s a nice change and is always useful to have more career options under your belt. It’s always good to learn new things and gain new skills and knowledge too. Seasonal work is usually either customer service, retail or hospitality based, making the jobs quite social and enjoyable.
Lockie and I are actually really excited to re-enter the workforce. It’s been longer than we had planned between jobs due to corona and we did manage to squeeze in an epic summer road trip, so our bank account definitely needs a top up! Going back to work will also hopefully make us feel like life is a little more ‘normal’ after all the craziness of corona lockdowns and restrictions. Jobs are definitely a lot more scarce this winter compared to last. Many aren’t hiring any seasonal employees as they are waiting to see how the season turns out and what happens with restrictions and corona case numbers. Others are only offering minimal guaranteed hours noting that there is a possibly of more once the season takes off.
We have been lucky enough to secure jobs in a ski resort in Norway for this coming season! We will be working our weekly hours in minimal days, to give us plenty of time to explore the area and hit the slopes! We still have to get to Norway however and currently borders across Europe are starting to close up for the second time. We are hoping that we will be able to head towards Norway by late November/early December. Unfortunately, at the moment, almost everyone entering Norway must complete 10 days quarantine upon arrival, so looks like we are headed into lockdown 2.0!
Lockie & Ash 