Discover the RV Conversion Lifestyle
Explore expert guides, inspiring build stories, real-world road experiences, and practical DIY knowledge from people living the RV conversion lifestyle every day. From bus, truck, and van builds to travel tips, maintenance, off-grid systems, and full-time road living, our articles are designed to help you build smarter, travel farther, and enjoy the freedom of life on the road.
The Outlandish Family (Rollin Ryver – A 2002 International)
This family of explorers turned an unlikely rolling relic into a home that’s taken them across many states, into the…
Miles, the Bus – A 28’ 2005 Freightliner/Thomas FS-65
I started looking for a mid-sized bus (30-ish ft), and it became apparent that that size is somewhat rare. I…
The Bain Bus. A Cozy 30′ long, 1998 International Conversion
We always thought we’d build a tiny house, a cabin, or move to a warmer state. Then Jon had an…
Hiawatha World – Our 1982 MC-9 Home Away From Home
A Reserve couple has spent more than a decade renovating an old Greyhound bus to be a “Home away from…
Making Ready a 1970 GM 4108
In 1993, we had our first close encounter with a converted bus while camping in our commercial RV in Charleston,…
The Nicest 1994 Model 15-45 Eagle Coach Ever Built
Back in 2004, Wayne Shell purchased a 1994 Eagle Model 1545 (Model 15, 45 feet long) bus shell, which had…
The Unbelievable Journey of a Double-Decker Bus Turned Vacation Retreat
Nestled in the lush green hills of the Val Trebbia, just outside the historic village of Bobbio in northern Italy,…
Meet Whitney: The Evolution of Boho Vans’ Rental Fleet
Since our appearance on Shark Tank in 2020 and our partnership with Barbara Corcoran, we've continued to grow not just…
Triple Nickel Ranch – PD-4106 Amish Conversion
GM PD-4106 S/N 1113 performed her duties in the Southeast until her million miles rolled over on the odometer. After…
Converting a 16’ – 2023 Ford E350 Box Truck
So, why a box truck? Good question! It all started in 2017 when a friend told me she was considering selling…
The Bus of my Dreams – A 1969 Eagle 07
Les just bought his 1969 07 Eagle. Four days later, while driving it home, the motor shut down, and he…
A Bus Named Billie – A 2005 Chevy 3500 mid-size
Container homes have been our architectural obsession for years and still are if we’re being honest. There's just something about…
Gus – A 2002 International Skoolie
Hello! My name is Meredith and I converted a 40-foot school bus into a tiny home. This is Gus and…
My Skool Beans Café Dream
Just a girl with a dream and her 3-legged cat! I’m Holly, and I own Skool Beans Cafe in a…
On the Rhoades – A 2010 Chevy Express Skoolie
I blurted out “I never want to leave; I want to do this all the time.” CJ immediately agreed and…
Meet Lavinia! – A 1999 Blue Bird
Ultimately, this lifestyle has taught us to be grateful and less controlling. However, she became a community project. Did we…
Dreadnought – A 1964 MCI MC–5
I was shocked at the abysmal quality of RVs in their construction and assembly when I was the Chief Engineer…
Exploring Central and South America in a 2004 MCI J4500 Coach
The Dream. To explore Central and South America and embrace a life of freedom and adventure, I’m thrilled to share our incredible…
A 1965 Eagle Model 01 Bus Conversion
I bought this Eagle in February 2024. The bus was built by Mr. Frank Furtag, former owner of Frank's Bus…
Revolutionizing the Road with the Boho Next-Gen Series
I'm David Sodemann, co-founder of Boho Camper Vans. Along with my partner Brett Ellenson, I'm thrilled to introduce our latest…
The Gypsy Queen – A 1982 MCI MC-9 Bus Conversion
My wife Deborah and I are raising our two young grandsons, Jay (8) and Jett (6). They love to travel…
Lost Again in my MCI MC-5
One spring while talking with some folks at a Bus Nuts rally near Cache Creek, BC with the ‘57 MCI…
A Poets Journey – A 2007 International CE
Anne Sperry was working as an interior designer and teacher before the pandemic. She now travels as a poet and…
Iron Horse – Wild West Elegance
I had the opportunity to meet Jimmy and Sadie Clay at the Arcadia Bus Rally 2014 in Arcadia, Florida between…
The Country Coach (Ophelia) – A 2000 Volvo B10M (Plaxton
Hello and welcome to the Country Coach. We are Jon & Holly the creators, builders, and designers of this magnificent…
Budd the Bus – A 2001 Chevy Express 3500 Skoolie
Like many people, I spent years living in different apartments paying way too much money for too little satisfaction from…
A 2002 Nova RTS Family Road Trip Bus Conversion
I always wanted to own a bus. Not a fancy sports car, or a motorcycle, but a bus. Such a…
A Late Bloomer
In 1995 one more International truck was assembled and it looked like every other International born that year. This one…
Caden’s Financial Bus – A 1997 Blue Bird TCFE 4800
A mobile business operates from a mobile location, such as a van, truck, or bus, rather than a fixed location.…
BB2 – a 1988 MCI 102-A3 – a Bus Converter’s
Rosita was my teenage sweetheart when I graduated from high school in 1966, Vietnam was in full swing, and I…
From Barracks Life to RV Life
Just recently my wife and I had the pleasure in crossing paths with Phil and Ginni Lyons at a local…
The Roaming Fowler Bus A 2004 Blue Bird All-American
Our Skoolie dreams started as a wild pipedream. Eric and I have always enjoyed watching tiny home-related YouTube videos and…
The Mammoth – A Double-Decker Restaurant
Editor’s Note: This month’s feature article is about a converted bus like most of our cover stories, but this month’s…
A GM Parade – The Futurliner
After walking through the 1933 World’s Fair in Chicago, GM’S VP of research, Charles Kettering, decided they needed to take…
The Restoration and Conversion of a 1969 Volvo
Why choose a bus instead of an RV? Well for me I have to say I’ve always dreamed of a…
The Sasquatters – A 2003 Thomas EF Skoolie
As a Boy Scout growing up in Colorado, I had my fair share of camping adventures. But it was a…
Kruzin’ in the Kraken – A 2013 Thomas Freightliner Skoolie
When BCM asked us to submit an article for their website, we couldn’t help ourselves. What owner of a van…
Bus-osaurus – A 1962 GM PD – 4106
Someone once told me that the difference between a Fairytale and a B.S. story was that a Fairytale starts out,…
The Beautiful Strength Bus A 2001 Thomas SAF Skoolie
Hello, my name is Annette McNamara, and I am the founder of the nonprofit BeautifulStrength.org. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit…
The Bus – A 1996 MCI 102D3
Hi, my name is Fred Woodruff and my beautiful wife’s name is Laurie. We’ve recently celebrated 50 years of married…
Honeysuckle Rose
We call her Honeysuckle Rose after Hoyt Axton’s Scenicruiser tour bus because she thinks she’s a hound but she’s really…
The Scenic Shuttle Bus – A 2010 Ford E-450
We are Kayla, Logan, and Scarlett and we live in this converted E-450 shuttle bus. I (Kayla) am a travel…
The Saguaro Bus – A 1994 MCI DL3-45
Here are how the events of the bus remodel unfolded for Ginni Lyons. I awakened one morning and looked over…
Converting a nostalgic 1956 GM Bus Into an Enjoyable RV
A bit of history First, let’s take a step back to 1954 when GM began building the 4104 bus. They…
The Enterprise – A 1995 Thomas MVP Saf-T-Liner (Skoolie)
We were stuck. We were stuck in a life where Buslivin dad Gary, was working all the time. He is…
On The Road In A Converted Swiss Army Truck
Originally, the roof hatch was above the passenger seat, which was for observation. We were using it to get fresh…
Sweet Bea – The Bus Life Kitchen – A 2001 Chevrolet
What may seem completely unnatural to many, the idea of downsizing one’s life to fit in an old short bus…
Amabus – A 1965 GM – PD 4106
I became interested in the GM PD - 4106 in 2018 after reading a lot on the internet. When GM…
Sköyp Skoolie – A 2002
I am a French guy visiting America. I moved to California at the end of 2014 and have lived and…
Adventures with Brook the Bus – A 2006 GMC Savana
When I first met Sean, he had been dreaming of living in a bus for over five years. He had…
Scrap Yard Rebirth – The IconiCruiser
A Diamond in the Rough Shines Down the Highway Once Again! There are those who look longingly upwards at planes…
Beau the Skoolie A 2000 Thomas Freightliner
Howdy, Y’all! I’m Brooke. My husband is Kyle and we have two amazing little girls who make our world go…
The Double-Decker Hideaway – A 1995 British Leyland Olympian
Editor’s Note: If you are interested in converting a double-decker bus into a coffee shop, restaurant, Airbnb, or a bus…
First Wide Body Eagle Bus in the U.S.
Camping as a Boy Scout in New Hampshire when I was twelve years old is a fond memory. We had…
Yonder – A 1993 Blue Bird TC2000 Bus Conversion
As a kid, I never dreamed about someday living in a school bus. The idea would have seemed laughable at…
Planning a Bus Conversion to Provide Shelter for the Homeless
A Bus Conversion to Shelter the Homeless The Source for the poor and homeless in Vero Beach Florida, officially announced…
Coaches for the Coach – A Tribute to John Madden
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in the February 2022 issue of National Bus Trader. We were saddened to…
A 1966 Crown Coach Conversion Story
It seems like 1975 was a long time ago. Al and Carole Puhlman started their love affair with motor homing…
Time to Go Adventure – A 2002 Blue Bird/International 3800
My wife and I are both from New Mexico originally but have traveled quite a bit due to both of…
The Flxi Lady – A 1969 Flxible Flxiliner
The red and white Flxiliner is #10800, one of the very last Flxible highway coaches ever produced (10822 was the…
The Evolution of Converting a Horse Trailer into a Tiny
Editor’s Note: This month, we introduce you to a different type of conversion. It’s an interesting concept and shows how…
Arbour Season – A 1991 Blue Bird Skoolie
We are Shane, Emily, Sawyer, and Juneau and we travel full-time across North America in a converted Blue Bird School…
Best of Show – 1959 Flixble VL-100
We live in our RV on the road full-time and have been doing so since May of 1993 when Ron…
Thor – A 1988 Austral Tourmaster in Australia
“Why are you taking on the job of converting a coach into a motorhome, aren’t you already busy?” That was…
The Double-Decker Espresso Bus (1989) Leland Olympian
Crazy is the word that I kept hearing myself say. My husband of twenty years has always loved coffee. He…
My Log Cabin Bus Conversion
I have always wanted to live in a log cabin. My brother built a beautiful one in the upper field…