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Couple Living in a Tab Teardrop Trailer Full-Time – VIDEO


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Valerie & Jessi from Happy Camper Wives are exploring long-term travel while living full-time in a T@b Teardrop Trailer.

They sold their house in San Francisco, downsized their stuff, and became minimalist nomads just over four months ago. At first, they thought they’d travel for a year and then move to Florida but after four months they’ve fallen in love with the lifestyle and want to continue the adventure in Europe and New Zealand once they’ve finished touring North America.

Some of the challenges they’ve faced with their new lifestyle include having to choose destinations based on warm weather since they live an indoor/outdoor lifestyle (which doesn’t always work out), and getting access to high-speed internet (Campground WiFi connections aren’t always fast enough to do a full day of online work).

Related: Cosmo’s Tiny Vacation Teardrop Home on Wheels

They Sold Their San Francisco Home To Start Living in a Tab Teardrop Trailer Full-Time

Image © Exploring Alternatives

Imagine going from a house to living full-time in a tiny camper like this!

Image © Exploring Alternatives

Talk about freedom and adventure…

Image © Exploring Alternatives

They became nomadic minimalists, making a lifestyle out of living and traveling on the road.

Image © Exploring Alternatives

Related: Teardrop-Inspired Tiny Camper

Video: Couple Sells San Francisco House to Live in a Tiny Teardrop Camper Trailer

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Danielle is a digital nomad who is passionate about tiny spaces, living with less, reducing waste and eating plant-based food. Danielle is half of the Exploring Alternatives blog & video project. You can find more of her at www.ExploringAlternatives.ca and her Exploring Alternatives YouTube Channel.
{ 28 comments… add one }
  • Joanna Chanin
    March 2, 2017, 9:19 am

    I love their little camper! Darling .

    • Natalie C. McKee
      March 3, 2017, 5:50 am

      Same 🙂

  • Claude
    March 2, 2017, 6:18 pm

    Little cramped for my taste…

    • Natalie C. McKee
      March 3, 2017, 5:37 am

      It’s certainly cozy 🙂

  • Janet
    March 2, 2017, 6:31 pm

    I admire any couple that can live that small, but I can’t. Camping – okay, living – no. I wish them happiness in their travels.

    • Natalie C. McKee
      March 3, 2017, 5:37 am

      They are rocking it!

  • Dominick Bundy
    March 2, 2017, 6:57 pm

    Very inspiring couple, Love their story. Amazes me how the two of them with two dogs can permanently reside in such a tiny space. /I don’t think I could do such by myself with one dog full time.. for a week maybe or weekend trips for sure.. Bravo to the both of you..You both gave me food for thought about minimizing…

    • Natalie C. McKee
      March 3, 2017, 5:36 am

      Just when you think people couldn’t go tinier! 🙂

  • Annette
    March 2, 2017, 7:22 pm

    OMG Awesome video! Thanks for keepin’ it real, detailing costs etc.
    Question: could a 4 cylinder pull that?

    What kind of dog is the smaller black + white (not the border collie) – Havanese? or Coton?

    My two cats are bit doubtful but I think I could do that. Thanks for the inspiration.

    • March 2, 2017, 7:45 pm

      Hey Annette! Valerie from HCW here- we have a 4 cyl truck that pulls the teardrop just fine. The pup is a terrier mix- he was found on the streets in South Korea so not really sure what he is 🙂

      Happy travels!

    • Rick C
      March 2, 2017, 9:42 pm

      I would guess not, or that you’d be pushing the capabilities. Their website shows “SUV” as the “tow weight”.

      I tried to find a bit more information like the weight, but their website is awful: a pathetic gallery showing a handful of exteriors and not a single interior picture, and the only way to get a brochure is to request one be emailed. No pricing information, either, just “contact a local dealer”.

      I got curious so I did a bit of googling and found that one model has a GVW of 1670lb.

      • Kevin
        March 3, 2017, 1:57 am

        Regarding price: The base prices I have seen for any new T@G trailers were all over $20,000. Another small trailer, the Airstream Basecamp, is even more.

        • Rick C
          March 4, 2017, 12:18 am

          Teardrops can be pretty nice, but $20,000’s a lot of money. They just had a major RV show in Dallas last weekend, and were selling floor models at ridiculous discounts (like up to 20%).

          For 20-25K you could buy something like an 18′ trailer. With all due respect to teardrops, it seems kind of crazy to spend that kind of money when you could get something much larger.

        • Natalie C. McKee
          March 6, 2017, 9:05 am

          Unless you don’t want something larger 🙂 People say that all the time on this site: “I could get 700 sq. ft. for $XX.” Sure, you might be able to where you live but if you are downsizing you just might not want to.

        • Crystal
          March 25, 2017, 6:12 pm

          Kevin, don’t confuse T@G and T@B. This article features the T@B. T@G is smaller. $20k isn’t a base price in most locations, and used ones are for sale within our group routinely for mid teens for one a couple of years old.

  • ZACHARY E MOHRMANN
    March 2, 2017, 8:54 pm

    Well they couldn’t find a tinier place than a tear drop trailer to live unless, they would like to live in my Armadillo Sleep pod that I use to pull with my bike but that hardly had room enough for me, never mind the two of them….! LoL….!

    • Natalie C. McKee
      March 3, 2017, 5:26 am

      Haha! They are embracing all that it means to go tiny! Tee-tiny!

  • Rusty Kerr
    March 2, 2017, 9:35 pm

    A mighty tiny home but well thought out. Love the screen in the window, door, and even a skylight.

    • Natalie C. McKee
      March 3, 2017, 5:23 am

      I know! They really did a great job on the design.

  • Kathi
    March 3, 2017, 7:44 am

    Nice video. I appreciate the input on these trailers as I have found them very interesting. I too am pushing 5’10” and wondered how difficult it would be to adjust for an extended stay. The only thing is, of course you are saving money after San Francisco, but to the average Joe, that lifestyle can be more expensive than staying stationary. More free for sure, but now there are other expenses to consider that are cheaper in an apartment situation.

    • Natalie C. McKee
      March 6, 2017, 9:26 am

      Yes if it’s just for saving money, you might not be. But some do it for the freedom and adventure aspect 🙂

  • Jody Mead
    March 4, 2017, 1:23 am

    Great that they can live in such a small space. It’s very tidy. Where do they put their clothes?

  • ROSEE
    March 5, 2017, 8:34 am

    BRAVO ladies! What an inspiring story! Beautiful very tiny THOW, cramped yes, but very, very cozy! Keep it up!

  • Sally
    March 7, 2017, 6:36 am

    I swear I just saw you guys turn on to hwy 31 Saturday. Were you in fort Myers, fl over the weekend. I had just watched your video the day before.
    Sally

  • Leslie
    March 23, 2017, 5:39 pm

    Very informative, and I love your little trailer, thank you ladies 😊

  • Basecamp Login
    May 4, 2017, 6:08 pm

    Hey great post. I hope it’s ok that I shared this on my FB, if
    not, no worries just tell me and I’ll delete it.
    Regardless keep up the good work.

    • Natalie C. McKee
      May 5, 2017, 5:25 am

      Feel free to share! 🙂 We love that.

  • Chuck Evans
    July 17, 2020, 2:35 pm

    Great video. I want a teardrop so much. I also want to be in the middle of a Valerie and Jessi sandwich.
    I can see that is unlikely. I still like the teardrop.

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