First, we set a budget of around 10,000 pounds all-in, which is about $11,900. Then, we trawled Facebook Marketplace, Ebay, and Gumtree for around a month to find the right van.
We wanted to be able to take it on single-track roads without being worried about maneuvering or parking, so something on the smaller end of the spectrum was essential.
We settled on an old VW Transporter T5 model, as these vans tend to have a high resale value for their age. We also opted to spring for a pricier van that had already been somewhat converted since I have precisely zero practical skills.
Alas, when the purchasing of the van actually happened, I was staying in a mountain hut in Italy with a friend. This meant that my boyfriend bought a spartan VW T5 for £8,500, about $10,000.