Originally published at: A $97/night van parked in Manhattan is officially off Airbnb | Boing Boing
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Just to be clear here: This would be completely okay if 1) the vans had a current registration and 2) they didn’t stay in the same place for more than 7 consecutive nights. Seems like a lucrative opportunity for someone willing to follow the rules. (checks eBay for inexpensive conversion vans available near NYC).
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Other things to note
Please note the camper is located in East Village, Manhattan and sometimes gets moved around couple of blocks from the listed address. Public/shared restrooms and showers available nearby!
I wonder if it’s down by the river?
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We have $60.00 a night campsite on AirBnB here in Joshua Tree. That gets you some of your very own sand/dirt of the desert for an entire nights stay, and nothing else usually. And this is the crazy part, they rent it, people pay it, and it seems to fly…
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No thanks. I can stay in a Manhattan Hostel on the upper west side for about $60/night (1 person), with access to a clean (shared) bathroom and a very nice common area. https://www.hihostels.com/hostels/hi-new-york-city
A brief internet check shows many places in NYC for $100 (or less)
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Do…do they even own the land?
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In some cases NO. It’s just a slightly scratched out spot in the desert sand, once there you take possession of said dirt, and bango it’s your 400 square feet of Joshua Tree desert to defile or not for 24 hours.
P.S. You kids with the low profile cars/tuners, best not take that down a sand road…
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Huh. I guess if you didn’t get a reservation in time through the NPS?
https://www.nps.gov/jotr/planyourvisit/campgrounds.htm
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I want to sleep in NASA’s van.
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Yeesh, better that though than sleeping in a van in NYC. If I’m going to be sleeping in a van, I want to be somewhere where I can see the stars and possibly pee outside without getting cited for indecent exposure.
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That would be near impossible once you enter the “outer rim” as it is called in this neck of the woods.
Unless the coyotes have been deputized…
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I think that when the park campgrounds are full you’re still allowed to do “dispersed camping” on the BLM land adjacent to the park for free.
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See, the funny thing is…
When I go RVing, I get to bring 30 sq m of my space along with me, so I’ve got my bathroom, my kitchen, my bed, my couch with me; but it opens up into a different space. It’s nice to be able to travel and keep some house comforts with you. I don’t have to deal with hotels; and I can choose to eat out or just make myself something.
I mean, I certainly enjoy nature, and most of my RV trips to date have been centered around nature.
But once COVID is more under control and things are more back to normal, I want to get back into urban areas, because I really enjoy traveling in urban areas. But I still want to take my RV with me because it is really comfy.
So yeah, I really want to do a NYC trip- I used to be in NYC a lot, and it’s been a decade since I’ve been there, and my wife hasn’t really been; but I want to do it in my RV.
Since I’m a bit apprehensive about street camping (because I don’t know the legality of it), I was planning on using an RV park that is located across the river in NJ, and they charge $120 a night.
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I understand how RVs work, but this wasn’t an RV and that’s not what I referenced - it was a van with a bed. No bathroom facilities. Just imagine waking up at 2 AM on a street in an unknown city with a dire need to pee. For guys there are somewhat easier options, but for me? What, am I also going to travel around with a bucket?
And the whole other point I was making is that this was parked right on an urban street, not at a park across the river. Personally, I don’t think I would be able to sleep a wink.
So, I don’t know what “the funny thing is” related to my post, but at least now we all know you have an RV. 
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I was just saying that some people do want to camp in an urban environment, and it would be nice if we had facilities for it. Seeing stars is great when you don’t have any to see at home. Being in the city is great when you don’t live in one.
I also see irony in the two options: Stay across the river legally in your own vehicle for $120 a night, stay in the heart of it in someone else’s vehicle illegally for $100.
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At least your wife will have access to bathroom facilities, unlike this Airbnb van. You would like to stay married, correct?
One of the last times I had to park in NYC – with a tiny car – it took longer than 60 minutes and we ended up nearly 2 miles from my daughter’s apartment. It’s not always that bad, but parking a big-ol’-RV on the streets there isn’t as much fun as you’d think.
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I could see a business running in NYC that parks a van for 7-12 hours at different locations. Like a hybrid taxi/air-bnb. And I don’t know how I feel about it because I’m becoming numb to emotional pain.
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What about a sleeper bus that’s constantly on the move, circling the city overnight and dropping you off at the same location where you started?
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