Sleeping in a Walmart Parking Lot | Tips & Tricks

[@DamonCassidy]

Excellent video! You nailed the concerns many of us face!

[@spencers-adventures]

Thanks buddy :) glad you enjoyed!

[@maggiesmith979]

In the US the Walmarts close 11pm. If you are a woman you are going to need to have away to use a toilet in your vehicle. It was easier when they were open 24 hours. I would buy something and then use the BR. Walmarts near big cities are not a good idea.

[@spencers-adventures]

I agree that depending on the city larger Walmarts can be worse. I have stayed in some larger city Walmarts and had no problem, but also had big issues in small town Walmarts as well, so it really just requires you to do an assessment upon arrival. I've had Walmarts where I arrived late at night, but still chose to leave because of safety concerns - I definitely don't want to be in a bad situation and will leave if needed! Like you said I wish they were open 24hrs once again. I just use the bathroom right before they close and then wait to use the bathroom again until the morning, but I understand that for some that isn't feasible. On longer trips I carry a portable toilet as well, which can be used in an emergency, but isn't super practical for this vehicle. Thanks for the comment :)

[@niciswandering1576]

this is perfect! im preparing to do my first cross-country road trip and want to keep it as cheap as possible. learning about all stays will be a game changer. great vid, thanks!

[@spencers-adventures]

I’m glad you got something from the video! Have a fun trip :)

[@stereocilia]

Walmart/Cracker Barrel parking lots can also be somewhat less sketchy than the cheapest hotel

[@spencers-adventures]

Agreed. I've only camped at one Cracker Barrel but it was a very enjoyable night!

[@VladiDusil]

Thank you for the insights, Spencer. This may not be an ultra-luxurious way to travel, but it's pure freedom and somewhat poetic. How do you go about showering on the road when you're not in an RV?

[@spencers-adventures]

Thanks for the comment! For this trip I ended up showering when I got to the racetrack, because I knew there’d be facilities there. When I’ve done longer trips and that’s not an option, I’d go to larger gas stations/truck stops where you can pay for a shower (a service mainly offered for truck drivers). These range between $5 and $15 depending on the location. I’ve also paid for a day pass to a national/provincial park, then went into the campground and used those showers while there 👍 hope that answers your question!

[@jhann990]

Great video Spencer. More road trip tips and tricks would be great.

[@spencers-adventures]

Thank you I'll certainly share some more in the future :)

[@wizzy142]

Awesome video I was bummed it ended lol. Looking forward to the next vid as always. Keep up the great work!

[@spencers-adventures]

I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@MattAitia]

Great video! I'll definitely refer back to this when I sleep in my car 🫡

[@spencers-adventures]

Thanks buddy!

[@RetroEdUK]

I remain in awe of your dad’s innovative approach! Would love to have this approach in the UK. A few folk must use supermarket car parks but not on the scale I saw your video. Great stuff! Have a top weekend.

[@spencers-adventures]

Thanks Ed! I'll probably get my dad on in a future video to talk about a simple build for car camping - he's got a lot of great ideas and is researching for new builds all the time. Hope you're well my friend :)

[@59thSurvivor-of-VHS]

This is all true!! But man! I work for Umbrella Corp, the company that has products in 9/10 households and Pharmaceuticals as a cover for the Bio weapons industry LOL I would not reccommend dealing with the overnight Lot lizards of the pavement. LOL I Had to throw some humor on the light! Love it Spencer! You are helping people help themselves and that is Golden! Realistically they know if you are camping there, you are spending money there and that is apart of it. Don't bother the managment telling them, just do it you are right. So I have this weird feeling in the future that you are going to see FEMA camps centered around wal Mart Distribution lines. This is something already planned out in those disaster scenarions. Also like at the end of Independence day, the true survivors are a massive fleet of RVS driving around LOL As later seen too in Resident Evil Exstincition. Got my movie rant in today! LOL

[@spencers-adventures]

Love the comment buddy! I love this video from Cheap RV Living where he talks about this exact thing. The best place you can be when disaster strikes is living as a nomad, because you can turn the key and drive away! This is the video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/h5KThqKOp5mcq80

[@59thSurvivor-of-VHS]

@spencers-adventures Thanks Broski! It is always refreshing watching your videos and gets me thinking deeper about perfecting day to day living. All of your strategies are good!

[@christianmotos]

This reminds me of when I went on a west coast tour during my singer-songwriter days. I used to drive a Honda Element, a very spacious car that allows me to either fold out the back seats or just recline the front and back and they sit flushed into a long "bed". Stopped at Walmart once or twice but I mostly just hit quiet neighborhoods--not a good idea but as long as you're not drawing attention to yourself, you're good.

[@spencers-adventures]

Quiet neighbourhoods can be a great option, especially if you have a stealthy vehicle like your Element. Those are great vehicles, I’ve always admired them! Touring around as an artist while sleeping in your car is a very romantic notion - I dream of that kind of life!

[@corporatemcmahon2815]

Please take care of you my friend Spencer! Nowadays people have nothing to lose. OOooopppss!!! I see... you live Canada :) So all is good. PS: Tomorrow is my birthday. I am happy for being healthy and having everything I need. I gifted myself a retro console! I can play all my games from back in the days! God bless you, freind.!

[@spencers-adventures]

Thanks so much buddy! I hope you had a nice birthday :) what console did you get?

[@corporatemcmahon2815]

@@spencers-adventures Brother Spencer. I respect that you always be interest and show respect in the comments! I appreciate that! I am a 80s kid and always loved gaming. But have you seen the current state of modern gaming??? Everything is woke and DEI and there no more good games anymore. So I bought a Anbernic RG35XX H console. It is a small handheld with old Gameboy, NES, Genesis, Dreamcast, PS1, SNES games on it!!! I am thinking about selling my PS5 and get a PS3! No subscription, Bluray Player and just good games for cheap. Back in the days they made games to have fun. Modern gaming is all about being forced to believe in the rainbow mafia which is annoying. Thanks Spencer.

[@spencers-adventures]

@@corporatemcmahon2815 I always try to get back to everyone! I really loved my PS3 and have considered getting another also. I love Skyrim/Oblivion, and also LA Noire! I hate how so many modern game systems have moved more towards digital download versus physical copy. I’d be happy with digital download if they wouldn’t be able to take the file away, but I feel like that’s not going to change. Sounds like a cool console you got buddy - enjoy!

[@OdysseyCamper]

Dude, this is my whole channel. I travel about buying and selling machine tools, traveling in my Honda Odyssey. Really like your channel and am jealous of your production quality. And I too have stayed in Cornwall!

[@spencers-adventures]

Thanks very much my friend! I'll give your channel a deeper dive - I mentioned in this video but I had a 2004 Toyota Sienna camper for a while, and my dad is itching to build another with cabinets and the like. I'm going to get him to check your stuff out too for more inspiration!

[@WitchofCrowSummit]

So, if you do this for multiple days, what do you do about bathing at some point? I figure rest stops have sinks for brushing teeth, etc, but at some point you may want to wash your hair. Do you just do that outside somewhere or are there parks or places that have showers?

[@spencers-adventures]

Great question! For this trip, I ended up showering at the racetrack when I arrived there for work. On the way back I paid $4 to drive through a national park, and then went right to the campground and took a shower there lol. On my longer trip I did last year through the US I paid to shower at truck stops which range between free (once) and $15 (way too much) depending on the place. I also have a solar shower but I very rarely get a chance to use it. Thanks for the comment :)

[@Steve-p1h]

Great video Spencer. I love the way you created a make shift bed for your car and you have places like Walmart who accommodate over night stays. I'm not sure businesses in the UK would allow that but I've always wanted to travel up and down the UK in my car and then use it like this. As I'm now recently retired through ill health I might just look into this further and see if it's possible to do here. Have yourself a great Friday and weekend and thank you again for all your hard work you put into your videos 🙏

[@spencers-adventures]

I think there's got to be some ways to get it done where you're based Steve! I'm sure there's plenty of guys like me making videos on it too lol :) Have a great week!

[@Steve-p1h]

@@spencers-adventures Thank you. I shall be looking.

[@IanMeyersBHP]

Road trip Spencer is the best Spencer, ngl. Was thinking about doing this when my gf and I filmed our eclipse journey back in April. Unfortunately the Walmart in Erie was a little sketchy so we ended up sleeping in a random parking lot next to some dorm buildings XD still living to tell the tale...

[@spencers-adventures]

That sounds like a good video in itself Ian! Glad you liked the video buddy!

[@patmarek1222]

hey Spencer I love stealth camping videos, and this topic goes so well with your frugal lifestyle content. Good stuff! And maan 50 bucks for overnight camping site? That's ridiculous! No wonder you wanna do that for free!

[@spencers-adventures]

Thanks for the comment - glad you enjoyed! And I know! I have a really hard time paying that for local camping. Once every couple of years they get me, but generally I steer clear of all that. Plenty of beautiful (and less populated) camping areas if you do the research, and it's well worth it!

[@NomadOverNormal]

I slept in a few walmarts and at least in California its not possible lol. Anywhere else its pretty easy too, but there are so many van lifers, that they'll come up to you before you even get the chance to go into park telling you "no campng here"

[@spencers-adventures]

Hey buddy! Yeah I think the key is really to dial in the stealthiness of your rig. People are pretty used to seeing Sprinter vans by now that everyone knows who's camping, but if you have a more inconspicuous ride you can often get away in a lot of places that the average vanlifer couldn't. It's definitely more of a challenge in places where people are used to seeing campers - I know out in British Columbia there's a lot of parking lots that have fully banned all overnight parking in an effort to cut down on campers. Hope you're well!

[@adamwragg4606]

Absolutely fantastic video Spencer! I've never done this but we'd like to as a family eventually. We'd need to invest in a vehicle to do this but would be lovely for family holidays round the UK. That's the dream a anyway 😅

[@spencers-adventures]

Thanks Adam! Yeah road trips are such a fun way to see the country. My girlfriend and I are looking to do a bigger trip in January so we'll certainly be sharing that on here as well!

[@adamwragg4606]

@@spencers-adventures oh niceone that sounds great! One day we'll be able to do it worn the girls 🤞🤞 look forward to seeing it