What do vanlife and teaching English in Asia have in common?? I think there's the desire for freedom and independence that both of these people might want. Maybe it's a sense of adventure to explore or experience something totally different or live an alternative lifestyle.
But they differ in terms of financial stability and daily routine. Iif you are someone who is considering both of these I've done both and I thought I'd share some key points. I think a lot of it is about timing and where you are and what you value most.
And cash flow...
Money is a big thing to consider
So teaching abroad is going to be a more economical move where as vanlife is going to be more of an expense unless of course you find a cheap van, do a minimalistic build and just throw a mattress in the back. But you are going to need to buy the van which will probably cost a few thousand on the low end on up to $20,000+. I got my step van initially for $6000 which was a pretty good deal, but I saw those same vans and similar ones selling for around $15,000+ in auctions. But a lot of time they had issues and the same with mine. It's a work in progress and while I don't pay rent I do have to pay expenses to fix it up and those add up.
So while the free rent of vanlife may appeal to you consider the fact that there will be additional maintenance fees to pay either when you get it or in the near future. And then aside from the mechanics there's the van build expense. My van is a 2003 Workhorse P42 so it's like 23 years old.
The van build...
So getting the van is just a starting point as far as expenses go and if you are planning on building it out and turning it into an RV-like rig with all the comforts then you are going to have a lot of expenses like: wood, insulation, an electrical system, a heating system, a water system, hardware like screws, nuts, bolts, tools, adhesives and glues.
You would need to make a bed, cabinets to store things like: clothes, food, an electrical system, possibly a toilet, a place to cook, a place to sit, a place to store tools, a place for your heating system, a place for random things, maybe a shower, etc.
Another huge van expense is TIME.
Man it can take a lot of time. I got my van in Sep. 2022 after looking for that specific model for like a year and a half. And four years later I am not done. Once winter comes I stop working on it and spend time working and riding at the mountain. I am maybe 70% or so done maybe. I've got one corner of my van where I am planning on putting some sort of shower and more storage for clothes and other things. But I think I could spend a relative infinite amount of time working on this van creatively or just updating things.
Teaching English in Asia is...
...a lot cheaper to do.
Instead of having ten thousand dollars to invest into a van you could start off with a few thousand and a job lined up teaching in Asia. Or you could save up some money $2-3,000 and move out there to find a job.
I taught in South Korea for 3.5 years, Taiwan for 2 years, spent 6 months in China and almost 2 years in Japan on a cultural visa (not teaching).
I am going to speak on teaching and living in these places since it's what I know. Korea is likely the best place to start for newcomers financially speaking, but the current exchange rate is not as good as it has been and the same goes for Japan. However, you would have to pass some hurdles to get all of your documentation together as the requirements are more strict here, but the benefits of teaching in Korea can come with free housing, free airfare, severance pay and pension pay. That means in your last month at the end of your 1 year contract you could get your month's pay say 1.8-2.5 million Won ($1600-2,000), your severance pay ($1600-2000) and your pension pay maybe half so $800-1000.
So in your last month you could pocket maybe $4-5,000USD. Then if you save $800-1000USD a month you are looking at saving maybe $13,000-17,000 by contract completion. So if you wanted to do Vanlife you would have a chunk to work with.
In Korea most teachers will work in either a hagwon or in a public school program.
But maybe Korea is not for you.
Go where you are interested in. If there is a certain culture or language that appeals to you I would go there.
Taiwan has a better exchange rate at the moment compared to Japan or Korea. You would be looking at $600NT an hour for part time work which is close to $19 an hour which is pretty even with what beginners make across Taiwan. A salary for a full time teacher in Taiwan is closer to NT55,000-NT70,000 ($1700-2200).
But Benefits in Taiwan like free housing or free airfare are not common. I have seen free housing in a few job posts for postions off the beaten path, but have never seen free airfare. Any other bonuses are also rare. So you would be on your own here like in Japan and likely in China.
However, China can also have some benefits although not like Korea, but some schools will offer an airfare reimbursement at the end of the contract and some may offer free housing.
Before I go too deep here on this section I wrote an entire post on salaries for English teachers in East Asia.
Which is more challenging? Vanlife or teaching in Asia?
They are both challenging in different ways.
Social life...
It depends what "Vanlife" means for you. Is it endless traveling, endless sunsets or just a place to crash for the night? How are you going to fund your adventures? Or will you stay in one area and live out of your van?
If you are always moving around I think you could get lonely and feel rootless. You could get lonely living in a foreign country too. Yet sometimes you move directly into a new social scene/community when you teach abroad. You will probably have fellow foreign teachers like yourself in your school and of course native Korean, Japanese, Chinese, etc. teachers. There will also be other foreigners in the city or town you move into.
But most people won't speak English. Certainly some do but many don't since it's not there native language.
Barrier to entry...
Vanlife is sort of easier to enter into since you can do it domestically, but it can come with huge expenses. Teaching English in a foreign country can come with hurdles like figuring out the proper visas, paperwork and never ending cultural differences. In East Asia Korea has the most intensive requirements like FBI background checks, apostilles on diplomas, university transcripts, drug testing, etc. China is a little more relaxed, but you still might need health checks or background checks, diplomas, etc. Taiwan and Japan are more relaxed and often a copy of your diploma may suffice, but every school is different.
Work life balance...
Vanlife can be more time consuming as finding water, places to park, places to eat, places to shower, and doing upkeep on your van or as mentioned before building it out can take a lot of time. If you have a home abroad then you probably don't have to worry about where you will shower, use the bathroom, dispose of your waste, cook your food, pay for fuel, etc.
Full time jobs teaching in Asia can range from 30-40 hours a week depending on the school. It's a stable and routine gig. Like in Korea for example public school jobs are typically 40 hours a week and hagwons closer to 30. Finding part time jobs that provide a visa is more difficult but Taiwan is a good place for this. I found one buxiban (private academy) in Taichung my first year that gave me 12 teaching hours a week at $NT600 an hour and a visa/ARC. Then my second year in Tainan I got a job teaching 16 hours a week in a buxiban.
Then you can get other part time jobs to stack up.
Cultural immersion...
Living and teaching abroad is culturally stimulating. Travelling around your own country in a van isn't quite as stimulating or novel and doesn't compare to living in a foreign land and being surrounded by a new language and culture. This comes with challenges though. Things will be different in ways you are not used to and some people have difficulties living abroad.
Teaching is a challenge.
I have highlighted the financial benefits of teaching in Asia. And those draw many teachers. But teaching will be your day in and day out job and it is not that simple and most people who do teach abroad are not formally trained teachers or in it for a career. However, it's a skill that can be learned, but it takes effort and time. In East Asia most jobs are for teaching English to kids (source). Kids can be a handful. They have a short attention span and you will have to teach them English which is not their native language.
How do you do it?
Your lesson needs to be organized, you have to maintain their attention, have a variety of activities to do within the lesson and make the lesson fun and interesting or else you will likely have problems. It was definitely a year or more till I got some confidence teaching. There are various TEFL courses you can take, however I created a targeted course focused on teaching English to children in Asia called TEKA.
If you haven't been able to explore some places in your own country then vanlife is a good way to do so. You can check out many places in a short time, but Vanlife can be uncomfortable.
Building and maintaining a van is a challenge.
The technical challenges of teaching happen in the classroom, but a van comes with technical challenges too which are either mechanical or structural/building orientated. There will be mechanical issues that you will have to attend to or you will have to find someone else to do. Mechanics can cost anywhere from $80 an hour to $180 or so in my experience.
Beyond the mechanics of the van there is the technical side which is the building part of it, using tools and what not to build a comfortable home.
Last words...
Choose TEFL if you want a more stable and routine life. Choose TEFL if you want to explore a foreign land or learn a foreign language. Choose TEFL if you want to develop as a teacher. Choose teaching and living abroad in Asia if you want to maximize your savings and earnings. And if you want to learn and develop yourself in ways you can't quite do in your own country.
Choose Vanlife if you have a chunk of savings or you want to be in the outdoors 24/7 hiking, biking, skiing, boarding, climbing, surfing, skating or doing whatever you want to do with your time. Choose Vanlife if you want ultimate freedom to build and create your own relatively low entry home. Choose Vanlife if you are self sufficient with an online gig. Choose Vanlife if you can just find a job locally or choose Vanlife if you want to develop your mechanical skills, building skills or just do something creative.
But what if you want to do both?
Practically speaking I would probably teach abroad, explore other countries and save up for one to two years so that you can later have the funds to do the Vanlife thing. I mean if you want to do the Vanlife thing and build out a van then know it's going to take more time and cost more money than you probably think. I spent about 8 years total living and teaching in East Asia, but most people who teach abroad only do so for 1-2 years.
Teaching and living abroad is a unique experience that not everyone will get the chance to do. So I would do it while you can.
And you don't have to do them in that order, but Vanlife is likely a significant investment. And I suppose it is possible to do them both at the same time, however in another country that would be quite a challenge to obtain a van, a license and drive in a foreign country with signs in a different language. Not to mention the challenge of obtaining all the materials and tools you'll need in a foreign country. I got by with a bike and public transit in East Asia just fine. Public transportation in East Asia is good and it was nice to escape the car culture of the USA. Driving over there never appealed to me though I had a scooter in Taiwan which is common especially outside of Taipei.
If you are intested in teaching in Asia check out these articles on teaching in Taiwan, South Korea, China and Japan.