How they Got Lost - Shawna & Louis - Get Lost Travel Vans

How they Got Lost – Shawna & Louis

By Britta|2021-04-02T15:54:59-08:00April 4, 2021|Categories: How They Got Lost|0 Comments

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Meet Shawna and Louis, an adventurous couple who took an epic 12-day vacation in a travel van last summer. From halibut and salmon fishing to glacier hiking and bear viewing, they made the most of their Alaskan adventure. Follow along on their trip in this latest How They Got Lost blog installment.

On the blog, we regularly feature interviews and discussions with our guests on how their trips went: where they took their vans, what they saw, what the highlights and challenges were while they were on the road, in our continuing series How They Got Lost. Read about the real trips that different travelers took in their travel vans.

(As usual, the responses have been edited only a little.)

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Give us a brief overview of your itinerary:

We arrived in Anchorage, picked up the van, supplied up at Fred Meyer and went for our first hike at Flattop Mountain. We hadn’t slept in 24 hours but we were just so excited to get started.

We then headed for the Kenai Peninsula and pulled over on a pull off to sleep for the night near Bird Point. Alaska is unique compared to our normal East Coast USA trips where you can’t necessarily just find easy places to pull off the road and sleep in your RV/van safely. The next morning we had breakfast overlooking the Turnagain Arm waters—looking for, but not finding any beluga/orca activity. We stopped at a few sites along the way including Byron Glacier and Portage Lake. Day 3 we fished the Kenai River for king salmon in Soldotna. After ¾ day of fishing, we drove to a campground where we had lots of bald eagles nearby our beachfront campsite…

Day 4 we off-shore fished from Ninilchik for Halibut. Day 5 we did a bear tour in Homer. Day 6 we drove from Homer to Seward and did Exit Glacier. Day 7 we did the Kenai Fjords National Park Cruise. Day 8 we drove from Seward to Denali via Hatcher Pass. We spent 2 days in Denali. On Day 11 we drove to Talkeetna and did some more king salmon and trout fishing. Day 12 back to Anchorage and flew home. AMAZING TRIP!

Did you have your trip planned before you arrived? How did you decide what to do?

We had our trip fully planned when we arrived other than where to stay, which is part of what’s so cool about Alaska and an RV, so much freedom to camp anywhere and so many campgrounds. One of my favorite finds was a campground literally oceanfront, spectacular! I did a lot of internet research for months to decide what we would do and plan the itinerary. We did cover almost 3000 miles! The distances in Alaska are BIG… but that’s what makes the campervan make more sense from a fuel economy and ease of driving perspective instead of a larger RV. The converted Dodge Caravan that we used was a phenomenal vehicle/outfit for our trip.

Did you do anything that was unusual or unique, or that you couldn’t do somewhere else?

We did two things that we normally would not do: the bear tour, because it was expensive, but in the end was totally worth every penny! The aerial views on the way to the park were out of this world and then the bears, sooo many bears! Also, we traveled during Covid—so, not as many people—so we did the Kenai Fjords cruise. In normal times we would never do a “touristy” thing like that because of too many people, but it was spectacular, not crowded, and we saw orcas swimming right under our boat!

Were there any unexpected challenges to deal with?

Not really, we had one day of rain while in Denali but we just slapped on our rain gear and kept on going.

Do you have any advice for other travelers who might want to do something similar?

The van/RV option is our absolute favorite, you have so much freedom! Alaska was the second trip we’ve done this way—first was the Mighty 5 in Utah. After Alaska, we did Joshua Tree/Yosemite/Death Valley in an RV. The RVs are a little more limiting due to their size, but we had more family with us on those trips. The van is perfect for 2 people (or a couple with young children)—you can go anywhere!

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Thanks for renting a travel van, Shawna and Louis! We are honored that you took a Get Lost travel Van on such an amazing adventure, and wish you many future Vanlife adventures!

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Follow the How They Got Lost series on this blog for more on the places you can go in a travel van. If you’re contemplating taking a trip like Shawna and Louis, book your van now, or let us know what your questions are. We have answers!

All photos in this post © Shawna Santos & Louis Chemi

Jeffrey mealy

18:15 17 Jul 23

What a great way to explore Alaska! Britta and Darren are so accommodating and made our experience extra special. Thanks again for such an amazing trip!

Tama Paogofie-Buyten

00:08 19 Sep 22

Love what this company is offering. I have a rig at home fully loaded and other than it not being my tundra it’s has everything you could need from cooking, utensils, bedding/pillows etc. It is a bronco sport so make sure to familiarize yourself with all its fancy gadgets to enhance your camping/over landing experience. Shoutout to Darren and Britta for all the help and accommodations. Highly recommend.

Betsy Barash

00:58 31 Aug 22

Our family of 4 had a fabulous experience with Get Lost Travel Vans. Upon arrival we were met with a very friendly and informative overview of our vehicle and were provided with everything needed to hit the road. We loved the flexibility afforded by the van of being able to stop and camp where we wanted, with ability to adjust along the way to stay longer or depart earlier. We saw some amazing wildlife, glaciers, and other outdoor scenery and thoroughly enjoyed hiking and camping. Overall a terrific way to see south central Alaska. Highly recommend!

Marie Ghitman

12:35 18 Aug 22

Our family had a fantastic time touring around Alaska in our Get Lost camper van! We love camping, and this was a way to have the camping experience with a little more comfort and protection from the elements (it rained every day but one, and snowed once, but none of that detracted from our enjoyment of the trip!). The van was in excellent shape, and even with our family of 4 adults we had room to sleep comfortably and to store our belongings. Customer service was also fantastic - before the trip (we made multiple changes easily) and during pickup and dropoff. We highly recommend Get Lost Travel Vans!

Katharina S

02:57 13 Aug 22

Whoever designed these Campervans knows what they are doing. You get all the equipment you need. The water jug, the stove and the fridge are high quality and worked great for our trip. Everything you get is clean and well maintained.Special thanks to Britta at the Office. From booking to returning, the customer service was just outstanding!

Dan Brooks

12:22 30 Jul 22

After getting a personal recommendation from a friend of the owners, we decided to ditch the expensive hotels and car rentals and go full campervan. We had a great time. The van was stocked with quality gear and the process of picking up and dropping off was easy. It made our first stay in Alaska a memorable one!

Walter Wiswell

17:06 06 Jul 22

We rented the SUV and it was the perfect way to get around Alaska! The car comes fully equipped with everything you need. The bed is definitely more comfortable than I thought it would be. And we had access to a lot of cool camp sites. We loved this experience and would definitely use Get Lost Travel Vans again. The owners were great.

Alejandro Bencomo

03:47 22 Jun 22

Their cars and service are superb!We rented a Bronco for a week of overlanding around Alaska and it was amazing. The cars come with everything you need: awning, roof tent with bed linens and pillows, cooking stove and utensils, dinnerware, cooking gas, potable water, fridge, chairs, table, and even bear spray. You just have to bring your clothes and buy the food in Anchorage.The Bronco was brand new and it performed great. We managed to find camping spots away from everybody else and with the most amazing views.The service was great from booking to check out. I will definitely use Get Lost Travel Vans if I return to AK. This is the best way to experience the beauty of this state.

Cliff Higgins

19:56 28 May 22

If you are traveling to Alaska and need a GREAT way to see the state, visit Get Lost. The staff are extremely helpful, the vans are top notch, the rates are great, and offers so much freedom. Easy check in process and explanation of the features of your rv. I rented twice from them in a period of two weeks.

Julia Huff

20:48 09 Mar 22

So I never got to rent a van, but that doesn’t mean the customer service still wasn’t great. I made a reservation to rent a van this coming summer for about a week and a half, and soon after, I had to cancel the reservation due to my financial situation changing with a home buying process. I emailed them and asked if I could get a refund minus the processing fees and they reached back out to me within a couple hours to issue the refund and were very polite and understanding about it. Though I’m not renting from them at the moment, I still plan to in the future.

Antoinette Barnas

21:39 13 Oct 21

Get Lost Travel Vans was fantastic!!!! The van was awesome and provided everything you need. You can tell that the design of the van is well thought out and that every design/detail has a purpose.Britta and her team answered all of my questions and there were A LOT and they also provided incredible recommendations on campgrounds to stay at. I know there are numerous options when looking to travel to Alaska but you shouldn't look any further than Get Lost Travel Vans!We can't wait to go back!!

Sarah Smenyak

13:40 04 Aug 21

Had a great experience renting and traveling with a Get Lost Travel Van. We originally booked for 2020, and had no problems changing dates to 2021. Our van was clean, well stocked, and comfortable for the four of us and all our stuff. Although we had almost perfect weather for our trip, knowing that we had an inside table available, should we need it was great. The van got better gas mileage than we would have expected, especially since it was loaded with so many extras. We had plenty of charging ports, and places to store our things. Everyone appreciated the power inverter and access to charge devices anywhere. The water and sink were a camping bonus that we were not used to in our years of tent camping around the United States. The refrigerator held more than we expected it to, keeping us from too many trips to the store. My only suggestion, is that you are traveling with more than two people, you will. probably need a bigger. cooking pot. With two boys aged 16 and 21, we sometimes had to find different ways to cook the amounts of foods they. consumed. But it was a great way to see Alaska!

Allen Thomasson

18:33 07 Jul 21

The travel van is a great way to explore Alaska since it is self reliant, small (in comparison to an RV), and inconspicuous. The Get Lost travel vans specifically, are designed well, run great, and are provided in the cleanest condition. The company also offers bear spray when available left by other renters and a nice selection of "take one, leave one" items.The company and staff were very informative and friendly. Heidi made sure we were well prepared for our trip. My travel partner and I were very pleased with Get Lost Travel Vans.

Cheyane Donald

14:34 14 Aug 20

Absolutely breathtaking! Our trip to Alaska has been our favorite place thus far in the U.S to travel. We are so very pleased with Get Lost Travel Vans from the moment of booking the vehicle, ALL the in between travels, up to the very last moment of return. Reliable & efficient, this van traveled about 1,500 miles in just 10 days! We are so very pleased that it came equipped with a stove, water/sink, fridge and bedding! Perfect for a couple (like us) or a small family. We give this company 5 stars! WHEN we come back, we'll defiantly be renting from Get Lost Travel Vans again!

How they Got Lost – Shawna & Louis