After we had Alex, we realised that buying our own home or land in the UK was never going to be financially possible. Moving into a van unlocked this dream — it gave us the freedom to take a leap and move to Bulgaria.
A friend recommended the area to us, and when we came to look around, it felt right. Strangely, we realised afterwards that we’d actually driven through this region on our trip across Europe in 2015 — almost like it was always meant to be.
It’s a small, quiet village, but we’re twenty minutes from a bigger town with a proper supermarket. Day-to-day we prefer using the smaller local shops and market, which has become part of our weekly rhythm. We get four distinct seasons here — winters can drop to –10°C, while summers climb up to 40°C — so the landscape and the way of life shift quite a lot throughout the year. It feels both remote and connected at the same time.
This piece of land sits on the edge of the village, just under two acres, and it used to be a vineyard and small farm. When we found it, it had been abandoned for about ten years. When it went up for sale, everything came with it — the barns, the house, even the old furniture and belongings.
The total price came to £6000 when we bought it four years ago. People call it “cheap,” but for us it was everything we had. We could never have afforded our own home in England, so we saved hard, sold most of our belongings, and put it all into this dream. The land includes a house — which unfortunately has subsidence and is structurally unsafe — along with three barns. It sits on a sloping hillside, surrounded by beautiful rock formations. Even though it was derelict and unloved when we arrived, we could see the potential straight away.
Spending time with our children is central to why we’re doing this
Tread Lightly
We wanted to be more self-reliant, not tied to rising bills or an unreliable system. But we also wanted to tread more lightly on the earth, to raise our children in a way that connects them to the land, and to challenge ourselves as a family to be resourceful.
In the UK, we’d slipped into a cycle of convenience — takeaways, consumerism, keeping up with the Joneses — and it didn’t feel fulfilling. We were so inspired by stories of others who had made bold moves to kickstart a life change, and we realised that’s what we wanted, too.
Van life gave us the first taste of that freedom. It showed us how little we actually needed to be happy, and that minimalist mindset still shapes how we live now.
We’ve put in raised beds using the hugelkultur method, planted vegetables, and started a little fruit orchard that we’re excited to see grow over the years. For the kids, we’ve created a play area using salvaged materials, so they’ve got their own space to climb, bounce, and explore.
To make life a bit more comfortable, we built a covered decking area in front of the caravan — it’s become our outdoor living room and the heart of family life in the warmer months. We created a pool area, which was no small job, and Phil built a beautiful stone wall around it. It’s practical, but it also gives that part of the land a feeling of being finished and cared for.
We’ve designed and built our own 5000w tilting solar array, using wood and a lot of trial and error. It gives us reliable off-grid electricity and there’s a real sense of pride in knowing it was entirely our own design and build.
One of our favourite projects so far has been a wooden geodesic dome — right now it’s a striking feature on the land, but soon we’ll be turning it into a greenhouse to extend our growing season. And we’re about to begin our biggest project yet: building our straw bale tiny home. That’s the one we’ve been dreaming of since the very beginning. It should be finished by early 2026.
Slowly Does It
Everything takes longer than you think — but we knew that from the start. This isn’t a quick renovation or a flip; we’re building a whole new life from scratch. When we first arrived on the land, we literally had nothing.
Spending time with our children is central to why we’re doing this, so the process — slow, hands-on, sometimes messy — is the most exciting part for us. Life happens, and we’re very restricted with finances, living pay cheque to pay cheque with no savings, so each step has to be considered, creative, and intentional.
Up until recently I was working full-time remotely, and Phil also works online for a solar battery company. Our outgoings are much lower, so we can make our money stretch further — but we still have to be very careful and frugal.
We’ve been documenting our journey on YouTube ever since we bought the land, and over time that’s grown into a really close and supportive community. We never set out to do it as a business, but it has started bringing in some income.
It’s a long game, but the slow pace is part of the joy — it’s shaping our home, our land, and our life together, bit by bit.
We used to live in a self-converted Sprinter van, so moving into a 6-berth caravan was an upgrade in space for us. Before we moved to Bulgaria, we adapted the caravan so that everyone had their own sleeping space, a separate bathroom with a composting toilet, and a little wardrobe area. Storage and organisation are key — as long as everything has a place and gets put back, it works surprisingly well.
It’s cosy and sometimes chaotic with two young children, but that’s part of the process. It isn’t for everybody, but we’re a close family and we know this is just a short-term living arrangement. Living like this has taught us so much about simplicity, making do, and really appreciating the space and comfort we’re working towards.
Alex loves helping in the garden and building things with Phil, taking a real interest in how things work. Ember, even though she’s still small, is incredibly physically capable — walking and climbing around the land as if it’s second nature, exploring every nook and cranny.
Including them does make processes slower, and sometimes we have to stop and remind ourselves why we’re here. We didn’t come to just build structures or tick off projects — we came to live a fuller, richer life together. Watching our children learn patience, resilience, problem-solving, and the joy of creating with their own hands is part of that life.
Wintering Well
We’ve done two winters here in the caravan, and hopefully this will be our last one. It’s been manageable though, especially since we built the deck area. We’ve carpeted it, added clear conservatory-style plastic sides, and installed a wood burner last year, which made a huge difference. Inside the caravan we’ve got a diesel heater, and it actually stays toasty.
We spend a lot of our time outdoors, so it really comes down to dressing properly for the conditions. Living off-grid in any season teaches you to always have back-ups and to think in terms of “what if” or “worst-case scenario.” That mindset has helped us massively in coping with the challenges of winter here.
Alex is in the local school. He was the only non-Bulgarian child there, which was a big adjustment, but he’s just about to start grade two now and he’s really flourished. He picked up the language quickly and has made some special friends, which has been lovely to see.
We don’t know yet whether he’ll continue in the Bulgarian system long term. Our approach has always been to make the right decision for our children when the time comes. We see education as a lifelong journey, not something confined to a classroom.
We feel really lucky with our neighbours — they’ve been wonderful since the start. We’ve also got to know some friends from other countries living in nearby villages, which makes for a nice mix of community. We’re very busy most of the time, so we don’t get out to socialise as often as we’d like, but when we do, we make the effort.
We believe strongly that if you live in a country, you should learn the language. Neither of us are natural language learners, so it hasn’t been easy, but we’re getting by. We’ve been using apps, picking up phrases here and there, and Alex has actually taught us a lot too. It will come with time.
“One of my favourite spots is at the top of our land. We often sit up there and watch the swallows darting around at sunset”
Kindness is All
One thing that really stands out is the kindness in our village. Community is so important here. For example, during a recent fire, Phil spent the day helping a neighbour protect their orchard and farmland, and afterwards they helped us source the bales we needed for our tiny home build. That kind of mutual support means everything. Our neighbours know we’re here to stay, that we work hard, and that we’re doing our best — and that’s built a lot of respect and trust both ways.
We have a small but very close group of friends back in the UK who we miss so much, and being away from family is probably the toughest part of living here. This year has been especially difficult as my dad was diagnosed with cancer, which made the distance feel even heavier.
Technology does help but of course it’s not the same as being in the same room. Once the barn is ready, it will give us space to host family and friends here in Bulgaria, and those reunions will mean even more.
One of my favourite spots is at the top of our land. From there you can see the Rhodope mountains in the distance and look out over all of our plot. We often sit up there and watch the swallows darting around at sunset — it feels really special.
Progress doesn’t always look like big leaps — most days it’s a slow trickle of small wins that add up over time. Life is full of challenges, of course, but the difference now is that we’re facing challenges that feel purposeful and rewarding.
We work so much harder here than we ever did back in England. It’s taught us to let go of perfection, embrace the messy, real version of life, and focus on what truly matters: family, connection, and creating something meaningful together. We’ve learned to be resourceful, to work with what we have, and to celebrate even the smallest victories.”
MORE INSPIRATION
WATCH www.youtube.com/offgridwiththeudens
FOLLOW www.instagram.com/offgridwiththeudens
This article appears in issue 127 of The Green Parent magazine. Sign up here for free account to download the whole magazine here.
