Motorhome and vanlife travel as serious leisure: a positive sociology approach

Despite travel and tourism sometimes being mentioned in the literature as 'casual leisure' activities, they are practically absent from the 'serious leisure perspective'. However, a significant number of studies have argued that some modes of travelling and touring can indeed be framed from the serious leisure perspective. The main objective of this article is to demonstrate, through empirical evidence and the theoretical lens of positive sociology, that motorhome tourism and 'vanlife' travel possess the six qualities of serious leisure identified by Stebbins: perseverance, career, effort, durable benefits, unique ethos and identity. Not only can motorhome and van touring induce experiences of hedonic pleasure (as casual leisure), but they can also promote states of eudaemonic well-being and flow (as serious leisure), which are more challenging to achieve but much more lasting and transformative. Considering the blend of hedonic and eudaimonic experiences lived by motorhome travellers, it can be argued that, with this way of travelling, they achieve an 'optimal leisure lifestyle'. The empirical research took place in the Algarve region (Southern Portugal) and resorted to a 'mobile methodology': an ethnographic approach that included participant and non-participant observations and a series of semi-structured interviews through the use of a rented motorhome.