This Skoolie Is a Gorgeously Designed Tiny Home on Wheels Fully Equipped for Mobile Living

Meet Steve and Tracy and their Blue Bird school bus, which they named "Shore Leave Skoolie." The couple initially got into a tiny home living by traveling in a sailboat. However, they soon realized they wanted a mobile home that required less maintenance and hassle, and they discovered school bus conversions.

This couple had the perfect blend of experience to convert a school bus: Steve had built homes before and was handy with tools, while Tracy was involved in interior design. So, they had the knowledge of devising a nice interior and the means and experience to bring it to life.

It took the duo two years to complete their skoolie build. You're probably curious about how much money they poured into the project. Steve and Tracy invested a total of $30,000 (€27,426), including the base vehicle price. Most skoolies I've written about had a similar budget, although I've seen even cheaper products, such as this $12K one.

Before we check out the inside, let me talk about the exterior features. This rig measures 32 feet (almost 10 meters) in length and sports a 7.2-liter Caterpillar diesel engine paired with an Allison automatic transmission. What's more, one of the things the couple liked about this specific unit was that it had a higher ground clearance compared to other models, enabling it to go light off-roading.

You'll discover various external compartments on this bus, which are used for storage. At the rear, you'll find a bike carrier. Moreover, because it's positioned lower, it leaves enough room for the rear door to be opened. Other notable exterior features include a propane ocker with three canisters (which lasts them about a month and a half), an outdoor shower, and air horns.

One of the most significant exterior additions was an enormous wooden deck mounted on a metal frame bolted into the roof. Also, on top of the vehicle, you'll find two sizeable skylights with tempered glass and six 100 W solar panels.

Step inside, and you'll notice a finely-designed interior. Tracy chose a modern farmhouse design for the inside, and it turned out beautiful. One perk of converting a school bus is that it boasts numerous windows, keeping the living space well-lit at all times during the day. To have some privacy, the couple equipped the windows with drop-down curtains.

One challenge in this skoolie's design was to make sure Steve, who is 6'6", had enough room inside. Typically, bus dwellers make roof extensions to make space for taller people. In this case, the couple didn't extend the entire roof but instead created a center channel where Steve could walk upright, installing the skylights I mentioned above on top of this channel.

For the driver's cabin, Steve removed the original dashboard, took many of the switches and buttons, and installed them into a counter located to the left of the driver's seat. Moreover, he fitted a CB radio, a GPS, a satellite radio, and a solar charge controller.

One nice touch is that he upholstered the new dashboard with brown leather. In the front part of the driver's cabin, Steve installed some cabinets and an overhead shelf for storage.

The next part of this bus is a seating area. There's a spacious Ikea sofa with storage underneath on the driver's side, which can also be turned into an extra sleeping space. Behind it, you'll find some cubby holes and a diesel heater, which is fed by an external diesel tank.

On the opposite side, the duo devised two benches with a floating table in between. Next, you'll discover a Grizzly Cubic Mini wood stove. Even though the diesel heater has vents all throughout the interior, meaning it can heat up the entire space, having a wood stove is a cozier option, especially since it's positioned right next to the seating area. Just imagine: you're staying inside on a cold and rainy day. You turn on the stove and open a book while enjoying the heat and listening to the wood burn. It sounds like a dream.

Step deeper into this bus's interior, and you'll find yourself in the kitchen. It's divided into two parts, one on each side of the vehicle. It features two spacious countertops, a Breville coffee maker, a large oven with a four-burner stove, a massive ceramic farmer-style sink with a water filter, and many soft-close drawers for storage, as well as a shelf.

This bus's emergency exit used to be behind where the sink is now. You'll find an awning-style window, meaning it can be opened fully for more ventilation. In the unfortunate case of an emergency, they can still use it to exit the vehicle.

After the kitchen, the interior narrows down into a hallway. This next part of the bus is dedicated to storage – you'll discover a beautiful apartment-size fridge, a humongous pull-out pantry, and a large hanging closet.

The bathroom, like the kitchen, is made up of two parts. One serves as a wet bathroom, comprising a shower and a small bench. It's fully finished with white subway tiles, which blend nicely with the bench's wooden seat. The other one hoises a DIY composting toilet, a mirror, a striking tiny sink made from a bowl, and a sliding cabinet for storage.

And lastly, we have the bedroom. The entire space is occupied by a queen-size mattress and, like the rest of the interior, is very well-lit. Other notable features here are a TV mounted on a swivel mount, a shelf, and some small decorations.

For storage, you can use drawers under the bed, as well as headboard cabinets. Moreover, there's some space under the bed that serves as a garage, accessible by opening the rear door. That's where you'll also find a 100-gallon (379-liter) freshwater tank, which Steve says is enough to last them around six days.

The last things I'd like to touch upon are the rig's utility systems. All the water in this bus is supplied by the 100-gallon tank, and then it ends up in an under-mounted gray tank (we don't know its capacity).

For the electrical system, the couple opted for three 100 Ah lithium batteries, a 2,000 W inverter, 600 W solar panels, and a breaker box, among other components. Furthermore, the system can also be charged via a shore power connection.