Arizona company takes new spin on glamping

PHOENIX (FOX 10) - Escaping the heat for cooler temperatures during the summer is an Arizona tradition for a lot of people. But roughing it in the great outdoors might be a thing of the past with a premium being put on the comforts of home - even when you're camping.

When you live a picturesque lifestyle like Brittany Rizzuto, that's Miss_Rizzo to around 28,000 people on Instagram - travel is like. And there's no shortage of spots to hit in Arizona. But roughing it isn't for everyone.

"I'm used to flying all the time to the point where I go so spoiled that I don't want to be on a road trip for more than an hour or two," said Rizzuto. "So this definitely changed my whole perspective."

On one of her latest road trips, Rizzuto didn't so much camp as she glamped, with lots of comforts from home, thanks to some new wheels.

"You can bring a tent and still go outside and set it up," Rizzuto said. "But it's just convenient to pull over, start cooking, shower - whatever you want to do."

Tempe-based Boho Camper Vans is trying to seize on the love of the great outdoors and comfort. Co-founders David Sodemann and Brett Ellenson started up just about a year ago.

"With that first rental, when that came through, that was kind of an eye-opener to us," said Ellenson. "We thought, 'Hey, this idea could work' and now here we are just 12 months later and we're basically booked up for our rentals. We have an extensive email list for people who want to buy the vans."

The pair tricks out utility vans to whatever specs their customer desires and some people take their customizations very seriously.

"The craziest thing we've had so far has been a pullout foosball table," said Ellenson. "That was a pretty intense set-up, where we find how high does it even need to be.

From start to finish, Boho first gets a van wholesale, then they gut it, they take everything that was inside out and they move on to their own customizations. And in about four weeks, it's on to the customer for a new camping experience.

The idea is amenities will add to your adventure. And everyone getting jealous of you on Instagram doesn't hurt either.

"I believe the amount of traction as quickly that we've gotten, I believe that's a factor," said Ellenson. "People are seeing the experiences that other people are going on now and they want it - they want to go get that experience."

And no matter what's inside, every van is a little bit rock and roll.

"We name each of our vehicles after female rockstars," Sodemann said. "We have Stevie Nicks, Janis Joplin, and our newest is Franklin, like Aretha. And it's just all about how these women did things unconventionally, and traditionally with vans and vehicles, people like to name them - usually after a woman. So, that's kind of the take we took."

The company has already sold custom vans to international and local travelers and hopes to continue blazing a new trail.

"The biggest convenience that we heard of was at Coachella," said Ellenson. "They said the lines were 20 to 45 minutes to take a shower, and they had people offering money to shower at the back of the van."