Next year I am planning to travel around Europe in my LDV converted campervan, with my soon to be 18 year old daughter who is taking a gap year before university, and our 2 dogs.
We have previously camped and caravanned but never abroad, so I was wondering if there are any things you experienced travellers would consider to be essential, particularly for an extended time as we may be away for up to a year.
------------- Life is short. Enjoy it now.
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ACSI card for low out of high season campsite rates.
Good maps. Avoid motorways and see Europe from smaller roads.
A contact address in the UK that you can have your mail etc. sent to and for emergencies.
A loaded e book reader as English books can be hard to come by in some countries and are usually expensive if they are available.
A laptop or tablet. Wifi, often free, is now available all over Europe (at McDonalds, supermarkets, campsites etc). Handy to check on weather, routes etc.
A sense of adventure and fun. It's the unexpected that makes the trip worthwhile.
(1)Watch out for the home insurance. Leaving a property unoccupied for over a certain period, will invalidate it.
We usually go away for over 3 months at a time so get someone to go to our house to make a call from the landline. This means that the 90 days unoccupied restarts after the call date. (Your bill will give proof of occupancy on that date).
(2)Copies of all documentation passports, credit cards etc should be put on some form of cloud storage..e.g.dropbox, box, etc.
(3) get a wifi booster and join the BTfon system. The first will enable you to pick up signals from a distance. We sit in McDonald's carpark rather than subject ourselves to their cuisine.
Having a BtFon membership means that you can plug in to loads of free hotspots.
(4)Empty your water reservoir every time you leave a site. Take a bottle or so for on route use, but don't lug around unnecessary weight. You can always fill up when on most aires or campsites and it saves fuel.
Quote: Originally posted by nomatterwhat on 08/4/2015
Thank you all for your replies. Some very useful information but I can manage without the Marmite, VWT4Transporter!
No probs, its wot us uppa clars plebs have for breakfast before the croissants
------------- Birth of the Universe?
Once upon a time there was nothing. Which exploded
Don't forget to leave a review of the French and other European campsites you have visited!
We are just 5 months into a 12 month trip around Europe.
The two things everyone mentions that are essential - insurance and breakdown cover. We did the MOT the day before we went, there is no way around it other than coming back mid-trip, you can't MOT outside the UK for your insurance. Tax is fine, we renewed online.
If you go for 12 months then you have to pass winter somewhere - we chose Greece which was good, not as hot as Spain but some good sunny days. Wherever you go be aware of winter tyre requirements, in some countries you need them right up to April 1st - if not you may invalidate insurance.
Campsites - easy to find everywhere we have been. We haven't gone down the ACSI card route, mainly because its been cheaper to use small sites a lot of times in the countries we have visited. When we have used bigger sites they have been willing to give us lower rates that match ACSI anyway.
The only big tip from us would be learn a bit of every language. It really does pay dividends, we avoid cities and in the smaller towns and villages not everyone will speak or understand English.
Its without a doubt the best fun ever - and it doesn't cost the earth. A few good maps and a sense of adventure are the main other things you need
We took the ferry from Ancona to Patras (via Igoumenitsa). We were going to drive down to Brindisa or Bari as we thought they would be cheaper routes as shorter but it was £50 less from Ancona.
For us winter prices at the ferry terminal were better than we had been quoted on-line. We turned up at Ancona and were quoted £350 with one line, the one next door offered £200 as ferry leaving in an hour and plenty of space.
We travelled with Mimoan Lines (Anek)and they gave us a free cabin and 40% meal discount vouchers as they cant offer camping onboard in winter.
Hope that helps - Greece is fantastically campervan friendly, and a great winter destination.
All the main points have been covered, but here are a few more minor details - and we found that when you're away for a year, little things can mean a lot!
Load up with paracetamol, ibuprofen and hayfever tablets (if necessary.) Unlike the UK, they're not usually available in supermarkets abroad, so you have to find a pharmacist and pay more.
As Dot P said, a few words of the language help. We took the Eyewitness Travel Guides European Phrase Book, pocket sized and easy to use. There are also apps you can download for single languages.
Although we always try to eat the local food, there are some things you will miss. Teabags have been mentioned, but we had trouble finding any sort of pickles or chutneys, other than gherkins! It's also hard to find decent marmalade, as opposed to thin orange jam which isn't the same, and OH couldn't find Hermesetas and had to use other sweetener tablets which he didn't like. He also dislikes shower gel so took a supply of Imperial Leather soap! It's not so much of a problem in countries like Spain where there are shops catering for expats.
We also found we needed new pillows after a while, and they're often a different shape and size in other countries. Facecloths were hard to find too.
We didn't watch much TV but took some DVD's and also a pack of cards, travel Scrabble, books of crosswords, Sudoku etc, as well as e-books.
You'll have a great time. Try writing a blog - it's fun, and useful for other travellers. Don't forget to do site reviews!
------------- Il vaut mieux vivre ses reves que rever sa vie
Don't forget to leave a review of the French and other European campsites you have visited!
A day of all things motorhome and campervan. The show is held both in the main indoor arena and across the grounds. Catering, hot drinks and food options are available. Easy access to the site and free parking included. Win one of five pairs of day tickets
Topic: Road trip around Europe
