Travelling the world in a camper

I wish you the best of luck with your plan.

I can't give you much advice, but I recommend asking on a couple of specialised camper/caravan forum, such as this one: Caravan-Facts. You might also want to join a local caravan club.

Also, if you haven't already tried it, I suggest seeing if you like the lifestyle before you go and buy a camper, by renting one and travelling in it for a minimum of 2-3 weeks.

Thanks. I will take a look at the link you sent.
We were thinking of renting a camper next year and seeing some of Europe to see how it goes. The campers we have seen so far here in Holland are considered big here but I find them very claustrophobic so would like to see how it goes for a couple of weeks.
Thanks again,
Rosie

I will put in my Ten Euro's worth: I live in Australia, RVF's vary in size from the US monsters down to tiny vans with a pop top roof. We own a Toyota Coaster bus that has been converted into a small mobile home (no toilet or shower) My observatioins here are caravan parks and camping areas are not set up for the really big vans, the original concept in this country was caravans and tents. Do we have the really big RV's, yes but they are a struggle to position in a lot of spots.

Last year we hired a 22 foot RV in Canada and did a 6 week trip through Canada and Alaska. Our RV was small compared to some and bigger compared to the type that slide on the back of pick ups. This one had a shower and toilet. It was a ford brand with a very thirst petrol V8. The trip was brilliant as the camping RV parks in Canada and Alaska were set up to take the bigger RV's.

My advice would be: Hire one and do a Europe trip on some challenging roads and see how you handle vehicle control. Do the sums and see if it is worth the grief versus hiring a flat/pension and doing day trips, remember yoyu are like a turtle your home comes with you unless you have a bike or close to public tansport, consider a smaller RV and have a tent strange as it may seem we sleep outdoors a lot.

Hope this helps,

Mick of OZ

Time to stop dreaming and start thinking! You say you want to 'see as much of the world as we can'. Europe, through to Asia is accessible by road. The Americas and Australasia aren't so will you buy in Europe and take the camper by ship? An alternative is to hire/buy in those countries. Is this a fulltiming plan?
For countries accessible by road:
General advice is to buy the smallest van you feel comfortable with. Go to a motorhome show and check the size of the vans. Which feels good? - and then which is practical for you? Price, storage when it is not in use?
Large vans have more living space, are less manoeuvrable, drink more fuel, may have limitations depending on your driving licence, shout 'I'm a rich foreigner', may limit where you can drive and camp.
Smaller vans are more cramped, cost less on ferries (I'm a Brit!), let you travel down small roads, are easier to park, use less fuel.
Do you usually camp? 3's advice is good, you need to try before you buy.In both cases you need to be able to live together easily. You can't sulk in a campervan!
Try looking up the motorhome forums on your search engine. Wherever you want to go people who have been before can help. And believe me - people have been before! We met a campervan in Kathmandu. They were retired and had travelled out from Europe and over from Tibet via China!
Good luck! Live the dream!

I met Maz and Alex in East Timor

www.overland-underwater.com

They came overland from England and landed up in Australia. They had a Landcruiser with an expandable tent on the roof that they opened up at night. They had good luck with it.

have a look at their blog (they have since settled in Australia) there is a lot of useful info about border crossings, carnets and other practical info

dp

Try some long holidays with a camper before you even consider buying one.
Life in a camper is different from what you imagine. You both might like it but you might hate it as well. Both people have to accommodate to a lot of things and need to have a good relationship, because there is no place to hide when things get rough.

The bigger the camper the less mobility you have (think of managing in urban traffic and small roads) and the more power the engine needs to bring you up hill. Also the higher the fuel bill will be.
The one camper that can be ideal for touring Europe will be a flop in a country with dirt roads full of holes and sand dust. There you will need something mighty in my opinion. A camper for cold climates weights more and is more expensive while in mild weather countries a light model with less space will do, as you can just have your living room outside and sleep with windows open.
The nicest campers I ever saw were build on a chassis of a (Mercedes , Volvo and Daf) truck or on a land rover and were one of a kind.

In poor countries they manage to repair almost everything while in rich countries they will send you to the dealer for spare parts and expensive reparations. So don't buy anything falling apart that will let you down half way and cost lots of money and irritation.

Going around the world with the same camper seems a lot of extra work and a waste of money to me. In the USA you can buy a second hand and travel the continent with it. The same goes for Australia and N Z. But first try some months at home. One month isn't enough. You need to learn to live and enjoy life in such a small space in different seasons. I know from experience it can be quite nice when the weather is ok

Your question was, what make of an RV you should get, GM or Mercedes?
For parts and service availabilty I would go with Mercedes.
I just came back from Cuba and I couldn't believe the size of a Mercedes dealership just outside of Havana. If they are there, they are everywhere!
Maybe a little more expensive but definetly more reliable.
For a "test run" I would suggest a trip around Southern Italy, stay away from the autostradas, then take the ferry across to Greece and drive North through the Balcans to get back home. If you feel comfortable driving on their secondary roads around there you'll make it anywhere.
Good luck and have fun.
John

I would try it out over some of the passes in Switzerland. If you can't make it round the bends without doing a three-point manoeuvre then it is too big. If you can’t get up the pass at all, then it is too small.

Thankyou for all your messages. It has given me a lot to think about. We had decided to rent a camper maybe next year for a trial run. I think after reading all your comments, we should aim for something smaller than we were originally thinking about.

Thanks, Rosie