3 of the best caravan adventures and RV overland tours

Jan 26, 2024 BY AWE365 Team

A long distance road trip exploring somewhere you’ve never visited is a great adventure. And the best way to do that is to combine your travel and accommodation with something like a motorhome. With that in mind we’ve come up with 3 of the best caravan adventures and RV overland tours.

Of the different types of camping a campervan is one of the best Royalty free image from pixabay

‘Man’s real home is not a house, but the road,’ wrote Bruce Chatwin. The urge to travel great distances and have adventures is as old as humanity itself. And it certainly helps to have your home away from home on a set of wheels. This makes camping easier, more comfortable and more discrete.

Useful RVs (Recreational Vehicles) such as motorhomes, campervans, car tents, 4×4 cabs and caravans allow you to extend a day trip into a never ending expedition. You needn’t plan your itinerary according to where hotels and camp sites are located. You’re pretty much free to go where you like and sleep where you want.

Best caravan adventures and RV overland tours

If you are heading away from civilisation for a while it is wise to stock up on outdoor gear first. So shop at a reputable store such as Green Top Sporting Goods before you go.

3 of the best caravan adventures and RV overland tours pixabay royalty free image

Now let’s take a closer look at the sort of three great trips you could do in ‘moveable accommodation’.

4×4 roughing it in Iceland

A self-drive off-road tour is the perfect way to immerse yourself in the glacial wonders of Iceland. Of all the vehicle options available to snow drivers – 4WD, AWD, FWD or RWD – 4WD is best for its low-range gearing on heavy snow and steep inclines.

If you don’t have one of your own, you can rent vehicles from operators in Reykjavik. Begin the trip in the temperate ‘Golden Circle’. Visit the heart-stopping Seljalandsfoss Cliff and Gullfloss Waterfalls, have a soak in the Geysir hot springs and explore Thingvellir National Park.

Iceland Water Seljalandsfoss Cliff Waterfall Falls

When it comes to bedding down for the night, simply shift everything into the front of the 4WD and roll out a 10 centimetre thick, high-density foam mattress. Oh, and bring a warm sleeping bag for winter camping.

Day two will see you ascending into the icy highlands for exploration of Langjokull, the second biggest ice cap in Iceland at 953 square kilometres. This swirling mass of snow-white beauty neighbours a somewhat warmer natural feature: the lava flow and geothermal lakes of Herdubreidalindir.

From here you can explore the rest of the country. There are so many great outdoor activities in Iceland that you will never be short of something adventurous to do.

Iceland one of the top 5 European off-road adventures Royalty free image from Pxfuel

Southeastern Europe for the best caravan adventures

Anyone who associates caravanning with unglamorous destinations should think again. Back in 2010(ish) the Camping and Caravanning Club established an exotic 45-day caravanning tour from San Marino to Turkey. travelling via Italy and Greece.

While it is not something they run every year (if at all anymore) it is a route you can follow independently.
The ferry from Italy to Ancona features a special ‘camping deck’ where you can park your car and caravan for the duration of the 75 mile crossing.

Along the way you will enjoy natural charms such as the Meteora Cliffs and architectural treasures like the Selimiye Mosque. At the end of a day on the road you can settle down at clean and comfy camp sites in Edime, Turkey, Alexandroupolis, Greece, and San Marino.

3 of the best caravan adventures and RV overland tours pixabay royalty free image

RV overland tours USA

Richard Grant’s bestselling travel book Ghost Riders chronicles the huge number of Americans who have chosen a lifetime of perpetual motor home travel. If you want to make a shorter trip than that, there are plenty of options.

With its iconic desertscape, classic canyons and rich nature reserves, Nevada remains a well-loved motor home tour. If the plethora of trailer parks don’t appeal, you can easily find some remote desert road and kip there for the night. This 7 day, 815 mile journey is ideal for the casual or newbie overlander.

More ambitious than that is the two week (minimum!) run from the west of the country in San Francisco to the east and Washington, DC. There are also many great routes across America from north to south.

3 of the best caravan adventures and RV overland tours Flickr CC image by David~O from USA

Other great RV overland adventures

The beauty of owning an motorhome or a caravan is it can be like a spare room. Kids can use it for sleepovers, or you can put friends or relatives in it that you can’t fit in your home. And when you are not using it, you can even rent out your RV to make some extra money.

The world really is your oyster when you have a motorhome or some other form of RV. There are so many options we can’t begin to document them all here.

But how about travelling from London to Cairo via Cape Town? Or circumnavigating Australia? Or what about following the Silk Road through Asia? Or driving from Alaska all the way through the Americas to Patagonia?

We hope these best caravan adventures and RV overland tours inspire you to plan an independent trip. But check out these overlanding holidays if you’d rather travel with a tour operator.

 
Africa, Alexandroupolis, Asia, Edime, Europe, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Langjokull Glacier, Meteora, Nevada, North America, Oceania, Reykjavik, San Francisco, San Marino, South America, Thingvellir National Park, United States, Washington Dc
4x4, Camping, Overlanding
Campervan, Caravan, Motorhomes, Road Trip, RVs
Travel Articles
 

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