We are tempted to call it the big adVANture having spent nearly 2 years planning then selecting the right 4x4 camper van.
Everyone has their own ideas ‘must haves’ and what tribe you should join ie. Land Rover -v- Land Cruiser -v- Jeep -v- Toyota Pick-up truck etc.
Fly & buy in the USA was one option as this would save us shipping but after two Caravan Salon shows in Düsseldorf Germany we managed to narrow the choice down to a Mercedes Sprinter 4x4 camper van conversion by off-road experts CS Reisemobile. A big thank you to other CS Independent owners who are already miles ahead of us travelling across Asia & Africa & Americas for sharing their overland hints & tips and giving us lots of good advice before we set off.
There is no such thing as the perfect off-roader as everyone’s overlanding experience is different which is why after enjoying our Mercedes Sprinter 4x4 for a few years we then sold it and bought a new Toyota HiLUX InvincibleX pick-up which for us is now the right offroad vehicle choice – faster on the road with better fuel consumption, much easier for us both to drive, has a really tough go anywhere 4x4 set-up and being a Toyota it’s very reliable. Time will prove if this was a wise decision.
The Great Outdoors
We have already visited 38 countries on business or regular fly/drive trips, however, there are many good reasons for going on a long overland trip and these include seeking a better quality of life and being challenged on the road whilst heading to somewhere different. We’ve completed several road trips around Europe & Scandinavia and next will be driving overland to more countries like Greece & Turkey & Georgia & Armenia.
Fortunately in today’s internet age we already have many online overland friends to help us with travel tips & route planning for the countries that interest us.
Bottom line is we like being on the open road and staying in many different places along the way.