Whether or not you’re cruising in a chrome-plated RV or sputtering alongside in a classic VW, there’s nothing fairly like the joys of hitting the street in a camper van, the place you’re beholden to no timetable and restricted solely by your ambitions.
Most vacationers set their satnavs for the graceful highways of the previous dependables – North America, Australia, New Zealand – and with good purpose (not least the financial savings provided on expensive lodging), however these keen to navigate the potholes of roads much less traveled might discover richer rewards elsewhere. These are the 8 best destinations for an RV trip.
1. Scotland’s North Coast 500
Best camper van journey in Europe
It was billed as Scotland’s Route 66, however the North Coast 500 is in fact nothing like its US counterpart. Slicing a course by way of sodden carpets of heather within the bleakly-beautiful Highlands, the 516-mile route joins the dots between crumbling castles, weather-beaten fishing cities and middle-of-nowhere distilleries.
Lined with campsites, the street itself incorporates the meandering mountain go of Bealach na Bà – the best freeway in Scotland – and swings by John o’ Groats, essentially the most northerly level in mainland Britain. Deliver your bathers in case the climate behaves: Scotland has some surprisingly lovely seashores.
Most campers begin and finish their trip in Inverness – the biggest metropolis within the Highlands – whose cosy pubs, a 19th-century cathedral and a lofty fort bookend the journey properly.
The place to rent: Native rental firms embody Highland Coastal Campers, Loch Ness Motorhomes and Inverness Campervans
Rental prices: Campers from round £110/US$130 per day
2. Route 1 in California, USA
Best for seashores
Romanticised by beat writers and Hollywood movie administrators, the American street trip is virtually a sub-genre of its personal. From Grapes of Wrath to Vanishing Level, Thelma & Louise to Sideways, the nation’s highways are plagued by nice plots.
Given the profusion of street motion pictures which have come out of Hollywood, California is an apt place to (wheel) spin your personal 4WD narrative. The Golden State presents a handful of iconic itineraries, from Freeway 101 to the filth tracks of Loss of life Valley, however in the event you solely drive one street, make Route 1, effectively, the one.
Lined with campsites, this feted freeway hugs the rugged Californian coast for 143km between San Simeon and the Carmel Highlands. All plunging cliffs and wave-lashed seashores, it’s the longest stretch of undeveloped shoreline within the US.
The place to rent: Native rental firms embody Escape Camper Vans, Outdoorsy and Jurnii
Rental prices: From round US$55/£45 per day
3. East Coast Australia
Best for partying
Like koala bears to eucalyptus bushes, road-trippers have lengthy been drawn to Australia’s East Coast, the place hedonistic surf cities, colourful coral reefs and paradisiacal seashores present the pretext for camper van capers.
Buckle up in Sydney, the place the booming market in used camper vans ought to produce a dependable set of wheels for these trying to purchase. Because the Opera Home disappears within the rear-view, the East Coast unfurls to disclose spectacular nationwide parks, offbeat islands and hard-partying cities comparable to Brisbane, Cairns and Surfers Paradise. It’s not all boisterous seaside jamborees, although. Quiet tenting grounds could be discovered alongside the East Coast, together with many free websites, which regularly embody public barbecues for the compulsory shrimp tossing.
There are all types of East Coast street trip routes to take relying on the period of time you wish to spend and which beautiful Australian websites you most wish to see. The solely onerous half shall be narrowing it down, or deciding the place to start.
The place to rent: Native rental firms embody Hippie Camper and Travellers Autobarn.
Rental prices: From round AU$79/US$52 per day
4. Overlanding in Namibia
Best for wildlife
You’ll want a 4WD to sort out the otherworldly landscapes of Namibia, the place buzzing cities, stark desert scenes and wildlife-rich nationwide parks are among the many highlights.
Most self-drive journeys start in Windhoek, whose Bavarian-style boozers are the proper place to pore over maps and finalize routes. You’ll want to set the GPS for Etosha, a Belize-sized nationwide park the place self-drive safaris and in-park tenting are permitted, providing early morning sightings of rhinos, elephants and lions earlier than different vacationers have completed funnelling by way of the gates.
Prime off your tour with spectacular drives by way of the shape-shifting sand dunes of the Namib Desert and a stop-off to eyeball the colossal rusting shipwrecks alongside the Skeleton Coast. A phrase of warning: Namibia’s roads are largely unfastened gravel and there are sometimes giant distances between cities, so ahead planning is important, together with camp-site bookings. Should you benefit from the experience, nonetheless, you would possibly end up hungry for extra alternatives for overlanding in Africa.
The place to rent: Native rental firms embody Bobo Campers, Namibia 4×4 Leases and Caprivi
Rental prices: From round NAD1650/US$90 per day
5. Japan
Best for tradition
The concept of driving in Japan may appear terrifying, however a street trip right here is surprisingly serene: except for the odd racer, Japanese motorists are usually courteous, while fashionable satnavs imply there’s now no want to fret about translating indicators. Having a cell house right here additionally saves on lodge prices – a few of the most costly in Asia.
Wending their means from snow-capped peaks to palm-fringed seashores – through limpid lakes and primeval forests – Japan’s highways supply a privileged perspective on elements of the nation that many guests don’t get to see. Refill on tradition in addition to fuel in pulsating cities, middle-of-nowhere temples and conventional villages.
With views of Mount Fuji and Lake Ashinoko, the Hakone Skyline Course is one in every of Japan’s most scenic drives, and is conveniently lined with helpful relaxation stops. No much less beautiful is the Mikuni Go, which tiptoes above primeval forest in Tokachi Subprefecture.
The place to rent: Native rental firms embody Japan Campers, Camgo Campervan and Rental Camper
Rental prices: From round ¥5900/US$45 per day
6. New Zealand
Best for hikers
Vacationers typically proclaim New Zealand to be the best vacation spot for a camper van vacation – and it’s onerous to argue in any other case. From glistening glaciers to wave-lashed shores, its landscapes convey a sure grandeur to street journeys, whereas its mountaineering trails and legion of campsites make the surroundings eminently accessible.
Should you like lofty peaks then chart a course by way of the North Island’s volcanic heartland, stopping off on the hiker’s paradise that’s Tongariro Nationwide Park. For rugged seashores take the ferry to the South Island and drive the windswept West Coast, previous Franz Josef Glacier to Milford Sound.
Shopping for a camper van is virtually a ceremony of passage for travellers in New Zealand. Trusty steeds could be bought at Auckland’s well-known automotive gala’s, although there are many locations to hire in the event you don’t need the effort of haggling. One other plus is the 200 or so campsites run by the Division of Conservation; unfold all through the nation, these spots supply low costs and glorious amenities amid some unbeatable rural settings.
The place to rent: Native rental firms embody Maui Leases and Wilderness.
Rental prices: From round NZ$48/US$30 per day
7. Chile’s Pan-American Freeway
Best for journey journey
It’s onerous to lose your means on a camper van vacation in Chile, the place the foolproof Pan-American Freeway runs nearly straight down the backbone of the nation, dispatching street trippers to colourful colonial cities, arid deserts and verdant nationwide parks.
The sheer number of landscapes is staggering. It appears onerous to consider that the Atacama Desert – supposedly the driest place on Earth – is present in the identical nation because the vineyard-carpeted Elqui Valley and the ice-blue glaciers of Patagonia.
It’s not all about pure wonders. The 3364km-long Pan-American additionally serves up swaggering seaside cities within the type of Iquique, La Serena and Valdivia, and, in fact, the capital, Santiago, behind which loom the lofty peaks of the Andes.
The place to rent: Native rental firms embody Depraved South America, Condor Campers and Andes Camper
Rental prices: From round CLP$40,000/US$50 per day
8. Alberta, Canada
Best for households
Icefields Parkway manages to distil nearly all the pieces that’s epic concerning the Canadian wilderness right into a brisk 230-km camper van route. From glowing glaciers to wildflower meadows, snow-capped mountains to cascading waterfalls, this freeway packs in some severe surroundings.
Calling at Banff and Jasper Nationwide Parks, the route hits a candy spot in Could, when spring makes its presence felt within the flowery foothills, however snowboarding remains to be potential on larger floor for those that have packed their boots and poles. Come somewhat earlier – in April – and you may even skate on Lake Louise.
Earlier than you come the RV, take a detour to the sandstone hoodoos of Alberta’s Badlands, an alien-looking panorama the place a few of the rarest dinosaur fossils identified to humanity have been discovered. Dinosaur Provincial Park, a Unesco World Heritage website has a superb family-friendly campsite alongside an glorious customer heart the place kids can study concerning the space’s prehistoric inhabitants.
The place to rent: Native rental firms embody Canada RV Leases, North Campervans and Depraved Campers Calgary
Rental prices: From round CA$200/US$145 per day