We had a great couple of months in the UK catching up with family and friends taking us from Hertfordshire to Oxfordshire and then down to the West Country to Wiltshire, Devon and Somerset.

In addition we the van had new tyres at Costco Watford, was MOTd at Intercounty Mercedes Milton Keynes and warranty work done at Southdown Motorhomes in Portsmouth. Throw in medical and dental appointments, it was a pretty busy time!

With the sudden death of the Queen at the beginning of September we delayed our departure for a few days and like a lot of people, were glued to the TV watching all the events as they happened. We decided we would book our Channel crossing for the day after the funeral so we could watch that day’s services with uninterrupted wifi.

When home we have a couple of go to CLs we use with our favourites being Balmers near Tring and Home Farm, Iver.  Both are basic grass fields with no EHU but have clean water and dump facilities, and work out real value for money at £8 and £13 per night respectively (Home Farm also offers a weekly rate of £85).

Other sites used during this visit:

Friars Court Island CL, Radcot: £12.50 p/n, grass field, no EHU but clean water and dump facilities. Great riverside location and pub nearby.

Newbridge Campsite, near Witney: £6 p/n, grass field, no EHU but clean water and dump facilities. Close to the river and a couple of puts

Stroud Farm, Maidenhead: £6 p/n, grass field, no EHU but clean water and dump facilities. Close to Heathrow so expect aircraft noise!

Kingstones Farm, near Marlborough, Wiltshire: £12 p/n (£15 with EHU). Two hard standing pitches and large grass area. Clean water and dump facilities. Easy bus access to Marlborough and plenty of walking from the site to the Savernake Forest and the Kennet and Avon Canal.

Pitt’s Farm, near Wells, Somerset: £12 p/n. Grass pitches with EHU. Clean water and dump facilities. Wells and Glastonbury easily accessible with a vehicle.

We also overnighted at The Drove to visit Stonehenge and Port Solent car park, close to Southdown Motorhomes where the van was having some work done. Both of these are free and at Port Solent you are asked to call the port office to let them know you’re staying the night.

This is the route that we took through Norway, Sweden and Denmark

We’ve had quite a few questions from people planning to do a similar trip so we thought we’d put together a post on what worked for us and some things we wish we’d known before we went.  The points might be a bit random but we’re writing them down as we think of them and please note that this is what worked for us – it may not suit others.

Getting there

We took the tunnel from Dover to Calais and drove from there through France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and finally into Denmark where we took the ferry from Hirtshals to Kristiansand.  This was roughly 911 miles plus a ferry costing £255.

In hindsight we would have looked more into the ferry from the Netherlands to Norway which we initially dismissed due to cost but we may have saved money and time once we took into account the extra driving through Germany and Denmark.

Ferries and tolls

We had a BroBizz tag which enabled us to use ferries and pay tolls automatically with a discount and we linked our Halifax Clarity credit card to the account so there were no additional charges in the UK. However, if we’d done more research, it would have been beneficial to also have had the AutoPASS tag which would have halved the price of our Lofoten ferry, for which we paid £180. One thing to note is that both tags are delivered to your home address so need to be ordered ahead of travel and there is a cost to them – BroBizz was about £25 for a vehicle over 3.5t.

Coming home, after driving across the Oresund Bridge, we decided to take the ferry from Rodby in Denmark to Puttgarden in Germany. Although the BroBizz box gave us discount on the Oresund Bridge (still paid £108.41) we did notice a combined ticket available through the ferry company for the bridge and the ferry which may have worked out cheaper.

For most ferries you simply arrive at the terminal and drive straight on.  All charging is by number plate recognition and if you don’t have a tag then you are invoiced via mail. 

In total we paid £545.76 for ferry crossings (excluding Eurotunnel) and £248.96 for tolls and small local ferries.

Driving in Norway

Firstly don’t underestimate the size of the country and be prepared to be flexible on planning a route.  The most direct route from Kristiansand in the south to Nordkapp is almost 1,500 miles and actually takes you through Sweden – we drove approximately 5,000 miles in Norway and Sweden, plus a quick dip into Finland over 10 weeks.  Weather is also a factor to take into account as we were still finding snow restrictions in June.  We had wanted to drive Trollstigen but the road was still closed for repairs (there are lots of roadworks once the snow has melted).  

Roads are mostly single carriageway, including the main north-south E6, but we encountered few hold-ups other than for roadworks and were even able to overnight in roadside rest areas as at night traffic is minimal.  Off the main routes, the roads did feel narrow but people seem to drive slower and be patient so we had no issues. 

As a side point, alcohol limits for driving are lower in Scandinavia than in the UK and we were stopped and breathalysed one morning having been pulled over as part of a routine road check.  The police were friendly and we were waved straight on after a negative result. 

Motorhoming

One of the best regions we’ve visited for motorhomes. Norway has lots of free parking in beautiful places and easy to find sanitation points for emptying tanks and cassettes and taking on clean water. We only paid once to take on water and that was about £1.70.

We had to look a bit harder in Sweden for service points but found water in petrol stations and chemical toilet disposal places in a lot of motorway rest areas.  Again lots of free parking and often with BBQ pits with wood provided and dry toilets.

Throw the spectacular scenery in with the above and you can see why these countries are popular motorhome destinations. There are LOTS of vans on the road and the numbers were increasing daily as we headed into summer.

We used the app Park4Nights throughout the trip.

Fuel

Definitely most expensive in Norway and the price fluctuated regularly.  The most we paid in Norway was £2.31 a litre but we also paid under £2.  

LPG

Easily available in Norway, less so in Sweden and not at all in Finland. We only needed the dish adapter for our Gaslow system

Food and drink

Lots of supermarkets and prices on the whole are more expensive than the UK but not massively so.  In Norway and Sweden, most alcohol is sold though government stores – Vinmonopolet in Norway and and Systembolaget in Sweden, although you can buy some beers in the supermarkets. 

Eating out is very expensive so we didn’t do it!

Currency

Denmark, Norway and Sweden still retain their own currencies but cash is rarely needed.  Cards are taken pretty much everywhere and in a couple of places we saw signs specifically saying that cash wasn’t accepted.  

We use the Halifax Clarity Card and have Monzo Bank accounts so pay no conversion charges on the UK side of any transaction and whenever offered the choice of paying in GBP or local currency on a card managing ALWAYS take the currency option.

Wildlife

Plenty of opportunities for bird watching and whale/dolphin spotting without doing an organised trip and once north of Trondheim we regularly found reindeer munching the vegetation on the side of the road but the real point of listing wildlife is the bloody mosquitoes! If travelling in late spring and summer, invest in a mosquito head net if you want to be able to sit outside of an evening and consider buying a Thermocell anti-mosquito device as they are cheaper in the UK.

If anyone has any further questions then please ask!

Suitably refreshed after our week in the AirBnB, we left the spectacular Norwegian scenery and headed into northern Sweden passing through the mining town of Kiruna before meeting up with friends at the coast.

We tend to visit places based on personal recommendations or look for the less touristy places. We had been told about Storforsen where the rapids are one of the most voluminous in Europe and then visited nearby Laver, a deserted mining town which we found on Atlas Obscura, a great source of weird and wonderful places!

Like Norway, Sweden provides great free camping spots often with BBQ pits and firewood provided but be warned of the mosquitoes! We have never seen so many nor been bitten so much despite having visited the Amazon and Africa!

We used two campsites whilst in Sweden mainly because we needed to do laundry with the free WiFi being a bonus!  Överhörnäs Camping is a lakeside campsite just off the E4 close to the west coast.  It’s a mixture of cabins and touring pitches with a small RV car park which has three pitches.  We used the latter and it was SEK240 (just under £20) a night without EHU.  The site has a free washing machine but no drier, and is very clean and well organised by friendly, helpful staff.

Much of the region is long straight roads through forests and lakes but the High Coast area is well worth a visit and we stopped in Skuleskogen National Park for a couple of nights so we could get out for a decent hike.

Our route was taking us southwards along the coast with our original plan to spend a couple of nights in Stockholm. But, as we often do, we changed our mind and decided we’d save Stockholm for a future long weekend, taking a more inland route towards the south coast, via more forests and lakes.

We spent two nights on the island of Öland, a fascinating place to visit and just across the bridge at Kalmar. We managed to find a reasonably priced campsite, Ventlinge Ställplats, in the south of the island within the UNESCO World Heritage area which is full of hiking and cycling trails, Iron Age forts and ancient farms. The campsite is a large grass field which accommodates about 20 vans plus a small tent area. We paid SEK160 (around £13) a night without EHU and there is a washing machine for SEK40 a wash, but no drier. The owner was very helpful and provided lots of tourist information on the local area.

After a couple of nights on the very busy south coast, including a visit to the most southerly point at Smygehamn and an obligatory visit to Ikea in Malmo, we crossed via the Oresund Bridge into Denmark to truly start our journey home although we still had over 1,000km to go!

We spent one night near Gedser, at the southernmost point of Denmark (spot the theme here!) where we encountered a bit of a storm. For about half an hour the van was being shaken by the wind but the heavy rain did go some way to washing off a lot of the dust and dirt we’d acquired “off-roading” in Sweden.

In another route change we decided to take the 45 minute ferry from Rodby in Denmark to Puttgarden in Germany, rather than drive through Denmark and save a few miles on the van. The two nights in Germany were uneventful and the driving pretty boring as it was all motorway. Hamburg was a nightmare to drive round and through, as it was on the way up, so we shall do our best to avoid there in the future!

We had factored in a couple of nights in the Netherlands to break the drive but free parking was difficult to find along the coast so we ended up on a mini-campsite on a farm near Veere which was definitely more our thing than the big all-singing all-dancing sites aimed at families (and significantly cheaper). Ben Trovato camping was €27.50 per night including EHU and tourist tax and parking is on a grass field. It was a bit tight getting in and we were squeezed between two long term residents of the site but it didn’t feel overcrowded, unlike some of the Southern European sites. We were able to walk from the site into the town and it really was worth the visit.

Having a late crossing through the tunnel meant that we could get all the washing done at a couple of Revolution laundry places, using the big machines to get the winter quilt washed. It proved quite expensive in the end but worth not having the hassle when we got home. We cheekily turned up at Eurotunnel 4.5 hours early and managed to get a train almost 2 hours earlier than our booking which meant we at least got to drive the short distance to Canterbury P & R car park in the daylight.

Having been as far north and as Far East as we could go in Norway the only direction we could go in now was south and begin our long journey home.

From Grense Jakobselv we headed into Finland as we had a few days to spare before meeting friends in Norway for a week’s holiday (yes, we still need a holiday from time to time!). With the need to do laundry in mind we picked Camping Uruniemi on Lake Inari and selected a lakeside pitch, €22 p/n without EHU. The contrast with Norway could not have been more apparent as we drove long straight roads surrounded by lakes and forests – beautiful in its own way but not the mountains we’d left behind. And with all the water comes the mosquitoes!

After just two nights at the lake we decided to move on back towards Norway and with our first choice of park-up not the best, we continued on to the coast and back to one of our favourite places near Talvik. It was here that we saw orcas a couple of weeks ago and this time we were treated to a humpback whale, caught completely by chance on camera as we tried to photograph the dolphins playing in the fjord!

We continued south along the coast finding yet more stunning places to stay. We always knew Norway would be beautiful but it has surpassed all our expectations.

Before we moved into the van we always had a week away with friends and wanted to continue this. COVID ruined our plans for a couple of years but we finally managed to arrange it so Sarah and Colin could meet us in northern Norway. Our last trip together had been to this area but in February so very different conditions. We had booked a house via Airbnb on a fjord for a week of relaxation and exploration of the Lyngen area – well worth a visit and away from the main tourist route.

We did one walk to the Blue Lake a few kilometres from the house. It wasn’t a long walk but not the easiest as most of it was over a boulder field. The lake at the end certainly lived up to its name.

This was a great week spent with our closest friends and we can highly recommend the place we stayed in. We also picked one of the hottest weeks to be there but swimming in the fjord was a great way to cool off and in the evenings we sat on the deck with a glass of wine/beer watching the dolphins and again, the midnight sun.

After a week there it was back on the road and next stop, Sweden.

After another quick stop at home for a routine medical appointment, we then started a week or so of van related work but with the promise of a weekend in the Peaks at the end before popping home again.

First stop was Tyrepal at Banbury to get the tyre pressure monitoring system sorted. Turned out that a replacement monitor we had received recently was faulty so we were given a new one immediately and the system was backing fully working. As that was a quick job, it was straight on to our overnight stop at Burton Hill Farm CL. We were surrounded by some beautiful countryside but as we were there just the one night, we didn’t have a chance to see much of the campsite let alone explore any further.

The next job was in Shropshire where, after a lot of shall we / shan’t we, we were having a Planar diesel heater fitted by Autoterm. We have warm air heating which runs off LPG or electric so we’re not at all cold but the diesel heater gives us another option if we need to watch the LPG usage and are not hooked up to electric. There are a couple of options for diesel heater fitting and we went for the middle cost wise (it was £925). Yes there are certainly much cheaper heaters available but we wanted to ensure it was fitted correctly and that the reliability was there. We’re very happy with the results and are putting the heater to daily use in Scotland!

Ahead of having the heater installed, we sat out storm Eunice in Roden Nurseries CL, attached to a garden nursery. The owners were very friendly and even came out to check we were OK during the storm. It was very wet but we seemed to avoid the worst of the winds (unlike the house where we lost six roof tiles!) and the relentless rain led to a couple of nights of interrupted sleep. At times like these we have no excuse not to do the “housework” and there’s usually plenty of cooking going on.

What we had planned to be the third and final work stop was a little further north to finally get some carpets fitted. We had checked in advance with the campsite (Stoney Leach Nursery) that we could have the work done on-site and that wasn’t an issue for them. For various reasons we’ve tried multiple times to get these done but we finally arranged a date with Carpets for Caravans and are really pleased with their work. Something else to help with the warmth too.

There’s a little walking from the campsite which was really quiet and peaceful despite it being busy.

Having had all the work done, or so we thought, we moved across country to the Hope Valley in the Peak District and to a campsite we first stayed in last year. Newfold Farm is located in a stunning area with some great walking – Bob went up to Mam Tor with his son Tom one day and with the weather being so glorious we also took a 5 mile “stroll” the following day along part of the Penine Way to Crowden Brook. We’d use again given it’s location.

Another reason for visiting here was to meet up with Paula (an old school friend of June’s) and David who bought their motorhome last year. It was a bit cold to sit outside so we squeezed into each other’s vans for a couple of nights of reminiscing and putting the world to rights over a bottle or two of wine!

We were both itching to get back on the road properly and start our tour of Scotland but another medical appointment (and thankfully almost probably the last for the foreseeable – getting old sucks!) and a warning light on the dashboard sent us back home again. On the plus side, we were able to get all the washing done despite more rain, catch up with a post-COVID Chloe and have dinner with friends.

We managed to get an appointment with Inter County Mercedes in Milton Keynes so after an overnight stay in a car park near Tongwell Lake, it was straight in to the garage where they were quickly able to diagnose and fix the problem. It transpired that when Hymer removed the standard Mercedes front seats to replace with their own they had placed the cable for the seatbelt sensor in such a place that over time it would be crushed and eventually severed. After replacing the seat belt sockets and rerouting the cable we were on our way and we’ll take the issue up with Hymer directly.

Tonight’s stop would be Tebay Services on the M6 and tomorrow – Scotland!

Sites used:

Burton Hill Farm CL, Southam, Warwickshire: £16 p/n. Hard standing pitches with EHU. Other services Roden Nurseries CL

Roden Nurseries CL, near Telford, Shropshire: £17 p/n. Hard standing pitches with EHU and water. Use of outside toilets of adjacent garden centre and motorhome washing facilities available.

The Elms CL, Whittington, Shropshire: £10 p/n. Hard standing pitches with EHU. Clean water and dumping facilities close by.

Stoney Leach Nursery, Wrightington, near Wigan: £15 p/n. Hard standing pitches with EHU. Clean water and dumping facilities close by.

Newfold Farm, Edale, Peak District: £25 p/n. Hard standing pitches with EHU. Clean water and dumping facilities close by.

Tongwell Lake, Milton Keynes: Free. Public car park on a business estate.

Tebay Services, M6: £18 overnight but given £3 voucher to spend in shops. No facilities in car park. Services also have a campsite but it was closed at the time of our visit.

Having taken the option to get our inbound COVID test at a drive through centre on the way home (thankfully both negative still!) we were clear to go about preparing for Christmas almost as soon as we got back home. It wasn’t quite the rush we anticipated as like for a lot of people, the holidays were pretty quiet although it was good to see the family and friends that we did.

After almost three weeks of feeling strange in our own house (home is now most definitely the motorhome and the house is Chloe’s home), we got the call from the Mercedes garage to say that the issue with the central locking and remote key system caused by the lightning strike was now resolved. Luckily Chloe was home so we had use of her car so the following day it was up the A1 to collect the van and back again to check in to the local campsite. We both sat in the van that evening with a big smile on our faces and had our first decent night’s sleep in weeks!

After a couple more days of catching up with people we headed down to Hayling Island for a couple of nights to get some warranty work done on the van. With the dealer we bought the van from having stopped trading, we’ve been lucky to find another dealer (Southdown Motorhomes) willing to take on the warranty work. Great service from them! We stayed at Stoke Farm, a fairly new CL, with the remaining grass pitches currently being made hard standing. All have EHU and and own water. Sadly we didn’t get much chance to explore the area but this would make a good base.

Whilst getting that sorted we were made aware by a few drivers that our reversing lights were permanently on so it was a quick dash the following day to the Mercedes garage recommended by Southdown – Marshalls Andover who kindly squeezed us in and ran the diagnostics. The problem had actually righted itself that morning although we had another scare on the way to the garage when the van wouldn’t start at all. But whatever had caused these glitches had disappeared so we found a CL near Salisbury and headed there for a couple of nights with the aim of getting a decent walk in.

We spent two nights at Copse Side Farm where we were met by the owner. Sad to say we did’t get her name but she was so chatty, telling us about caravanning around Australia many years ago and giving us the history of the area around us. Camping is in a long thin field with a view to the hills of Cranborne Chase and there is a footpath directly from the campsite out on to the hills. We managed one very muddy walk out on a glorious winter day!

Whilst here we noticed that the alarm indicator lights weren’t working so it was on to VanBitz who told us to bring the van in. This entailed a trip down to Taunton which we would do the following week. In the meantime we decided to visit Portland in Dorset and spent two restful nights in a free car park overlooking Chesil Beach. The weather continued to be sunny (but cold!) so we drove down to Portland Bill for a stroll along the coast there. On our way to Somerset, we spent a few hours in Lyme Regis having a wander along the harbour wall and the sea front. Probably because it was a Saturday but the harbour side takeaways had really long queues so we decided to treat ourselves to a sit down lunch in the pub. Has to be done from time to time!

Although VanBitz is located next to a campsite as our appointment wasn’t until 10am we decided to stay near Somerton in Somerset on Millway Farm CL. From there we were able to walk out to a very muddy Combe Hill (the mud goes with the time of the year!) and the surrounding woods. The CL is on a working farm and there is a small farm shop selling produce as well as homemade jams and chutneys – can recommend the apple and blackberry jam!

After three LEDs were replaced at VanBitz it was back to Dorset. With all the running around to get the van sorted we really hadn’t settled back in to van life so after one night at Dorset Springs, an immaculate CL with pitches located around a lake, we decided that our next stop would be for at least three nights to give ourselves some breathing space.

Upon arriving at West Farm CL, near Verwood, we extended our original three nights to six. This is another well kept CL with great facilities – by this time we needed to look for a laundry and as well as a washing machine and tumble dryer, they also have a drying room with racks and hangars so we’ve managed to get everything done. There is also plenty of walking from the site and the New Forest is just a short drive away.

It may sound strange to non-van dwellers but sometimes you really do just need to stop and park up somewhere for a few days! The UK is not very well set up for motorhomes and vans so it’s a constant search for places to park, places to empty and fill water tanks and empty the loo. Campsites can be expensive and whilst we are lucky to have a monthly income, we still have a budget. We’re not whinging though and wouldn’t change this lifestyle for anything.

And finally, our plans for 2022. Plan A was for us to have shipped the van to Canada in April 2021 but we all know what COVID did to global travel plans that year! We therefore moved Plan A to September 2022 when, all being well, international travel will have fully resumed and we can head across the Atlantic to start our US, Canada and PanAmerican adventure which had always been our dream for van life.

In the meantime, we will continue to tour the UK, including six or seven weeks in Scotland and then use a full 90 day Schengen block in Norway and Sweden starting in May.

Campsites used

Stoke Farm, Hayling Island: £18 per night. Water and EHU on each pitch. Two hard standing pitches but planning to make the other 3 the same.

Copse Side Farm near Salisbury: £15 per night. EHU and fresh water. Black and grey water disposal. A long thin site with one, maybe two hard standing pitches. Bins available

New Ground Car Park: Free. No services other than rubbish bins.

Millway Farm Somerset: £12 per night. EHU on each pitch and all hard standing. Water along with black and grey water disposal.

Dorset Springs: £20 per night. EHU on each pitch and all hard standing. Water along with black and grey water disposal.

West Farm near Verwood. £19 per night. Two hard standings with EHU on all pitches. Water along with black and grey disposal.

Despite bringing the return train forward a few days, we still had plenty of time to get back to Calais with days built in to allow for any delays (some of the mountain passes were already closed due to snowfall). Our route was through the same countries as the way down, so back through Croatia, Slovenia, Italy and France, COVID restrictions allowing, and with the hope of catching at least one Christmas market.

We had our first onboard inspection as we crossed the border from Bosnia to Croatia but they were only interested in alcohol and tobacco, and we didn’t much of the former and certainly none of the latter.

Much of the tourist focus for Croatia is along the coast – 4 of the 5 sections of our guide book are about the coastal regions, but the inland northern area is worth visiting if you like more remote countryside.

Our journey through Croatia (and Slovenia) was mostly along the banks of the Sava River through the flat wetlands of the Lonjsko polje, an area of wooden houses, open fields and storks.

We also visited several spomeniks (monuments) which had been built during the by the former Republic of Yugoslavia. These were mostly dedicated to local soldiers who resisted the invading forces of World War 2 but also included the Jasenovac Memorial and Museum, built of the site of a former concentration camp.

The camp housed mostly Serbs, Roma and Jews plus Croats who were opposed to the Ustasha (the government of the Independent State of Croatia established by Nazi Germany). The camp grew to be the third largest in Europe and the inmates were put to hard labour in the brickworks.

Around the monument, the ground has been landscaped to leave small mounds where different parts of the camp were and in the museum, from the ceiling hang multiple glass panels bearing the names of the captives known to have died there.

We were the only visitors that morning and they opened the museum just for us. It’s only small and free to enter but so moving. There are rumours again of more unrest in the region within the various ethnic groups – do we never learn…..

By contrast we also visited Zagreb to go the Christmas markets but have to say we were very disappointed. We appreciate that times are still uncertain especially with the latest COVID variant, but there were no more than a couple of dozen non-food stalls spread across multiple sites in the city. On the upside we did have our first mulled wine of the season. Great campsite though at Camp Zagreb which is located out of the city but by a lake. Lots of facilities and activities during the armed months and a great little pizza restaurant on-site. We walked to the next town to take the train into Zagreb but in the summer, the site runs a shuttle bus.

The crossing from Croatia to Slovenia took two attempts having initially tried a what we now know to have been a checkpoint for EU nationals only! Non-EU nationals have to cross via the larger border points which fortunately in this instance was just a few kilometres away. We had opted for the smaller crossing because it wasn’t on a motorway – we needed a vignette to use motorways but didn’t have one plus and to be honest, we prefer non-motorway driving.

On our way to our next camping place we stopped by some hot springs at Smarjeske Toplice which were not so hot, but there is something to be said about taking a dip in warm water with snow on the forest floor all around. We don’t know if it’s because only slightly insane people would visit during winter but it was quite a descent down the hill from the only car park we could find to the springs. There was also no-one around to collect money for parking.

We found a great motorhome park up in Dol pri Ljubljani with stunning views over the snow covered countryside. The park up has immaculate facilities including a washing machine and offers undercover, hard standing and grass pitches. We has originally planned to stay for one night but extended it to two. On our second day we walked through the village and up the snow covered hill for a hot chocolate at the restaurant at the top.

The next couple of days became driving ones. We left Slovenia on a Sunday and decided this would be a good day to drive as far as possible across Italy, beyond Milan if we could. The plan worked and after spending a night in a sosta in Magenta, we hit no traffic on the Monday morning thereby having an easy run into France. We did take the motorway through Italy just to make ground but it did come at a cost of €66.

After a stunning drive through the Alps, we hit the motorway again with an eye-watering total of €115.50 to get to Lake Annecy for an overnight stop in, thankfully, a free aire. By coincidence the aire was just in front of a hotel we had used a few years ago. Having got this far in two days, we stayed to the back roads and used a couple more Aires before reaching Calais the day before our train departure. Tried to visit the Christmas market here too but nothing seemed to be open….

On our way to Calais we also had to arrange for COVID tests no more than two days before our crossing to be allowed back to the UK (assuming they were negative of course!). We have found France to be so much better organised than the UK for testing and the cost is fixed so we were easily able to locate a pharmacy on our route who for €50 did two lateral flow tests and provided certificates within 30 minutes.

With our documentation all uploaded to the Eurotunnel site we were granted permission to travel so on Friday 17th we came back to the UK for three weeks of living in a house over the holidays and whilst work was carried out on the van to sort out the electrical problems caused by the lightening strike.

In hindsight the decision to come back a few days early was a good one as France closed its borders to UK travellers the day we came home (longest queues we’d ever seen at Eurotunnel to get out of the UK before the midnight deadline!). Whilst we were allowed to be travelling home, by leaving sooner we took away any potential grief caused by a UK plated vehicle travelling through France. We’d already been stopped once in France by customs for a drug search and although they were perfectly friendly and polite, we didn’t want a repeat of that.

Out on the road again in January for a few months in the UK. We have plans for, fingers crossed, Scandinavia in May for three months, and then back to Plan A for Canada and the US in September…..

Campsites used

Campground Zelen-GAJ, Lonja: KN100 (£11.10) for one night after some haggling! Due to being out of season no facilities available other than bins. Mostly grass pitches.

Camp Zagreb: KN211 p/n (ACSI rate). Hard standing pitches with EHU and multiple water points. Restaurant and spa on site.

Camperstop and Storage Facility, Dol pri Ljubljani: €15 per night. Various parking areas including undercover. EHU and access to a new kitchen area including a washing machine.

Area Sosta, Magenta, Italy: free car park next to a large caravan/motorhome/camping shop. Little road noise but free water fill up, black and grey water disposal.

Parking Camping Car, Annecy: free car park. Water point but not working/turned off for winter.

Aire at Bruyeres et Montberault, near Laon: free car park, no facilities.

Aire at Montreuil: free parking. €2 to fill water and empty WC.

Calais Aire: €10 per night to park in secure hard standing area. Free facilities outside gates – water filling, grey and WC disposal.

Having decided to bring our return crossing home by a few days due to the ever-changing COVID situation (a new strain is prompting some countries to lock down again) this week marked the start of our journey northwards and ultimately, home to the UK. This meant we had to cut short out time here but we plan on returning.

We left Mostar and headed out to the countryside, continuing to follow the Neretva River. We took a slight detour at Konjic to visit Tito’s Bunker, an underground bunker built to house the president and senior officials in the event of a nuclear war.

Facility D-0 was built in complete secrecy over a period of 26 years between 1953 and 1979 at a cost of 4.6 billion US Dollars ($10 billion equivalent today). It was to be the place to which Tito, President of the former Yugoslavia, his government and senior military officials would retreat in the event of a nuclear war. The site which is built into the mountainside behind three cottages, was fully self contained, had fresh water and air circulation systems and was filled with six months worth of food for the few hundred chosen individuals. The furnishings were the height of 70s luxury and the systems were state of the art for their time.

When Yugoslavia fell, a couple of soldiers disobeyed the order to destroy the place and it is a now a perfectly preserved memorial to what might have been and many of the rooms are now being used as a art gallery. We were both fascinated with the place and would recommend a visit. The cost to visit was KM20 each (approx £8.50) and you have to take the guided tour but its worth it. Tours leave at set times so check the website (titosbunker.com) if visiting.

As we left Konjic and headed towards our next stop we noticed that the cars coming towards us were starting to show signs of snow fall. “I hope we’re not heading into a snow storm” said June and as we got higher, that’s exactly what happened and we arrived at Rama Lake. It certainly made for a fun drive!

We stayed at House Franjusic, a property consisting of a few holiday lets that also allows camping in its garden/car park. We arrived as the snow was falling quite heavily so just plugged in, sussed out the WiFi and shut the door for the night.

We awoke the next morning to glorious blue skies and a beautiful snowy landscape. A knock on the door and we were invited into the house for a coffee which turned into a full blown breakfast. We were also told by the delightful Anje to comeback at 12 noon for lunch! Unfortunately power cuts delayed that, for which Anje was most apologetic but it was hardly her fault, but the handmade burek was well worth the wait. Conversation was interesting as she spoke only Croatian and Russian but we managed to chat a little (O Level German has proved handy on this trip but not in this case!). The house is one of a few strung out properties on a peninsular jutting out into the lake and had some great walking although we couldn’t do too much on this visit. Because of the snow we only made it the short distance to the local monastery but there are walks through the nearby forests.

It was then back to the city for a visit to Sarajevo, another place that immediately bought the war to mind. The roads had been cleared of snow and there was little on the ground by the time we reached Sarajevo. Our campsite was Oaza Camp, which was a little out of the centre and close to the airport (thankfully relatively quiet but we think it would be very noisy in the summer or even more normal times. The campsite was a typical resort type with mixed camping and holiday flats/chalets. The shower/toilet blocks were shut but water was available and we were offered the use of a room to shower if we wanted. Not our favourite campsite but it served a purpose.#

Reception was able to organise a taxi for us the following day into the city (around KM20/25) and we were dropped near the old market. Today the snow had turned to rain so we didn’t stay too long in the city but we did do a free walking tour we found online and grabbed a spot of lunch. From comments we’ve had since, we don’t think we saw Sarajevo at its best and if we were to go back again, we’d also look for another campsite.

After Sarajevo we reverted to type with an out of the way stop at a new small campsite on an organic farm close to Zepce. Because of the snow and rain we didn’t make it on to the actual grass camping area for fear of not getting out again but were able to park at the entrance and still get hook up. The Bosnian hospitality continued as we were treated to cake when we arrived and the owners were quite apologetic that due to the weather and time of year they couldn’t offer us more. This was a new type of campsite opening in Bosnia and we’d highly recommend finding these more remote places.

We only spent one night on the farm and then continued to head north following the River Vrbas to Jajce. Another stunning drive passing along valleys, over mountain passes and through ancient fortified towns (definitely need to go back to Travnik).

Another little detour took us to the mysterious large stone balls near Zavidovici. There are a few odd theories on how these were formed other than the standard geological theory of water!

We stayed at the riverside campsite next to the Jajce Hostel which is quite basic but fully functional. You are also able to use the hostel’s laundry (€2 per wash and dry) and showers.

Jajce is famous for its fortress and waterfalls and the rain eased enough for us to go for a quick walk to the falls.

As we left Jajce, we visited the falls at Lake Plivsko and some old small watermills.

Our final stop in Bosnia was near the Kozara National Park as we decided to go on a Spomenik (monument) hunt. There are number of huge (and we mean enormous) monuments spread across the former Yugoslavia built in memory of partisans who fought against the invading German and Italian forces in WW2.

Kozara was another beautiful place to visit – there are so many places we want to go back to in Bosnia. We have been blown away by the stunning scenery and the kindness and hospitality of the locals. New campsites are opening and for this last night we stayed at another new site which is still being built. Danijel, the owner, greeted us on arrival with a huge bag of apples from the family orchard and shared his plans for the site which is located on the edge of a forested area next to a stream. The focus is on the environment and he has so far built a communal kitchen and dining area with plans to build shower and toilet facilities next.

Considering we hadn’t originally planned to Bosnia, we are really keen to go back. Just need to find the time….!!!

Campsites/parking used:

House Franjusic, near Ripci: KM20/€10 per night. Grass and hard standing, EHU and water.

Oaza Camp, Sarajevo: KM41.80 ACSI rate (standard KM45/€22.50) per night. EHU, water and full emptying facilities. Showers, toilets, restaurant (open all year) and laundry (in season).

Eco Farm, near Zepce: KM30/€15 per night. Grass pitches. EHU and water.

Jajce Hostel, Jajce: KM24/€12 per night. Mostly hard standing and some grass. Laundry.

Campsite Bukovica, Gorni Podgradci: KM20/€10 per night. Grass. No facilities at time of writing.