So You Want To Go Camping in Europe

So you want to go camping through Europe? But you don’t want to backpack with a tent. Creature comforts are important, right? Yes, yes, and double yes. I mean one of the best things about camping in a trailer or motor home is you get to travel but you also can sleep in your own bed every night. As someone who has trouble sleeping on strange beds, this is huge.

DON’Y YOU JUST LOVE THAT FIRST SIP OF COFFEE IN THE MORNING AFTER WAKING UP IN YOUR OWN BED?

So I’m married to a Dutch guy, and you’d think that being able to camp in Europe wouldn’t be a big deal. We’ll just buy a car and a camper (known as a caravan in Europe). Sounds easy. Well, the first problem is you can’t buy anything—a car, a camper, or a motor home—in the Netherlands without an address. Makes sense, I guess.

WHEN YOU SELL YOUR HOUSE, FINDING AN ADDRESS CAN BE A PROBLEM, ESPECIALLY IN EUROPE WHEN YOU WANT TO BUY A CAR!

But Peter and I decide we’re going to find a loophole. We arrive in Europe in late May and start shopping for a car. We need a car first since my brother and his wife are arriving a week later and have never been to Europe. Our plan is to show them the Netherlands and Germany before driving to southern Sweden, where another brother lives, and enjoying a week of Scandinavian summer

WE COULD WALK THROUGH EUROPE, BUT THAT WOULD TAKE A WHILE AND PETER’S KNEES WOULD COMPLAIN!

Did I mention we don’t have a Plan B if a loophole fails to materialize?

We find a car I love, a red Mazda CX-5—my favorite color. The price is right, and it can pull a small camper - yay! Then Jelmer, our car salesman, says, “What’s your address?” Hmm, we say we live in the U.S. but want to do some traveling in Europe by camper. Jelmer says, “But I can’t sell you the car unless you have a Dutch address.”

Oh, crap. So we spend a few days trying to find a loophole, and there is not one to be found. We start thinking we’ll have to give up on our plans and buy pricey train passes or something when at the last minute a Dutch friend does the most amazing thing and says we can buy the car using his name and address and insurance. Wow. We are forever grateful.

FINALLY, THE PROUD OWNERS OF OUR MAZDA CX-5!

So the first thing we learn in our effort to get this dream of camping in Europe off the ground is it pays to have friends with Dutch addresses.

As an aside, we camped in Europe for seven months in the late 1990s with our three kids in tow. We pulled a 30-ft. caravan with our GMC Suburban, imported from the U.S., and traveled through the Netherlands, Germany Switzerland, Italy, Greece, France, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, and back to NL. I wrote a book about it. In a way, this trip is Part 2.

Next we look for a camper. Stay tuned.