It’s been such a terrific Summer of campervan travels, the type which reminds us just how good van travel is. For us, trying to achieve the goal of driving to Greece was the aim and I’m happy to say we finally got there.

First of all, how is everyone? I hope you’ve been enjoying Summer and making the most of the wonderful places available to us.

Isn’t it crazy to think we’re almost in Winter already, how did that happen? With darker nights upon us and leaves falling, it’s time to get cosy and reflect upon Summer gone by.

Waiting for early July – Summer of Campervan Travels

Many people our age try and avoid travelling in Summer, but forever optimists, we embraced the opportunity. Well, that’s slightly misleading, because we didn’t really have much choice! Yes, the 90-day EU visitor limit and inconvenience of timing dates, meant our previous trip in Winter was preventing us re-entering until early July.

Allowing a couple of days for miscalculations, we were ready to leave sunny Wales as soon as Schengen rules allowed.

Preparation

We’re not really ones to plan, maybe it’s too restrictive or perhaps the thrill of never quite knowing where we’re going is a more adventurous way to travel.

However, just because we don’t plan, it doesn’t mean we don’t prepare!

Yes there’s a difference and without preparation, van travel can bring some nasty surprises. Especially if things go wrong, when the smallest detail can bring the biggest headaches.

It’s all in the detail

So when it comes to important details, like vehicle and travel insurance we throughly prepare. This Summer was no exception, with lots going on behind the scenes before departure day.

Anything with the camper from servicing to tyres, inside fitments to paperwork, we try and cover all bases.

Checking policies, photocopying and printing off documents are all essential parts of pre-travel prep too.

Ferry Booking – Summer of Campervan Travels

As for crossing the Channel, we opt for the cheapest route! That’s if it’s a reasonable time without loosing sleep.

Our main problem is the long drive down to the South coast of England from our home in Wales. It’s a tedious journey of traffic jams which takes about 7 hours – if we’re lucky.

Irish Ferries, Calais to Dover route was the most reasonable ferry option this time and the ticket also came with a half price club lounge option and free pint of beer in the mix! So, we were happy enough.

Where and why? Summer of Campervan Travels

This Summer was all about Greece, but where to en-route was to come more or less as we went along.

Why Greece? Well back in May 2023, we were driving to Greece nearing Montenegro when the unexpected happened.

Just before Dubrovnik, on a beautiful morning, a local car overtook. In the blink of an eye the driver slammed on the brakes in a ‘crash for cash’ type manoeuvre (another story) and then came the collision to end the trip.

Luckily we were fine, but the camper was repatriated and we flew home (all took weeks) So, this trip to Greece was carrying on from where we left off – only in reverse.

Getting to Greece

Back on the original trip in 2023, a ferry booking with operator Ventouris Ferries was taking us from Greece to Italy.

After the accident, Ventouris kindly made the ticket ‘open’, meaning we were able to re-use when ready. The only difference this year was sailing in reverse, going to Igoumenitsa in Greece from Bari in Italy.

Which way to Bari?

We couldn’t decide which way to reach Bari. Much was to depend on weather as well as how we were feeling at the time.

In the end, we drove towards Annecy in France, a route we know well, then over the French Alps, taking in favourite drives from previous years.

Entering Italy came at historic town of Susa, after driving a foggy mountain pass above Lac Cenis.

From Susa, we took to the Italian toll roads making some headway, before resuming life in the slow lane.

Next came some places we haven’t been to before, such as Parma, Modena and the Republic of San Marino. We then hit the coast, meandering to Puglia, visiting some beautiful areas before arriving at Bari for an evening ferry to Greece.

All this took a couple of weeks from leaving Calais.

The most beautiful sailing

I have to say, the ferry crossing on a hot July evening, gliding through a flat calm sea was simply idyllic. Watching the sun go down and then sun rising the next morning over the island of Corfu was spectacular.

There’s something so magical about summer and everything became magnified to perfection on this surreal ferry crossing to Greece.

Greek mainland – Summer of Campervan Travels

Once in Greece, our journey across the mainland was spontaneous mix of impulse, intuition and pure guesswork at times.

Although we knew of a few places of interest, with guidebooks and paper maps at the ready, us Greek novices were eager to explore.

I’ll write about doing Greece again. Briefly, rules effecting motorhome parking which came in 2025 were approx 90% reversed in June, so didn’t effect our travel.

Greece is under developed, mountainous, unspoiled, laid back and rather inaccessible at times. It was reminiscent of some places in Australia, so we really loved the rawness and grit authenticity. Also the chance to get off road onto dirt tracks – fab!

Campsites were good and reasonable, but infrequent in parts and with no Aire-type areas, camper touring was a bit tricky at times.

As for historic sites, these are in abundance and are absolutely incredible. The Ancient Greeks knew how to build and much of the ruins and relics are available to see today.

One of the big draws of visiting Greece, is of course its coast. The beaches were often surprisingly quiet and sea so blue, but winds came in most afternoons, making choppy waters and blowing those sun towels across the pebbles!

Everything feels better in the sun

This summer adventure has seen superb weather, with sun a theme and although hot, it didn’t really feel too much for us. Maybe we just adjust, who knows?

The atmosphere of people having fun, clarity of the sky and depth of blue to the sea makes life seem so much more alive somehow. Everything just feels so much better in the sun, giving a natural glow inside and out without a coat in sight!

Making our way back

Leaving Greece after a few weeks came with a tinge of sadness, yet excitement for the next countries ahead – Albania and Montenegro.

Unfortunately, it was late August and both countries were grid-locked, with lack of alternative routes to spread the volume of vehicles. Traffic jams spanning each country meant a chaotic, stressful drive with little room for error and few options to pull over.

We thought we’d be spending a bit of time exploring but it wasn’t to be.

It was exhausting, but we finally got to stop at Kotor for a couple of days, before entering the nearby border to Croatia and a more leisurely drive ahead.

Croatia is a country we’ve toured in detail before, but this year, prices were higher than we remember.

So much so, despite a tour of Istria in mind, we gave it a miss, saving the pennies and driving into Italy instead.

Italy came up trumps

This summer of campervan travels has seen us soak up the delights of Italy and quite admittedly not wanting to leave. It has so much to offer. We love the architecture and history, countryside and moutains, it’s been idyllic.

Italy is a country we’ve toured before, but not since 2019. I have to say, it’s seems to have undergone an impressive re-vamp, with litter-filled verges of past trips gone, infrastructure improvements and general appearance of public spaces better than ever.

Impeccable flower beds, neatly mown grass, clean streets and locals just enjoying the Dolce Vita, gave us a renewed feeling of wanting to see more of this country that really loves life.

From amazing food and wine to chic Italian style and incredible friendliness, Italy really blew us away. Entering from Slovenia at Trieste, we spent weeks meandering through wine regions, mountains, historic towns and cites before reaching the Riviera.

Not forgetting the other big important draw for any motorhome traveller – Italy has an amazing Sosta system equal to the Aires in France.

Then, as Autumn came upon us, so did our 90 day limit and time to return home. We’ve had the best summer travels in a long time, everything went smoothly, no illness, accidents or unwanted events to dampen the spirits. Instead, we’ve brought home so many awesome memories and achieved our ultimate goal of driving to Greece!

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