The Brexit Grand Tour in an Ariel Nomad
Discussion
On the phone hence no photos, I'll try to add some later.
I walked around Sofia when Ruta was recovering, have been to Bulgaria before but not there. It's ok as a weekend destination I guess but apart from nice pedestrian/restaurant street and few churches and mosques not much to see IMO. Good food!
From Sofia we went to Bansko, it's in the mountains, my friends went there this winter skiing so we wanted to check it out. It's a nice, quiet skiing town. Pretty cool area around it for offroad, we found a stream for my first Nomad water crossing. It was fun and so pleasant on a hot day.
From Bansko we drove to Greece. It was exciting, knowing that this is the furthest from home we'll be. Very few cars from the UK visible. Border control guy pointed at my head when we were getting into Greece, I thought he asks me to remove my baseball cap but he said I'm crazy getting here in this car. That was the best compliment we've heard all trip.
We stayed the night in Thessaloniki. I'm sorry Greece but I think it's a horrible place. So chaotic and dirty. Streets are truly disgusting, it rained overnight when we were there and driving in the morning was the worst Nomad experience so far. We got sprayed many times on with the black, dirty, full of crap goo from the multiple potholes in the roads of Thessaloniki. We couldn't run away from it soon enough. The plan was to get to Corfu and take a ferry from there to Italy.
What a contrast the countryside of Greece was to the morning experience! Pindus National Park with its mountain ranges can rival the best ones I've seen around the world! We didn't have too much time, did a bit of offroading there but we cannot wait to go back for longer!
Catching a ferry to Corfu was pretty easy, they run regularly, are quite cheap and it only takes about an hour. Corfu was very pretty, a bit too hot for our liking but the beaches are spectacular. Also it was very easy to escape the touristy spots. The island has some beautiful spots and beaches with crystal clear water.
Funny thing is, this was the first time Nomad didn't look so ridiculously out of place like it does everywhere else. amongst many quadbikes, buggies, minimokes etc it kind of belonged there. But it still attracted a lot of attention.
We stayed in a b&b on the top of the mountain, it was so great to be able to èscape the crowds as we moved higher and higher. There was a sad story there - the owner who cooked for us and hosted us in the evening had some sort of heart attack overnight and had to be transported to Athens to save him. He was so perfectly fine in the evening.
Things like that always show me that the way we live our lives, like every day is the last, is the way to go... you never know when it's your time!
Roads in Corfu are nice but there's no visibility, overtaking opportunities and the corners are way to close to each other for the roads to be great for driving. It was fun regardless and we even found some little offroading routes.
Next - ferry to Italy
I walked around Sofia when Ruta was recovering, have been to Bulgaria before but not there. It's ok as a weekend destination I guess but apart from nice pedestrian/restaurant street and few churches and mosques not much to see IMO. Good food!
From Sofia we went to Bansko, it's in the mountains, my friends went there this winter skiing so we wanted to check it out. It's a nice, quiet skiing town. Pretty cool area around it for offroad, we found a stream for my first Nomad water crossing. It was fun and so pleasant on a hot day.
From Bansko we drove to Greece. It was exciting, knowing that this is the furthest from home we'll be. Very few cars from the UK visible. Border control guy pointed at my head when we were getting into Greece, I thought he asks me to remove my baseball cap but he said I'm crazy getting here in this car. That was the best compliment we've heard all trip.
We stayed the night in Thessaloniki. I'm sorry Greece but I think it's a horrible place. So chaotic and dirty. Streets are truly disgusting, it rained overnight when we were there and driving in the morning was the worst Nomad experience so far. We got sprayed many times on with the black, dirty, full of crap goo from the multiple potholes in the roads of Thessaloniki. We couldn't run away from it soon enough. The plan was to get to Corfu and take a ferry from there to Italy.
What a contrast the countryside of Greece was to the morning experience! Pindus National Park with its mountain ranges can rival the best ones I've seen around the world! We didn't have too much time, did a bit of offroading there but we cannot wait to go back for longer!
Catching a ferry to Corfu was pretty easy, they run regularly, are quite cheap and it only takes about an hour. Corfu was very pretty, a bit too hot for our liking but the beaches are spectacular. Also it was very easy to escape the touristy spots. The island has some beautiful spots and beaches with crystal clear water.
Funny thing is, this was the first time Nomad didn't look so ridiculously out of place like it does everywhere else. amongst many quadbikes, buggies, minimokes etc it kind of belonged there. But it still attracted a lot of attention.
We stayed in a b&b on the top of the mountain, it was so great to be able to èscape the crowds as we moved higher and higher. There was a sad story there - the owner who cooked for us and hosted us in the evening had some sort of heart attack overnight and had to be transported to Athens to save him. He was so perfectly fine in the evening.
Things like that always show me that the way we live our lives, like every day is the last, is the way to go... you never know when it's your time!
Roads in Corfu are nice but there's no visibility, overtaking opportunities and the corners are way to close to each other for the roads to be great for driving. It was fun regardless and we even found some little offroading routes.
Next - ferry to Italy
ash73 said:
Just watched the latest two episodes and really enjoyed them, great filming as usual. The contrast in Ruta's mood when she was feeling ill waiting for the ferry and then pure bliss at the hotel with the nice food the next day was nice to see.
I think the van idea is great, it would be much better to travel long distances in comfort (with air con!) and still have the car for some fun.
Absolutely! But the main thing is it will allow us to stay in the wilderness, this is the bit that frustrates us now where we see these amazing locations that we want to sleep in but we can'tI think the van idea is great, it would be much better to travel long distances in comfort (with air con!) and still have the car for some fun.
In regards to your comment on meeting people when doing driving trips, I agree with you there. I think all methods of travelling have their ups and downs and that is one of the main ones of driving. My wife and I have found that you can get into a bit of a rhythm of drive to destination, head into hotel, then back into car and you don't really see many people or sometimes even sights along the way. However at other times driving between locations gives you the flexibility to stop places and see things no other method would allow. When doing a large trip I prefer to mix up my methods of transport as much as possible. A little while ago we did a trip with plane, train, private car, rental car, helicopter, horse, camel, large boat and small boat and it was great fun
Watching all your videos and reading your posts has really put me in tough spot re: the Nomad. I am in the position of having my finger on the trigger as to whether or not to go ahead with one of these. When I first watched one of your videos it actually put me off as I thought I just don't like that adventurous a life 99% of the time so maybe it's not worth it for me. But then when I keep watching I think about how fun one would be!
So I am thinking I should ask you directly, if you didn't do what you do with the vehicle (ie this lovely rode trip etc) would you still enjoy ownership? Do you think you could have fun with it every weekend and live with it's downsides without visiting exotic locations?
Watching all your videos and reading your posts has really put me in tough spot re: the Nomad. I am in the position of having my finger on the trigger as to whether or not to go ahead with one of these. When I first watched one of your videos it actually put me off as I thought I just don't like that adventurous a life 99% of the time so maybe it's not worth it for me. But then when I keep watching I think about how fun one would be!
So I am thinking I should ask you directly, if you didn't do what you do with the vehicle (ie this lovely rode trip etc) would you still enjoy ownership? Do you think you could have fun with it every weekend and live with it's downsides without visiting exotic locations?
Zadkiel said:
So I am thinking I should ask you directly, if you didn't do what you do with the vehicle (ie this lovely rode trip etc) would you still enjoy ownership? Do you think you could have fun with it every weekend and live with it's downsides without visiting exotic locations?
The way you wish to use it, you wouldn't probably even notice the downsides. Lack of luggage space, lack of security, heat etc are only becoming a big issue when spending a lot of time in it. I see that you're from New Zealand, I think that's a great place for the Nomad from what I've seen when travelling through it. Much better than the UK in terms of "where to use it".IMO the key to Nomad enjoyment is to not to be too precious about it. If you're worried about getting it dirty, getting too close to bushes because you might scratch it, not taking this road because it looks too rough - you're missing the point of the Nomad and removing 75% of fun from the experience. This thing just laughs at obstacles and rough terrain and the biggest fun is always when exploring the unknown.
Have you watched my video about the specs? Do you know what would you want on yours?
don't post much on here these days , just thought I'd say I'm loving this thread & your youtube vids
I love a good euro roadtrip .. and yours just makes me want to jump in the car and blat out into europe again . Hats off to you both for making the time to do a trip like this . Keep the vids coming
I love a good euro roadtrip .. and yours just makes me want to jump in the car and blat out into europe again . Hats off to you both for making the time to do a trip like this . Keep the vids coming
Next part:
In order to get to Italy from Corfu we had to take the ferry. This was our second lesson about ferries in the Mediterranean - there is never any information where the ferry departs from, where to get the tickets etc. Confusion and stress while trying to cross a body of water were going to be the main theme
After queueing for a long time we've been told that although we have email confirmation we need to collect the tickets from a ticket office which is not in the port area, need to drive out, find it, get the tickets printed and come back. We've been told that while the ferry was already boarding. So as usual: crazy driving in an unfamiliar city, lots of unnecessary stress etc...
The ferry was a strange setup, 99% of people were young italians coming back from a quick trip to Corfu, tired, hangovered, some still drunk But everyone was ready for an overnight travel, with inflatable beds and similar devices. Watch the video to see what I tried to come up with to make the journey more comfortable
We wanted to reach Sicily the same day, which meant staying on motorways and pretty boring drive from Brindisi. This part of Italy isn't too spectacular so it wasn't too painful to just rack up the miles. We got lucky and got as a last car on the ferry to Sicily, we would have had to wait for an hour if we missed it.
The thing is, normally it's not that bad but in the Nomad, waiting in queues sucks. You can't just unfold your seat flat, relax, listen to the radio etc. You're sitting there in heat, surrounded by cars and lorries running their engines and pumping fumes into your lungs. Everyone is staring at you, you can't leave the car without taking everything with you and so on and so on. No, queueing in Nomad is no fun.
Ferry ride to Sicily is short and after 30min or so we reached the island. It was my first time there so I didn't know what to expect, we both really liked it! It's not too busy, the roads are nice. Views are spectacular, food is great and people are friendly. It was extremely hot, B&B owner told us that it hasn't rained in 4.5months! There have been many forest fires shortly before we got there, we've driven through pretty depressing sights.
We stayed near Montalbano which is an old village/small town in the mountains. Luckily for us it was the time of celebration there so it was really crowded, but the way we like it - with only locals, very genuine. I definitely recommend Montalbano if you're in the area, great little spot.
It was time to book the crossing to Malta, we wanted to go to Malta asap, then come back to Sicily and see more of it on the way back.
Crossings to Malta are very expensive. You have two options : 2h catamaran from the bottom of Sicily for £500 return or a 9h ferry from Catania for £380 return. Since the timing of the catamaran was also not the best and we were still in the north we decided to go with the long boat.
It was so much fun! Ruta didn't enjoy it too much being cold but I loved it - people just stay out on the deck the whole night, everyone sleeps on sun loungers. I hanged the hammock and slept in the hammock under the stars. Great experience!
Next - Malta
In order to get to Italy from Corfu we had to take the ferry. This was our second lesson about ferries in the Mediterranean - there is never any information where the ferry departs from, where to get the tickets etc. Confusion and stress while trying to cross a body of water were going to be the main theme
After queueing for a long time we've been told that although we have email confirmation we need to collect the tickets from a ticket office which is not in the port area, need to drive out, find it, get the tickets printed and come back. We've been told that while the ferry was already boarding. So as usual: crazy driving in an unfamiliar city, lots of unnecessary stress etc...
The ferry was a strange setup, 99% of people were young italians coming back from a quick trip to Corfu, tired, hangovered, some still drunk
But everyone was ready for an overnight travel, with inflatable beds and similar devices. Watch the video to see what I tried to come up with to make the journey more comfortable We wanted to reach Sicily the same day, which meant staying on motorways and pretty boring drive from Brindisi. This part of Italy isn't too spectacular so it wasn't too painful to just rack up the miles. We got lucky and got as a last car on the ferry to Sicily, we would have had to wait for an hour if we missed it.
The thing is, normally it's not that bad but in the Nomad, waiting in queues sucks. You can't just unfold your seat flat, relax, listen to the radio etc. You're sitting there in heat, surrounded by cars and lorries running their engines and pumping fumes into your lungs. Everyone is staring at you, you can't leave the car without taking everything with you and so on and so on. No, queueing in Nomad is no fun.
Ferry ride to Sicily is short and after 30min or so we reached the island. It was my first time there so I didn't know what to expect, we both really liked it! It's not too busy, the roads are nice. Views are spectacular, food is great and people are friendly. It was extremely hot, B&B owner told us that it hasn't rained in 4.5months! There have been many forest fires shortly before we got there, we've driven through pretty depressing sights.
We stayed near Montalbano which is an old village/small town in the mountains. Luckily for us it was the time of celebration there so it was really crowded, but the way we like it - with only locals, very genuine. I definitely recommend Montalbano if you're in the area, great little spot.
It was time to book the crossing to Malta, we wanted to go to Malta asap, then come back to Sicily and see more of it on the way back.
Crossings to Malta are very expensive. You have two options : 2h catamaran from the bottom of Sicily for £500 return or a 9h ferry from Catania for £380 return. Since the timing of the catamaran was also not the best and we were still in the north we decided to go with the long boat.
It was so much fun! Ruta didn't enjoy it too much being cold but I loved it - people just stay out on the deck the whole night, everyone sleeps on sun loungers. I hanged the hammock and slept in the hammock under the stars. Great experience!
Next - Malta
hot66 said:
don't post much on here these days , just thought I'd say I'm loving this thread & your youtube vids
I love a good euro roadtrip .. and yours just makes me want to jump in the car and blat out into europe again .
One of my favorite sayings: what better time than NOW? I love a good euro roadtrip .. and yours just makes me want to jump in the car and blat out into europe again .
DO IT!
I'd seen the word brexit in the title and had avoided the thread altogether.With all the brexit,cycling and what car threads i'd just about had enough of PH tbh: But this is bloody brilliant; i'm very jealous and looking forward to the next pics and vids. I really must start planning something like this (although not as bonkers) for next year... what resources do you use for routes, accommodation (edit: holy s
t just seen you only book a couple hours in advance using booking.com) etc and how much planning goes in to something like this?
t just seen you only book a couple hours in advance using booking.com) etc and how much planning goes in to something like this?Edited by MDUBZ on Friday 1st September 00:50
rottie102 said:
The way you wish to use it, you wouldn't probably even notice the downsides. Lack of luggage space, lack of security, heat etc are only becoming a big issue when spending a lot of time in it. I see that you're from New Zealand, I think that's a great place for the Nomad from what I've seen when travelling through it. Much better than the UK in terms of "where to use it".
IMO the key to Nomad enjoyment is to not to be too precious about it. If you're worried about getting it dirty, getting too close to bushes because you might scratch it, not taking this road because it looks too rough - you're missing the point of the Nomad and removing 75% of fun from the experience. This thing just laughs at obstacles and rough terrain and the biggest fun is always when exploring the unknown.
Have you watched my video about the specs? Do you know what would you want on yours?
Yeah I watched both videos about the Nomad. I am pretty much winding up ticking every box which certainly jacks up the price. Might as well go full mental though I recon.IMO the key to Nomad enjoyment is to not to be too precious about it. If you're worried about getting it dirty, getting too close to bushes because you might scratch it, not taking this road because it looks too rough - you're missing the point of the Nomad and removing 75% of fun from the experience. This thing just laughs at obstacles and rough terrain and the biggest fun is always when exploring the unknown.
Have you watched my video about the specs? Do you know what would you want on yours?
Awesome trip! Not managed to keep up with the entire thread - found it early on and have watched the videos - THANK YOU for sharing this amazing experience!
Looking forward to Malta - we are heading there for a family wedding in October (but with elderly relatives, think I'll be sporting some hideous 7-seater for the week!) - so watching out for any hints & tips you find.
Keep travelling!!
Looking forward to Malta - we are heading there for a family wedding in October (but with elderly relatives, think I'll be sporting some hideous 7-seater for the week!) - so watching out for any hints & tips you find.
Keep travelling!!
mikeiow said:
Looking forward to Malta - we are heading there for a family wedding in October (but with elderly relatives, think I'll be sporting some hideous 7-seater for the week!) - so watching out for any hints & tips you find.
Go diving, go to Gozo for a day and if you like seafood, eat at Adelina Restaurante just outside of Rabat's old city. outnumbered said:
I've been enjoying the videos, they are very nicely done. You both seem to be having a great time (except maybe in parts of Greece!), which makes for fun viewing,
I loved the Romanian bloke and his non-health-and-safety welding technique, and all for 2 quid!
Thank you! And he was a legend! I have to say, I was a tiny bit sceptical when I saw the setup I loved the Romanian bloke and his non-health-and-safety welding technique, and all for 2 quid!
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