The contents of this 'Advice and Tips' section is put together by myself based on our own experiences and knowledge. It is recommended that this information should be reinforced by speaking to experts in the field of whatever subject is being covered.

The creation of this section of the blog seemed a natural progression from the daily entries of each trip. I have always imagined my ‘readership’ to be couples who are considering such a lifestyle-cum-hobby, and those who would love the opportunity to travel as we do, but are unable to do so for whatever reason, in which case than can live their dream through us.

Here I am assuming those who are seriously considering buying some ‘wheels’ may be looking for a bit of unbiased advice before spending their hard earned money and some tips before hitting the road.

I’ll try and keep each section brief with as many bullet points as possible rather than ramble on and on as I do.

So let’s work through this process in a logical sequence. Firstly:

SHOULD WE?

Before spending a penny it’s vital that you’re honest with yourselves. It’s lovely to dream of what we’d do if we had the chance, but here we deal with the realities of making those dreams come true or of preventing them from becoming a nightmare.

As you will see from reading the diary notes of each trip that things don’t always go to plan. Sometimes the air is blue when things go wrong. It’s usually when we're 'on the road', like when we get lost (yes even with a satnav), find ourselves stuck in heavy city traffic, lunatic fellow road users, problems in finding somewhere to park for the night and trying to find fuel, water or shops.

So my first piece of advice would be to avoid this lifestyle unless, as a couple, you have a strong relationship and are able to laugh (eventually) at testing and stressful situations. You must also truly enjoy each others’ company because there will be times when you only have each other, be it in a foreign country unable to communicate with the locals, or stuck on a campsite in Blighty with the wind and rain pounding you and it’s wisest to stay indoors stuck in a confined space for maybe twenty-four hours.

Finally, and importantly, you really do need to have an adventurous spirit. If you enjoy an orderly, safe, structured holiday then life on the road is not for you – keep your money in the bank and fly to your destinations and stay in hotels or B&B’s.

OK. So let’s assume you’ve ticked the boxes above. Let’s now progress to what to buy etc.