Our new van revealed!

Debate on Twitter and Facebook as to our latest van has been fierce, with most people recommending their own van as being the ideal new van for us. It seems we all put our heart and soul into finding our “perfect” van that really nothing else compares. We’ve got to admit that, for a time, we wondered why everyone wasn't running around Europe in an Adria Twin!

We feel we’re incredibly fortunate to have bought a van which ticked ALL of our initial boxes – lowline, non-fiat, fixed bed, big fridge, big 3.0 engine, 6 speed, German build quality, air-con and very close to our budget. Oh and a tow-bar and bike rack fitted to boot!

We had originally decided that we would go for a Chausson Allegro 67 or a Welcome 95 but really didn't want the old X244 Fiat base and the bathroom was a bit “ plasticy” on these. 

So, what did we go for?

A 2006 (56) Burstner Delfin T680

We had previously discounted the Burstner Delfin because they were circa £30k or more and not a great deal less if bought direct from Germany even if we did have the time.

The story goes a little something like this. The van came up for sale when we were at the Lincoln show with just 24,000 miles, 12 months everything and full service history. There was a Delfin T695 on display there so we went and had a look. It had been a while since we had been in Catherine and Chris’s Burstner (and we didn’t rummage in their cupboards!) so it was good to try and pull the thing apart. We couldn’t and we were seriously impressed with the build. 

So we phoned the seller, the guy sounded genuine and we haggled hard, got a great price and after a quick HPi check we transferred a deposit over that evening. Totally unheard of for us, never the impulsive type but we were so sure that this van was the one that instinct took over!

Just one snag – the van was 300 miles away in Portsmouth! That meant a 600 mile round trip for Sophie in a Smart Car and a 300 mile drive back home in an unfamiliar van for me. I’d never driven a Renault Master before but so far we’re very impressed with the 3.0 DCI 140 engine. 30’s MPG, 6 speed, bags of power and cruises / handles very well for a van of its size. It definitely feels more like a “truck” then a “car” but that’s not necessarily a bad thing!

Any pre-2006 Burstner is subject to a habitation window delamination recall. There was two options – a nasty plastic nut screwed into all four corners of the windows (with many now suffering from crack fatigue or water ingress) or full replacement which Burstner would cover 60% of the cost. Fortunately the previous owner of ours had them replaced, so no worries there. Also the eBox is fully working – you can time the interior (or exterior) lights to go on and off!? Is this really a 2006 van?

The bathroom really is something to behold. A full size walk in shower (no more wiping the floor down) and literally tons of slide away storage which I think even we will have trouble filling!

It would have been nice to have had a performance T615 – same layout but with the AL-KO chassis, under slung storage (and a bin!) but quite frankly we’re lucky to have got a non-Fiat Burstner at all within our budget so we’re incredibly happy.

Of course, with any new van comes a mass of DIY tasks which we will attempt to write some information on as we undertake.

Those include: 2x 125AH leisure batteries,  2100W inverter, remote-controlled LED lighting upgrade (semi-done, write up to follow), refit one of the blown air heating ducts, get the auxiliary belts changed (engine has a camchain, but belts are new due) and fit our 'laptop dashboard dock'. Etc etc. Oh, and the chintzy net curtains are first to go! We are looking forward to having our first family holiday in her. 

The only task left is to think up a name!

On the road with: Gone With the Wynns

Jason and Nikki Wynn have arguably the coolest named blog in the motorhome / RV community, 'Gone With The Wynns'. We got chatting to them a couple of months ago and were instantly in awe of their amazing Monaco Vesta affectionately named Windy. They recently interviewed us on their 'Confessions of a Traveller' section and we fired them off some questions ....

 Nikki and Jason Wynn with their RV, Windy

1.)    We really love your blog! It looks like you guys take blogging really seriously and there seems to be a much bigger travel blog community in the US. What are your main incentives for doing so?

Our blog started as a simple question from friends: Are you planning to document your adventures?  ….and so our blog was born! In the first year we shot as many videos and created as much content as we could manage. Year 2 we were able to get companies to help fund our travels by shooting a video for them. On our website you won’t find many paid articles, corporate videos, or advertisements; it’s a delicate balance as we want our viewers to visit our website for adventure, inspiration, and advice.

The US based blogging community is huge but the European market is growing momentum. I know some people make money from their blogs, but the main incentive is reaching out and finding other cool people with similar interests.


2.)    America is such a vast country - how do you decide which of the 50 states to visit and in what order? Do you have any plans to take Windy out of the US?

Our original plan: Take 1 year and travel across the USA by RV. Well, a few months in we realized that wouldn’t work. Our next plan: Take 2 years to travel across the USA. Well….here we are about to start year 3! Oops. America is HUGE and to truly explore each state one would need a lifetime.

As far as taking Windy out of the US that won’t likely happen. Based on your information (check out Confessions of a Traveler: Europe by Camper) it would cost a small fortune to fuel the RV.


3.) We get a lot of comments about the cost of travelling in Europe, how does it compare to travelling in the USA? What's your average daily expenditure?

We keep a running tab on our expenses called The Cost of Living Full-Time on the Road  It seems our results are wildly different than yours as we spend $62 USD per person per day. That’s right nearly 3 times more than you guys! I think what it boils down to is the lifestyle you’re used to living and your expectations during your travels.

We film a lot of videos on the road so our wardrobe is pretty extensive, also we like to feature cool adventures which are typically more costly than a typical holiday. Of course each traveller will have their own unique experience with costs, and that is why readers are so interested in a cost of travelling post.


3.) We recently had a look in a Monaco Vesta like Windy in Europe, what a fantastic RV! Do you think you'll always have her or will you change up or settle down in the future?

Well….our Windy is actually for sale! We wrote a nice note about her if you’re interested: Windy’s for Sale  We’re challenging ourselves to downsize, maybe go a little more European like you guys. Also we have dreams of sailing over to Europe one day, so a smaller RV will simply be one step closer to even smaller living.

Nikki & Jason's past RV's .....

4.)    Have you come across many young people (say under 40) on the road in the US? If not, do you get on well with your older RVing neighbors? 

The #1 goal while RVing is: have a good time. 99% of the people we meet on the road are young at heart, even if their 80 years old. As for meeting youthful people it’s definitely few and far between.  There is an emerging RV market in the states with a new type of RV called a “toy hauler”. This is proving to a style perfect for the young family, or adventurer traveler because you can store motorcycles, 4 wheelers, dune buggies, etc in the back part of the RV! Pretty cool, but don’t think it’ll make it well in Europe because these RVs are HUGE!


5.) In Europe, Especially France and Germany, it is common to find "Aires" or "Stellplatz" in many towns. These are special parking areas for RV's to stay a couple of days and usually have basic facilities available. Does a similar thing exist in the US or is it mainly campgrounds and "boondocking" (Free / Wild Camping).

Believe it or not the US isn’t really setup for this style of city RVing, I think it has to do with the size of a typical US RVs. In fact simply trying to find free parking in most larger cities can be difficult, and free overnight parking with facilities is nearly impossible.
The best option is to call the town visitor center before you arrive and to ask for safe RV parking.
If you stay outside of the cities you can camp our favorite style “Off the Cord”. In the United States there is BLM and National Forest areas that provide free camping up to 14 days, only downside is there are no facilities other than a space to park your RV. The good news is you’re surrounded by nature and more than likely you’ll be all alone. Many are located near larger cities or attractions.

6.) One day we'd love to come to the US and travel in an American RV. How easy do you think it would be for two British citizens to buy (and insure etc) an RV in the US? We've heard of some Europeans shipping their own RV's over instead!

Ohh, that’s a tough one. We’ve ran across many Europeans who are travelling the USA by rental RV, and only a few who paid to ship their personal RV across the Atlantic Ocean. I don’t think buying an insuring a new RV would be difficult, but acquiring a VISA with enough time to explore all the USA has to offer is another story all together! You might also try and contact British Columbia, Canada; since you’re basically all family they may have less strict rules for British travellers  One thing’s for sure if you make it across the drink you MUST give us a call!  See you soon.

Check them out at the blog or on their Facebook and Twitter pages. Oh and don't forget to turn green with envy at their videography skills over on YouTube!

Motorhome & Campervan - November Issue Out Now!

The new issue for November of the Motorhome & Campervan magazine is out now!

In this issue we head through France and Spain to try and make it to Puerto De Mazarron in time for Christmas to have a well deserved rest from the road and to spend some time with both our parents. Enjoy!

Click HERE to read it online

Our Journey to find Van Number 4

We thought we would share with you our experiences so far in searching for our next motorhome. Having had several in the past you would have thought that by now we'd know exactly what we wanted. Not the case! A van, to us, very much depends how we intend to travel over the next period.

For the trip we did in 2011-2012 the ’07 Adria Twin was, without question, the best van for the job. Sure we could pick fault with the tambour doors but for a trip which was mainly about exploring new places, being outside interjected with bouts of driving, cooking and of course sleeping it was the perfect combination. 6m in length, relatively inconspicuous, great MPG with comfortable driving and sleeping arrangements. It stood up to the test and cleaned up like new.

On the subject of fixed bed van conversions, they seem to be somewhat of a rarity in the UK and despite my attempts to get a UK converter to consider one, Europe steams ahead with new and exciting takes on the hugely popular layout. A quick walk around the Dusseldorf Motorhome Show at the huge number of fixed bed vans confirms this. Our current favorite is the Karmann Davis 590 (was previously the Globecar Globescout, or 599DB in the UK) which seems to have the best bathroom layout so far.

British made vans however are different. “Lounge” is key, even more so “U Shaped Lounge” or “End Lounge”. I can only assume that the poor weather is largely to blame. Having spent a fair bit of time in Adam’s parents’ Autotrail Tracker EKS of late we can safely say that making up a bed on a night is not for us. However, it’s worth mentioning if you want two singles and a good lounge the EKS makes use of this space very well.

Motorhoming is largely about compromise. You can have the layout you want, but it might take you over your desired length. You can get a premium van but it might be a bit older then you would like and so forth.

So what are we looking for:

• Lowline Coachbuilt
• French Bed - with as small a cut off as possible
• Under 7m
• Ideally not X244 Fiat or early X250 2.3 Fiat (narrows down the search a LOT!)
• Good build quality - a German Brand
• Large Fridge/Freezer
• 8 years old max
• Engine suitable for towing a box trailer for shows
• LHD / RHD not an issue
• AirCon a bonus but not essential. 
• Budget: Circa £20k

We're looking French bed under 7m and we're looking European but not necessarily left hand drive. We're indifferent about the location of the steering wheel since we always use the van together and the elevation means you have a great view of the road regardless.

To that end the CI 694 ticks a lot of boxes and indeed we've actually considered one of these, but we want something with a bit more of a quality feel and in the two years since the CI has sold they haven't depreciated at all so it would have been a great buy for someone!

There is also then the issue of Chassis. If we go premium and this a bit older we likely slip into generation X244 Fiat. Our first van was a X244 Peugeot 2.0HDi (essentially a car engine) and for the miles we do a 6^th gear is a really nice thing to have. We both really love driving the latest X250 Fiat, the driving position is excellent, but unfortunately the 2007-2010 models just had too many issues. Reversing judder, clutch, our head gasket went, spare wheel dropped off - all sorted under warranty, but painful nonetheless. We can't afford a 2010 model, so we're thinking outside the box - Renault or Mercedes!

Wish us luck, suggestions appreciated!  

Press Update - September & October Magazine

I know, I know. We've been neglecting the blog again. Best intentions, but we've been so busy but have some exciting news (well, for us!) coming up which we will be blogging about shortly.


Meanwhile, we've been re-living our trips through Greece in the September edition of Motorhome Monthly Magazine. I know we've said this before, but its great to see our pictures in print as we've not even gotten around to printing our favorites off since we got back from travelling in April. It was also highly amusing that this magazine served to be the Stratford Upon Avon Show Guide and as we were exhibiting there with our business people kept reminding us that Sophie was in a bikini printed in the magazine (a small shot, so you'll have to look hard for it!).

So long did we spend in Greece (10 weeks in total) that our blog and subsequently the Magazine ran the feature over two months. October saw 'Motorhome Monthly Magazine' change its name to 'Motorhome and Campervan' which shows the emphasis the magazine has always seem to place on Panel Van conversions. We were opposite the quirky DFSK conversions which were TINY - they made our Adria Twin seem like an RV in comparison!

Check out the Magazine Online here: http://www.motorhomeandcampervan.com/

Smart Times 2012 - Antwerp

Sophie's Smart Car On The Ferry

3 countries, 900 miles, 3 days. This time the method of transport was not a campervan, but a Smart Car!

To many motorhomers, a Smart Car is simply a conveniently small vehicle to tow behind your motorhome, but if you look a bit closer there is a lot more to them then that.

Sophie, who works for Smart of York, won a competition (as she sold a Smart eBike) to attend the Smart Times festival held this year in Antwerp so we duly attended. Being bank holiday weekend the Hull to Zeebrugge ferry was astronomical and thus the only option available to us was to drive down to Dover and back again a total distance of nearly 900 miles. Even then the ferry was still nearly £200 return, although thankfully this was reimbursed as part of the prize. We set off late on Thursday ready to take on the challenge and stayed at a hotel near Dover before catching the early crossing.

It was so good to be back driving in Europe where they understand lane discipline and have a good road network, it seems everything just "works" on the continent and we really do miss it. One thing we don't miss at all is staying in hotel rooms. You never know what you're going to find behind that key carded door and living out of a suitcase just doesn't appeal to us in the slightest!

Smart Crossblades

Smart Times 2012

Smart Times itself was a real eye opener into the weird and wonderful world of Smart cars and their enthusiastic owners. With hundreds of Smart Cars in attendance from all over Europe, including a good number of the impressive limited edition Smart Crossblades as well as impressive customised and individual cars. The brand has really captivated people's imagination and individuality and the Smart Times is Smarts way of saying thank you by putting on a free event, with free entertainment and food available to all participants.

We were even able to test drive the latest Smart Electric Drive on the streets of Antwerp, the acceleration on this latest generation of the car is simply startling and is sure to be a winner when it is released next year.

Adam has never driven a Smart car any real distance but was impressed with their power and handling especially on the motorway. We even managed 55mpg over 270 miles at a cruising speed of 80mph with a boot full of wine - we had more wine in the boot then the fuel tank held (it's 33 litre tank before you ask!).

Smart Towing a Pod!

The Smart Parade and lining up all the cars to say SMART was pretty spectacular too!

Update & August Motorhome Monthly - Bulgaria & Greece

As we sit here and write this, we're all too aware that we've let the blog slip a little. Ok maybe a lot! We're embarrassed about it, since it was one of the things we promised ourselves (and our readers!) we wouldn't do. EuropeByCamper continues to draw in well over 11,000 unique visitors a month and we've nearly clocked up half a million page views but with the ratio between new and returning visitors falling I feel especially bad for those people who've come back to check for updates and not found one. The digital marketer in me says I should really put some adsense adverts on here but once you press the button you have no control over what is displayed so we're going to hold back and stay true to our morals, although I might put a little link to our business Motorhome WiFi in the sidebar over the next few days. That's fair, right? :-)

Since visiting the Motorhome Shows as an exhibitor with Motorhome WiFi we have literally met hundreds of people who have read our blog. In writing that it feels very self righteous and egotistical but hopefully if you've met us you'll realise that isn't us at all, we're genuinely humbled that anyone has found our ramblings interesting at all. We don't profess to be the authority on anything - we love motorhoming and the community we've found ourselves involved in and knowing that our whistle stop tour of Europe has inspired just one person to do the same or at least consider countries that they might not have done otherwise is a real buzz. We're sorry if we can't always remember you by name (especially if you've e-mailed us!) and we love receiving your tips and information on your trips too.

A lady came to see us at Cheshire who said she had followed some of our Wild Camping POI's for Norway and gave us a tip that on-board the ferries you can buy a 3000NOK card which entitles you to 5900NOK of ferry crossings - a fantastic saving especially if you're over 6m in length! Catherine & Chris from The World Is Our Lobster is checking it out and if you're interested in Norway I suggest you check them out too!

Another blog we participially enjoyed recently was Andy's Beetling around the Balkans - something we full intend to do in the near future. Caravan Guard are the only UK motorhome insurer (as far as we're aware) that gives Fully Comp cover for Bosnia, Albania, Montenegro and Serbia. He visited our favourite campsite at  Camping Veliko Tarnovo in Bulgaria which was also republished in this months magazine feature.

So what else has been happening? Sophie is busy working for Smart as a brand manager and works most weekends. She can actually supply a car anywhere in the country, so if you're in the market for a new or used Smart car get in touch for a motorhomers discount (or maybe some free mats ;-)! She'll might also exhibiting with Smart at the Motorhome Show in Harrogate in March (a new fixture from Warners at the Harrogate Show Ground). The weekends she's not working I've been dragging her to the Motorhome Shows with Motorhome WiFi (oops).

We've also been enjoying some excellent free English Stopovers courtesy of Steve at Britstop's English Stopover Scheme which is worth a look if you like good food and free overnight parking!

If you would like to read the latest copy of Motorhome Monthly please click here to be taken to the magazines digital edition, it's great to see our pictures in print as we've still not gotten around to printing any off ourselves yet! We're still motorhome shopping too.. hope to find something by Christmas.

Have you got any questions? Anything you would like to see covered in our blog? Please get in touch! We promise it won't be so long between blog posts next time, our country guides are calling... (famous last words!).

Adam & Sophie

July Motorhome Monthly

Our feature with Motorhome Monthly continues this month with 10 pages (Page 56-65) dedicated to our travels through Poland, Slovakia and Romania. To read the magazine free and online click here to be taken to the digital edition.

Next month will cover our trip into Bulgaria and on to Greece!

They also interviewed us for MotorhomeWiFi (click here to see the interview) where we'll be exhibiting at the Stratford Upon Avon show next weekend. Fingers crossed the weather holds out for us and perhaps see some of you there (we'll be on stand Q4). Don't forget to pick up a free copy of the magazine!

We finally got our motor insurance sorted with Direct Line after getting our proof of no-claims from Safeguard. While it was the best quote it turns out insuring a motorhome is cheaper than an Audi Estate, even in your 20's! If that's not trying to tell us something, I don't know what is.

We're still weighing up lots of options for a replacement van. We will probably wait until the end of the season when the bargains start to appear and the new registrations come out to see if anything takes our fancy.

Check out the magazine and let us know what you think! :-) Adam & Sophie.

Getting into Morocco with a Motorhome

A Guide for Entry into Morocco with a Motorhome
We spent just over 6 weeks in Morocco with our good friends Catherine and Chris from The World Is Our Lobster. We’d highly recommend that you go and attempt it yourselves! We’ve had a couple of e-mails asking us for more information on the crossing, so here is our long awaited guide to getting in (and out!) of Morocco.



Choose where to sail from
We sailed from Algeciras to Ceuta. The crossing is shorter than the route to Tangier and once you disembark the ferry you are still in Spanish sovereignty so you then have an opportunity to park in the rest area before the border crossing.

Rest Area before the Border Crossing

However, en route home we passed the brand new Tangier Med port and were impressed by what looks like an incredibly modern port set outside of the city. The port appeared to have none of the hustle and bustle that can be seen at the Ceuta-Morocco border. This would be our preference for our future visit and we’ll report back once we’ve done it for ourselves.


Get your tickets
We would recommend that you follow the French example and purchase your tickets from Carlos in Algeciras. These tickets are NOT as some people would lead you to believe cancelled tickets, tickets with other people’s names on or other such scaremongering. Carlos is a licensed ticket seller and his reputation precedes him when dealing with motorhomers. The tickets are printed with your information on and he is able to give you lots of helpful advice and directions to the port although a little Spanish is advantageous!

When you arrive, park next to the Lidl in Algercias (GPS: 36.18136, -5.43977 and if you don't believe us just check all the motorhomes on Google Maps HERE!). They are very tolerant of motorhomes parking and overnighting here since the majority of people do a large shop before departing. There is even a butcher selling largely pork products which are unavailable in the Muslim country.  Don’t forget to stock up on Wine / Beer – this is expensive in Morocco and better than hard currency when trading with native Moroccans!

Carlos is located here, just a two minute walk from the car park. Take with you a copy of your vehicles V5 certificate and your passport and tell him when you wish to sail to Morocco and that you would like an open return.

The Border Crossing

As with most non-EU borders, there are three stages to the process:

1. Immigration
2. Vehicle import
3. Customs

Ignore the apparent chaos at the border and focus on achieving these three steps in that order.
As you approach, men will wave bits of paper at you. If you have been to Carlos for your ticket, you don't need any further paperwork, so you can safely ignore the paper-wavers.

If there are two of you, one can stay in the vehicle. Once you enter the fray, “helpers” will offer to assist. Look for ones with an official badge. You can either be firm and say “No thanks, I'm fine”, or graciously accept and tip them €5, which may be the more pleasant experience for the sake of a few quid, especially if it's your first crossing.

The first office you need clearly says “Police”. Complete your entry form and hand it over together with your passport. You will get a stamp, plus an official Moroccan immigration number. That's it. Move on to any of the offices saying “Enregistrement des Vehicules”.

Queues here are often slow, so be patient but firm; stand your ground or people will push in. Here you hand over the first copy (out of three) of the Vehicle Import Form, plus your V5 and Green Card. If you have bought your ticket from Carlos, he will have already completed the Import Form for you; just hand it in. If not, fill in the details from your V5. You will get the form back with the appropriate stamp.

Now comes the fun part as you attempt to drive past all the other queueing vehicles to the Customs Officer, squeezing past stationary cars, buses and motorhomes! The Customs Officer may well look in the van but customs is quite relaxed. Then take the Vehicle Import Form to the customs office, and you're done.
Finally don't forget to tip your helper if you used one!

You do not require a Visa to enter Morocco for a maximum of 90 days. Your passport must be valid for 6 months after your entry date. If you wish to stay longer than 90 days the only way you can do this is by becoming a resident.


Vehicle Insurance 
If you are planning on visiting Morocco it is worthwhile considering this when you renew or take out your motorhome policy. Saga, Comfort and Sageguard all cover Morocco at no extra charge and are able to provide you with a 90 day ‘Green Card’ which covers you fully comprehensively while in the country. If you have a vehicle of any value don’t consider buying insurance at the border.

The Paperwork

                           Immigration Forms - Entry and Exit                                        Ferry Tickets

                                    Vehicle Import and Export Form                                   Tickets and Timetable

     Moroccan Insurance Green Card 

our insurers Safe Guard from home. Valid 90 days (with start date)                                                             

Money in Morocco
‘Western’ cash points are available throughout the country and have an English language option. We stopped a couple of miles after the border crossing for our first batch of Dirhams. It is worthwhile taking a couple of hundred euros as a backup which can easily be changed for Dirham at many bureau-de-change across the country. Exercise the same amount of caution when using these as you would in any other country.

Our preference for foreign travel is the Halifax Clarity Credit Card. The card provides you with interest free transactions and a low 1.1% interest fee on cash withdrawls offset by a £5 per month reward if you spend over £300.

If you use the Caxton Euro Card be aware that you will be paying two lots of interest rates Sterling > Euro > Dirham. Consider the Global card where the balance is held in Sterling and converted to the local currency on use.

Cards are rarely accepted. Marjane and some large fuel stations are the only exceptions.

Getting Out
On exiting, the process is simpler. Complete your exit form and hand it in to the Police Office with your passport. Then go to Customs and hand in the second copy of your Vehicle Import Form. The third copy is for you to keep.

Drive through Customs, stopping if asked. That's it.


Fuel
Diesel is roughly 55p a litre in Morocco and is available throughout the country. It is worthwhile filling up from the more modern looking fuel stations (Afrqua, Shell etc). Be aware that if you intend to stop overnight in the high atlas temperatures could reach as low as -10 (experienced by us in 2012) and there is unlikely to be any winter additives added to the mix.

For more information see:

• Maroc Telecom Dongle
• View All Our Posts on Morocco

Big Changes to EU Roaming Data Tariffs

We have championed Vodafone Data Traveller for a long while now as being a fantastic tool for people needing to get online in Europe. However, things are changing with new EU regulations coming into play which is shaking up the whole market and the tariffs are not looking attractive for the long term pan-European traveller.

** This article was researched and posted on 14th June 2012 at 20:00. Check with your operator for the latest information. E&OE **

As part of the EU's changes to the way mobile telecom companies charge each other (referred to as the wholesale price) we are starting to see some changes in the roaming data and call packages being offered by telecom companies.

We can thank the EU for this,  under the "Regulation (EC) No 717/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2007 on roaming of public mobile telephone networks within the Community and amending Directive 2002/21/EC" (more information, see Wikipedia)

The EU is basically dictating to mobile phone networks:

a.) What operators can charge each other for their customers to use other companies networks.
b.) What operators can charge their own customers for this service.

That isn't to say that either the wholesale price or the price charged to consumers isn't less than this, it is just the maximum that can be charged to you.

On the 1st of July these are the maximum call charges that an operator can charge you:

Calls made - was 35c now max 29c per minute (falling each year until they reach 19c in July 2014)
Calls received - was 11c now max 8c per minute (falling each year until they reach 5c per in July 2014)

With regards to DATA used abroad, there were previously no EU limits but these come into force on the 1st  July 2012 so companies are now starting to change their price plans to show this.

Data per MB consumed - now a maximum of 70c per MB falling to 20c per MB consumer price in July 2014. Interestingly the wholesale cost has been inforced at 25c per MB falling to 5c per MB in July 2014.

How have the networks reacted?

Vodafone 

Pay Monthly Customers - £3/day to use your UK allowance abroad:
DATA TRAVELLER FOR CONTRACT CUSTOMERS  HAS BEEN SUSPENDED.

The previously excellent tariff that we championed has been removed by Vodafone and now Data Traveller for contract customers only refers to an OUTSIDE OF EUROPE tariff for £5/DAY for 25MB.

The Data Traveller and Vodafone Passport  have been replaced by the EuroTraveller for £3/day

Vodafone states that this includes:

• Use of your minutes, texts and mobile internet with the same freedom as in the UK (excludes extras)
• You'll only be charged on the days you use your phone
• No charge for receiving calls and texts
• No monthly commitment - opt in and out whenever you like
• Check your remaining allowance just like at home - with My account or the My Vodafone app

So, if you want to get online, make phone calls or use your phone in any way you'll be charged of £3 irrespective of how you use your phone, even for just one text message so be careful how you use it.

IMPORTANT! By opting in to Vodafone EuroTraveller you'll also be opting out of the European 50 euro monthly mobile internet spend cap.

Links:

The new Euro Traveller (£3/day to use your UK allowance abroad)

The new Data Traveller (£5/day for 25MB for outside of Europe)


Pay As You Go Customers - £2/day for 25MB of Data / 75p for Calls 

Data Traveller does still exist for PAYG customers in the same format, just to further add to the confusion. You are charged £2/day for upto 25MB in Europe and 75p per connection of a call, subject to your UK inclusive allowance.

Links:
Pay As You Go - Data Traveller (£2/day for 25MB)
Pay As You Go - Passport (75p connection charge + inclusive minutes)

Mobile Broadband Customers - £8 per 100MB of data used.
Roaming charges for customers with data contracts, iPad SIM cards or USB dongles is now £8 per 100MB used.

Links:
Vodafone Mobile Broadband Roaming (£8 for 100MB)


O2

O2 Pay Monthly Customers - £1.99/day for 25MB + 50p for calls
The old WEB DAILY EUROPE of £1.50 for 15MB or £15 for 15/MB a day Has Been Suspended from 1st July

You'll be charged £1.99 for the days that you use data in Europe - and you can use up to 25MB a day.
There's a connection charge of 50p for all calls made and received in Europe. When you make a call you'll be using your UK minutes and calls received are free up to 60 minutes.

Out of bundle charges are:
Calls back to the UK and within Europe - 35p per minute.
Receiving calls in Europe - 11p per minute.
Texts sent to the UK and Europe - 10p (free to receive).
Sending a media message - 25p.
Data is £3.07 / MB - This is well over the 70c (56p) per MB, so may well be revised.

Links:
O2 Travel - £1.99 per day for 25MB


O2 Pay As You Go Customers - No bundles
No bundled deals available, standard charges apply:

Links:
O2 PAYG Standard Roaming Charges


O2 Mobile Broadband Customers:
Your allowance applies for use in the UK only and we do not recommend that you use mobile broadband abroad to avoid high charges. Data used outside of this allowance will be charged at £3.07/MB in the EU or £6/MB outside of the EU.

O2 actually state on their website: "We do not recommend using mobile broadband outside of the UK and you are therefore currently unable to use the service abroad"

Links:
Mobile Broadband Pay Monthly (Not recommended by O2 for use abroad)
Mobile Broadband Pay As You Go (Not recommended by O2 for use abroad)


Three

Three Pay Monthly Customers - £5/day for Unlimited Usage
If you’re roaming in the EU, the Euro Internet Pass gives you the freedom to browse the mobile internet for £5 a day. You can search, tweet, use Facebook and check your emails as much as you like until midnight (UK time). So you’ll never have to worry about nasty surprise bills when you get home.

The Euro Internet Pass was designed for browsing, so streaming video and audio content may not be as good as it is on our UK network and tethering isn’t included. You also won’t be able to use UK Add-ons (e.g. Add Tethering) while your Euro Internet Pass is active.

Links:
Euro Internet Pass Press Release
Euro Internet Pass - £5/day for unlimited data usage

Three Pay As You Go Customers - £1.28/MB, no roaming package


Three Mobile Broadband Customers - £1.28/MB, no roaming package

Orange

Safe to say Orange DO NOT want you to use your mobile data abroad. We're recommend you look elsewhere for roaming deals.

£3/day for 30MB
£15/mth for 30MB Bundle
£50/mth for a 150MB Bundle
£150/mth for a 500MB Bundle

More information here: http://www.orange.co.uk/roaming/


T-Mobile

T-Mobile have made things fairly straight forward.

For phone customers (PAYG or Contract) you pay:

£1 for 3MB

£2.50 for 10MB

£10 for 50MB

For mobile broadband customers:

£1 for 3MB

£5 for 20MB

£10 for 50MB

£35 for 200MB

All "boosters" are valid for 30 days from activation.

For more information see here:

http://support.t-mobile.co.uk/help-and-support/index?page=home&cat=USING_THE_INTERNET_ABROAD

Halifax Clarity vs Caxton - We Saved Over £200

We got an annual statement through the post from Halifax the other day which detailed our expenditure, interest charges and reward payments over the course of the year and I thought it would be interesting to see how much we had saved compared to the most popular method of spending abroad, the Caxton Pre-Paid Card.

After going through the figures, we reckon that...

We saved in the region of £221 by using the Halifax Clarity Card over the Caxton Card!

More on exactly how we came to that figure in a moment. Firstly, lets understand the main differences between the two cards. It's worth noted that we have all the cards mentioned in the article (Halifax Clarity, Caxton Euro, Caxton Global) so we understand and have used them. We've not included others which may be on the market, but there are others. Best check over on Martin Lewis's website (link at the end).

The Caxton Card

Caxton is a pre-paid card and as such you need to load money on the card by phone, internet or text message using a bank account linked to the card. Depending on where in Europe you are travelling you are likely to have both a Caxton Europe and a Caxton Global card (or at least you should, since the Europe card is even more expensive outside of the Euro Zone!)

Caxton Euro

With the Caxton Euro Card the balance is held on the account in Euros and you load onto the card from sterling at a pre-agreed rate with Caxton, which is usually around 2% lower then the prevailing rate on the day. The card is designed for Euro travel but if you were to travel outside of the Euro zone you would pay a 2% fee to covert £ Sterling into €uro and then a further 2.75% to convert your Euro into Danish Krone, for example, making it very expensive to be used in this way.

Caxton Global Traveller 

If you were to go outside of the Euro Zone then Caxton recommend the Global Traveller card whereby the balance is held in £ Sterling. This is then translated into Euros at the point of purchase at the prevailing rate plus 2.75% fee. However you end up having to manage two different account balances. 

  

Pros:

• No credit check required to obtain.
• If you're likely to run away with your spending, it prevents you from spending any more than balance you have loaded on the card.
• You can load at a pre-agreed rate so you know exactly what conversion rate you are getting. You might be able to load before the rate drops and be able to effectively spend at the old rate.

Cons:

• If the conversion rate improves in your favour, you won't benefit until you re-load currency.
• If you use your Caxton Card in the UK it will cost you up to £1.50 per transaction. 
• If you use an Automated fuel pump your account may be pre-authorised for upto €150 which will be held until the actual amount is processed reducing your available funds. Could be 3-5 working days.
• Minimum load amount of £100/€150/$200
• No protection under the Consumer Credit Act (CCA), since Caxton is not "lending" you money.
• Due to the nature of pre-paid cards if Caxton was to go bankrupt you could not reclaim your outstanding credit balance from anywhere. 

The Halifax Clarity Card

The Halifax Clarity Card is a traditional credit card geared up to spending abroad. They give you the actual prevailing interest rate on the day (verified by us) and transactions are free. You do pay interest on cash withdrawals but this is likely to be very tiny and is offset by a £5 reward payment if you spend over £300 in a month.

Pros:

• Halifax give you the ACTUAL exchange rate on the day, not a loaded rate to take into account a transaction fee. They make their money hoping you will overspend on holiday and have to repay it over several months when you get home. We tested this by always recording our daily purchases on our log using the days rate, they were always the same OR BETTER than we recorded using XE.com's rates!
• You pay NO INTEREST on purchases using the card if you setup a direct debt to clear the balance in full every month. Simply use the card rather than cash wherever it is accepted. 
• You have 2 weeks from your statement being available to view online to the direct debit coming out, so plenty of time to check and review all your transactions.
• You get upto 59 days interest free from the first day of your statement until the due dates (assuming you clear the balance in full). 
• If you spend over £300/month and are a current account holder you will receive a £5 reward credit payment onto your account each month (tax free).
• You are fully protected and insured under the Consumer Credit Agreement 

 Cons:

• You pay interest (12.9% - 19.9% depending rate given when you apply) on cash withdrawals, but there is no other fee. We withdrew £3,584.19 in cash and was charged a total of £64.82. However when you take into account the £60 reward payment this is only £4.82 and you could end up in credit depending on the amount of cash withdrawn and your interest rate.
• You will need a credit check in order to apply for a card and the actual rate offered will depend on your credit history. 
• You get the best daily rate, with no opportunity to "load up" while the rate is good.

Detailed Comparison

The below details our actual expenditure using the Halifax Clarity card and compares what the equivalent costs would had been using the Caxton card for the same amounts and the difference in conversion rate.

• Halifax - Our own logs of our expenditure, the days prevailing rate (checked on xe.com) resulted in a near identical if not in our favour exchange rate for currency.
• Caxton 2% - Rate checked today (3rd June) vs prevailing rate and found to be 2p in the £ below.
• Caxton 2.75% - Taken from http://www.caxtonfxcard.com/feesncharges.asp
• This table doesn't consider any benefit that could be had by pre-loading while the rate is good, but this is as much about luck as it is timing and we just wanted to enjoy our trip without rate watching!

Summary

It's important to note that not everyone spends in the region of £10,000 in Europe every year and therefore for lower amounts you have to decide for yourself if it's worth signing up for the Halifax Clarity if you are already a Caxton customer. However aside from the financial savings the increased insurances you get with a credit card and the interest free period if you was to pay using direct debit are worth considering.

In addition it's good practice to add an additional card holder for both Caxton and Halifax just in case a card gets misplaced or damage. It's free and simple to do for both. If you are already a Halifax card holder you having nothing to lose by keeping a Caxton Card stashed away for emergencies, as we do.

Links

12 Months in Europe - What did it cost?

Martin Lewis - Travel Money

Halifax Clarity

Caxton

Our Guide to Visiting & Driving in Denmark with a Motorhome

Odense

This guide is part of the new format of 'Country Guides' we will write to try and provide some of the information we struggled to obtain while researching our trip. It is based on our own experiences and is provided in good faith but your own experience and impressions may differ to ours. We hope that you find it of use and will encourage you to visit.


Country Facts
Country Code (DK), Currency DKK, Capital Copenhagen, Full EU Member. Schengen Country; no visa requirements for EU citizens. There are no import restrictions but there are export limitations for alcohol and tobacco.

Road Vignette Required?
NO.

Toll Roads
No, but there are tolls on bridges. Oresund Bridge joining Denmark to Sweden costs €40 for motorhomes up to 6m and €80 for motorhomes over 6m. Storebaelt Bridge (linking eastern and western Denmark) costs €31 up to 6m and €47 over 6m.


Road Condition ★★★★★
Excellent. 
All main arterial and side roads which we encountered in 2011 were excellent.

Driving Standard ★★★★★
Excellent.
Be wary of right turns as pedestrians have right of way.


Winter Tyres Required
Not by law but is highly recommended


Diesel, LPG & Autogas
Diesel/Bifyl. Fuel prices vary depending on the time of day, the only pattern we could muster is that it seems cheaper in the evenings. Be wary of Automatic stations which have a surcharge. Practice filling up where you see it cheapest rather than when you are nearly empty as the variation can be as much as 25p!
LPG is rare and expensive but is available if required. Click HERE for a list of LPG Stations in Denmark.



Official Aires / Service Points ★★★★★
Generally Good. There are a handful of aires but the ones publicised in 'All the Aires' as being free, now largely charge so beware. Wild Camping opportunities are frequent and this is perfectly legal to do so, especially around beaches and marina locations. There is a 'grey area' between the 'No Camping' signs and what constitutes as 'Camping' - i.e. getting your chairs out etc. If you don't fancy risking it you'll be sure to find somewhere else to stop just down the road.




Campsites ★★★★★
Generally Good. 
When it comes to campsites, they are geared up to cater for the Danish obsession with Caravans, although stopovers are encouraged through the 'Quick Stop' scheme. That said, Denmark is an expensive place to visit and in our view the best way to offset that cost is to Wild Camp - which is perfectly legal and practised by all the visiting nationalities. There are plenty of signs emerging specifying "No Camping" in some popular locations as to be expected, but finding somewhere to stop close by is not hard.


Availability of Fresh Water / Waste Disposal ★★★★★
Generally Good. 
Fresh water and waste disposal is available at a number of dedicated service points on the main motorway networks (click here for link) We also found both fresh water and chemical toilet disposal at many marina's, check with the harbour master before doing so to avoid ruining it for future visitors.


Free / Wild Camping ★★★★★
Excellent.
City Camp is available for central Copenhagen or there are lots of Wild Camping opportunities, see our blog posts and summary's below for more info.

Price Index / Food and Supermarkets ★★★★★
You'd be wise to stock up with food and alcohol prior to entering Denmark; the Lidl's in Germany are excellent for doing so. If you have the capacity to bring enough food and alcohol for your visit then do so, we found bottled water especially hard to come by (due in part to the 35p refundable deposit you pay on bottles, vs 8p in Germany) and a strange absence of fresh fish. If you're making your way to other Scandinavian countries afterwards, you'll be wondering why you didn't stock up with more food! We found fuel prices on par with Germany and other EU countries nearby.

Ribe

Eating & Drinking Out
Generally expensive, we found that a takeaway sandwich and drink could set you back up to £14.


Availability of Open Wifi ★★★★★
Our success rate for finding unsecured Wi-Fi in Denmark was 59%.



Denmark is a clean and safe country and from the look of some of the improvements which are on-going, it stands to get even better. Every town has an excellent tourist information office with thick, full colour glossy materials available in every language. The reality when you scratch the surface is a lot of the attractions are manmade and some of the towns offer little by way of history with any real narrative. The flat terrain is perfect for cycling and if beaches are your thing Denmark holds countless prestigious "Blue Beach" awards and the beaches are worthy of any Mediterranean destination (fingers crossed for the weather, 27c Easter Weekend 2011). Anyone under 40 will without doubt speak fluent English and many older people too, we heard very little other than English music on the radio during our time there.

Denmark is made up of three main Islands: Jutland, Funen and Zealand. The trip to the most northern point of the first island, Skagen, is a worthwhile visit to see the mysterious sight of the two seas lapping over each other but the journey there and back is largely unrewarding save for a handful of nice bits and pieces. Ribe, Arhus (if you're under 40) and the mysterious dune covered Ringkobing Fjord were our personal highlights, not forgetting Lego Land - worth a whip round and free to get in 30 minutes before the rides close where the park stays open for a further 2 hours.

Much of Denmark’s parking is free but limited by time; you will need a Parking Disc displaying your arrival time so best get one before you set off.


Our Summary and Posts on Denmark:
Summary of our tour of Denmark
First Taste of Denmark
Windy Denmark
Hirtshals, Skagen and Grena
Aarhus
Vejle & Legoland
Faaborg, Svendborg & Island of Langland
Svendborg & Odense
Kalundborg & Roskilde
Copenhagen in a Motorhome