Taking your motorhome to Europe for a year

Gazzburger · Veteran Member

Taking your motorhome to Europe for a year

madaboutled · Guru

I would think the cost of getting it there and back would be more than hiring one for a year.

warhorse · Senior Member

gazzburger,have you considered buying one over there,do your tour,then sell it before you return, also transit insurance might be an issue but not sure, cheers ray....p.s wait for a reply from Peter n Margret they have extensive first hand experience of europe.

-- Edited by warhorse on Wednesday 11th of January 2017 01:08:45 PM

The Belmont Bear · Guru

Have you considered what side of the road they drive on in Europe. I found when I was working and driving on the continent that I always had to be mindful of what side of the road I was on. This is especially true on quieter roads without traffic, roundabouts or when turning at intersections it is very easy to end up on the wrong side of the road or going the wrong direction on a roundabout just purely out of habit. Personally having watched English tourists struggle when driving their cars in France I would not like to compound the problem by being on the wrong side of my vehicle. As time goes by you do get used to driving on that side of the road but every now and then I found myself making an error that under different circumstances could have ended in disaster (luckily for me that it didn't).

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

First question is will it fit into a shipping container.
If the answer is "NO", then your only option is a RORO vessel and that means that you usually can not have personal effects of any sort inside because of the security risk.
One possible shipping line for RORO is Grimaldie (sp?). We have friends who regularly ship their motorhome from Europe to Africa or South America and Australia using this company and they travel on the ship with the vehicle.
Coming back into Australia, the quarantine requirements are extreme. The vehicle needs to be spotless, inside and out. That may require the removal of tanks etc from underneath to clean the tops of them.
You will also need a carnet (a document to ensure that the vehicle is re-exported after the trip).
There is a lot of research to do.

We had 6 months in Europe in each of 2013, 2014 and 2015, but we used a German registered vehicle.
I expect you will find that 1 year is not enough.
Don't worry about driving on the wrong side of the road with a RHD vehicle. It actually has some advantages as we discovered driving a LHD vehicle in the UK & Ireland, but you do need help from your partner to keep a lookout on the blind side. Many UK registered vehicles are LHD too because they spend a lot of time on the Continent, and it is legal to have a LHD vehicle in the UK.

Cheers,
Peter

EDIT, the shipping line is Grimaldi. Not sure which web site, but start here... http://cargo.grimaldi-lines.com/

-- Edited by Peter_n_Margaret on Wednesday 11th of January 2017 05:06:08 PM

-- Edited by Peter_n_Margaret on Wednesday 11th of January 2017 05:10:29 PM

Bimobil79 · Newbie

G'day All,

Im afraid this is going to be a long post, sorry!

We spent over 4 years travelling round Europe, right across Russia and Central Asia to Vladivostok then to S Korea and, finally spent 6 months in NZ with the truck. We returned at the end of last year so I do have fair bit of experience. Experience includes shipping an NSW registered Land Cruiser chassis cab to Europe, having a German camper body fitted to it and, finally, bringing it back to Oz. So let me deal with some of the points that have been raised.

I'll start at the tail end with bringing the vehicle back to Oz. We had it shipped to Fremantle on a ro-ro from Auckland. We had it comprehensively cleaned inside and out in Auckland as we'd heard horror stories about AQIS. The truck came off the ship at around 08.00 and we picked it up at 14.00 the same day. I don't think AQIS even looked inside it. I know people who have had a really hard time but I also know others who have had the same experience as us. So, I guess its a bit of a lottery. The shipping was arranged for us by the people who export ex-rental Kea and Maui etc motorhomes to Oz and they did the cleaning. This may have made some difference.

Next, shipping. Shipping from Russia to S Korea was by ferry. From S Korea to NZ and NZ to Oz was by car carrier. Our habitation cabin can't be accessed from the driver's cab so we just locked everything in there and kept the key. However, with a standard motorhome there is a definite security issue. You can leave things inside but you can expect them to be stolen. Also, you will not get insurance ANYWHERE against damage to or loss from the vehicle, only for total loss if the vessel goes down. We had to use ro-ro as the height was just over 3m. For info, a High-Cube container's internal dimensions are L 6.058m W 2.438m H 2.896m.

Somebody raised the question of a carnet. You don't need one for anywhere in Europe. Period. You get issued a temporary importation document for the EU at your first EU port and, likewise, for each country outside the EU that you may enter.

Buying a vehicle in Europe was raised as an option. The only country where you can do this relatively easily is the UK. You just need somebody's UK address to use. The problem is insurance. There are only two companies in the UK that will provide comprehensive insurance to somebody who doesn't have a UK licence. They are both very expensive and won't give cover for a vehicle with value over £10,000. You will also run into this problem if you take your own vehicle. It is also possible to buy a vehicle in Germany but I have no personal experience of this. Again, you would need a German address.

You want to spend a year in Europe. Well, the UK will give you a 6 month visa and will, I believe, give you another 6 months if you go to the Continent and then return. Your problem is the Schengen Area, which makes up most of the EU. The maximum stay is 90 days and then you have to leave for 90 days. However, once you're inside the Area there are no border checks so, since they dont check for overstaying when you leave, in practice its a non-issue.

Hiring a vehicle for a year is prohibitively expensive. I just took a look at a UK rental company and they want £16,000 for a 4 berth for 6 months!

Finally, driving on the "wrong" side of the road. If youre a competent driver youll soon get used to this, it's just common sense.

Hope this is helpful, if a bit negative. I'm very happy to give you more personal advice from our experience if you want to PM me.

Gazzburger · Veteran Member

Thank you all for your replies we will have to have a Long hard think Gazzburger

The Belmont Bear · Guru

Peter although I totally respect your experience I would be surprised if there were any advantages in driving a vehicle on the wrong side compared to one that is designed that way. Vehicles are built to compliment the side of the road that you are driving on and you shouldn't have to use a copilot to ensure your safety. Like with towing what is legal and what is the safest option may be a little different, yes driving on the opposite side of the road is only common sense providing that the vehicle you are driving is fit for purpose. If it made no difference where you sat when you ordered a car the side that they put the steering wheel on would be one of the options. I haven't driven an opposite hand vehicle in any country but I have driven in countries on every continent and believe me when constantly swapping from one side of the road to the other you need to keep your wits about you. I can't comment on the rest of the advice that either yourself or Bimobil79 has given to the OP as I have no experience in those areas.

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

Bimobil79 wrote:
You want to spend a year in Europe. Well, the UK will give you a 6 month visa and will, I believe, give you another 6 months if you go to the Continent and then return. Your problem is the Schengen Area, which makes up most of the EU. The maximum stay is 90 days and then you have to leave for 90 days.

If you are prepared to do your homework, this is not so.

http://australia.nlembassy.org/shared/products-and-services/products-and-services/schengen-visa/schengen-visa.html?selectedLocalDoc=aus-passport-holders-in-eu

It is just a pity that there is more information about this on the Netherlands site than the Australian site.

Bilateral Visa Waiver Agreement

Australia has Bilateral Visa Waiver Agreements with the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

This means that Australian passport holders can visit these countries without a visa, some of them up till 90 days, but you will need to check with the authorities of these countries personally.

We spent 5 1/2 months in Schengen in 2015. We had approval to spend 90 days in each of Germany and Scandinavia without using any of our Schengen allowance of another 90 days. But you must get the documentation from each country where you wish to use this feature because most border control people know nothing about it and you must be able to prove what time you spent in each country by producing receipts etc. In fact no one was interested when we left Schengen after 5 1/2 months, but you never know.

Cheers,

Peter

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

The Belmont Bear wrote:
Peter although I totally respect your experience I would be surprised if there were any advantages in driving a vehicle on the wrong side compared to one that is designed that way.

One of the issues of driving a LHD vehicle is estimating how close to the side of the road you actually are. You are not used to having the RH side 1.5m away and there is a tendency to clip trees and the like on that side when on narrow roads and there is oncoming traffic.

If you drive the same LHD vehicle in the UK, the side of the road is right next to you and it is easy to stay very close without hitting things.

Which raises another question for the OP.

What size is your motorhome?

I would suggest that smaller is definitely better.

Cheers,

Peter

Cheers,

Peter

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

Lots of good information here...
epicycles.com/

Cheers,
Peter

Gazzburger · Veteran Member

Hi all I must oppologise I retired at the end of 1999 and have travelled over some of Europe before in both right and left hand drive motor homes so I am used to driving on the wrong side of the road with both right and left hand drive the van I am having converted is a Long wheelbase fiat ducato I should have made this more clear in my post so once again my oppologies. Regards gazzburger

The Belmont Bear · Guru

No problems Gazzburger you obviously have plenty experience my original post was only meant as a caution for someone who hadn't driven a RHD vehicle on the continent. I wasn't suggesting for one moment that people shouldn't do it, just for them to be aware that it could introduce another challenge to the ones that they would already face when driving in unfamiliar conditions. I take your point Peter about being able to judge where the edge of the road is but I took my drivers side wing mirror off in a very narrow street in Lille by slightly misjudging the clearance while trying to creep past an oncoming delivery van (I was in a standard LHD vehicle). As I said previously I don't have the experience of the other guys in the areas that you are interested in so I'd better butt out - good luck with your venture.

BB

Bimobil79 · Newbie

Interesting about Schengen, Peter. It didn't affect us as I have an EU passport, but we spoke to so many people who complained about the 90 day restriction. And, as we both know, no one ever checks anyway.

ukSteve · Member

I have been driving my English (RHD) motorhome in Europe (LHD) for the past 2 years and have yet to experience any issues. One point I would raise is that some smaller roads have 3500kgs limit in Europe, also motorhomes may be prohibited from entering or parking in some coastal areas. These areas are often near commercial camps. Many mainland Europe villages have "aires" or free parking areas for motorhomes which have dumpstation and water. LHD vehicle prices tend to be lower as there are more produced than RHD. A good site to check out for used LHD motorhomes and caravans is mobile.de

ukSteve · Member

I have been driving my English (RHD) motorhome in Europe (LHD) for the past 2 years and have yet to experience any issues. One point I would raise is that some smaller roads have 3500kgs limit in Europe, also motorhomes may be prohibited from entering or parking in some coastal areas. These areas are often near commercial camps. Many mainland Europe villages have "aires" or free parking areas for motorhomes which have dumpstation and water. LHD vehicle prices tend to be lower as there are more produced than RHD. A good site to check out for used LHD motorhomes and caravans is mobile.de

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

Yes, the dividing line between "light" vehicles and "heavy" vehicles is 3500kg in Europe, not 4500kg as it is here.
Your car license will only be good for 3500kg GVM maximum and speed limits will generally be 80kph, even on major highways.

Cheers,
Peter

kandagal · Guru

A few years ago we bought a motorhome in UK for 5000 pounds & after using it for 3 months we sold it for 6000 pounds. It was a left side drive machine (German built) & the only improvement we made was to add a microwave (25 pound in UK). We insured it with RAC (take proof of your no claim status with you). We had an accident & we were covered for everything due to our RACQ membership back in Oz. They even toted the motorhome right across UK from east coast to Wales (sister in laws place where we could stay while motorhome got repaired) at no cost to us & we went along as passengers in the large truck.. In UK this membership covers any vehicle driven by member. We advertised motorhome for sale on EBay & sold it the next day. Alice