Exploring Italy's Lakes: A Campervan Adventure

Join us on an unforgettable journey as we explore the stunning lakes of Italy in our trusty VW campervan "Nelson". In the second part of our 6 week road trip, we wanted to find the quieter places so we head for some of the smaller Italian lakes to discover the secret appeal of these stunning locations.
In this video, we take you along on our campervan adventure, discovering some of Italy's most beautiful and lesser-known lakes. From serene landscapes to charming lakeside towns, we'll show you the hidden gems and breathtaking spots that make Italy's lakes a must-visit destination. As part of our journey we visit:
Lago d'Orta and explore the beautiful and historic Orta San Giulio
Lago Maggiore and kick back at a lakeside campsite for some much needed R&R
Lago d'Iseo for a lakeside cycle and of course some amazing Italian Gelato😉
Whether you're planning your own campervan trip or just dreaming of Italy's scenic beauty, this video is packed with inspiration and practical tips.
We are Richard and Jackie and we live in the UK. We retired from teaching at the age of 51 in the summer of 2022. Our plans for early requirement include relocating to the Yorkshire Dales, developing our forever home and travelling the UK, Europe and eventually the world in our VW campervan Nelson.
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Many thanks,
Richard & Jackie

[@alanbenham4139]

Top job

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

😊

[@adventureswithangelaandwayne]

Lovely views on the campsite I think we would have preferred to be higher up too. Going back to the toilet set up.... These are common in Asia but didn't realize it would be like in Europe. Loving your vlogs thanks for sharing

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

it was a great campsite - even with the toilet shower! Fab views and such a lovely town to walk into.

[@gregmurry6672]

Great video as usual guys , glad you have found Lago Iseo … one of our favourite Italian lakes , stoped at Camping Covo last time , lakeside pitch , home made pizza on site 👌

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

It was really pretty cycling on the lakeside - we liked all the Lakes visited - there was a nice feel to them and not too busy as it was still May

[@SCOJO98765]

Orta looks pretty. Did Garda last Sept very touristy in places but it’s so big you can escape! Swimming there was good too.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Orta was our favourite of the 3 lakes - probably because of the location we chose near the lovely town and island. We have previously visited Garda and Como which did feel more touristy but we cycled for miles along the shores and you soon get to some quiet pretty spots! I love lake swimming as it oddest leave you feeling all salty and sandy!

[@WalkingwithDebbie-xy8sp]

Really enjoying your videos, only seen a couple but love them! Mainly because we are looking to retire, get a motorhome and travel Europe, you are definitely hitting some of the spots we would look to visit, so your recommendations are hitting the spot, thank you. Debbie & Trevor

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Exciting times ahead for you then 😊 getting our campervan 6 years ago was a game changer in our lives. It gave us the freedom to get away every weekend exploring and we were fortunate to have the longer teacher holidays to get away and make the most of it 🚐 we love the Alps particularly and spend a lot of time hiking, cycling and finding fab lakes and rivers to use as a base. Good luck with all your plans

[@WalkingwithDebbie-xy8sp]

We also love the alps and the lakes. If you’re not planning to go through Bled, Bohing in Slovenia and Millstatt in Austria, you should. We were lucky enough to live over lake Millstatt for 6years.

[@WalkingwithDebbie-xy8sp]

Forgot to mention lake Hallstatt and the surrounding area

[@annajeram9251]

What crystal clear footage! Stunning 🤩

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Thank you, we loved the Italian Lakes - they really just sell themselves with their beauty!

[@susiesukes21]

We are Brits and have done this area many times. We like a 2-3 month trip late August to early November. Plenty of Brits then sensibly avoiding the crowds and the heat..

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Thanks for this Susie- we normally prefer to travel at that time of year but this year we have something special planned that means our big Euro trip had to be early summer. It's a lovely problem to have in early retirement🙏 Thanks for the comment👍

[@motorroamingaround]

Great video guys. Thanks for sharing. All of the lakes and campsites look fantastic. Not sure why the ACSI card wasn’t accepted in early June though……very strange. Looking forward to the next video. Keep safe. Irvine & Karen.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Thanks you two. Yep we definitely smelt a rat with their ACSI explanation. Not a common problem but we have had it happen a few times now. Hope that you have had a great trip?

[@Andrew-Dixon]

🎉 great trip, your relaxing is great, not just filming for the sake of it 👍 Enjoy

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Thank you - we have enjoyed lots of down time on this trip 😊

[@jasonnicol8302]

Looked amazing. Good video to start our day with, coffee in bed and KZbin on.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

😊 Thank you!

[@DeansGoTravelling]

What a great way to start my Sunday 🏆 Loved seeing the lakes as it’s an area we’ve thought about going to. I’m so pleased you got to Venice on a sunny day…a completely different place in the rain 😂 One of my fave spots and never stops being amazing 😎 Looking forward to the next video 🥰

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Thank you - we really enjoyed being on the lakes - they are really pretty with the mountains in the background and the lovely little villages to explore. Lake Otra was my favourite of this trip - I do love the northern shores of Lake Como as well. We were really lucky with the weather in Venice as it wasn't too hot either. On the 2nd day it chucked it down just as we got off the tram walking back to the aire but that was it. We absolutely loved Venice - it ws even better than we had imagined 😊🚐

[@kenbradshaw8983]

Loved that. You showed a lovely part of the world. I wish I was with you Thank you.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Glad you enjoyed it - we loved exploring the smaller lakes especially Lake Orta. The little ancient towns are so interesting to explore.

[@joea4234]

Orta is Lovely. We stayed at village of Pella on a waterside pitch. Watch out for storms as they come in quickly. Lovey swim, but the waters do have these occasional water snakes…. Which we only found out about on our very last day there… yikes.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

We enjoyed Orta the most of the 3 lakes 😊🚐 glad we did not see any water snakes 😮

[@helenvwalker7919]

Looks lovely and not too crowded. Thanks for sharing😊

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

It has been a great time to travel. We have been lucky with the weather as I think France and Germany have been pretty wet in the mountains and although the German schools have been on half term it really quietened down last weekend again - particularly in Croatia where we went past over 10 miles of queues going in the opposite direction when they were all heading home!!

[@GaryJDavies]

So inspiring - thanks Richard and Jacqui 👍🏻 We love the Italian lakes but have not been in our campervan - it’s on the list now 😊

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

To be fair - the Italian Lakes sell themselves - they are so pretty with all the quaint little villages. We also love the northern shores of Lake Como which is up near the Swiss border and very pretty. The ferry across to Bellagio was an easy way to get across the lake as it can get very busy on the roads. It's really doable in a campervan and the campsites in lower season are reasonably priced and don't need prebooking.

[@janetbowen7854]

Buonissimo, amo Italia, so looking forward to Venice, the Italian lakes, scenery and the campsites look amazing, thanks for sharing 😍🏔️❤️🍾 🇮🇹xxx

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

You are quite welcome. We are glad you enjoyed it. It really is a lovely part of the world. 👍

[@allisonbennett641]

Lovely video of a stunning place, nice to see a little of those smaller lakes. You both look very chilled and relaxed. Looking forward to your Venice vid, we had a day trip out there when last in Italy, fascinating place. Expensive in some areas though , spend your Yorkshire pennies in the side streets 😜😂

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Thanks so much 😊 We loved Lake Orta - The little towns on the Lake side were really beautiful. We absolutely loved Venice which surprised us as we are not really city people. Our Yorkshire pennies were really safe- we found some great little cafes and a traditional Italian pizza takeaway that was popular with the locals so we managed to do Venice for 48 hours spending only €88 Euros including the camping fees!! What an amazing place ❤️

[@joannesaunderson4506]

Looks beautiful! Enjoy

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

thank you 😊

[@bronwenwakefield9140]

I thoroughly enjoy your videos having stumbled across them a few weeks ago! I love the range of content. I look forward to the next one!

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Awesome, thank you! Some people find the fact that we do both early retirement and travel stuff a bit strange as it is 2 different things but for us it is part of our way of life! Glad you enjoy the channel. Venice on a budget is next up on Thursday 🚐 😊

[@bronwenwakefield9140]

Definitely don't find it strange...having taught through the pandemic, I also left teaching!

[@TinaD-qm6mu]

Thanks for the next trip inspiration. We were just at Lake Garda over April break and while beautiful I can only imagine how busy it will continue to get over the summer. Fingers crossed Venice is great for you two.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Thanks Tina, we did Lake Garda a few years back in the height of summer which was the only time we could travel. It was still beautiful, but gosh it was busy. The campsites were full and quite tight for space. We definitely prefer traveling in the off season😉 Thanks for the comment👍

[@gizmorow21]

Hi we are are couple of retirees from Pembrokeshire. We are currently in Biscarrosse, this is our second year travelling in our self converted Mercedes Viano. The weather is very different from last year. the yorkshire man in you was right to be suspicious about price for campsite, it clearly says in the ACSI app that the lower price applies 08-03-2024 to 30-06-2024.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Thanks for the confirmation... we thought we were going mad! To make matters worse, they had a ready printed copy of a web-page that confirmed their "new" arrangements. Figured that they protested too much that it must happen a lot. Hope that SW France is being kind to you this year. 👍

[@Lilrom2003]

Been campsite in that area in summer and it’s jampacked throughout, unpleasant. Toilets with shower like that everywhere in India now, not worked it out or perhaps don’t want to know…. (Smaller Lakes where you include Maggiore ( which means big in Italian) )

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

We figured that it would get a lot busier in the summer with the size of many of the campsites. We feel very blessed with the summer sun we had without the crowds.🙏

[@helenvwalker7919]

It's a bidet, not a shower😉

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

😂 I am still intrigued how it all works - we have come across it again at a site in Croatia!

[@richardayres2949]

Are you sure you are not getting your hot and cold in Italian confused. Hot = caldo = C. I thought hi the idea is you do your washing up in your bowl on the hard standing and I intheir bowl to dry. Try going to India where your u just get a the and a jug in the loo. 😂

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

It was definitely the hot water tap. Like you're thinking- there was a space for our bowl on the work surface, and a sink, but the additional draining board as well. We love these little conundrums😂