RV Europe for a Year: Our Real Cost Per Country

In this video we share with you what it cost us to travel Europe by motorhome for a full 12 months.
At the beginning of 2022 we started our journey from the south of Spain and travelled through the following countries: Portugal, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Lichtenstein and Italy (+ San Marino). Technically we also drove through Switzerland, but it shouldn't really count. 😋
In this video we focus on travel related costs per country only. As mentioned in the beginning of the video the budget excludes the cost of the motorhome as well as any personal expenses.
For each country we break our cost down into food, accommodation, fuel, general expenses, sightseeing, public transport and cell-data.
(A year ago, we published a similar video after our first 6 months which you might find an interesting comparison: • WHAT DID IT COST to mo... )
00:00 Intro
02:25 Categories
03:30 Route and Map of Countries
05:10 How Many Days In Each Country
06:47 Accommodation Costs
12:00 Distance & Fuel
14:16 Food & Dining
18:15 Cellphone Data
20:20 Average Cost per Day
21:36 Food Breakdown
22:30 Transport Breakdown
23:40 Cell, LPG, Sightseeing, Laundry
25:00 Closing comments
ABOUT US:
Welcome! We’re Andre and Lisa. A married South African couple (with some Italian roots), who have been travelling together for almost 20 years, to more than 40 countries. In 2017 we took stock of our life, made the decision to 'retire early' and gave up our professional careers and all our personal possessions in order to explore the world as full-time nomads. Over the past two years, we have been travelling through Europe with our 20-year-old Motorhome. Please subscribe to follow along and join us on our adventure!
You can find our blog at www.wewillnomad.com where we post regularly about the destinations, we visit along with travel tips and what we spend on travelling.
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[@Terhiman]

Great video - I have been looking forward to this cost analysis for some time as we plan on going mobile in a years time so incredibly useful for budgeting. No doubt prices will change in that time but it's a good basis from which to plan. Looking foreward to your future travels. We recently looped around Portugal in a panel van and found it both amazing for scenery , food and cost. October was a great month to travel!

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks Brian! All the best with your planning. To us one of the best things about this type of travel is how flexible it can be - one can really spend or save as much as you want / need depending on your circumstances. Provided you have a good emergency reserve for unexpected events of course. Also really glad to hear about your Portugal experience. We had very bad weather when we were there (in March) and are hoping to return this year around October so let's hope we get your good weather!

[@lecsu131]

For the life of me, I cannot understand how you don't have a million subscribers. The only reason I can think of is that most of the "motorhome fan base" are not actual travelers or wanna be travelers, they just watch other very popular vanlife channels for the wow factor, for the almost naked presenters or for the "youtube making money while traveling dream". Your channel is chock-full of actual, practical, applicable and priceless information. I do a lot of data analysis at my job and I know how tedious it is record, day by day, all the information that you presented here. Can't thank you enough! Hope to meet you one day on the road and have a beer (or coffee). Thanks! And safe travels!

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks so much for your comment Alex! Not sure if it makes us feel better or worse, as we also simply don't know why we don't get the subscribers or views - we thought maybe our content is just boring! 😝 But you might well be right though. We aren't that overnight KZbin success story. We also seem to struggle to get the algorithm to suggest our channel and don't think enough people "share" or "like" our videos. It might also have to do with our "older" demographic. 🤔 Either way, despite all the hard work (which it definitely is), we still enjoy making our videos and really appreciate such comments, so thank you! Hope we can share that beer one day! 😊

[@lecsu131]

@@WeWillNomad Usually at lunch or dinner we start the TV and watch Seinfeld, today, i decided to show my wife your channel and watch one of your clips instead of Seinfeld. After that we went for a two hour walk in the park - you two were our only topic of conversation :). One thing I would suggest is invest in a microphone - when i watch your clips on the TV because the audio goes through an amplifier and then to big stand speakers the echo and your boomy voice made it hard to understand (on a laptop, speakers don't have bass so it's not such a big problem but still very echoy). On the other hand, unfortunately, because you're down to earth, honest and normal people :) you produce quality content instead of click-bait clips like "We almost quit vanlife" or "Disaster struck our van" and in the clip you see one fuse blown or half of your clips with a thumbnail of half naked Lisa with titles like "How we shower in the van" or titles like "Are we getting a divorce?" , "We're ready to quit vanlife" etc etc etc.... That's not your style :) fortunately for me but unfortunately for the youtube algorithm because shock/awe/nudity/scandal is what sells. At the same time if you went down that route I think it would consume you so much and so much of your time it would be a job and you will feel forced to produce more and more and you would lose the pleasure of your travels. I think (hope) that slowly but surely your channel will grow with a loyal following due to your content quality and the quality of viewers you attract. I know it's hard work, I film/edit clips as part time work for clients and I know the time and energy it consumes.

[@WeWillNomad]

You gave up Seinfeld to watch one of our videos? 😂 Wow, that's impressive - coming from fellow Seinfeld lovers - well one of us anyway (Andre). Starting from our Albania series we're incorporating the use of wireless mics and we're also tweaking the EQ on our audio a bit to see if this will make a difference. Although a shotgun mic makes a lot of sense it adds a lot of bulk and makes you 'stand out' a bit - especially if it has a dead cat on. Thanks for the feedback Alex. We still love making videos and even if it was just for ourselves, we would keep doing it. But you know how it is, once you get into something you keep striving for improvement and it would be much more satisfying if we actually got a few more views to justify the effort.

[@mollisika]

Thanks for separating the expences so clearly! I also like that you took the other expences away from the calculations too!

[@WeWillNomad]

Glad it was helpful! 😎

[@helenwheels4444]

This was so helpful. Thanks for putting this together. I am about to pick up a van I. The Netherlands and start a year of travel so I found this incredibly interesting and helpful

[@WeWillNomad]

Awesome! Have a wonderful trip!

[@allandelaplante1614]

Great information.

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks Allan. Glad you think so!

[@stuartjomes7289]

Great video guys really appreciate the advise ...Stay safe 😎🇬🇧

[@WeWillNomad]

Thank you! We're due to do another update video soon so keep an eye out for that! Happy travels! 😊

[@maikenlundinkrager4955]

Tak for jeres video fra danmark😀

[@eddiekelly8124]

Guys fabulous content, keep up the good work .

[@WeWillNomad]

Thank you!

[@marlylebron7994]

Hi guys!!! We love all the information. Thank you sooo much for sharing. Greetings from Puerto Rico 🇵🇷

[@WeWillNomad]

Our pleasure, thanks for watching and saying hi! We hope to visit that side of the world one day!

[@SciFiGangster]

great video, must have taken a lot of planning to make this one

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks for your positive feedback! These kinds of videos are tricky, but we're really happy if they can help and motivate others. 😊

[@commuterbranchline8132]

Great information thanks for sharing. I am Irish and about to retire, I’d like to continuously travel in Europe, so any tips will be great fully accepted! Liked and subscribed.

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks! Glad you found it helpful.

[@tyrafox2048]

Fab informative video guys… really great 😊 Thanks for sharing… it really does give people a rough idea as to what it costs, and hopefully encourages more people to feel more at ease saving for a little while and then maybe take a year out to travel. It’s certainly a plan of mine in a few years’ time! 😊 🦊❤️

[@WeWillNomad]

Our pleasure, thanks for your positive feedback! Good luck with your planning and saving, it's definitely worth all the sacrifices along the way! 😊

[@Nordkapp65]

Many thanks for this, very insightful, considering your penchant for a nice pastry, chocolate or ice cream, that's a fairly frugal spend! Interesting layout for expenses that gives great info on a per night spend in these locations.

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks for your positive feedback! Perhaps that's what motivates us to stay frugal... so that we don't feel guilty when we do want to indulge! 😜

[@A-Nobody]

Very good laid out informative video. Thank you from a Brit currently touring southern Spain!

[@WeWillNomad]

Glad it was useful! Thanks for your comment and enjoy sunny Spain!

[@lifeisapicnic2021]

Oh yeahhhh we love you guys, your video on what you learned about van life after 12 months helped us by our motorhome. We get it on Friday so can't wait to set off to some places you have shared. Have a great Sunday xxx

[@WeWillNomad]

Oh wow, that's super exciting - congratulations! So glad we could be helpful, wishing you many happy travels ahead!

[@nimbin55]

Thanks great Information...

[@WeWillNomad]

Our pleasure, glad it was helpful! Thanks for your comment!

[@evitaevita321]

You are amazing couple, thanks for informations !

[@WeWillNomad]

Our pleasure, thank you for watching and your lovely comment! 😍

[@jessicameyer8702]

Thank you André & Lisa for making this budget video. The property we caretake is up for sale so this video is helpful as we explore our options for the coming years. Enjoy your time in South Africa, also on our bucket list! Cheers, Silly’s parents 😊

[@WeWillNomad]

Awe, thank you so so much Jessica, Paul & Silly! It sounds like you have some exciting times ahead - all the best for exploring options and making plans, we know all too well just how tricky this can be. Hopefully our paths will cross some time in the upcoming year!

[@Stevieboysp202]

Hello Andre and Lisa. Just wanted to say thanks for this breakdown of expenditure that you did it's very helpful to get your insight. We're ( or possibly just me at the moment) thinking of retiring in a couple of years, buying a motorhome and travelling between the UK and a property we have in Abruzzo Italy, taking in Europe as we go. My wife, who grew up in South Africa and I, both love travelling and want to get out of the rat race asap. So thanks again for your video I have subscribed and am very interested in your experiences in each country, they are extremely helpful.

[@WeWillNomad]

Hi Steve! Glad you found it useful! If your have any questions feel free to email us. We have been enjoying our time travelling by motorhome as it takes to unexpected and wonderful locations. All the best with the planning of your next chapter.

[@steveb7437]

Great video very informative. You have a lovely mixture of cooking in hiuse or eating out and enjoying life. Carry on touring enjoy South Africa.

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks for the comment Steve! Luckily for me (Lisa), Andre loves to cook so we can eat both affordable and well! We're loving the summer in SA!

[@lig8817]

Love your videos - travel safely

[@WeWillNomad]

Thank you so much, will do!

[@susie9893]

Thanks for this - more helpful than I thought it would be. That spreadsheet was great for showing the comparisons. I paused this video a LOT

[@WeWillNomad]

🤣🤣 It can be a tricky video to make - trying to give as much info as possible but not making it TOO boring! Glad you found it helpful Susie!

[@susie9893]

@@WeWillNomad to clarify, I didn't expect to be bored, I expected to be confused - I didn't realise you would show all expenses in € (that definitely helped) and I thought I'd be constantly trying to convert that into my currency for comparison. Rather, it was more a comparison of spending between European countries and that I found v helpful

[@66zingo]

From Sweden. We love to follow your adventures. We will retire from our work soon and your vlog has been really inspiring for our plans in the future.

[@WeWillNomad]

Thank you for following our adventures and for commenting! All the best for your future plans! 😊

[@BrigittevTien]

Wow I think as far as the budget goes you do great! Guess slow travel actually is cheaper …. And, we do stay a lot at campsites, and feel they can be expensive. We can certainly do better in that area 😉 Very interesting video, thanks for sharing!!

[@WeWillNomad]

Thank you! We definitely do another video on the following 12 months. We've learnt quite a few lessons and this year we visited the Western Balkans in addition. Campsite add up quickly and once you're used to not 'needing' them you can rarely justify the cost. In countries like France, it's just so easy to find incredible dedicated (free) motorhome stops.

[@Walter_on_Tour]

Hi Guys.. we just watched your video. Very nicely presented. It was good to compare to our current budget. Been on the road since July (Uk, France, Spain and now Morocco) Morocco is so cheap on food, fuel and is an amazing country. Thanks for the video. 😊

[@WeWillNomad]

Brilliant, thanks for the comment! We're really looking forward to (hopefully) make it to Morocco next winter!

[@creekyknee]

André and Lisa - Thanks so much for spending the time to put this video together. Its wonderful and is so useful to help those of us who are hoping to have a similar adventure in the near future. How much on chocolate ?

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks for the feedback Ronan, always appreciated! Really glad it can be helpful to you and others. 142 EUR on chocolate for the year... 🙈

[@susanpowell6547]

Such a great video. We hope to do a half year (sabbatical) trip like this next year. Look us up when you come again to southern Spain this year. We'd love to host you for a paella dinner on our terrace. Feel like we know you guys. My hubby often asks me, "Do Andre and Lisa have anything new up yet?" You guys are great!

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks so much Susan, we will definitely get in touch for that paella dinner! All the best with your planning, sure it's going to be a fantastic adventure next year! But hopefully we'll get to meet up before you set off!

[@alanbell6999]

Well a big thank you too you pair. I had to watch this video twice and dip in, the 1.9 % for chocolate was a tickle. Good to here you are continuing looking forward to Greece. Look up Thatch for this video.well done.

[@WeWillNomad]

You're welcome. ❤️ The question now is.. Is 1.9% too much or too little.. 🤔🤣

[@savingelectric]

Great video as usual, I'm thinking of starting a support group for you to fund more ice cream and chocolate for the coming year!

[@WeWillNomad]

🤣 Now THAT'S a great idea! We like the way you're thinking David!

[@connie.sawtell]

Thank you for this! It’s so useful for us heading on a very similar trip soon. I like the pace and balance of comforts you allow yourself, cook at home and grab gelato out 😋. Your travel style is probably the closest to what we’ve been thinking than anyone I’ve found on KZbin. Coming from Australia our dollar doesn’t buy many euro so it’s good to have a ballpark budget for the year. We’ll also retire early with investments to fund our travels, so it’s nice to know we’ll have enough € 😅

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks so much for your feedback Connie! Our pace of travel probably has to do with a combination of age, preferred travel style and budget awareness. If you think your Aussie dollars don't get you far, then you can just imagine how we feel with our South African ZAR (18.87 ZAR = 1 EUR)! 🙈 Truth is, once you've made the mindset shift, one can fairly easily adjust your spending to what is required. All the best with you planning and happy travels!

[@connie.sawtell]

Oh you know exactly what I mean, I have South African friends and their ZAR doesn’t go far here! I’ve been researching motorhomes for sooo long so am making the mindset shift like you said. Thinking in euro, looking at budgets of different travellers, figuring out what way will suit us. We typically splurge on holidays so that will take getting used to, being in all the new places and remembering we’re not on holidays, we’re just living. Thanks for your reply and effort making videos, much appreciated.

[@ronnyorken2147]

Hey! Thanks for a nice video clip. The plan for me and my girlfriend this year is to go to a meeting with our Hobby600 from 1989 in Duderstadt (D). After that, we have planned to drive to Sam Marino via Venice before turning home to Denmark.

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks for your comment Ronny, your trip sounds fantastic! We visited San Marino in 2022 and Venice in 2018, also with a motorhome. You should check that old video of ours for what we think is the best place to stay with a van near Venice - even though the video is a bit old, there's some useful info. Enjoy your trip!

[@russmcsporran]

Very useful video. Amazed you managed to keep costs so low. Would be interested to know re medical insurance. I think you said you have Italian citizenship in other videos? Are you not able to use the Italian medical system (and therefore just buy travel insurance) or have you had to buy full blown medical insurance cover for some reason.

[@WeWillNomad]

Glad you found it useful ❤ We're releasing Q&A video (about being nomadic) this Sunday which might answer some of your questions. Theoretically we can make use of the Italian medical system, but it would men becoming 'residents' which have other implications. As we still travel to other countries outside of Europe, we do need expat type medical cover - for now.

[@michaelpendered4156]

Enjoyed your expenses feature, having done two three month trips into Europe recently we totally concur with your views. We are dissapointing you seem to have no plans to visit the UK, food is much cheaper than mainland Europe fuel costs are similar and so much to see and in South West England were we live there are so many golden sands beaches. Anyway we continue to love your videos. Thank you.

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks so much for your comment Michael! We definitely DO have plans to visit the UK with our Motorhome in the future, just not in the coming year unfortunately! We actually even have some family there so it is definitely on our bucket list. We hope you'll continue to follow along until then! And we'll try to remember to ask you for some tips at that point 😜

[@livingworkingoutsidebox]

Hello from Florida.🏖🍊🌞 Just found your channel. Great information in this video 👍 Question: Do you have another video on how you traveled the year through Europe while complying with the 90 in 180 days in Schengen Zone?

[@WeWillNomad]

Hi and welcome to our channel! The bad news is that we don't have a video on this, as we do not have Schengen restrictions - we are both Italian citizens. Unfortunately, there is no 'easy' way to get around the 90/180 limit. The only real option is to split your time between the Schengen areas and then get out for 90 days. That said, it's super easy to spend 90 days in the Western Balkans as a break. The other obvious options are Ireland, the UK, Turkey, or Morocco. The major challenge with Schengen restriction is navigating the peak of summer when it's VERY busy around European coastal regions and figuring out where to be during the worst of winter (January, February). You can easily find yourself covering large distances in a short time due to this. Thank you for watching!

[@livingworkingoutsidebox]

@@WeWillNomad Thanks for clearing this up. Very helpful. I'm binge watching a bit to get some more ideas. 🌞

[@WeWillNomad]

​@@livingworkingoutsidebox There's something else to consider. Check whether your country has a bilateral visa waiver agreement with any EU state. This in theory means that after you have exhausted 90 days in Schengen you should be able to stay in this specifric country for an additional period. It's a bit messy and can be hard to pull off (and it varies by state) but worth thinking about. Another option would be to apply for a long stay visa. Australian friends of ours just got one from Poland. They have the same challenge with Schengen.

[@AdeleRatcliffe]

Thank you for all your time in putting tbis video together, can i ask are you guys getting income as you travel or have you sold all and just travel we still have a small mortgage and will probably rent our house out to do it in a couple of years.. how much are we looking at for a campervan, roughly if course, around 10,000 euro would that by a good one.. thank you

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks! We did sort of cover in in a previous Q&A (kzbin.info/www/bejne/e3rIZI2Brr1kf8k) but in short we finance our travel through a combination of savings, investments and part-time work. Obviously, we are very budget conscious and do not travel in luxury. Price of a camper varies tremendously depending on age, mileage, condition and even in which country you purchase. Usually, you are limited to registering a vehicle only in a country where you are a resident - but there are exceptions (like Spain where you only need an address). Cheapest and widest selection available is in Germany for EU but you won't find much for under EUR20k. Older vehicles get moved on faster due to emissions and tax. In the UK there is still plenty of options for under £20k but once again you have the complication of registering and ideally you don't want a right-hand drive vehicle in Europe.

[@jasonthomas5925]

Great vlog as always guys 👍…… The only cost that shocked me was you only spent €59 on ice cream.😳……Enjoy your hols 😄👍🇬🇧X

[@WeWillNomad]

Thanks so much Jason! That shocked us too - perhaps we messed up with our records? 🤔 Either way, we'll work on doing "better" this year! 😂

[@jerrysz3155]

Thanks for the great video! One question for clarification please: for your number of nights I only get about 290, not 365. I know it’s inconsequential, but I’m an engineer and it’s driving me crazy, lol. What am I missing?

[@WeWillNomad]

Nothing wrong with that engineering brain! 😁 Yes, indeed we reported our costs on just 290 nights as during this year (2022) we have spent January as well as some of February and December doing some house sitting in Spain and Italy. We did another video 12 months later which you might also find useful kzbin.info/www/bejne/aWGskn2hbdCmbpYsi=J38ZjeJj48pUbgyj

[@pillagroenewald8864]

Which website do you use for campsites in Spain and Portugal

[@WeWillNomad]

We use the Park4Night app almost exclusively, which covers campsite, motorhome stops and parkings. And then also the ACSI Card and app if looking more for campsites in the shoulder seasons (but you have to preorder the physical card for home delivery). Take a look at our website for more information: www.wewillnomad.com/post/vanlife-portugal-travelling-by-campervan-2022 www.wewillnomad.com/post/travelling-southern-spain-by-campervan-2021-2022

[@roger1johansson]

Thanks for your great videos! Question: How do you finance your life? Are you independent of limited money? I would love to travel the world but ways to finance life always messes my dream up!

[@WeWillNomad]

the 'how' takes a bit of effort and it requires a lot of dedication, sacrifice, and planning over several years. We did answer some of this on how we afford to travel full-time in a Q&A from early 2023 which you might find helpful. The short answer is, we live off a combination of savings, passive investments (property & stocks) as well as income from remote work projects on occasion. Sadly KZbin does not provide us with any meaningful income 😁😃

[@Government-EconomicsTeacher]

We are hoping to do this sometime in the next 4-7 years. We want to start here in America and then go to Europe, establish our residency in Sweden, allow me to get my Swedish citizen (hubby and daughter are dual Swedish/EU and American citizens but Im "just" American). We could easily park at bro in law's place in Sweden near the water on one of the islands when we want to tour Stockholm area. Im curious how visas/immigration work as far as how long you can stay in EU as a non-citizen or if it is unlimited if you are married to and the mother of citizens.

[@WeWillNomad]

From my (limited) understanding if you are an EU citizen and you are living in or travelling to another EU country, your family can join you, including core family members who are not EU citizens. The important part is the 'another'. If non-EU family members want to join you in your country of nationality the national rules will apply. In this case you will have to check how to get a Swedish 'spousal visa' - my guess is that this should be an easy process. Generally speaking, from a tourist perspective, US citizens get visa free access to the Schengen area for 90 out of every 180 days. You should find more information here europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/travel/entry-exit/index_en.htm

[@SuperVeritasaequitas]

Thank you for making and sharing ❤ but how do you earn your money on the road?!! You need to have an income right?

[@WeWillNomad]

Yes, of course. We did do a Q&A a while back where we talked about income (kzbin.info/www/bejne/e3rIZI2Brr1kf8k). In short, we're living off a combination of our savings and investments (rental property) while we also do the occasional remote project.

[@Government-EconomicsTeacher]

In Sweden all public land is the people's land and free for use

[@Seventh7Art]

Basically, the biggest cost is the purchase of the motorhome...

[@WeWillNomad]

That is correct! So the longer you use it, the more worthwhile it becomes! Thanks for watching 😊