WE RENTED A CAMPER VAN IN THE NETHERLANDS (full marco polo van tour)

In this episode, Michelle and Alex do what van life in the Netherlands is all about, going from Almere to a rainy Veluwe National Park. Plus, a full tour of the van that they've been calling home: a 2023 Mercedes-Benz Marco Polo camper van rented from Indie Campers.
Watch the rest of our camper van life series here:
• van life netherlands
Episode 89 · Filmed on August 28 and 30, 2023 · Veluwe National Park, the Netherlands
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0:00 Introduction
0:41 Breakfast in Almere (Mila)
2:33 Where are we now?
4:11 Veluwe National Park
6:28 CAMPER VAN TOUR! (outside)
8:10 CAMPER VAN TOUR! (controls)
9:08 CAMPER VAN TOUR! (inside)
11:03 Dinner (and the kitchen)
12:17 Privacy and the bed
13:41 What's next?
#expatlife #netherlands #vanlifeeurope #vanlife #campervan
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WHO IS BUNCHARTED?
We're Michelle and Alex, an American expat couple living abroad in the Netherlands. 🇳🇱
In 2020, we quit our jobs to travel the world, and... well, that didn't happen. So in 2022, we decided to make an even BIGGER change by packing up our lives (and our cats 🐈) and moving from Austin, Texas, in the US, to Rotterdam, in the Netherlands. Subscribe for new videos like this every week!

[@davevanbeers6944]

Well done! You biked in the rain! Achievement unlocked. Handy tip, I usually have a plastic bag tucked away under the bike seat, when I know it’s gonna rain I use the bag to cover my seat, and when I need to use my bike remove the plastic bag and tad aah dry seat. 😂

[@jeffafa3096]

Ah, riding your bike through the rain, the true Dutch experience!

[@dykam]

Haha, bagel is definitely an imported word and pronounced the English way. But bachel is fun too.

[@Kelsea-2002]

For vacations for 2 people, the Mercedes V is a good choice. It is less suitable for long-term travelers or full-time van lifers. That's why I switched to its big brother, the Mercedes Sprinter. I really like your videos and it's interesting to see how you experience the Netherlands and this culture.

[@spinshade]

I am glad Hank Hill was able to come in with the *propane!* That man really knows his stuff!

[@deetgeluid]

Another great vid. The Turkish bread filled with cheese, and often spinach is called Börek. I love it..❤

[@kayhoorn]

Great to see you guys went to the Kröller Muller museum! That grass and metal artpiece used to be my phone background for the longest time. Love to see it again.

[@MichelBaek]

Texas folk need some serious time to get used to Dutch temperature. There is extreme heat warning in Austin. You can dress for chilly temperature like here in NL, but with the temperature in Austin being around 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) for weeks now you get very limited in your activities. That is why i love the Dutch weather. ❤❤❤

[@jeffafa3096]

Dutch weather really is a gamble though. We've had summers where temperatures went up to 35+ degrees Celsius for a week or two, and then suddenly plunge to 20 degrees or less within a day...

[@blinkachu5275]

Hey, the Veluwe, I was born in that region😅 Also lived in Almere a few years. It's very "new" compared to other cities, which I personally did quite enjoy

[@slowerpicker]

You oughta do a collab with Sailing Uma - another relatable non-European couple unused to vanlife doing a sojourn on 4 wheels in Europe. They’re somewhere in your neighborhood

[@Samplesurfer]

You went to view the van Gogh, Monet, Picasso and Mondrian paintings in the Kröller-Müller museum? Mrs Kröller-Müller assembled the second largest collection of van Gogh paintings and drawings in the world. The Amsterdam van Gogh museum has even some more paintings, but that was the collection from the van Gogh family themselves.

[@buncharted]

we didn’t have time to stop in and we were soaking wet when we got there, but we have been to the van gogh museum in amsterdam! tbh, we aren’t huge art museum types 😅

[@renevaanhold]

I'm really surprised you didn't go inside the Kröller-Müller museum. They have one of the best Van Gogh collection in the world and also paintings of Mondriaan, Monet and Picasso!

[@buncharted]

we were soaking wet and had a pretty busy day that day (and museums typically aren’t our thing). i’m sure it’s an amazing art museum though!

[@gertstolk]

You guys haven't mastered the fine art of driving a stick? Amazing. I hope you will one day 😊

[@buncharted]

it's actually something i'd really like to learn! it's just super uncommon these days in the US (it actually costs more to buy a manual transmission car in the US, in most cases) and i didn't want to learn on a large rented camper van 😆

[@gertstolk]

@@buncharted One of the many differences between our countries. In the late 80s I drove a Volvo semi with a 16 speed manual, that took a while to master. Have been a busdriver since, automatics only 🫡🚍

[@macbosch64]

You did it, you are becoming dutch, cycling in the rain….great video again

[@hibeumer]

next time go inside the museum, it has a huge Van Gogh collection.

[@gauss850]

Exactly!

[@hcjkruse]

At the moment there is a futurists exhibition in the museum Might be worth visiting!

[@ialrakis5173]

Veluwe is great! Had a couple of great weekends there already. Recommended if you like nature.

[@casperthijssen]

While in the area go visit the Airborne museum in Oosterbeek. Cool ww2 museum with walk through diorama. There’s a nice place for lunch next door. Also nice to combine with the Westerbouwing park in Westervoort

[@norajazzypoppy9043]

Love this vlog 😊🌹

[@Blackadder75]

our country is so small that I have been to like 33% of the things you make a video about

[@gauss850]

Have you visited the modern art museum in Kruller Muller? It’s great. Some master arts pieces there.

[@buncharted]

we didn’t get a chance to go in this time - just biked around the grounds!

[@DJarr216]

Ah, yes, the museum at Veluwe National Park. When I was 13 (my 2nd year of secundary school) we went on a 2 day school trip to the netherlands, visiting rotterdam, den haag, Veluwe national park and probably some other things i honestly can't remember. A few weeks before this schooltrip I had gotten a new backpack and this schooltrip was my first time using it. Our backpacks weren't allowed in the museum so we had to leave them in the cloakroom. There were alot of backpacks in that room because our school wasn't the only one visiting the museum. After we completed our schoolassignment in the museum we all went to pick up our backpacks, but mine was nowhere to be found. I told my teachers, they helped my search for it and eventually they talked to the museumstaff about it in case it would turn up later. Some random kid from another school probably had mistakenly taken my backpack instead of theirs. We were on a tight schedule so unfortunatly we couldn't wait around and I had to leave without my backpack. Honestly, it's one of my most hated experiences in secundary school. Kids from my school even gave me shit cuz they assumed I was just seeking attention. I never saw that backpack again.

[@buncharted]

aw man! was it a cool backpack?

[@DJarr216]

@@buncharted It's been 18 years, I honestly can't remember. I don't think it was anything special. I believe it was a burgundy colour or something close to it.

[@janharml]

I was more suprised about the "soep in zak". I find that stuff way to salty. I don't know if you have driving diesel before. But your hands wil always have that diesel smell after filling the tank. Use a plastic gloves they usealy have at gas stations.

[@peterf1]

Ahh you made it to the Veluwe! As one of the commenters who bugged you to visit, it seems the weather didn't accommodate you very well. Maybe you didn't have the time to go inside but the Kröller Müller Museum really is a world class museum. Absolute props to Michelle as those witte fietsen are very well used by the time you get to them... so not Holland's best cycling experience.

[@buncharted]

thought about you whenever i saw the road signs for ede :)

[@_x._elise_.x_3247]

You forgot to go to the biggest 🐈 cafe in the Netherlands (the coffee cat) in Almere 😉😅

[@buncharted]

ahh it was on our list but we didn’t have time 😿😿😿 we need to do a proper vlog in almere!

[@letstry46]

Ahh, close to Apeldoorn!!.(Apenheul and palace "het Loo"). Maybe next time?

[@buncharted]

next time!

[@FlipsyFiona]

lovely van tour! Definitely more comfy than mine.

[@buncharted]

hi fiona!!! you're the van life expert here, we're just posers ❤

[@Mesmancer]

De laatste keer dat ik ben gaan kamperen was in juni in Frankrijk voor de 24 uur van Le Mans (aanrader trouwens, ook als je weinig met racen hebt). Voor volgend jaar ga ik toch maar op zoek naar een grotere tent want ik pas er nu net in. En vooral mijn rug vond dat niet bepaald fijn.

[@H1SCOTTY]

My sister has a smaller Vito and went on a four week road trip to the bottom of Italy with their family of five youngest ten years old.

[@therealdutchidiot]

Just as a small warning/tip: because you have Dutch residency theres a high risk of getting fined for driving around in a car that doesn't have Dutch plates. It's seen as tax fraud.

[@highs_and_lows4665]

Did you guys request a "veertiendagenvrijstelling" for the rental car with foreign plates? It can get very expensive if you get stopped by a grumpy cop if you don't have one.

[@PaulLamens]

Ah you discovered Amazing Oriental! I don't know the store in Almere, but the one in Groningen is amazing. (And oriental, hence the name.) I try to keep my AO visits a special treat, which is pretty difficult since I live a short 10 minutes bike ride from the store.

[@buncharted]

i wish we had one in dordrecht!

[@senjinthedragon]

A lot of cities do have oriental shops, just not as big as the Amazing Oriental. They are known in the Netherlands as 'toko', so if you look for that you'll probably find some nearby.@@buncharted

[@Siriusly_Sirius]

Second channel coming soon: reviewing camper vans, camp sites, all things camping in NL lolz

[@buncharted]

our second channel would be MORE food related 😂

[@eddys.3524]

Nice vehicle, that rental camper.... as long as you're with only 2 persons. With more I guess it might get very cramped and tensed. A question I think, not yet answered by you is how is the driving experience compared to the USA? BTW, the statue in the Kröller-Muller museum at 5:57 used to stand in Rotterdam a long time ago, if I'm correct.

[@buncharted]

90% of the time driving in the netherlands is way better - roads are efficient, great signage, etc. the other 10% is the stuff in towns meant to slow down cars, which i’m totally in support of - but can be a bit intimidating to drive through 😅 ps - two cats in the next video!!!

[@eddys.3524]

@@buncharted So it will get really cramped... poor cats... meow...

[@hildelouisevrijs774]

Dat ziet er, op de regen na, gezellig uit! Wanneer waren jullie daar? Ik zie op TV dat het prachtig weer is in Nederland…..Enne Michelle, je turkse PENNENKoek ziet er inderdaad lekker uit! Yes, I am your Dutch teacher 😄 in Spain. Lieve groeten,❤️Hil

[@buncharted]

we were there last week!

[@frankgeurts3912]

Bagel😂we to call them bagles

[@henkhemming6674]

hi, have you folks been to "De Efteling" already

[@buncharted]

yes! we have two videos from there from earlier this year :) we need to go back!

[@henkhemming6674]

ok i will look for them @@buncharted

[@Teslacoil333]

😎😎😎

[@armandovanhaaren9823]

How's driving here in compared to the US ?

[@Stormvogel262]

Is that Cheetos Mac 'n cheese? I love the spicy one!!

[@buncharted]

YES! this was the cheddar jalapeño and it was soooooo good. you should try it if you haven’t yet!

[@arjanpaans654]

sum places in the nederlands to vizit valkenburg sertochenbosch helmond arche broekhuizen overloon and vizit overloons oorlogs muzeum gr arjan

[@ArjenHaayman]

How can you rent a Spanish car in Belgium??

[@buncharted]

autocaravana, por favor!

[@dahemper]

Cheeto!

[@pjotrh]

New video: “learning to drive a manual” coming up I guess ?

[@buncharted]

hahaha probably not, i’m done driving for a while 😅

[@464nescio6]

Just a maybe stupid question.. Why does the van have a spanish licenceplate?

[@buncharted]

no idea, that’s how it was rented to us 🤷

[@ronaldderooij1774]

No the license plates were Belgian.

[@464nescio6]

@@ronaldderooij1774 7minutes 20.. belgian licence plates are red on white this is black on white. Belgium has the B lettel.. this has an E ( for Ebelgica?, no it's 4 Spain.. Espana..) Just pause the vidjoo @ 7:20.. So.. every stupid question dezerves a stupid answer.. thank you 4 providing..

[@ronaldderooij1774]

@@464nescio6 You are right, the license plate is Spanish. And there was really no need for your last remark.

[@464nescio6]

@@ronaldderooij1774 Sorry dude.. and thanks, I really started to doubt myself because of your remark and I thought my reply was above board, but then again If you leave out the self-criticism I can see that it might have offended you, again my apologies.

[@pimhap9436]

Why rented in Spain? 🤔

[@buncharted]

it's explained in the video :)

[@Mdgd63]

Only one bag of pea soup for the two of you? That's the reason you have a healthy BMI? 🤔🤗🤣

[@buncharted]

we split the frikandelbroodje too!

[@Mdgd63]

Funny, i never have eaten a "frikandelbroodje". Of course i have eaten a frikandel speciaal. Is this "broodje" a version something like a hotdog? An other "broodje" is of course a "broodje kroket met mosterd" That's my favourite Friday lunch snack!🤗🤣@@buncharted

[@buncharted]

it’s like the saucijzenbroodje but with a frikandel and i think some curry sauce? inside :)

[@peterjanssen2105]

Why has the camper a Spanish licence plate?

[@buncharted]

just how it came when we rented it 🤷

[@frankgeurts3912]

Camper life 🎉van is more dhl ish

[@Basic190]

Who looks after the kitties while you are on a trip?

[@buncharted]

we have a couple of cat sitters :)

[@TWolf317]

I see you guys kept your clothes on for this video. I heard that the Netherlands is the only country in the world that has more fietsen than people.

[@hcjkruse]

you cannot show much of the park in one day, even with good weather. The park is a bit too big for that. You will see more when exploring the unpaved (horse) tracks on foot. Most of those white bicycles scare away the wildlife with noise.

[@franciscoorozco9695]

I thought van life was not legal in Netherlands

[@buncharted]

i think stealth camping and living without a formal address is illegal but camping in a van isn’t!

[@ronaldderooij1774]

@@buncharted Camping in whatever shape or form is legal on a camp site in NL, but Illegal everywhere else. And the fine is hefty.

[@Un4_given]

So what you do when you have a wet sadle is put your leg (popliteal) on the sadle first and after that sit on it. No wet butt.

[@ketabest1334]

zijn jullie dordtenaren ????? goed volk dus

[@baskoning9896]

You two are doing so well with your pronunciations. Keep practicing. Relax! There is no such thing as 'saying it wrong'. People will detect that you are non-Dutch, by the tiny tiny accent and intonations. For instance, 'pannenkoek' ( 0:55 ), there should be slightly more emphasis on the first syllable, then 'nen' in the middle syllable should be pronounced 'nuhn' (most words ending in 'en' we say 'un', we only say it like 'en' if someone really asks for the word: what did you do? wat heb je gedaan? biking. Fietsuh. What? wat? Biking. Fietsuh. WAT? FIETSEN!). Also the oe sound is pretty on target, but should be spoken with a bit less fear that you are doing it wrong in your voice. It sounds unsure now. lol. Just listen to and imitate how people shout 'whore':'hoer', 'how':'hoe' or 'then do it':'Doe het dan'. Listen to talk radio. Listen to their accents. When you can follow most of the story, you start to even detect what area of the Netherlands they are from (soft g in the south, limburg, frisian, the hague, the achterhoek, they all have very distinct accents/dialects). Try to imitate 'bekakt' (higher class) Nederlands to make other Dutchies laugh.

[@lennartvers1767]

Would have been hilarious if you had rented a big *ss American RV with an equally enormous American flag on the roof and the stereo belting out the sounds of Creedence Clearwater Revivals 'Fortunate son' while parking it on the camping site..maybe next time..

[@buddy1155]

no RV, a 20 feet airflow trailer pulled by a F-350 and not just an American flag but also a Trump flag.

[@MarceldeJong]

I don't think any Dutch person who knows what it is would pronounce bagel like that. But I'm willing to be corrected. Well-done on biking in the rain without hand brakes, Michelle! (that's actually scary to me, so this isn't meant sarcastic)

[@nielsdebakker3283]

It is actually safer than handbrakes, a terugtraprem does not get wet and you can not block your front wheel. Disadvantage, a bit longer stopping distance but that is why you are equipped with eyes and ears. Watch the road, not your phone.

[@NeoOnyx]

Nah, the word “bagel” in Dutch is pronounced as English speakers would. It’s from the Yiddish “beygel/beigel”. Nice you guys spent some time on De Veluwe. It’s beautiful there. Last week we went there for a weekendin a B&B in ‘t Harde.

[@johanjobse8395]

We dont know how to drive a manual 😂 sorry but as a dutch person im out

[@ikke5212]

😉😊😊