KAREN and Myles Davies are still on the road in their trusty campervan eight years after leaving their Milverton home in exchange for the “perfect lifestyle.”
It was during their 25th wedding anniversary celebration in New Zealand when the couple hired a campervan for six weeks in 2015, which inspired their current adventure the couple embarked on the following year.
The couple adored their home, friends, and family in Milverton and Somerset, but they otherwise felt unfulfilled.
Karen said: “We had the perfect lifestyle, on the face of it. Myles played golf three times a week, and I trained in meditation for children and volunteered down at the Donkey Sanctuary.”
Still, the couple said something was missing, and this is when they decided to close their businesses and give up everything they’d built in Somerset - and hit the road in a motorhome for their gap year in Europe and beyond.
During the past eight years, the couple have travelled through 25 countries, discounting the border nations they dipped into due to the route they were travelling on.
“Having weeks at a time exploring, being part of the culture, and immersing ourselves in their way of life,” is how the couple approach the countries they visit, said Karen.
“From Scandinavia in the north, Romania in the east, Portugal to the west, and the Sahara desert of Morocco in the south and everywhere in between, there are not many countries left on the European stage for us to visit.
“We realise that even in our explorations, there’s so much to see and learn from each country. So we’ll never completely know a place.
“After all, even after four years in Milverton, there were still undiscovered places in Somerset we didn't know. That’s one of the things that humbles us about travel. It has so much to show us, if we’re willing to look.”
As Brexit has taken away the freedom of movement across Europe from everyone in Britain, the couple have had to navigate visa requirements carefully, with non-Schengen countries like Morocco and Turkey now on their annual travel agenda.
The couple brings in a monthly income through rental property investments and Myles’ love for stocks and shares. Karen is also a qualified Yoga teacher and life coach. Collectively their incomes add to a monthly budget of between £1,500 - £2,000.
Over the past eight years, £8,000 has been spent on campervan repairs, but they reiterate that is no different to maintaining a home.
Covering 90,000 miles and visiting almost all European countries, they are looking further afield with with Canada planned for next year.
Karen encourages anyone to adopt this lifestyle if they have the urge to do so, saying: “With the caveat of course that you must like the person you are traveling with and believe that you can live together in a small space without ‘stuff’. If you can do all that then van life could be for you.”
You can view their travel guides here https://motoroaming.com/ and watch their blogs on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@TheMotoroamers/videos