Roaming Around the European Alps: The Plan with a Van

Hannah
Jul 7
8 min read

Dubsy is going on tour and by tour, I mean this is not your bog standard, run of the mill outing. Oh no, we're onto the big boy stuff. The real deal. We're dipping our toes (and wheels) into foreign ground.

Forget your average two hour meander up the A65 to the Lake District. Scrap the 90 minute rush hour rat run to the almighty Teesside. Move over Yorkshire, because Dubsy is about to take Europe by storm.

Not that I'm on a countdown or anything, but we're precisely 16 days away from the grand tour. Which much to my delight, must mean us haggard teachers are exactly 15 days away from freedom - freedom being the six weeks holidays and the annual return of my identity crisis.

The confusion is real.

Am I getting Hannah today or is the brain dishing out pure Miss Keenan energy? It's like a rigged lucky dip that bends over backwards to keep the relentless inner monologue of my teacher being alive. What about that classroom design? Could you drape fabric? I wonder where the Bear Hunt figures are stashed? Do you really need forty kids in one classroom? Because *disclaimer* teaching doesn't come with an off switch and it feels like summiting Everest to locate one. Or at least, that's what I imagine it feels like.

And this is the very reason I've taken matters into my own hands and created my own.

An off switch that is.

Cue the freedom of the open road...

and welcome aboard our three week tour of the alps.

Way back when our Fridays were spent commuting back and forth between Manchester, Marske by the Sea and Skipton to see each other, we had a grand plan to hit the open road with nothing but an air bed, some twinkly lights and shelving crammed full of Ben's tools. The height of romance, I know. But in reality, to be 21, spending our weekends cruising around the lakes, with a home on wheels, some seriously good food* and about 0.5 responsibilities - that was the good stuff.

Then along came a mortgage.

*because it has always been about the food with us two.

This one trip, we just so happened to get lost down a track and Ben's natural response to this, five years on, would just so happen to be that I (Han) was in charge of the directions that day, for that specific 20 minute time slot. Yet legend has it, going off the beaten track is the best way to discover a bit of magic. So I'll just say, I knew exactly what I was doing and I was channelling my inner spiritual guide. After a couple of eye rolls, we managed to stumble across a little slice of Lake District paradise. One Caprese salad, two prawn hot pots and several swigs of wine later, the grand European plan was born.

Cue Covid, a new job, a house and a couple of van swaps later, I think we're just about ready to hit the road and it's only taken five years in the planning.

After a solid trial and error run of van life, we came to the conclusion it was time to set our sights on something further a field. Leave the comforts of the nest and grab a bucket-list adventure. When the idea of a week in France with our friends left the group chat, it just seemed rather rude to leave the rest of Europe behind. So naturally, we've come across a 14 day long route home, that weaves through the greatest mountain range in Europe.

Fabulous.

3 countries and a few pitstops in others.

5 campsites.

1 lodge.

1 mountain refuge hut.

1 vineyard farmhouse.

59 hours of driving.

2636 miles.

and then some

So, where exactly is that we're heading? The walking boot capital. Of course. Because, what's a Ben & Han adventure if it doesn't start with walking boots and end in blisters? If it isn't in the middle of nowhere, with miles and views for days, we aren't going. Ben is however still coming to terms with the fact he's marrying a teacher and that comes at an extra cost. Not only do his holiday prices go up by 50%, what and where is quiet in the height of August?

After months of deliberation, we managed to put pen to paper. Ultimately, it was a toss up between a crusty baguette, dunked in lashings of melted fondue, washed down with Italian bubbles in a vineyard. Or, a stein my arm can't lift,in a bierhalle my senses can't cope with. A difficult one, I know. Take a wild guess as to who won that one?

France, Switzerland and Italy made the final three. Because who is choosing a stein over a tranquil farmhouse, surrounded by the rolling hills of Valdobbiadene, with a complimentary bottle of fizz thrown in? No one, that's who. Italy has and always will be one of those places I've spent my days dreaming of. It's top of my bucket-list and was inevitably always going to be explored on this trip. My very inspiration for this whole blog grew out of my love for all things Italy and lemons - hence 'The Wandering Limone'.

During Covid, I read a blog about this vending machine in the Prosecco region. Supposedly, if you visit this idyllic farmhouse and follow the winding path up through the rolling hills, you'll come across a vending machine stocked with the finest bubbles and a couple of picnic benches that offer a picturesque view of the hills and vine covered terraces. The farmhouse is traditionally known as an osteria which literally means a place serving wine and simple food. This one is traditional and like an honesty box - you help yourself to the cheese, meat and olive goods, then set off on your way. And to me, this sounds like the very spot I finally get a taste of the sweet feeling of la dolce far niente.

To think that five years ago I found a blog and read an article about a random machine, stocked with my much beloved Prosecco, miles away. It inspired me to create my own writing space and place of lemon loving dreams. And now, five years on, I'm ticking off the bucket-list and heading out on my adventure of a lifetime. Life really does go full circle and you really can achieve anything you set your mind to. In my head, I'm singing 'hey now, hey now, this is what dreams are made of' - if you know, you know.

Back then, if you asked little old me if she thought she'd ever publish her first blog, it would have been a concrete no and an attack of the zero self-belief on the headspace. Whatever you fancy for yourself, just do it.

Cheers to bagging dreams

We have a loose plan and by loose plan, I mean a couple of select destinations and accommodation locked in. Yesterday, we were supposed to sit and solidify the plans, including the kit list and passes for toll roads etc. However, there is nothing like lastmin.com when it comes to teacher tired in the summer term and one Ben who is working and boxing off a full-time marketing qualification simultaneously. We don't know what rest is in this house.

So here it is, The Grand Plan with a Van.

Day 1

Yorkshire t0 Berny-Rivère

Dubsy plans to meet our pals on route to the Euro Tunnel. We're doing the travel and crossing in a day. Get that boxed off and crack open the fizz. The boys have big plans for walkie-talkies in convoy. I'll report back on that one. We'll be Eurocampers for 6 nights, living our best life with a lodge, hot tub and four living legends.

Day 1 - Day 6

Eurocampers & Han in Paris

Forget Emily in Paris and make way for Han in Paris. Our camp is about an hour and half from Paris and that is good enough for me to live out my Netflix dream. We need to firm up plans for the week, but I do know a trip Disneyland Paris is solidified and on the agenda.

Day 7 - Day 9

Annecy, Beaufort & Chamonix

The plan that made it out of the group chat comes to a close and our pals start the route home. Our plan with a van adventure commences and we start our whistle-stop tour of some of France's top spots. Somewhere amongst the sightseeing we've got big plans to climb La Tournette.

Day 9 - Day 12

Switzerland - Interlaken, Grindelwald & Lauterbrunnen

We're camping in the Swiss Alps, in a valley. The stuff of Jurassic Park dreams. It's made up of rocky cliffs and some pretty impressive waterfalls. Incredible scenes.

Day 12 - Day 15

Dolomites - Alta Via 1 starting at Lago di Braies

We're completing a section of Alta Via 1 and did have all good intentions of completing the multi-day trek, but we unfortunately left it too late to secure our accommodation. Beyond too late in all honesty. If you're planning a through-route, I'd highly recommend booking up to a year in advance. Most of the refuge mountain huts we contacted were full, including shared rooms and bunk-bed dorms. We did fall on our feet though as we discovered a unique little mountain hut in the perfect spot to break up two days of walking! We'll be in the back of the van for the other two nights in a first-come, first-served camping car park basis. Fingers crossed it all runs smooth! We're expecting this one to be busy.

Day 15 - Day 17

The Prosecco Region - Valdobbiadene Farmhouse Stay & The Prosecco Road via Bike

Prosecco, Prosecco and more Prosecco? A room with a view and sauna. Obviously, we'll be taking a trip to the now famous Prosecco vending machine and the Osteria Senz'Oste. Our plan is to hire some bikes and hit the Prosecco Road on a bit of a self-guided (or Ben-guided) tour. I however, will not be in charge of directions or any map reading for that matter.

Day 17 - Day 18/19

The long and winding road that leads to our door

We're working on a route back home. Lots of miles, lots of hours and little stoppage time. Trying to convince Ben that a pitstop in Austria sounds 11/10. We've got an overnight campsite booked in for Luxembourg as it conveniently splits our journey from Valdobbiadene to Yorkshire in half.

a sprinkle of Disney nostalgia to bring the magic to life

My idea is to document and dump my thoughts and snaps for each segment of the trip. I've got a trusty lemon notebook on order, because all good intentions are actioned when they're scribbled down in note form - right? My film camera is loaded and I have a couple of rolls of film for the backpack. I've selected my summer reads, because this is undeniably a crucial element of any summer holiday - whether it be sitting round a pool or scaling a mountain. There is always time for a couple of cheeky pages. But as far as the all important, logistical elements and kit goes.. We need to work on it.

Euphoria 12/10

Preparation 2/10

Packing 0/10

Let the summer of '25 roll and the adventure of a lifetime unfold.