In 2026, we begin a long-planned journey to drive our self-built campervan across continents. What started as a travel blog has grown into something much bigger: an odyssey across continents, exploring the world slowly by road.
Why are we doing this?
For years we travelled whenever we could, fitting trips around work, study and everyday life. But the idea of taking a longer trip – an OE in our mid-life – kept returning. Travelling slowly, overland and seeing what happens when you allow a journey to unfold rather than meticulously planning every step.
Driving our own van across continents gives us the freedom to explore places in different ways – to stay longer, change direction when something catches our interest, travel in comfort. Of course, the odyssey is about the places between destinations as much as the destinations themselves.
We’ve given ourselves about three years break from our usual lives. We have quit our jobs, packed up our possessions, rented our house, and found someone to look after the cat. The challenge for us is how far we can go before we run out of zest or money!
The route
Starting in January 2026, we plan to travel from Asia to Europe – overland. Our odyssey begins in New Zealand, our homeland, where we will ship our campervan to Asia – initially India and then South East Asia. From there, we will slowly make our way across regions including China, Central Asia and Europe – following the road wherever it leads us.
Like any journey, the exact route will evolve as we travel. Border crossings, seasons, shipping availability, and the discoveries we make along the way will shape where we go next.
Some places will be planned well in advance, while others will be spur of the momeny. What matters isn’t a perfectly drawn line on a map, or ticking countries off a list, but the freedom to let our travel adventure unfold.
The van
Meet It Zwibble, our 2021 Volkswagen Crafter we self-converted in 2021 and 2022.
Follow the journey
We’d love to have you on the odyssey with us! You can follow our daily video updates on Instagram or TikTok, subscribe to our longer videos on YouTube, or read our blog posts.
The Peterson Odyssey 