You probably have just asked the one million dollar question! And I'm afraid it does not have a correct answer as everyones views and needs are different.

As to travelling for weekends, I dont think it makes much difference. It's all over so quick, you could put up with anything, and will be busy enjoying whereever you are that it's not that big of a deal.

however, once you get on the road for a longer space of time (anything over a month I would think) then having a vehicle that you can live inside comfortably makes a big difference. I'll give some examples why this is my opinion.

1. Weather. It's never good all the time. You'll get some cold days, and some wet days and when your really unlucky some cold wet days. It's those times that being able to live 100% indoors is great. Being able to pull up for the night, get into the back, cook dinner, check out the hubb online, go to the toilet, shower, update your journal, go to bed, have breakfast and hit the road without getting cold or wet. This for me is the biggest advantage of larger vehicles.

2. Free camping. Financially, long term travel (usually) burns from a single large pot of money you have saved until it's all gone, then your back to work. (big generalization I know, but bear with me). So, the travel costs quickly get looked at on a "cost per day" basis. if your pot of money is a fixed amount when you start, then the lower your cost per day is, the longer you can travel for. I'm talking time here, not distance. So, if you need to go into campsites all the time, it does 2 things. 1 - costs money every night, and 2 - causes you to plan your route and times around campsite schedules. a vehicle where you can just park, stay the night without putting or doing anything outside means you now have the option to stay in a lot more places for free, including car parks at shopping centers, motorway service stations etc. - it's a big list. These places will accept "parking", but not "Camping" - bbq's and chairs and tables and what not.

3. Living Vs Surviving. For us, we like to live on the road and to enjoy ourselves while doing it. We're making this trip for fun, not as a pilgimage. So, we like to have a laptop each, we like to have a selection of clothes, we like to have a fridge AND a freezer. We like to have cameras, selections of books, spare towels, a few different sets of footwear etc. All this stuff is not essential, but it does make it feel like living, not surviving. I have the greatest respect, admiration and probably envy of the bike travelers who manage to put their lives into just a few pannier bags, but I dont think that's for me. So: You'll need space!


As to the 4x4 aspect, yup, that can be great fun. And I'm a bit of a 4x4 nut myself. We had a 110 with rooftent and loads of the bits and pieces to be able to make long trips, but decided not to go that route. We have rented toyota and landrover "camping trucks" in a good few african countries and loved those trips, but for a longer trip - anything over a month - I think a camper type machine is better.

note: I did'nt give up the 4x4 stuff, so we went with a unimog camper, best of both world but we have probably sacrificed a lot to use a unimog, mainly due the cost of the fuel bill. but that's another whole story!


If I were you: I'd rent a camper for a weekend the same size as what you are thinking of buying. Then decide. You'll go with the merc :-)