Motorhome Route Ideas

Hi,

Skip the motor home idea. How many nights total do you have for your trip?

Munich is the perfect starting and ending point for the Austrian and Bavarian Alps (take your pick... Oetztal, Zillertal, Innsbruck area, Berchtesgaden area, Garmisch/Mittenwald area. The absolutely spectacular Dolomites, in northern Italy, are less than 3:30 hours from Munich. Actually, everywhere I listed, sans Dolomites, is less than 3 hours from Munich.

For absolutely spectacular high alpine scenery, I’d pick the Zillertal or Oetztal. For something extraordinary, the Dolomites.

Paul

I think that this is a great idea. My wife and I are considering something along these lines for a longer-term stay in various parts of the EU. 3-4 months, possibly. A camper van would allow us to avoid hotels. Costwise, I am less sure.

If you get some information, please report back.

Thanks for the feedback everyone.

As far as the campervan goes, we were thinking about doing round-trip out of Munich and the cost looks reasonable. We would stick to a smaller one, rather than a full-on RV for easier navigation. I got the idea from a blog (which I now can't locate :) ) that talked about how friendly Austria was to camping, and how there are many areas you can camp for free. There are also some really cool, almost five-star 'campgrounds' if you want to spend a little money.

That said, it's hard to resist going down to the Dolomites if we will be that close...

Please share resources as well, as you find them.

Paul, you know about the Schengen 90/180 rule?

A motorhome for 5 days still doesn't make sense to me.

Nigel: Sort of, but not entirely. I would have to look into it. I am trying to make arrangements to get a position at a University in the Schengen to allow a longer stay. I am working with a resident in the Schengen area to find a possible work-around - possibly a purchase of a property? Or we could go out to a non-Schengen country (Serbia?) for a period. But thank you for the reminder.

OK, I just looked it up. We can stay 90 days out of 180 in the Schengen zone, and then must leave. So, we could stay 90 days, go to a neighboring area for 91 days, return for 90 days, leave for 91, etc. I think that would be a valid strategy. In some places, purchase of a property brings a residency permit.

vsarahmarie, Malta is the best known country for offering residency in return for an investment. But it is not cheap.
Citizenship requires an investment of €880,000, a residence permit €330,000. See here: http://malta-citizenship.info/immigration-malta-contact.html
Some other EU countries offer residence if you make an investment, see here: http://uk.businessinsider.com/henley-and-partners-easiest-and-cheapest-countries-for-gaining-european-union-residency-2016-12

If you get a place at a university you can apply for a residence permit.

But, residence permits only apply to the country that issues them, and makes you "visa-free" for the rest of the Schengen Area. You are still limited to 90 days in any 180 for the rest of the Schengen Area.