Although our trips are more about experiencing the sum of the parts than individual countries, we’d most like to return to Russia and Iran when circumstances permit, and also visit the more remote areas of Canada which are only accessible by plane. Mongolia was amazing and so remote, Mexico was such a delight and the reverse of everything we’d been warned about, Turkmenistan was a fascinating regime to experience and we’d live in France or Italy in a heartbeat, if only for the wine and cheese.

Central Asia doesn’t generally provide the most memorable of culinary experiences, mutton and potatoes or rice forming the basis for most cuisine but heading into Europe the waistline starts to become a little more challenged. The flavours and diversity of food in Georgia was something to behold – one favourite being khachapuri a flatbread smothered with cheese and egg which sounds less than interesting but it’s sublime on a cold day. Bruges in Brussels didn’t disappoint with the finest chocolate and a plethora of local beers, and of course French cuisine is a favourite. Sorry but the food in the US isn’t great, but Mexico was fabulous.

The internet is a great resource and we undertook a few practice camping trips to hone down our list.
Vehicle and equipment

• Ineos Grenadier 2023 Trialmaster (BMW 3.0L Twin-Turbo Diesel engine)

• Tyres: BF Goodrich KO3 285/75/R17

• For more on our vehicle build and accessories see our blog post

• Auxiliary LED Lighting: Stedi, LED Lenser

• Recovery Equipment: ARB (auxiliary starter battery, tyre repair kit, portable compressor), Recovery Boards – MaxTrax

• Tools and Spare Parts: Filters (fuel, air, oil, cabin), front/rear brake pads, brake sensor cables, various fasteners, as well as repair parts; Tape (electrical, exhaust, general purpose), adhesives, sealant, wire (electrical, fencing), fuses, bulbs

See also ‘How was the car?’ question below

Travel equipment

• Water Filtration System: Katadyn

• Navigation and Search & Rescue: Garmin

• Expedition Tent and Tarpaulin: Hilleberg

• Ultralight Cookware: Trangia, Wolf&Grizzly

Helpful Applications/Websites

• Navigation: GoogleMaps,Organic Maps, Garmin Earthmate

• Accommodation: Booking.com, AirBnB, iOverlander

• Research: smarttraveller.gov.au, travel.state.gov, www.gov.uk (security risk assessment), xe.com (currencies)

• Internet security: PureVPN

• Languages: GoogleTranslate

• Web publishing: Squarespace

As well as the essential items, we carry Front Runner folding chairs and a small Zempire folding table as well as sleeping bags, liners, mats, and general camping items like lanterns, cooking tools, and a small BBQ.

We have enough clothes for about ten days in a 55L North Face duffel bag, with an extra bag for our cold weather gear. We never have any problems finding laundry facilities at least weekly.

Items we don’t use much but was glad I have them when I need them are thermal underwear, a head torch and noise cancelling headphones. I look pretty hot when wearing all of these simultaneously. 

We are happy to share our detailed packing list spreadsheet. You need to provide an inventory for Customs when shipping the car.

2024/2025 - Arctic to Antarctic trip - Ineos Grenadier 2023

After over 40,000kms since we started in Los Angeles in June 2024, our Grenadier we call Iggy has been a beast through every terrain! We have had a very regular number of service checks (at Ineos in Seattle, Toronto, Boston and San Antonio). Apart from three cracks in our windscreen which don’t impede vision, our biggest incident so far has been metal debris falling off a truck on the interstate which thankfully we were able to swerve to avoid, but leaving the passenger side mirror damaged and needing replacement.

2019/2020 - Vladivostok to San Francisco trip - Land Rover Discovery Sport 2015

Disco as he is affectionately known, wasn’t really the prime choice for some elements of this journey, but it proved resilient in some tough environments!  We had the car serviced by Land Rover specialists in Russia, Georgia and the UK which meant Disco purred happily for most of the 50,000kms we covered.

We had two flat tyres - in Mongolia and Iran - both quickly fixed with our ARB tyre repair kit and portable air compressor. After rough roads in Mongolia and Central Asia a damaged front suspension cuff required replacement and we changed-out three worn tyres (we carried two spare wheels). The Rival underbody armour fitted prior to departure resisted some heavy blows, but countless smaller rock strikes caused a few holes in the standard plastic underbody plates which we’ll replace at some point. High-sulphur diesel in Iran and Central Asia meant we had to unblock the Diesel Particulate Filter sensor twice. 

Jon organised some Disco modifications for our journey. This included lifting the suspension to allow extra clearance off-road, installing wider tyres, and the aforementioned aluminium under body armour to protect the chassis. As well as an LED light bar to help navigation at night in the countryside we had a roof rack to carry an additional spare wheel, two 20L jerry cans which meant we could travel around 1000kms before refuelling, a 15L water carrier, a side light for camping, recovery boards, a small shovel, an ARB awning with inbuilt lighting, and a picnic table. 

We took various spare car parts – filters etc, all of which Jon is comfortable to install. A Mr Funnel fuel pre-filter was employed to help clean the fuel in some areas, such as in Tajikistan where most diesel came from aging tanks and open buckets. 

Although something like a Toyota Land Cruiser, Land Rover Defender or Mercedes Benz G-Wagen equipped with a low-range transfer case tend to be the overlanding cars of choice, Disco’s terrain modes coped fantastically in technical conditions. Realistically, 80% of a circumnavigation is on paved roads and on these the Disco travels along more comfortably, safely and uses considerably less fuel than a heavier vehicle.

Diesel was readily available with the exception of Iran (due to fuel rationing) and Uzbekistan (due to limited availability) but with a maximum range of nearly 1000kms we never depleted the tank.

Both Disco and Iggy are Right Hand Drive (RHD) vehicles and apart from the UK and Ireland all countries we have driven in have been Left Hand Drive. Jon got used to this quickly but driving on the wrong side of the road does mean I feel a little vulnerable at times in the middle of the road, and I often have to lean out to assist him in seeing to overtake. If he pulls out without checking I will screech if I see another car in our blind spot or hurtling towards us. We tend to try and keep off major roads - preferring to explore quieter and more interesting back roads where we can.

Driving a RHD is generally legal in most countries if you are tourist, with the exception of some Central American counties so we will ship Iggy from Mexico or Guatemala to Colombia.

Having an unusual car and the interest in the Land Rover and Ineos brands is a great conversation starter, and together with the world map on the side of the car mean we are approached regularly for friendly enquiries and countless photos. Financially, for a long trip taking our own car is also much cheaper and more convenient than hiring cars in each country.

Shipping cars is common and it’s not unlike sending a parcel via FedEx. Drop car at the shippers, complete the paperwork and you can track its location on the interweb. Your shipper will line you up with a Broker at the other end to oversee the customs paperwork and collection. Bikes Abroad in Australia helped us from Sydney to Vladivostok as well as Sydney to LA via a container, Autoshippers International got us from Southampton to New York via Roll on Roll Off (RORO) and West Coast Shipping got us from San Francisco to Sydney via a shared container.  We also purchase marine insurance to cover the car and contents for these journeys.

Importing a car temporarily into a country is also easy and follows a similar process in most countries. At each border you need your registration paper proving you own the car, and complete a Temporary Import Permit (TIP) to state you are not intending to sell the car. It’s usually valid for 12 months or the length of your visa and is generally free. Some countries still use a Carnet de Passage, like a passport for the car which needs to be purchased in your home country but it seems to be being phased out.

A TIP is not required for Europe, most require your car registration document and passports and you can drive through the booth, with some requiring an additional vignette at the border – a payment for using the roads.

So far so good. There were some vertiginous drops to the side of a number of roads upon which we travelled and I do not like heights – no road barriers, why would you?, a pretty large rock fell into the road that only narrowly missed our windscreen in Tajikistan and a random cow careered straight at us at speed from the verge in Mongolia – both car and cow left unharmed although Disco was covered in cow slobber and we’d only just cleaned him.  Apart from that only two moments spring to mind:

In Iran we were stopped by a local armed militia man at a provincial checkpoint who misunderstood the validity of our visa and threatened to arrest us. Having a local guide helped his eventual compromise and we had to go to the nearest immigration office to extend our visa. The office confirmed our visa was fine and we had three weeks remaining as we thought. It was a little nerve wracking given another British/Australian couple had been imprisoned arbitrarily some months earlier.

A road closure in Mongolia sent us on a 100km off road detour through remote countryside, fields, riverbeds and mountains. We had no signal and our GPS had no roads from which to navigate so we used a compass and online iPad back up map. By midnight, with no street lights or signs of civilisation we were running out of fuel and patience. We eventually reached our destination via a sheep track that traversed over a 2500m mountain. I’ve never had the feeling of being in the middle of nowhere and when you’re hungry and it’s pitch black it’s even more scary. Especially for the sheep who didn’t anticipate their slumber disturbed by us driving through their bedroom.

We have crossed something like 25 land borders so far, several in areas of high security sensitivity. Generally speaking, getting out is fine if you entered correctly - getting in is in every sense where problems emerge. There are a few basic processes that need to occur at every crossing: your identity and right of entry is confirmed, then the permission for the vehicle to enter and be operated within the country is confirmed, and finally you’re confirmed to NOT be carrying contraband or regulated goods. In many countries permission to operate the vehicle is dependent on holding third-party insurance and/or the pre-payment of road taxes. In some places these arrangements must be made in advance via the internet, or immediately upon entering the country.

• Know your crossing: Not every crossing between two countries is the same. In fact, generally no two are the same. Crossings mostly used by local traffic will either be super fast (low wait times) or super slow (unfamiliar dealing with foreigners and/or foreign vehicles). Crossings preferred by cross border truckers will have peak and low periods and typically proficient but binary personnel - piss them off and they’ll simply turn you around. iOverlander is a great source to understand and select a suitable crossing and the best time to cross.

• Keep your cool and be a good guest: Border personnel have a relentless, difficult and sometimes dangerous responsibility ‘manning the parapet’ for their country and community. It is staggering to see how little respect they are sometimes shown by punters. It’s crucial to hear and engage the person, not just the badge. Australian flags on the car, kangaroo business cards and instagram can all be harnessed to build rapport and provide a context for your crossing that will see you through in a fast and friendly fashion.

• For chrissakes keep your nose clean: Avoid carrying alcohol in the vehicle and no drugs and/or weapons. Make sure there’s no sketchy content on your devices. Point out any camera equipment and two-way and/or satellite radios as in security-conscious areas these are no-nos as are drones in many countries. Be conscious of your online persona - it may be prudent to keep your critique of the regime off the interwebs or at least save it for later.

• Don’t let truck drivers take the mickey: Heavy haulers cross borders all the time and often encounter day-long waits. They will push you to the end of the queue unless you step up and assert yourself. Again the best solution is to engage with the border agent in question directly - they’re likely to be even more over the pushy drivers than you are.

Australians are so lucky that most countries allow us to stay visa free for up to 30 to 90 days, sometimes more. Smart Traveller outlines requirements for Australians visiting each country. We needed to pre-apply for visas for Russia, Mongolia, Iran and the United States. 

China - We had a Transit Without Visa which allows you to stay up to six days if you can prove you are exiting on to a third country (not the country you entered from). You don’t need to apply beforehand as you receive at the Chinese airport but there are different lengths of stay permitted depending on the city. We then flew onto Russia after our visit.

Mongolia - We sent the application form and passports to the Mongolian Embassy in Canberra and it was processed in a few days.

Russia - Requires evidence that you have a visa for the countries to which you intend to exit from Russia, so we had to apply for the Mongolia visa first. You need to provide a lot of information via the online application form as well as a detailed itinerary but there’s a step by step guide to show you. You pay a small fee to a Russian travel agency to provide a Letter Of Invitation (LOI) then take a print out of the form, LOI and passport (with any necessary visas) to the Russian Embassy representative office in Sydney or Canberra. They send this to the Russian Embassy in Canberra which takes up to ten days. 

We needed a second transit visa for Russia so we applied at the Russian Embassy in Mongolia (filling in that detailed form again) and received within three days. Russia requires you to be registered with authorities within seven days of arrival, the hotel will do this for you and provide you with a registration slip you need to carry with your passport.

Iran - You need to send an easy application form and fee but not your passport to the Iranian Embassy in Canberra. You can do this from overseas then you receive an electronic visa to print and show at the Iranian border.

United States – Our visit to Iran meant we were no longer eligible for their Visa Waiver Program. We had to make an appointment in advance at the US Embassy in London where we were interviewed regarding our intentions and financial ability to travel and you need a US resident to vouch for you. The Embassy was busy and the process took several hours. We were told at the end that our tourist visa would likely be granted, we left our passports for processing and they were couriered to us about a week later. This did however provide us with a five year visa.

Uzbekistan - Although no visa is needed you are required to be registered wherever you stay and collect a series of tiny registration slips. Ours were checked at the border when we left to ensure the number of slips matched the number of nights we had stayed and I was also unable to withdraw cash over the counter at the bank without my previous night’s registration paper. I’ve heard the process is soon to be abandoned

Turkmenistan - You can’t travel for too many days without a guide or you can apply for a transit visa to dash through unaccompanied. We read that successful receipt of transit visas can be hit or miss so we paid for a 7 day guide and the Travel Agency organised our visas. 

Azerbaijan, Turkey and Tajikistan - Require an eVisa you apply online a few days prior, pay by credit card and receive the eVisa almost immediately.

Planning and common sense were important, and anyone who knows us well knows we are pretty meticulous in everything we do.

We have a global search and rescue and medevac policy with GEOS. General Travel Insurance policies are difficult to find for trips longer than 90 days so we have a premium worldwide policy with FastTravel for additional peace of mind.

It is easy to purchase Third Party car insurance at each country border for reasonable amounts.

We don’t carry any valuables and lockable drawers provide additional security. We endeavour to find parking with CCTV or 24/7 security, and achieve this most of the time. 

As well as a Wolfbox front and rear dash cam and GPS we each carry a personal safety device. Our Garmin InReach Explorer is a Satellite Communicator that has maps loaded and records our latest location every ten minutes. Our family and friends can monitor our location in real time via our website, but we can send and receive text messages without network access and an SOS request for Search and Rescue.

In case we get separated, in remote areas I also carry a small ACR ResQLink Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) with the ability to alert Search and Rescue. 

We have two-way radios in case we join a convoy of cars for safety reasons or needed to talk to nearby Search and Rescue to help find us. Probably be more use in Australia and I think Jon just bought them for the novelty of playing around with them and practicing his Alpha, Bravo, Charlies.

The Smart Traveller website is an excellent resource and receive Facebook alerts when any travel advice changes for any countries. There’s also a number of useful overland websites, Facebook groups and apps such as iOverlander which provide advice and highlight any safety considerations.

We travel with two Credit Cards as back up for fraud, loss or where some places only accept one provider and not both. The vast majority of places accept credit cards and ATMs are in most towns.

We have a Visa Debit account (HSBC) that allows free international ATM transactions which also allows you to move major currencies around - and a Credit Card account (Latitude) that has no international transaction or currency conversion fees on online or overseas purchases. These save us a considerable amount in fees. 

We take some clean and recent USD notes just in case.

The only country where we found our cards didn’t work was in Chinese ATMs and some credit card terminals, but we had taken some CNY cash and exchanged some USD to cover the shortfall. In Uzbekistan we had several issues with ATMs that were either empty, had long queues for the limited cash available or wouldn’t accept any of our cards.

We keep Jon’s Australian number on his phone so that we can be contacted. As well as having a starlink for Internet access from the car, we purchase a local SIM that allows some data - Airolo has proved successful in most places.

Wifi is available in the majority of places, although some websites like Facebook are blocked in Iran and Turkmenistan. We have a Virtual Private Network (VPN) which offers secure connections and allows one to circumvent some of these restrictions, however one should assume that any electronic/online activity (including the use of VPNs) is monitored. We didn’t tempt fate in areas subject to strict controls but most of the locals use one routinely!

Very rarely!

Generally we are waved through standard police and military checkpoints that are common in many countries. If we are stopped it’s either due to sheer curiosity, and after a cursory look at paperwork we are on our way. So far, Jon managed to shake off two bribe efforts in Kazakhstan, paid a small fine for no known reason in Iran and a perfectly justified $20 speeding fine in Mongolia.

Some travellers don’t appreciate the small ‘fees’ at borders usually for an unclear reason like a ‘quarantine’ or ‘luggage carriage’ where no official receipt is provided, but the amounts are usually small and we figured they probably needed the $ more than we did.