LATIN AMERICA IN A RAPIDO

Rapido motorhomes are definitely cut out for adventure. Their build quality and reliability are two major assets for those heading off on a long trip. This is perfectly illustrated by Rapido motorhome enthusiasts Claude and Françoise, who share their story of a year spent travelling Latin America’s roads.

“Staying is existing; travelling is living”* goes the French saying that sets the tempo of our daily life. My wife and I love motorbikes and enjoyed global biking adventures for many years. Morocco, Greece, Yugoslavia... We were always hungry for new scenery. But then the second love of our life stepped on stage: our daughter, Aurélie. You guessed it, it’s rather complicated travelling by motorbike as a family. So to fix this little logistical problem, we decided on a motorhome instead. And now it’s been 26 years since motorhomes became our new passion. After enjoying a Rapido 9083 AL-KO chassis A-Class, we have now chosen a Rapido 643 low-profile model. We devote all our holidays to expanding our horizons. The United Kingdom, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Italy, Crete, Albania and Turkey: these countries have all passed under our Rapido’s wheels.

Europe and its neighboring countries no longer hold any secrets for us. After some 40 years of hard work, we decided it was time to think big. Our desire to travel knows no limits so we decided to explore the other side of the Atlantic with our Rapido. It was decided: we’d spend a year in South America. Its wide open spaces, lifestyle and completely different scenery won us over. After browsing all the specialist sites and blogs online, it was time to start preparing. The crossing, our Rapido’s fittings, electronic appliances, vaccinations, insurance, various documents and more: we double checked it all and left nothing to chance. Monday 16 November 2015 marked the start of our trek. The time had come to leave our little village of Saint-Julien-de-Concelles in the Loire Atlantique region of France. We arrived in Anvers to board the ship giddy with excitement and not really realising what adventures awaited us.

Some four weeks (or 33 days or 792 hours) later, we finally arrived in Montevideo. Having travelled 12,640km by ship, we were happy to finally get our teeth into South America. We had already decided on our general itinerary. We rapidly left Uruguay behind us as we set out to explore Argentina. In mid January, we had a change of scenery with Patagonia and its wide open spaces, then Ushuaia, followed by mountains and forests. Next we travelled north, alternating between Chile and Argentina. We never got tired of such exceptional scenery and every new day left us just as amazed. In April, May, June and July, we discovered Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador. The 15th of October 2016 marked the end of our trek and we embarked on our return journey by sea. 

In mid November, we arrived back at our little house in Saint-Julien-de-Concelles with a strange feeling. We were torn between being happy to reconnect with our family and friends and once again taste French cuisine, and being sad at the idea that our trip was now just a memory. We had met so many people, seen so many places and had so much freedom that we would definitely recommend a trip like this to anyone. Our Rapido motorhome meant we could say goodbye to the restrictions of daily life. We could enjoy carefree travels along any road before us. We regularly relive our travel adventure on our blog.

Claude and Françoise Jaffrot, 61 years old

*Gustave Nadaud