It’s been a while since I’ve sent out one of these updates.
To be honest, life has been a bit chaotic lately. There have been a lot of major personal changes behind the scenes and the last few days, weeks, and honestly months have been particularly difficult at times. Between work, life, and trying to keep up with both This Life in Trips and MYEVTRIPS, the newsletter has unfortunately slipped lower on the priority list than I would have liked.
In the process, I neglected to see that my audience has actually grown a lot, so for you newcomers, my apologies and welcome!
With that said, I’m excited to finally share something I’ve been quietly planning for quite some time.
In just a few days, I leave for what will likely become one of the most ambitious and memorable trips I’ve ever done. If you have been following along, that is saying a lot.
And yes… it involves another ridiculous EV road trip.
More importantly, I’d love for you to follow along while I’m out there. I’ll be sharing a ton of behind-the-scenes moments, road trip chaos, ferry crossings, charging adventures, questionable planning decisions, and hopefully some incredible scenery over on Instagram stories throughout the trip:
First Stop: Portugal & Copenhagen
The adventure actually starts a little slower this time — though honestly, the lead-up has been anything but relaxing. I’ll be Airbnbing my place in Vancouver for the first time while I’m away, which has turned into a much bigger project than expected between setup, organizing, cleaning, manuals, logistics, and figuring out how to temporarily pack up my life.
So before I wind myself up driving an EV to the top of Europe, I’m very much looking forward to unwinding for a few days in Portugal and Copenhagen first.
I’ll begin with a few days in Porto, Portugal — one of my favourite cities in Europe — where I’ll be revisiting and updating my existing 3 Days in Porto itinerary while staying at the incredible Canto De Luz – Luxury Maison.
After that, it’s on to Copenhagen, Denmark for a few days to refresh my 3 Days in Copenhagen guide. I’m very much looking forward to:
- wandering cobblestone streets
- eating far too much food
- drinking Carlsberg after revisiting the Carlsberg Brewery
- and getting back out on the water with a canal tour from Hey Captain
Then the real adventure begins.
The Main Event: A Scandinavian Arctic EV Road Trip To The Top Of Europe
From Oslo, I’ll be embarking on a massive EV road trip through:
- Norway
- Sweden
- Finnish Lapland
- North Cape
- Senja
- Lofoten
- the Norwegian fjords
- and eventually looping back toward Bergen and Oslo.
The route will take me all the way to North Cape — as far north as you can drive in Europe — under the midnight sun.
This also won’t be my first EV road trip around Europe. A couple years ago I completed a 6-country European EV road trip and quickly learned just how adaptable EV travel already is across much of Europe.
And Scandinavia? That’s basically the EV capital of the world.
Which is why I’m honestly not too worried about charging infrastructure on this trip, especially considering that last fall I somehow managed to drive an EV to the Arctic Ocean via Canada’s remote Dempster Highway and survive the return journey south.
Compared to that… Norway should feel almost relaxing.
Even more exciting, the entire Scandinavian portion of this trip will involve partnering with Cabin Campers and their electric Volkswagen ID. Buzz campervan, which honestly feels like one of the coolest and most fitting ways possible to experience Scandinavia.
Over nearly four weeks, I’ll be taking the ID. Buzz through Norway, Sweden, Finnish Lapland, Senja, Lofoten, North Cape, and the Norwegian fjords while camping, chasing midnight sun, hopping ferries, and hopefully finding some absurd roadside viewpoints along the way.
If anyone is curious or looking to book the same, you can use my promo EVTRIPS15 for 15% off!
Considering last year’s Dempster Highway adventure, this really feels like the natural European sequel… just hopefully with a little less stress and a lot more charging infrastructure
The best part? My personal life has been so chaotic lately that a lot of this planning will probably happen:
- last minute
- in random hotel lobbies
- on ferries
- or aboard my Lufthansa Allegris A350 business class flight if the WiFi is good enough.
So if you have recommendations:
SEND THEM.
Lofoten, Senja, and Norway’s Wild Coast
I’ve previously spent time in southern Norway visiting both Bergen and Stavanger, but I’ve never explored the north.
And honestly, I can’t think of a more unique way to finally experience it.
Some of the places I’m most excited for are:
- Senja
- Lofoten
- North Cape
- the Atlantic coastal roads
- and Norway’s dramatic fjord regions.
The rough plan involves:
- midnight sun photography
- drone content
- scenic hikes
- ferry crossings
- remote coastal villages
- EV camping
- and hopefully a few nights parked beside scenery that looks completely fake.
I’m especially excited to get back into Norway’s fjord landscapes after one of my favourite travel days ever hiking Preikestolen.
Then… Wales & Beatles History
But the trip doesn’t actually end in Norway.
After Scandinavia, I’ll be flying into Manchester for a short EV road trip through Liverpool and North Wales.
Liverpool has been on my list for years, particularly as a massive music fan. I’ll finally be diving into Beatles history properly, including:
- Strawberry Field
- The Beatles Story museum
- the Cavern Quarter
- Penny Lane
- and hopefully a stay at a proper Beatles-themed hotel in Liverpool.
From there, I’ll road trip through North Wales with plans to:
- visit Llanfairpwllgwyngyll (longest named city in the world)
- drive the Anglesey coast
- stop at South Stack Lighthouse
- explore Conwy
- and finish with a pint at The Turf pub beside Wrexham AFC’s stadium.
Then, in possibly the most on-brand ending imaginable, I’ll wrap up the UK portion of the trip by celebrating Canada Day at this absurdly perfect Manchester Airport beer garden where you can watch planes come and go.
Final Stop: Iceland & Greenland
And because apparently this trip still wasn’t ambitious enough…
I also booked a short Iceland stopover on the way home.
I’ve now partnered with CampEasy and will be taking one of their fully kitted-out Tesla Model Y campers around southern Iceland for a quick 36-hour adventure focused on waterfalls, black sand beaches, hot springs, and EV car camping.
The plan is intentionally simple: chase waterfalls and black sand beaches, recharge at a geothermal pool after a night of EV camping, and see just how much of Iceland’s South Coast I can squeeze into a whirlwind stopover.
I’m hoping to revisit some favourite spots while also seeing places I missed previously, including Skógafoss and parts of the southern coastline.
And then finally:
Greenland.
I’ve wanted to get there for years and I’m ridiculously excited to finally stop there instead of simply flying over it. Especially lately, it feels like one of those destinations I kept telling myself “someday” about.
Well… someday finally happened.
Follow Along
This will easily be the largest travel project I’ve attempted in a couple of years and there will be a huge amount of content coming from it across both my platforms.
Expect:
- road trip guides
- hotel reviews
- ferry chaos
- EV charging adventures
- scenic drone footage
- northern Europe travel tips
- and probably at least one situation where I seriously question my own planning decisions.
This will all take some time to trickle out so, in the meantime, follow along on Instagram as I share stories as I go.
As always, thanks for following along and supporting the sites. It genuinely means a lot, especially during a pretty chaotic chapter of life.
Now… time to see if driving an EV to the top of Europe is actually a good idea.
Cheers,
Shaun
What say you?
Thoughts on My 2022 Travel? Where did you Go?
Let’s hear it!
