Vi Travel Tips | Category:

Do you know how to use snow chains?

Vi — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 11:00:44 +0000

It is winter in Southern Hemisphere and a lot of people are heading skiing to Snowy Mountains in Australia or Southern Alps in New Zealand. While I was living in Europe or Canada I was used to drive with all season or winter tires and never had a chance to use show chains. But in Australia or New Zealand snow is only high in the mountains so of course you won’t be changing tires for weekend trip to ski resort or if you want just to cross mountain range above snow line like Arthur Pass in New Zealand. Nobody will force you to hire snow chains but for peace of mind I would definitely recommend do so, as you can stuck somewhere on not passable road. Of course snow chains are must to have if you are going skiing in New Zealand. May be you’ll end up without need to use snow chains, but if you never ever used it, you should ask for demonstration how to fit when renting it. It easy to fit it when you know it, but you can damage car heavily if you are not experienced with doing it and will do it wrong. On the snow chains bag usually there are instructions how to use it, but it was unreadable on bag I had. I was lucky as somebody in my car knew how to fit chains, otherwise I would be in big trouble. Don’t do such mistake.

Have a save trip!

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Discover America in your RV

Guest — Fri, 11 May 2012 19:00:40 +0000

Guest post by Tim Simis

Summer is almost here and what better way to celebrate than with the great American tradition known as the road trip? However, before the rubber hits the road, there are several things to consider. Read on to find out not only which areas of the country are the best for RV trekking, but also tips and tricks for planning your trip and getting the best fuel economy.

Before you go

While spontaneity may seem like fun idea, without a little advance planning your trip will derail before it’s even had a chance to begin. Before you go, ask yourself these questions:

How many people are traveling and are any kids coming along?
Are there any special needs? Does anyone going on the trip have any health issues that need addressing? If this is the case, you’ll want to be sure the RV has the proper accessibility and that your road trip stays within a reasonable distance from medical facilities.
What types of activities you would like to do? If you’re planning on doing some type of activity that requires hauling toys such as bicycles or jet skis, be sure your RV is up to the challenge.
What amenities will you need? The range of facilities available for RV camping is quite broad and includes everything from upscale resort environments to dry camping (no electric, water or sewer hookups).
How many days will the trip take and how many miles are you willing to go? This will play a large role in determining your itinerary and destinations.
What is your budget? The answers to the above questions will, in part, determine your budget – and vice versa. Also impacting your budget will be whether or not you’re renting an RV if you don’t own one already. Rental pricing can vary greatly; so it’s a good idea to shop around ahead of time.

Best areas for RV trekking

No matter if you’re planning a long weekend close to home or an epic cross country round trip, check out these must-see areas and itineraries:

Route 66. Get your kicks from Los Angeles to Chicago on this iconic cross-country itinerary.
Western States National Park Loop. Begin and end in San Francisco, taking in nearly a dozen National Parks from Yosemite to Bryce Canyon. Stops in Las Vegas and San Diego can also be easily incorporated.
Northeastern States Loop. This loop begins and ends in New York City, with a scenic drive through Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine before heading back south through Massachusetts and Connecticut.
South Florida Loop. Orlando is the city to begin and end this sunny itinerary, continuing to Miami, Key West, the Everglades, and Fort Myers. Take a side trip to Sanibel Island before heading back to Orlando, a major tourist destination on its own.

Fuel saving tips

Unfortunately, the cost of gas for an extended RV trip can be expensive. Luckily, there are several easy things you can do to improve your fuel economy.

Make sure the engine is properly tuned. Some mechanics estimate that a properly tuned engine can use up to 50 percent less gas than a poorly tuned one.
Make sure that your RV generator is working properly
Make sure tires are inflated properly. Properly inflated tires can improve gas mileage up to 3.3 percent, according to FuelEconomy.gov.
Use cruise control. Traveling at slower and more consistent speeds is a proven way to increase fuel economy, so set your cruise control for 55 mph on the interstate and enjoy the savings.
Avoid filling the tank on a weekend. Prices generally are higher on weekends than on weekdays, so fill up during the week to get the most for your money.
Reduce air drag. Anything sticking up from the roof of the RV can cause drag, which reduces fuel economy. Make sure any antennas are down and that the AC unit is covered.

Adventure beckons

As long as there’s a gas station along the way and some space to park your RV, anywhere you can reach by a nice, wide, paved road is a potentially great destination, as long as you’ve got the spirit of American adventure with you!

This post was written and contributed by Tim Simis. Tim has been RV’ing for several years and stresses the importance of checking over your RV before your trip. Tim gets his RV parts from RVpartssupplier.com

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Give way rules are changing in New Zealand

Vi — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 22:00:05 +0000

There are road rule changes if you are planning trip to New Zealand this year. You probably heard about right-hand rule in New Zealand. From 5am on 25 March 2012 this rule will be obsolete. The new rule will be in force: vehicles turning left will then have right of way over those turning right. This applies at cross roads, T-intersections and driveways where both vehicles are facing each other with no signs or signals, or the same signs or signals.

On NZ Transport Agency website you can find details of new rules, illustrations and explanations. Hopefully it will reduce confusion for tourists travelling in NZ and it will be less accidents on roads of New Zealand.

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What is a road train

Vi — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 04:01:56 +0000

You probably already heard about road trains if you are planning go to Australia. But as always it is better to see once then thousand times to read about it.
But lets start from other countries before heading to Australia.
In the United States, trucks are limited to two trailers (the length limit is 19.2m (63 ft) end to end) on public roads. In less populous states it is allowed three trailers.
In Finland, Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark and some selected roads in Norway trucks with trailers are allowed to be 25.25 m (82.8 ft) long. Elsewhere in the European Union, the limit is 18.75 m (61.5 ft).
In Canada road trains (or Long Combination Vehicles) may be up to 38 m (125 ft).
But largest and heaviest road-legal vehicles in the world are in Australia.

53.5 metres (175.5ft). That’s the maximum allowable length of road train on public roads. How big it is? For example the regular bus is about 12-13 meters (40-43ft) long. So just imagine 4 buses standing in one lane to get impression how long road trains in Australia are. But on private mines there are even longer road trains.

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Australian road conditions

Vi — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 04:01:11 +0000

It is big country and before heading into Australian outback it is good idea check road conditions as it can be long re-route in case some roads closure.

Here is list of official websites where it is possible to check roads current status:

Have a safe trip!

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One road rule you must to know when you are driving in New Zealand

Vi — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 11:01:15 +0000

If you are planning go to New Zealand you probably will rent camper van or car to travel around this amazing country. Of course you know they drive on left side of road. It could feel a little bit weird if you are from “right side” country, but you shouldn’t worry too much about that. You’ll adjust to this in no time. In your car will be sign “Keep left” as reminder in case you’ll forget it by looking to scenery. In most tourist places you’ll find signs on the road with arrows which side to drive. So no worries. But there is one road rule you won’t find in any other country. It is so-called right-hand rule. It requires that cars turning left must wait to give way to those vehicles turning in front of them from the right. There are plans to change this rule. Although about these plans was already written some time ago, but rule still in force, so keep in mind it and obey it.

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