Internet, data and staying connected
We upload videos from lay-bys and campsites across Europe, so connectivity is not optional for us. Here is the setup and the thinking.
How do you get internet in the motorhome?
In layers, because no single thing works everywhere. Starlink covers the remote spots where there is no signal at all, a 5G router with local data covers towns and most of Europe far more cheaply, and phone tethering is the always there backup. If you are not uploading video for a living you probably do not need all three: for most tourers, a decent router and a sensible data package covers ninety percent of trips.
Can you use Starlink while driving?
The standard kit and plans are designed for use while parked, and that is how we use ours: set up on the pitch, packed away for the drive. There is hardware and a plan tier aimed at in motion use, but it costs considerably more, and for a family touring Europe it is hard to justify when the passenger phones cover the driving hours. Park up, point it at the sky, and it earns its keep in the places nothing else works.
What do you use for mobile data abroad?
An eSIM has become the easy answer since UK roaming allowances got stingy. We partner with Saily on the channel, so the usual disclosure applies: our links and code earn us a little at no extra cost to you. The genuine advice, whoever you buy from, is to sort the eSIM before the ferry, check whether the package is EU wide or per country, and remember data hungry jobs like navigation offline maps can be downloaded on the campsite wifi first.
Do you really use a VPN on the road?
Yes, genuinely. Surfshark are a channel partner, so the disclosure applies, but the two real world uses are exactly what you would guess: keeping logins and banking sensible on shared campsite wifi, and catching UK telly and streaming when we are abroad for weeks at a time. Neither is exotic. If you tour for long stretches you will want both within a fortnight.