After an interruption in our offroad tours that lasted for a year and a half, in July 2021 our tours finally resumed. We had a really wonderful second part of the year – many tours, many happy people, great weather and unforgettable memories from some fantastic places. The Balkans is still the last remaining true wilderness in Europe, an exciting, dynamic landscape to explore, offering you true freedom to go anywhere and camp in the wild. So better enjoy it while it lasts!
Many people fantasize about leaving urban life and the ever more controlled society behind to conquer their personal freedom by starting an off-grid life, but very few actually have the courage to try. You don’t really have to be radical about it, you can determine according to your preferences how much of “civilization” you will let remain in your life. Here is how I started.
Offroad vehicles are banned from most protected areas in the world because of their alleged environmental impact. But how much are they really polluting? Is it just an overreaction of the environmentalists, or should we really be concerned about it? Since no scientific study has ever been conducted to measure the real impact of offroad vehicles on the wilderness (extra-urban areas), I had to conduct the measurements myself. I’m sure the environmentalists won’t like what I’ve measured, because it doesn’t help defend their claims at all. But I do hope that it will help reach a more balanced and less car-hating attitude of the general public.
I’ve always loved to roam the mountains of eastern Serbia, ever since I was a kid. This vast space of mostly uninhabited wilderness is a sanctuary for all the freedom lovers who want to lose all connections with modern civilization and it’s set of rules, to escape absolute surveilance and endless “do’s and dont’s”. Actually, this is one of the few places in Europe where you still have large chunks of land that are completely out of mobile range, so you can really lose the faintest idea what is happening in the outside world. A world war could start, and you might well not realise it before it’s over!
Scratching the car is one of the bigger frustrations of overlanders that are newcomers to the Balkans. Instead of the nicely maintained trails in EU offroad parks, they suddenly stumble into true, completely unmaintained wilderness, discovering trails that may have not been driven by anyone for ages. And when a trail is not used, it becomes overgrown by vegetation. So what is my advice for the Balkans rookies? Watch our new video to find out!
We have reached the point when nothing is certain anymore. Right now we’re in the midst of toughest lockdowns Europe has seen so far. Travel is technically possible, but strongly discouraged by most governments, threatening quarantine upon returning. Well, actually not every European country has the same approach, so if you intend to travel we suggest that you examine the conditions set by every country that you want to pass through carefully. Continue reading Corona pandemic update / December→
We have published the video from the 2019 Balkans Wild Tracks tour. This epic tour has been our bestseller for the past several years. Take a look to find out why!
2020. BWT tours are already booked out, but you can reserve your spot for 2021. Visit the tour page on our company website for more info – https://www.rustikatravel.com/bwt/.
We’ve completed the video from our premiere 2019 Ancient Trails tour, which took place in June 2019. Lots of rain and mud, struggle with the elements, but also enjoying the incredible scenery of central Serbia. Don’t miss our next Ancient Trails tour in May 2020!
Material from our 2019 season is starting to be added to our gallery – there are two new albums from some very inspiring tours that took place in the wilderness of Serbia in June and July. There is a widespread belief among overlanders that Serbia is the least interesting of the Balkan countries. We’re sure that, looking at these albums, you will get the opposite impression! Serbia has a broad diversity of different landscapes, probably being more diverse than any other of the Balkan countries, and offers fantastic possibilities for wilderness exploration, especially with some, in places quite demanding forest trails. However, if you take on Serbia, you’ll have to be ready to confront vegetation on a daily basis!
Ancient Trails is our brand new tour covering the mountains of central and southwest Serbia, and Secret Carpathians is our by far most popular tour, covering the serbian part of the Carpathians in eastern Serbia, continuing into the awe inspiring Balkan mountain range along the bulgarian border. Pictures speak much louder than words in both cases!
We have just released the photo album and video from our first tour of the season, the Homolje Gold Rush 2019. It was a great tour that was fully booked out, and the participants have enjoyed it very much! It’s one of only two hotel accomodation tours in our yearly calendar.
