A Grand Tour/Road Trip was the traditional trip of Europe undertaken by mainly upper-class European young men of means. The custom flourished from about 1660 until the advent of large-scale rail transit in the 1840s, and was associated with a standard itinerary. It served as an educational rite of passage. Though primarily associated with the British nobility and wealthy landed gentry, similar trips were made by wealthy young men of Protestant Northern European nations on the Continent, and from the second half of the 18th century some South American, U.S., and other overseas youth joined in. We are currently busy working on this page, please come back later. The first recorded Road Trip was attested in stele in the court of Ramses II. He was said to “come down on the Medeans in his chariot after driving all night from Memphis.”
Road Trips were important throughout antiquity. The historian Nearchus described Alexander’s march into India. During the Roman Republic, it was not uncommon for young patrician men to gather together to tour the Roman world.
Young European men of means would often go on a Grand Tour during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. People of many religions went (and still go) on a pilgrimage. Carl Jung identified the Road Trip as a “persistent element of human culture.”
I started with “Photographic Road Trips” in 2010 and will remain to do so every second to third year. The trips are usually planned over the South African winter seasons when wedding and commercial photography comes to a standstill and I use this opportunity to test and try new photographic techniques and subjects. Now…one of my most precious secrets to what makes a photographic Road Trip successful…an awesome Road Trip playlist! Usually the first song you listen to after you start the engine will make or break the trip. My 2010 Road Trip started with Tom Cochrane’s “Life is a Highway”, My 2013 Road Trip will kick off with Steppenwolf’s “Magic Carpet Ride” and if you plan the play of the song just right, starting the intro on the R21 Tzaneen road and let the beat kick in as soon as your tyres hit the N1 National road….your photos on your Road Trip will look great!
