Take a One-of-a-Kind Vacation! The Rotel "Hotel With Wheels" Is Surprisingly Affordable

Folks, I want you to imagine that you're opening your eyes for the first time today. As you do, you realize that you're rocking back and forth, and the sound of gravel crunching can be heard in the background. Suddenly, a smile comes across your face as you realize what's going on: you're waking up in a rolling hotel or the Rotel.

That's right. Rotel Tours is a company and brand that makes a living out of giving people like you and me experiences that are sure to be remembered for a lifetime. To understand exactly what I'm talking about, be sure to take a look at the images in the gallery. Trust me; it's all very self-explanatory.

Now that you have an idea of what Rotel is all about let's dive a tad deeper and see what sort of experiences we can have on such a tour, and funny enough, one of the cheapest trips available through Rotel is a hiking trip in Croatia.

Here, we're looking at a 14-day trip along the Adriatic Sea, with breakfast and dinner thrown in by Rotel, local tour guides, and, most importantly, an overnight stay in the "Rolling Hotel." Guess how much you'll need to dish out for this experience? No more than €1,600 ($1,750 at current exchange rates). That's pretty damn good, if you ask me, especially if we consider the destinations we'll see along the way.

The downside is that anyone not in Europe will need to cover their airfare to the starting point of this trip, which is Munchen, Germany. Another catch is the fact that, from my understanding, most of the trip is done in a Rotel bus and not the iconic Rotel itself.

This is because Rotel employs four different vehicles in its fleet. Depending on your destination, you'll have access to either a bus, bus/dorm combos, buses with trailers, or expedition vehicles with trailers. The latter two are the biggest of the big and the machines that make Rotel stand apart from other hotel experiences.

So, you want to take a trip in those iconic vehicles? Well, to do that, you'll have to travel either to South America or South Africa and take trips in the Expedition version of the Rotel, or give the proverbial front desk a call and see where the "classic" vehicle is located; it seems to be moving around quite a bit, as it should; after all, it's this crews business model.

As an idea of what to expect from these "larger" experiences in terms of the cash you need. A 15-day trip around Southern Ethiopia is currently going for no more than €3,000 ($3,250). If you do, you'll get to see Addis Ababa and the African Rift Valley and meet tribes like the Mursi, Hamar, Konso, and others.

Looking for something a tad wilder? Try 22 days through Kenya, Tanzania, and even Zanzibar. All that even includes a game drive, a night out on the Serengeti, and even a hike in the shadows of the famous Kilimanjaro. If you're looking to get away from most of civilization and even any footprint of human activity, a trip through Namibia is sure to get sand in all the wrong places, but you'll love it!

There are tours through Turkey, Uzbekistan, along the Silk Road, South Western US, and trips that even coincide with galactic events such as eclipses. But, the most expensive trip, from a starting price tag point of view, is a trip through the Andes Mountains. It's one month long and goes for a solid €6,000 ($6,500).

Now, take all that, sprinkle in some cash and planning, and place yourself in the center of the action. What do you have? Well, go back to opening your eyes in a bed and feeling the world around you rocking. With an idea of what's going on now, you pull back the blinds to your room or sleeping cabin and look out the window. Today, you'll be seeing animals of the African grasslands roaming about in the distance.

After waking up and having lunch, it's time to take a tour of the local lands and get to know why everything is looking to escape the midday sun of the open plains of Africa. The evening catches you looking up for hours as you see more stars than you have in your entire life. Sure, Africa was neat, but next year, it's the Andes, and the year after that, the highlands of Mongolia.

Oh, and let's not forget that all this will be happening in a hotel with wheels and a big old diesel pulling it all along. You can't call yourself a gearhead until you've checked this one off your list.