Gunther Holtorf, a German citizen set off in 1989 with his wife Christine, in search of a brief adventure and break from the day to day pressures of modern living and working as CEO of a large international corporation.  The idea had come from his wife and they planned to drive for some time and discover new places.  However the initial idea slowly developed into a new way of life which made the couple travel to remote lands such as Nepal, Tibet, North Korea and virtually every country around the world.

With a wealth of experiences and anecdotes Gunther keeps his feet firmly on the ground when he explains so many stories and expresses gratitude at the opportunity he has had to meet so many people, from such different backgrounds and cultures.  He has made history with his trip and although saddened by the fact his wife passed away in 2010, he decided to continue the trip till this day in her memory.

The remaining countries he plans to visit next year before he decides to settle down in South Germany, will include Myanmar, Mauritius, Madagascar, Angola, Congo Rep, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, and Belarus.

After naming his car ‘Otto‘ with whom he has shared a large part of his adult life, he has been self sufficient in repairing mechanical elements that were damaged and recalls the dangers of driving through the bush and the desert as the most dangerous.  Of particular difficulty he has found driving around many parts of Africa which in the late 80s, when he set off, had very little asphalt on roads and were mainly muddy tracks and hard to drive on. After buying a set of YOKOHAMA tyres when he set off, he never changed the brand. ‘I was always happy with YOKOHAMA’ he explains. ‘Otto‘ was the first foreign car in Macau, and the first foreign car in Cuba, following an invitation from Raul Castro himself and the long list goes on an on.

On a short trip to Germany in preparation of his 2013 tour, Mr Holtorf visited the YOKOHAMA Europe offices and was warmly welcomed by its President and Management and Staff who wanted to learn at first hand some of his experiences and wished him continued success on his forthcoming tour.  An exclusive book on his travels and adventures will be published by the German publication ‘Stern‘ next summer after his tour ends.