Has the Term "Overlanding" Become Convoluted?

Let's be honest, you've probably seen it. Someone posts a picture of their tricked-out rig—roof top tent deployed, traction boards mounted, maybe even a shovel strapped to the side—with the caption, "Just got back from an epic overlanding trip!" And then you scroll down to the comments, and it turns out their "epic overlanding trip" was a two-hour drive to a state park campground for the weekend. No judgment here, truly. We've all been there, or somewhere similar.

Probably a bit overkill if all you're doing is heading to the local campground for a weekend!

Full disclosure: I'm one of those folks who started out just, well, car camping. And then I started driving down dirt roads for a variety of reasons 20 years ago. This was long before I knew “overlanding” was even a word, let alone a whole hobby with its own gear industry. Ever since I jumped on a bike as a kid and began exploring the dirt roads in the open space above our neighborhood, I’ve been completely infatuated with wondering what’s around the next bend or over the mountain. A vehicle, especially one with four-wheel drive, allowed me to go further and deeper into the woods with my explorations, and in the late 2010s, I stumbled across overlanding. So, if this article sounds like I'm about to pull out a rulebook and start gatekeeping, please know that's absolutely not the intent. Consider this more of a friendly chat about a term that seems to have gotten a little... fuzzy.

The simple truth is, the word "overlanding" has become incredibly broad, leading to a fair bit of head-scratching and, dare I say, some dilution of what it originally meant. Let's dig into why.

The Explosion of Vehicle-Based Adventures

It's no secret that getting outdoors in a vehicle has exploded in popularity. Maybe it's the allure of escaping the daily grind, the call of the wild, or just the sheer convenience of having your bed and kitchen on wheels.

Just like many hobbies, overlanding often starts simple and gradually becomes more involved. You wouldn't hit a double-black diamond run on your first snowboarding trip, and similarly, most people don't begin their overlanding journey with a multi-month expedition like the Pan-American Highway. Instead, many, myself included, start with car camping.

This might mean a short weekend trip to a nearby park, eventually progressing to exploring more remote locations. These trips can involve driving for hours down dirt roads to reach beautiful, secluded campsites far from anyone else. It's important to remember that car campers are the enthusiastic foundation from which the overlanding community often grows, and their interest should be fostered, not dismissed.

And then you have folks focused on the sport of off-roading (or wheeling), where the challenging aspects of the trail and terrain become the primary focus of the hobby. Out west, you can go wheeling for a day and then be back home before dinner, but many folks still choose to turn their off-roading adventures into camping trips.

Finally, there’s overlanding, which is really a distinct flavor that combines aspects of car camping with off-roading, which is typically where the confusion starts.

Nearly all of us started out with car camping before moving onto longer overlanding trips.

What Is Overlanding, Anyway? (The OG Definition)

If you look at the traditional, old-school definition, overlanding is typically described as self-reliant vehicle-assisted adventure travel to remote destinations where the focus is on the journey, as opposed to a particular trail, campsite, or any other singular location along the way. Think less about the destination campground and more about the miles, the exploration, and the challenges along the way (breakdowns, adverse conditions, ornery border agents, and so on).

Historically, this meant epic, months-long expeditions across continents—like crossing Africa, traversing the Australian outback, or pioneering routes like the Pan-American Highway across the Americas. These were serious undertakings, requiring extensive planning, mechanical knowledge, and a whole lot of self-sufficiency. The vehicle was a tool for the journey, not just a way to get to a campsite.

Many of the old school overlanders believe you need to travel thousands of miles and cross international borders to experience a true overlanding trip. We believe the modern definition needs to be revised considering the number of people embarking on multi-day and multi-week adventure travel trips. Credit: Expedition Portal

The "Watering Down" Phenomenon: Modern Usage

Fast forward to the digital age and take a look on YouTube, Instagram, or any Facebook group with the term “overland” in the name, and you’re bound to see “overlanding” applied to pretty much anything involving a vehicle and camping.

You've got folks taking their meticulously built rigs, complete with rooftop tents, traction boards, and elaborate kitchens, for a weekend at a state park. Or maybe they drive a couple of hours down a graded dirt road to a dispersed camping spot. While these are fantastic ways to enjoy the outdoors, they often lack the multi-day, multi-location, journey-focused aspect that traditionally defined overlanding. It's less about adventure travel and more about the "overland look." We've all seen the rigs that look like they're ready for the Sahara, but their biggest challenge last weekend was finding a level spot for the tent. (Again, no judgment! My rig probably looks like that sometimes too.)

This shift isn't accidental. It's a mix of things:

• Accessibility: "Overlanding" sounds exciting, aspirational even. It's a sexier term than "car camping" or “adventure travel” for many, and it draws more people into vehicle-based adventures.

• Marketing: The industry has absolutely embraced the term, because well, there’s money to be made! If you can sell a "recovery shovel" or "expedition fridge" to someone going to a local campground, why wouldn't you? This has blurred the lines significantly for commercial purposes.

• Inherent Ambiguity: The lines between these activities were never super rigid, and as noted above, there’s quite a bit of overlap between them, allowing the term to expand naturally.

And let’s be clear, as overlanding and off-roading have gone mainstream, most folks who are pursuing vehicle or moto-assisted adventure travel aren’t driving thousands of miles across continents. Most of us, myself included, are typically going on “overlanding” trips that may span 2-3 days to a few weeks, and a month or longer if we’re lucky. Only a very small and lucky group of folks have the resources and time to regularly embark on multi-month trips or pursue overlanding as a full-time endeavor.

Car Camping vs. Overlanding: Drawing an Unpretentious Distinction

So, how do we make sense of it without sounding like a pretentious a-hole? Think of it less as a hard line and more as a spectrum. Most vehicle-based adventures fall somewhere along this continuum, with plenty of "grey area" in between.

Here's a simplified way to look at the core differences, while fully admitting there's a lot of overlap:

	Car Camping	Overlanding
Primary Goal	Destination focused (e.g., specific campsite).	Journey-focused (exploration, travel, experience new cultures and places, overcoming challenges).
Duration	Often a single night to an extended weekend, short vacations.	Multi-day, multi-week, multi-month, or even multi-year expeditions.
Route	Direct travel typically to a predetermined campground or campsite.	Navigating remote roads and trails, the connection of distant locations, adapting to conditions as you go.
Self-Reliance	Less critical; oftentimes amenities are available in campgrounds.	Essential (carrying necessary supplies, mechanical/navigational skills).

That "grey area" is where the convolution really lives. A long car camping trip into a remote, unserviced area might start to feel a lot like a short overland trip. And a quick overland shakedown run might resemble a car camping trip. It's fluid, and that's okay.

Seeking Clarity: Do We Need New Terminology?

This is where it gets tricky. Some suggest we do away with the term overlanding and adopt terms like "adventure travel," similar to what the motorcycle community uses. It's descriptive, sure, but "I'm going adventure traveling" just doesn't quite roll off the tongue with the same punch as "I'm going overlanding." The term, despite its current ambiguity, has a certain evocative power.

The challenge is, once a term is widely adopted, even if it's a bit messy, it's incredibly hard to replace.

We call this framework the overlanding spectrum of progression. Because it indicates where people typically start as they move to the right.

Why This Distinction Matters (Beyond Semantics)

You might be thinking, "Who cares? Just go camping or exploring." And you'd be right. But understanding the nuances can actually be helpful:

• Managing Expectations: If you're new, knowing the difference helps you prepare. You don't need a full expedition build for a weekend at a state park, and I certainly wouldn’t recommend tackling a trans-continental journey with just a cooler and a sleeping bag (but a few have!).
  

• Community Cohesion: When people use terms more precisely, discussions become more relevant. Asking for advice on a "multi-week overland journey through Baja" gets a different, more specific response than "overlanding trip ideas."
  

• Informed Consumer Choices: It helps you discern if that expensive piece of gear is truly necessary for your type of adventure, or if it's just part of the "look."
  

• Personal Growth: Recognizing the spectrum highlights the different levels of challenge and personal development involved in various vehicle-based explorations and adventures.

The author (Ben Easley) at the Bonneville Salt Flats, UT. Part of a 2,100 mile journey exploring the Great Basin Heritage Trail.

Conclusion: Embracing Evolution, Encouraging Specificity

So, has the term "overlanding" become convoluted and watered down? Absolutely. Its usage has broadened significantly from its origins, and there's a clear, beautiful spectrum of vehicle-based adventures, from casual car camping to long-distance overlanding adventures.

But here's the thing: there's no "right" or "wrong" way to enjoy the outdoors with your vehicle. Every adventure is valid, all those miles lead to smiles and memories, and every night under the stars is a win.

Instead of policing the term, maybe we can just aim for a bit more nuance and specificity in our language. Instead of just "I'm going overlanding," maybe it's:

• "We're embarking on a multi-week overland journey through Baja California."

• "We're doing a 2-day wheeling trip along the Rubicon Trail."

• "We're car camping at the state park this weekend with our adventure van."

  
  

For my own trips, I might occasionally refer to them as "adventure travel" to emphasize the journey aspect. However, given that "I'm going adventuring traveling" sounds a bit clunky and doesn't quite roll off the tongue as a verb, I'll likely still fall back on using "overland" and "overlanding" quite a bit. Ultimately, the label matters far less than the experience. The core spirit of exploration, self-reliance, and the sheer joy of experiencing the world from the road remains paramount. So, whatever you call it, just get out there and make some memories.