Off-Road Driving - Buyer's Guide
Off-road driving is an ideal way to not only get an adrenaline-fuelled thrill, but to experience the road like you have never seen it before.
Our selection of off-road driving experiences invite you to hop into a four by four, a buggy, a sports car, or even a truck, and take to the wheel, testing out your driving skills as you move and handle your vehicle over a whole range of wild, extreme terrains. You will be able to experiment with the resistance and power of the vehicle and see how much it can handle as you take charge of the wheel.
You can enjoy experiencing off-road driving across the UK, and wherever you are in the country, you can guarantee to find somewhere that is local and convenient to you that offers such an exhilarating day.
Half Days, Full Days and Taster Experiences
Regardless of how much you have to spend, you'll find an Off Road Driving Experience Day that suits your budget. At Experience Mad, we offer packages that start from around £40 for a taster experience: over an hour of quick fire, adrenaline filled driving; to experiences that start at around £100 that treat you to an unforgettable half-day package. Finally, for between £200 and £350 we provide the most lavish and expensive experiences that take up an entire day for the serious petrol-heads.
So what does an Off Road Driving Experience Day involve?
A half day Off Road Driving Experience typically includes:
- Safety Briefing
Before your Off Road Driving Experience truly begins, all participants will be given a safety briefing which will explain how to take care and enjoy off road driving to its fullest and in the safest way possible.
- Safety Checks and Route Planning
Usually, a trained professional will help carry out safety checks and then help you plan your route for when you are in the vehicle.
- Demo Lap
You will then be taken around your planned route by your instructor who will demonstrate a full lap of the route in the vehicle.
- Off-Road Driving
You will then get the chance to take the route yourself, being in control behind the wheel, driving the vehicle over the rough, extreme terrains. An instructor will be beside you for advice and to help you get the most fun out of your ride.
You are also allowed to bring two spectators with you who can watch from the side-lines or sit in the vehicle with you as a passenger.
A Half day Off Road Driving Experience Day lasts for approximately three hours in total.
What else happens on a Full Day Off-Road Driving Experience?
A Full Day Off Road Driving Experience offers several similar aspects of the Half Day Experience, except the package is a lot longer in length and usually a little more in depth. Full day experiences usually last around five hours, giving you a huge amount of time behind the wheel of your off-road motor. The longer, more in depth package contains just as much fun as its shorter cousin, but here you'll get to not only spend more time behind the wheel, enjoying this once in a life-time experience, but you'll also get more extensive tuition from your instructor, leaving you particularly knowledgeable about off road driving.
Are the off road experiences one to one?
Not all of them. We've collected all the one-to-one off road days together to help you choose and these are exactly what they say, one instructor to one participant. This guarantees you the undivided attention of the instructor and ensures the day moves at your pace. Some experiences even allow you to bring friends along to share the experience if you like the idea of a car to yourself but are worried you might get lonely!
With all other off road experiences you will share your session with other participants. This can be a great way to meet new people and share the enjoyment of the day as you will often all be in the car together, taking it in turns to step out onto the muddy course and switch driver. You can laugh at the other drivers' attempts to avoid trees and keep the car moving through deep sludge, or be the centre of attention as you skilfully negotiate the off road course.
Which type of terrain is offered in Off-Road Driving Experiences?
Different terrains offer different kinds of fun, and within our extensive list of Off Road Driving
Experience Days, you'll find that all of our locations offer a whole range of different surfaces, terrains and areas.
You'll get to experience driving over rough, rocky terrains, which can be a very bumpy but give an exhilarating sensation and definitely requires you to be strapped in tightly to save your head from bumping continuously on the roof! As well as this, you'll get to venture through gravelly, uneven woodland, taking your vehicle uphill and downhill, driving through small valleys and nooks in the ground.
Then of course you have those particularly dirty terrains such as the mud and sludge, which always gains attention from off roaders. Watch your vehicle completely change colour as you wheel spin and plummet into large muddy craters; make sure your windows are tightly closed if you wish to stay clean!
Which vehicles are best to choose when going Off-Road?
There really isn't a right or wrong vehicle, as all of the machines offered in our Off Road Driving Experience Days are specially selected to cope with the rigours of the sport. However, the best car for you to choose is definitely dependent on personal preference.
4x4s are always excellent fun, as you really get to test out the vehicle and see what it was built for. Maybe if you're used to driving a small car, you'll get far more joy out of getting behind the wheel of one of these beasts while handling and taking it over rough and extreme terrains.
For those that like something a little different, there is the Rage Buggy – a lightweight, speedy little mover that you will be able to race over muddy, tricky terrains, protected only by your helmet; these little buggies come with no windows for safety!
Then there is the monster truck; a vehicle perfect for those that want to let off a bit of steam, feel a little bit more adrenaline and to leave destruction in their path, running over cars and rough land stretches.
What about location?
The great thing with off road driving is it can be done almost anywhere which means there is an abundance of places UK wide to choose from. All courses offer similar terrain and similar vehicles, so unless there is a particular vehicle you simply must drive such as a Land Rover Defender or Hummer, wherever you are in the country you're bound to find somewhere to enjoy off-road driving and where you enjoy it is totally down to you.
Overall Verdict
Regardless of vehicle, location or experience type, it's safe to say that taking part in an Off Road Driving Experience Day will certainly be a whole barrel of fun for both the petrol-heads of the world and those that love being filled top to toe with adrenaline.
Tasters are perfect for those who just fancy trying out the driving, whereas half days, full days and one-to-one experiences are there for the more determined and keener off-road driving enthusiasts!
Location Information
East: Bedfordshire (Riseley)
Midlands: Leicestershire (Loughborough -
Prestwold Hall, Oakham, Rutland - Greetham), Lincolnshire (Louth - Manby), Northamptonshire (Corby, Towcester -
Silverstone), Nottinghamshire (Retford, Sherwood Forest), Warwickshire (Shipston on Stour)
North East: North Yorkshire (Thirsk), Northumberland (Hexham), South Yorkshire (Doncaster, Sheffield), West Yorkshire (Ferrybridge)
North West: Cheshire (Crewe), Cumbria (Penrith), Merseyside (Prescot)
Northern Ireland: County Tyrone
Scotland: Fife (Dunfermline - Knockhill), Perthshire (Perth), Stirling, Stirlingshire
South East: Berkshire (Reading, Reading - Pingewood), East Sussex (East Grinstead - Kingscote, Lewes), Hampshire (Andover - Tangley, Andover -
Thruxton), Kent (nr Canterbury - Hoath, West Malling), Middlesex (West London - Northolt), Oxfordshire (Chipping Norton - Great Tew), Surrey (Nutfield, Redhill), West Sussex (East Grinstead)
South West: Gloucestershire (Coleford, Moreton-in-Marsh), Wiltshire (Chippenham, Chippenham - Castle Combe)
Wales: Clwyd (Wrexham, Wrexham - Marchwiel), West Glamorgan (Swansea)
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