First I'd like to re-emphasise Malcolms advice: Investigate renting for a
shorter period or bringing your
van for a longer period. In Holland there is also an organized VW westy rent
and sell operation,
with a buyback option. I forgot the name and link, but google should find
it.

That said, it is not impossible to buy a van in Europe, though it will
likely take longer
than initially anticipated.

I think Germany is the place to get your VW camper. They are more plentiful.
The Germans
maintain their vehicles pretty well (in comparative terms), and Germans
speak better
English than most others.

Depending on your budget you could:

1. Lease a new VW camper from a Dealer.

2. Buy a used vehicle with a warranty from a used car dealer. (different
terms
and options are available.) I'm a bit suspicious exactly what a warranty
will cover, but this might be worth investigating.

3. Or of course the most economic option: buy a vehicle you trust
you can service yourself; do the pre-purchase inspection yourself and be
prepared
to deal with anything that comes up. (bring toolkit, manual etc.)
IMHO this option favors simple vehicles where there are not so much
to inspect or that can go mysteriously wrong.

Insurance and registration is a bit of a challenge for non-EU citizens,
unless
you have a valid residence reason (like studies/job).

In Germany you can get "for export" plates for up to 3 mo w/o residence.
You need "for export" insurance, which is more expensive.
I'm told you can go back and do the same again for three more months,
but didn't verify this.

Insurance is also more expensive for export plates. I believe hundreds of
Euro/mo.
I might have put more specific figures in earlier posts.
(see my posts on buying a van in Germany from a few months ago)

Martin
--
Martin Jagersand
University of Alberta
http://www.cs.ualberta.ca/~jag/