A Colorado man is turning heads and becoming a social media celebrity traveling the world in a $200,000 Lamborghini Urus with Montana license plates. He not only drives the Lambo as he explores the globe, he lives in it.
While that may be a curiosity in Moscow, Idaho, this American nomad is growing a following doing it on the streets of Moscow, Russia.
Posts of his travels pop up regularly as the Lamborghini is spotted in one far-flung place after another, the location often identifiable by a country’s flag flying from the back of the SUV.
Behind the wheel is Connor — known to his fans as Connor Camperghini — a 29-year-old who chronicles his travels to hundreds of thousands of people online who tag along for the ride.
Before he had a social media following, before he began cheekily vlogging dates with women he matches with on Tinder, before border crossings turned into photo ops, Connor was on a very different life path.
He began remodeling homes at the age of 16 and started a construction company that bore his last name — a name he’s since stopped sharing online, even if it’s not terribly difficult to track down.
He might have stayed in that lane were it not for the death of a close friend and breaking up with a girlfriend. That’s when Connor started to reevaluate his life.
“I missed out a little on my youth,” he said. “After my buddy died, I realized that life is short, especially if people my age are dying.”
With a newfound appreciation that “we’re not on this planet for very long,” Connor set out on a radically different life journey.
He debated a few ideas before landing on traveling the world in a Lamborghini-turned-camper, an idea sparked by a prior solo road trip in Europe. Midway through that trip, Connor bought an air mattress and decided to forgo nights at hostels for nights in the Audi SUV he’d rented.
“That got the spark in my head of total, ultimate freedom,” he said.
From California To Germany
Listening to Connor rattle off some of his recently-visited countries — Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Moldova — that prior road trip around places like France and Switzerland sounds downright pedestrian now.
Even so, Europe is actually where his latest international adventures began. After selling his home and many of his possessions, Connor bought a blue Lamborghini SUV and started figuring out the logistics of traveling internationally — including shipping the car by airplane from California to Germany.
Having Montana license plates on the car does increase the curiosity factor abroad and Connor said he wouldn’t want more recognizable state plates, like New York or California.
Though he didn’t specify why he has Montana plates, the state has a track record of attracting luxury car owners because state law allows nonresidents to register as an LLC and avoid paying sales tax.
This July will mark two years since Connor left the United States — he’s been home only once in that time to surprise his family at Thanksgiving — and so far he’s checked 35 countries off his itinerary.
Lately, he’s been in a region of the world many Americans might have difficulty picking out on a map, much less want to visit. Traveling to these countries has proved rewarding, if challenging at times.
Crossing Borders
Take border crossings, for example, which can be completely different country by country.
On one extreme are border crossings where agents are “super nice and friendly” — even requesting photos if they recognize Connor and his car. That was the case recently in Uzbekistan where Connor paid $1 to enter the country.
At the other extreme are those countries where he’s faced the threat of bribes or extortions.
“Leaving Turkmenistan was a bit of a nightmare,” Connor recalled. He was delayed driving because of the pothole-ridden roads, he said, and arrived at the border crossing after midnight — after his visa expired — and had to fork over extra money in fines just to leave the country.
The most difficult border crossing he’s experienced was from Poland into Belarus. When leaving Poland, Connor recalled, the Polish guards asked if he was sure about traveling to Belarus and warned him to be very cautious.
True to their warnings, Connor said that crossing involved an interrogation and thorough inspection of everything in his possession before he was finally allowed to enter the country some seven hours later.
Rather than letting frustration get the best of him, Connor said he has a different mentality during these situations.
“When I’m going through the border, I think about how this is an interesting, different experience,” he said. “I always try to spread smiles.”
A Colorado man has become a social media celebrity traveling the world while living out of his $200,000 Lamborghini Urus with Montana license plates. His around-the-world tour has already taken Connor Camperghini through 35 countries. (Courtesy Connor Camperghini) 
A Colorado man has become a social media celebrity traveling the world while living out of his $200,000 Lamborghini Urus with Montana license plates. His around-the-world tour has already taken Connor Camperghini through 35 countries. (Courtesy Connor Camperghini)
A Day Being Connor
Whether in-person or online, Connor has become an unofficial ambassador of sorts both for his country and those that he visits. The evolution of Connor the creator is also apparent as he’s become more traveled, and his increased popularity has also opened new doors.
One day could see Connor battling ants while trying to cook a meal and the next, he might meet with the leader of a country or tourism agents. “Every day is wild, there’s no typical days.”
Especially in Eastern Europe, Connor said he’s been afforded “incredible opportunities” because some of these countries are interested in attracting more tourists, if still a bit cautious.
“The smaller countries want to be put on a map,” Connor said. “I have a big social following, and some countries see that, and that allows me to get in and have all these opportunities in all these places.”
His travels have also given Connor a newfound appreciation for the good, and not-so-good, aspects of life in the United States. In addition to missing being able to spend time with his family and friends and playing volleyball, he sometimes longs for some of the conveniences of life back home.
But he’s also struck by how different life is elsewhere — including the comparatively little drug use he’s seen abroad and how he feels safer camping in his car in other countries than he might in many places in the U.S.
Earlier this year, Connor spent about a month in Russia, and that trip has elicited more questions from followers than any other destination because people are curious whether it’s really as dangerous there as they’ve heard.
As in many other places, Connor said he was offered places to stay and people were incredibly kind and generous.
“Russians were some of the most friendly people I’ve ever met,” he said.
Creating Content
Whether befriending people abroad or dealing with some of the more mundane aspects of life on the road, all of these experiences are potential fodder for Camperghini’s social media accounts.
While he’s found a knack for hamming up some of the more dramatic aspects of his travels in his videos, some of these adventures aren’t so glamorous, he admitted. “It’s not all it’s cracked up to be.”
One challenge Connor frequently runs into is with food, as he’s allergic to both soy and dairy. There are also frequent language barriers, though readily solved by technology these days, as English isn’t widely spoken in the countries he’s visited, and particularly among law enforcement.
While there have been some stressful situations, Connor said he tries to have a laissez-faire attitude during these times. And by sharing some of the highs and lows of travel, he hopes to remind others that not all travel needs to be perfectly planned or look amazing.
Rather, Connor’s goal is to inspire others to get out of their comfort zones — even if that’s just exploring a new neighborhood in their hometown — and to live a life of balance.
This message seems to be resonating, based on the feedback Connor said he receives from followers who tell him he’s inspired a road trip or major life change. “I really think people should explore more of the unknown places.”
What’s Next
Speaking of some of those lesser-visited places, Connor is currently trying to figure out how to visit Afghanistan, which could be the first stop in the start of a new leg of the journey that will take him through Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, across Russia, down into the Korean peninsula, then to Japan, the various Pacific Ocean islands, and ultimately to Australia.
But there are still entire continents to visit, and it could take seven to eight years before Connor has visited every country. “Or it could be a lifetime,” he added.
While there’s no end date in sight, he does have a final destination in mind: Antarctica.
And Connor has a “future idea” of starting a family someday and settling down somewhere in the U.S. — perhaps even in Wyoming — and living on a ranch.
In the meantime, there are more roads to travel and more places to explore. “My biggest message is for people to get out there and enjoy life — that’s what this is all about.”
Anna-Louise Jackson can be reached at: jackson.anna@gmail.com
