Meet Alitta and Benjamin, who search for family adventures off the beaten track. What helps them get there? A four-wheeled companion called Gustav (yes, they did name their G-Class – which goes to show just how much they care for him).
G-Class Strong Stories
The luxury of adventure.
Stuttgart natives, roaming
At home in the world.
Alitta Klein and Benjamin Arnold aren’t afraid to step out of the comfort zone. In fact, outside that very zone is where the Stuttgart natives and their three kids feel most at ease. That is, as long as their G-Class is with them. Ever since they bought the car in 2015, they have embarked on countless adventures with it – across Switzerland, France, and Italy, to name just a few, but also to the Saharan territories of Morocco, Tunisia, and Mauretania.
“Gustav is like a buddy to us”, says Benjamin about his beloved 22-year-old G 500. “No matter what kind of driving situation you’re in: When it gets rough, you just lock in the differentials – and he takes you up like an escalator.” “Whether we’re in the desert or off-roading in the woods: It’s the height that makes all the difference to us”, adds Alitta, his girlfriend and mother of his three children, who is just as passionate about the G-Class as Benjamin (and the better off-road driver, as he happily admits).
For each other and for traveling
The great love.
The two found out they shared a love for unconventional travel right after they met. “One of the first gifts I received from Benjamin was a pair of hiking boots to hike the Swiss Alps”, Alitta remembers. She was given the unusual gift when she visited Benjamin in Switzerland, where he was living and working back then. A couple of alpine hikes and four-by-four tours later, the two knew they were meant for one another (“No, but seriously, any couple should go off-roading together – it’s the ultimate relationship test”, Alitta says, laughing). I had done a couple of crazy things before, like hiking across the desert. Now I realized I didn’t have to do that by myself anymore.”
I was just so happy to have found a person to do these sorts of trips with.
After Alitta had moved to Switzerland, the two decided to purchase their very own off-road vehicle. “We had these amazing travel plans, which included lots of off-roading and lots of remote places”, says Benjamin. “So we both wanted a G-Class. Its technology is amazing, we love the square look – and we’re both from Stuttgart, even though we do of course know it’s made in Austria”, he adds. “It really was the best day when we bought it”, says Alitta. “When we were driving Gustav home that day, we knew we were onto something great …. as if our adventure was about to start”, says Benjamin.
Better together
An adventure in its own right.
That being said, they embarked on their very first adventure – just not quite the one they’d had in mind initially. As Alitta and Benjamin were mapping out their first G-Class adventures on and off the road, a positive pregnancy test necessitated some changes. “At first, it seemed as if our adventure bubble had burst”, says Benjamin. “But then we just thought – wait, we can adjust our plans and still make it work.”
But with an island home base
Always on the road.
Fast forward eight years to a beautiful vineyard in central Mallorca, which is where the family has settled down for now – they consider it an extended, pandemic-induced stopover, as they plan on hitting the (off-)road again soon – and the five seem like they’ve never done anything else than travel the world together with their G-Class and set up camp in different (all equally beautiful) locations.
A somewhat different kids’ room
Companion on four wheels.
While Alitta gives Benjamin precise instructions on how to place the right front wheel on a stone to get the car level (to set up their rooftop tent), the children wait inside the car without fussing. After Gustav is parked, the three buzz around, chasing and teasing each other, laughing, and climbing inside the rooftop tent with ease. As their eldest son Merlin conjures up giant soap bubbles – it looks like Alitta and Benjamin have managed to keep the adventure bubble intact, after all.
The G-Class gives us the luxury of adventure.
“Gustav has taken us to places that were inaccessible to us before, and we’ve met people along the way we wouldn’t want to miss.” Alitta feels the same, after all, she did admit that she would love to keep Gustav forever so that one day, their kids could drive it. “G-Class? It’s a love story for us.”
Across the Desert with the G-Class
Off to New Adventures.
While Alitta Klein and Benjamin Arnold have traveled Europe and Northern Africa extensively with Gustav – their G-Class – there is one place they loved driving across most: the Sahara. The couple traveled across Morocco, Tunisia, and Mauretania – and experienced quite a few adventures along the way.
