It’s pretty much the end of another Summer. The heat is starting to be a little more bearable, the nights are turning cooler, and my daughter is starting pre-school in just a few short weeks.

We wanted to make the most of it by heading on a family camping trip, from Vancouver, through the mountains and across to Merritt, BC. The smoke from the wildfires wasn’t too bad and actually helped keep the sun’s glare at bay.

For this trip, we borrowed the 2018 Ford Explorer and were incredibly grateful to have it. My daughter’s pack-n-play/crib, bike, toys, food, and clothes seem to take up more space each time we leave the house. Then there was the cooler, tent, air mattress, camping chairs, pillows, etc., etc., etc.

The Explorer had enough room to fit everything we needed to bring, plenty that we didn’t need to bring but packed because we had space and even a few things for the other people in our camping party.

The third row of seats folds down at the touch of a button to reveal a spacious trunk, going from 7 seats to 5. It’s a real comfort to know you can just throw everything in there and not have to struggle with squeezing in the necessities.

It has a very similar look to the Range Rover, with a solid build, strong engine and a beautiful exterior.

One of my personal favourites was the auto-parallel parking feature, where you can just press it as you’re pulling up to a space and follow the instructions. It does a perfect job every time!

It’s a really comfortable drive and even the longest of sunny afternoon drives are a breeze. I turned on the A/C seats and had a cool bum while I would normally have been sweating and getting angry at the cars hanging out in the passing lane.

My daughter was very excited about sitting with me as we pretended to drive and just loved pressing all the buttons, of which there are just the right amount. They are easy to understand, their placement throughout the dash, steering wheel, on the seat, and the console all make perfect sense and are straightforward to find.

I would genuinely recommend this SUV for families who spend a lot of time commuting and like to plan adventures out of town on the weekend or for family vacations.

The ride is really smooth, thanks to the Independent front and rear suspension systems, making it a perfect way to get a cranky toddler to sleep! In fact, we took her for a drive during both afternoons we were away and she’d be asleep within 5 minutes, even when we drove over the bumpy cattle grids.

There’s lots of room inside, which makes it a great road-tripper. This is the Limited edition, which has:

• Hill start assist
• Intelligent 4 wheel drive
• 2.3L EcoBoost^®I-4 engine
• 110V power outlet
• 12V powerpoints, 4 total (2 first row, 1 2nd row, 1 cargo area)
• Cruise control
• Ambient Lighting
• Auto-Dimming Rearview Mirror
• Front 180-degree Camera with Washer
• Remote Start
• Reverse Sensing System
• Forward Sensing System
• AdvanceTrac^®  with Roll Stability Control™ (RSC^® )
• Traction control
• Belt-Minder^®
• Front Passenger Knee Airbag
• LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tether Anchors for Children)
• Safety Canopy^®  System
• SOS Post-Crash Alert System™
• NHTSA 5-Star Crash Safety Rating
• and so, so much more (listed here)

We’re a Ford family

Here’s more info from the Ford.ca website, including price and specs on the 2018 Ford Explorer.

Disclaimer: Thanks to Ford Canada for loaning me the Ford Explorer in exchange for an honest and unbias review. It genuinely is a great car and as soon as I upgrade from our Ford Focus, I’m getting one!