Campbell set out on his journey in 1781 overland through Europe and then via Venice and Alexandria to the Levant. He was shipwrecked in the Indian Ocean on the coast of Madras and was captured by the soldiers of Hyder Ali. His description of Cyprus is in Letter 26, pp. 169-174. He spent two days on the island. He returned to England in 1786.
A Journey Over Land To India, Partly By A Route Never Gone Before By Any European, By Donald Campbell, of Barbreck, Esq. Who Formerly Commanded A Regiment Of Cavalry In The Service Of His Highness The Nabob Of The Carnatic. In A Series Of Letters To His Son. Comprehending His Shipwreck And Imprisonment With Hyder Alli, And His Subsequent Negociations And Transactions In The East. ... London, Printed For Cullen And Company, No. 54, Pall-Mall. 1795.