Tents vs swags vs caravans vs camper trailers….Explorer Sarah has in contrast all variations of household tenting setups so yow will discover the very best one for you for a profitable household journey to the outside.
It’s the primary query on all journey mum or dad’s minds – what’s the very best tenting setup for the fam? Is there one tenting setup that can be utilized for all eventualities or are you destined to have a storage stuffed with swags, tents, and camper trailers so you’ll be able to deal with any journey? I requested round households who use totally different setups to search out out the professionals and cons of every. Let’s dive in.
Finest Tenting Setups for Households
1. The Large ‘Ole Household Tent
The OG of tenting, the tent has been round in some kind or one other for 1000’s of years.
Tents are available in many sizes and shapes — from pop-up, to inflatable, to good previous click-together poles. Lately the know-how is such that you must keep dry and comfortable inside your tent even within the wildest of climate. And, relying on the dimensions of your loved ones, you will get tents with separate rooms and sleeping areas, too.
Learn extra: 5 Straightforward Set Up & Spacious Household Sized Tents
We Are Explorers’ Josh Fletcher from Southeast QLD instructed me about his expertise with organising for household tenting journeys. ‘Going from an ultralight 2P mountain climbing tent to one thing that accommodates three (or 2.5) has taken a little bit of time to get used to — primarily due to its dimension and weight’, he instructed me.
‘For tenting we now use an Oztent RS4 which has heaps of room and you may even rise up in it, which helps with getting modified’.
Professionals: Some folks take into account tents to be the one actual tenting expertise. Low cost to purchase in comparison with different choices, you don’t should tow it or have a automobile that may tow. No rego or upkeep prices both.
Cons: You must purchase every thing individually to go inside it – cooking gear, beds, and bedding. Arrange and pack up might take longer. If it’s extremely popular, chilly or moist it won’t be as snug as a van or trailer. Tents can go mouldy in the event you don’t dry them out earlier than you pack them away.
2. The Squeeze-Your-Household-Inside Mountaineering Tent
Light-weight and packable in your backpack or bikepack, these tents hold it actual easy.
You may assume your days of utilizing your loved one ultralight tent are over when you may have children, however We Are Explorers Founder, and Papa Bear to 2 children, Henry Brydon, has taken his tiny Explorers on in a single day hikes utilizing the Blackwolf Mantis 2P mountain climbing tent and had a blast.
‘What I really like most about tenting is simplicity and discovering quiet locations to name house for the night time. Mountaineering into the bush with my children has at all times been my most popular escape route! While peace, solitude, and delightful experiences may be discovered this manner, the primary downside to this type of tenting is the added weight I’ve to lug round on my again! As they become older they begin to carry extra themselves’, he stated.
‘However when your children are small you must be nicely ready – it’s all about embracing your inside pack-horse’.
Professionals: Excellent for walk-in tenting (in the event you and the youngsters can pack gentle!) for one to 2 nights. Straightforward to hold and small to retailer.
Cons: Mountaineering/ultralight tents may be dearer than an everyday tent. As a result of compact dimension, it’s unlikely you’re going to wish to use one for just a few weeks, so that you may need to have separate tents for journeys of various durations.
3. Household Swag
What’s a swag? The Australian swag developed over time from the travelling farmworkers and miners within the 1800s who used to hold their possessions or swag, together with a easy mattress, on their backs. Lately, it refers to a single or double tent with a mattress rolled inside.
Some come on a stretcher so that you sleep raised off the bottom. On preliminary inspection, you may assume they’d be no good for household tenting, however plenty of households use them.
Learn extra: The way to Select a Swag – The Final Information
Whether or not you may have youngsters that desire a little bit of independence from the household caravan, or you may have younger children and might bundle right into a double swag with them — swags may be a superb answer to the household tenting setup conundrum.
Professionals: Fast and easy to arrange, often nicely constructed, and can final for a few years.
Cons: Might be dearer and extra cumbersome/heavy than a tent, however has the mattress already included.
4. Household Rooftop Tent
The rooftop tent has developed lately and may be something from a easy fold-out canvas construction to a hella fancy electrical automated quantity.
NSW Explorer Carly, and Mum of two groms, instructed WAE about her expertise with a household rooftop tent.
‘Our rooftop tent is the perfect getaway accommodation because of how quick the set up and pack down is. I know as a family of four we’ll outgrow it rapidly, however while the youngsters are little we’ll get pleasure from our compact setup.’
Professionals: Cheaper than a caravan or camper trailer. Don’t should have a automobile that may tow or pay to register a trailer. Spacious and has good airflow since you’re up a bit larger. The mattress is already included so that you don’t have to purchase a mattress.
Cons: You must pack up each time you wish to drive wherever, however you’ll be able to overcome this by attaching it to a trailer (which you’d then have to take care of and pay to register). There’s additionally nowhere undercover that’s standing peak, however you will get a zip-on awning that creates an extension of your indoor space underneath the tent and in addition means you’ll be able to entry your automobile with out going outdoors.
Learn extra: Roof High Tent vs Swag – What’s The Finest Automobile Tenting Set Up?
5. Household Camper Trailer
Camper trailers may be something from a small trailer with a mattress and a comfortable flooring, to a big trailer with the footprint of a caravan that has a kitchen, seating, storage, and unwinds with pull-out canvas beds on every finish.
We travelled round Australia with our Jayco Swan camper trailer and six-month-old bub and had a blast. The arrange and pack up was fast as soon as you bought the routine down, however I did want just a few instances that we had our personal gray water tank and bathroom as a result of we might have been capable of make the most of much more campsites in Tassie and the NT that require them.
Professionals: Might be 4WD. Can get one with a heater in the event you’re going someplace chilly. Camper trailers are simpler to tow and to retailer than a full caravan as a result of they pack down decrease to go in garages.
Cons: Want a towing automobile. You possibly can’t tow different issues like a ship (though folks do put tinnies on the roof!). The canvas wants upkeep and might’t be packed away moist. Normally there’s no bathroom or bathe.
6. Household Caravan
A caravan is a house away from house, with all the fashionable conveniences you’ll be able to consider. You possibly can have something from a reasonably easy inside to a contemporary affair with a full peak household fridge, oven, and even a washer!
Dimension and value range vastly relying on the kind of van you select. Nationwide stats present that caravan and campervan registrations throughout Australia have grown 21% within the final 5 years. In 2023 there have been virtually 859,000 caravans and campervans registered throughout the nation.
We Are Explorer’s Josh Fletcher has a Jawa Infinity 13 Hybrid Caravan.
‘It’s totally off-grid and off-road, which is nice for escaping to someplace quiet, whereas nonetheless having the comforts wanted to work remotely. Plus it has a chosen single mattress for the grom’, he instructed me.
Professionals: Virtually no arrange time. You will get 4WD choices, they often have a rest room, bathe, and gray water assortment so that you may be self-sufficient and use most free camps. With the addition of photo voltaic panels on the roof you’ll be able to simply journey off the grid.
Cons: That is most likely the most costly household tenting setup. You must be assured reversing a trailer and have a automobile with a big towing capability. Upkeep and servicing, rego, and security certificates are all additional yearly prices. Not all campsites settle for caravans.
7. Household Motorhome
A motorhome or van is a caravan and automobile multi function.
Like a caravan, you do should do some tidying earlier than you set off to verify every thing is safe and isn’t going to fly round while you flip your first nook, however you’ve obtained every thing you want shut handy.
Professionals: If you flip as much as a campsite all you must do is park. You don’t even have to get out of the motorhome to go from the driving force’s seat to the dwelling and sleeping space in most cases. Relying on the dimensions, motorhomes usually have a rest room and bathe.
Cons: You must pack up each time you wish to drive wherever as a result of your transport and lodging are one and the identical. If the automobile half stops working it may be an costly repair or contain writing off the van.
What to Take into account When Selecting a Household Tenting Setup
Bathrooms
Whether or not you go for a setup with its personal bathroom will rely on the place you propose to camp and the sorts of journey you do.
My husband at all times laughs at folks ‘taking their poo for a walk’ as they wheel their caravan’s bathroom cassette throughout the campsite to the dump level, and vows he won’t ever get a caravan with a rest room for that very motive. However, I’m positive he may change his thoughts as soon as our youngsters are out of nappies and he’s accomplished just a few midnight runs to the bathroom block within the rain.
Showers
The climate has a huge effect on the bathe sitch. In the event you’re up north swimming all day, a photo voltaic bathe to rinse everybody off will most likely be okay. However in the event you’re someplace with cooler climate, a scorching bathe inside your caravan may make all of the distinction.
Cooking
Camp cooking appears totally different to each journey household. There’ll be foodies that prepare dinner elaborate fare and different households that rapidly throw collectively a sausage sizzle to feed everybody between actions.
From caravans with ovens, grills, cooktops, and full fridges, to a BBQ and an esky with ice behind your automobile – there’s no proper or fallacious! You do have to contemplate what kind of camp prepare dinner you’re planning to be and select your setup accordingly.
Sleeping
Since having children sleep has turn into extra vital than ever. Mattress alternative each for fogeys and children may imply the distinction between cranky household tenting and fun-filled reminiscences.
Probably the greatest issues we did after we obtained a brand new setup was doing a tester night time near house. In case you have house you possibly can even do it in your yard. You don’t wish to be shocked by one thing out within the bush, so at all times attempt it out first.
Issues to contemplate with sleeping preparations are: kind of mattress, separate sleeping areas, how you can hold cool/heat, what number of beds you want, and mattress dimension. As with every thing, cash will come into it. You don’t need to spend so much if you understand it received’t final lengthy and the youngsters will develop out of it, however equally, you need everybody to like tenting as a lot as you do, so good tools is a should.
Enjoyable
One other factor to contemplate is why you’re going tenting and what you’ll do for enjoyable whilst you’re there. In the event you love fishing or water snowboarding and wish to camp on the dam for the weekend, towing a ship means you both want a non-towable tenting setup, or you must take two automobiles.
If enjoyable for you means 4WDing on distant sandy seashores you want a setup that may deal with the terrain.
In case your concept of an incredible weekend away tenting is pulling as much as a family-friendly caravan park, you won’t want a lot in the best way of kit as a result of they often have fairly nice camp kitchens and facilities blocks.
Household Tenting Setup Patrons Guidelines
Earlier than selecting the final word household tenting setup, seek the advice of this record to be sure to’ve thought of each side to make the fitting alternative for you and your loved ones.
- Price
- Arrange and pack up time
- Packing and unpacking at house
- Consolation
- Ease of cooking and cleansing whereas tenting
- Sustaining tools
- Storage
- Bathrooms
- Showers
- Cooking
- Sleeping
- Enjoyable
FAQs Household Tenting Setups
What’s the very best tenting setup for households?
The perfect tenting setup for your loved ones is determined by your loved ones’s wants, however choices like tents, camper trailers, and caravans provide totally different ranges of consolation and comfort.
Are tents good for household tenting journeys?
Tents are nice for households searching for an inexpensive basic tenting expertise. Relying on the dimensions of tent you select, you’ll be able to have separate rooms or one thing good and light-weight.
What’s the good thing about a camper trailer for household tenting?
Camper trailers are simple to tow and arrange, and so they usually include a built-in kitchen and sleeping areas which can be able to go from the second you park the automobile.
Can households use swags for tenting?
Sure! Double or household swags may be a superb, compact possibility for households who desire a fast and easy setup.
Are rooftop tents sensible for households?
Rooftop tents are perfect for households with youthful children, providing simple setup and nice airflow. They might really feel cramped as youngsters develop.
