Cape York’s Dry Season is here and now and that means only one thing 4WDers from around the country are gearing up to take the trip of a lifetime to cape York to experience one of the must have pilgrimages of Australia’s many 4WD destinations.

If your dream Cape York camping trip is coming up this year or if you are still in your planning stages for next year the chances are you’ve wondered about what type of camping accommodation is best suited for you and your family when you hit the Cape! After all, you’ve probably heard that there are heaps of crocs that lurk around up at the Cape – and what that means is anything on the ground is terrible idea… right?

The short answer is no, a good quality swag is a great way to camp up in Cape York!

However, there are 3 main types of camping accommodation have each have their own benefits for setting up and sleeping in. Let’s have a look at the 3 main choices, swags, Tents and Roof Top Tents by looking at these closely we can help you to make a wise decision about what the best setup for you is up in the Cape!

SWAGS

By chucking an innocuous swag in your 4WD and heading away camping is just about as Aussie as it can get! What we love the most about camping in a swag be it a single or a double swag, is just how simple they are to pitch when you hit camp and how comfortable they are. When you’re up at the Cape, you’ll want to spend every spare second you have soaking in the environment, each afternoon taking a dip (and a bit of a bath) in your choice of dozens of freshwater swimming holes, instead of battling that old canvas goliath that never seems to be put up the same way twice!

Yes, you do need to be croc-aware when you’re up in Cape York. Salties definitely do exist in the larger saltwater rivers that scatter across the Cape York Peninsula and the general rule of thumb is to camp at least 20m away from the waterline. If you find that you are still a little bit concerned about camping in a swag at Cape York, then the addition of an Adventure Kings Sumo Stretcher Bed is perfect. In fact, we love unrolling our Adventure Kings Single Escape swag wherever we are because getting up off the ground makes the already comfy 50mm thick mattress even more comfy than normal!

TENTS

The key to choosing a good tent is working out just how simple it is to setup. Simplicity is what will make a tent setup perfect. There’s little point spending half an hour every afternoon getting your tent set up, particularly when you are in a place like Cape York where you’re more than likely going to pull it down first thing the next morning and move on to a new campsite. That’s why we love the setup speed of the reliable Adventure Kings 3m x 3m gazebo and am easy to install gazebo tent, like the rest of the range in Adventure Kings gear. The camping gazebo is able to be setup in less than a minute by one person, simply peg 1 corner out and move the opposite leg away. Secure the tent to the gazebo frame using the Velcro ties. What’s even better, is on those really muggy Cape York nights, the gazebo tent has beautiful big windows and doors that can open to allow a fresh breeze in. Plus, at a massive 3m x 3m and over 3320mm tall in size, you’ll never feel stuffy or suffocated!

ROOF TOP TENTS

If there’s one type of camping accommodation we reckon is practically made for taking to Cape York, it’s a roof top tent. Having done the Cape multiple times in swags, tents and roof top tents, we reckon it’s a roof top tent that takes the cake. It will keep you up off the ground, which is a bonus because even in the dry season Cape York can have a lot of rain and stinking hot days. On hot nights you’re up in the air which lets your roof top tent catch any small bit of cool breeze that blows through and most importantly an Adventure Kings Roof Top Tent is quick to setup and pack up. Plus, sometimes you’ll come across some busy campsites where there’s not a whole lot of room to sprawl your campsite out. With a quality Roof Top Tent you can camp practically anywhere you can fit your 4WD to park it!

That’s a clean summary of what we recommend for getting your campsite sorted for a cape York trip to remember forever, so don’t hesitate, get sorted and head out to experience one of Australia’s most popular camping destination!