Camping is one of Australia’s favorite pass times, us Aussie’s love getting out in the great outdoors. Weather it’s the bush, the beach, mountain ranges, beside a lake or river and maybe even the red desert. That is why we take choosing a place to sleep while on our camping trips so serious. Its only getting harder to choose as these days there are so many options on the market. Everything from swags, canvas tents, nylon tents, pop up tents and even roof top tents.

The invention of the swag dates back to the 1800’s, back then mostly seasonal agricultural workers would roam around doing odd jobs on farms including rounding up cattle, labour work and shearing sheep. These men were known as swagman.

Swags have changed a lot over the years becoming more and more luxurious with so many modern-day creature comforts. A traditional swag was made to be carried on the backs of the swagman therefore portability was essential. Particularly as swagman roamed extremely vast distances as unlike most European countries Australia in the 1800’s was an incredibly spread-out landscape. That is why the traditional swag was essentially a large piece of canvas that rolled up a mattress. So, swagman would lay out in the open on hot summer Aussie nights but then if it where to rain they would lay the canvas over the top of themselves. So, a good way to describe it would be like a waterproof sleeping bag with a small mattress. 

These days portable swags have improved a lot, one of the biggest improvements would probably have to be weather proofing. Modern swags are built extremely waterproof as long as you buy a quality brand. Canvas construction has certainly updated in the last 200 years, now we have something called a GSM rating which stands for grams per square meter. To get a Canvas swag that is super waterproof you should look for GSM rating of 400GSM. Another good note is you want your Roll-up swag to be highly durable and built tough because a tear in your Roll-up swag will really put a damper on your trip. A good rule of thumb is to look for a polycotton canvas Ripstop construction. But water doesn’t always come from the sky, morning dew is a big issue as unlike your bed at home a Portable swag is on the ground. Therefore, Aussie swags have been designed with plastic floor lining. Make sure you get a heavy-duty 450GSM PVC bucket floor offering excellent waterproof properties no matter what the weather is doing.

The Deluxe swags of today also have another major difference then to the ones back in the 1800’s. They feature tent poles, back in the day the swagman would either lay the canvas directly on their face or prop it up with a nearby stick. As you never know what the weather will do on your next adventure its important to make sure these poles are built tough, so you don’t blow away. A strong telescopic alloy spreader pole for your Aussie swag coupled with thick 10.2mm diameter collapsible tent poles will make strong winds a breeze.

The benefits of tent poles and a free-standing dome design is that now Traveler swags can feature canvas head and tail zip opening windows or the entire top door flap for ultimate ventilation on hot summer nights. The major benefit though is the unzippable canvas allows you to leave the high-quality midge and mozzie proof mesh of your Canvas swag down and zipped closed to ensure you sleep tight and that the bed bugs don’t bite. That is something the swagman back in the day would have certainly loved as there was also no bug spray. They would have also loved the mattress that Roll-up swags now feature, some premium brands offer lushes 50mm thick high density foam mattresses so you can Drift off to sleep with ease.

Portable swags today also come in all shapes and sizes, the old way was just suited to sleep one person and that was it but now brands offer so many options for you some examples are the Supa Trail Double Swag which is known as a perfect middle ground between single sizes. For example, it is bigger than a Kings Kwiky Single Swag but is smaller than a premium model like a Kings Big Daddy Deluxe Double Swag. The Supa Trail Double Swag is the ideal size and weight for couples tight on storage room. Alternately if you’re a solo sleeper that likes a bit more wiggle room then the Supa Trail Swag is also the perfect size for you.

Always look for an Aussie swag that is affordable quality, as you don’t want to get just the cheapest as you might regret it when you’re in the middle of the night soaking wet. But also, a quality night’s sleep under the stars, shouldn’t break the bank. So, look for a Double swag that is both affordable but checks all the right boxes as far as quality. As previously mentioned, the key components of quality being the canvas construction, the mesh density, material of the flooring and the strength and thickness of the included poles all these will ensure you have a quality Deluxe swag.

Double or Single swag have improved so much from the original designs, but the major benefit of the tradition swag was simplicity. With that in mind when doing your research find a brand that features an easy-to-use design so you can quickly assemble your Canvas swag and have your camp setup in no time so you can kick back and relax sooner as that’s what camping is all about. So be sure that your Roll-up swag features a twin pole, free standing, dome construction with optional head and tail awnings for ultimate air flow and rain protection.

So, in conclusion Portable swags have been part of the Australian culture for over 200 years, because what is more Aussie than getting to the bush, the beach, mountain ranges, beside a lake or river and maybe even the red desert. Enjoying the great outdoors is part of who Aussies are, so go out and grab yourself a swag so you can head on your next adventure.