It’s the age old debate which never seems to be settled and for very good reason. It’s near impossible to decide on which is better than the other because both swags and rooftop tents have so many benefits and are equally amazing ways to camp! So in an effort to help you decide on which one you should choose, I’m going to do my very best to come up with the benefits and the down falls on each which will hopefully let you decide.

First up, lets talk Rooftop Tent benefits:  

Quick and easy set up
Hands down the biggest benefit to any style rooftop tent is just how quick and easy they are to set up. As mentioned, there are a few different styles of kings rooftop tents and each one is insanely quick to set up, with the quickest being under 30 seconds. That’s right- our Grand Tourer MKII Rooftop Tent can be fully set up and ready for bed in just 30 seconds. This again would have to be the biggest benefit to running a rooftop tent on your rig, because it means less time setting up and more time kicking back and relaxing which is an absolute win in my books! Even the fold out style rooftop tent  like our Tourer Rooftop Tent  only takes a couple of minuets to be fully set up.

Leave Your Bedding Inside When Packed Up
Every model of rooftop tent offered by Adventure Kings has enough space inside for you to leave all of your sleeping gear inside when they are packed up. That means the Kings Rooftop Tents have more than enough space to store gear like pillows, bedsheets, sleeping bags or blankets without hassle. This not only speeds up the setup process because it means you don’t have to set up your sleeping area every time you pull into camp, but it also frees up a massive amount of space inside of your 4wd while you are on the road.

Up Off The Ground
Another huge win when it comes to camping in a Rooftop Tent is of course the fact that you are up off the ground and away from creepy crawlies. This will definitely keep the missus happy and allow her to sleep like a baby knowing that she’s way out of reach for any insects or spiders to come in and say g’day.  
Another benefit to camping up off the ground in a rooftop tent is that you’re able to escape the worst of the weather both hot and cold. When it’s boiling hot in the middle of summer, you’ll find that opening up the windows allows that beautiful summer breeze to roll through, keeping you nice and cool on the hottest of summer nights. A quick note here is that all Kings Rooftop Tents feature the same ultra high quality midge proof mesh which again, keep the bugs out, but lets the breeze in.

Unbeatable Views
You really can’t beat the epic views you get to wake up to when you are out camping in a rooftop tent. Imagine waking up early in the morning on the beach and not having to get out of bed to watch the sun rise! I reckon this would have to be one of my favourite things about camping in a Kings Rooftop Tent.

Okay, so those are the main benefits of camping in a rooftop tent. Now lets talk about a few potential downsides.

Additional Height
One of the main disadvantages of running a rooftop tent is the fact that they can add extra height to your vehicle. This means you may not be able to fit into some shopping centre car parks or maybe not even in your own garage. This could also be a problem if you come across a downed tree that you’d need to go underneath to get to the next track or campsite. But hey, that’s just another reason to carry a chainsaw and a drag chain in your car when you’re out bush.  The additional height on the top of your rig can also create a bit of wind drag when you’re out on the open road which can in turn make your fuel economy climb slightly. It wont make a massive difference, but its definitely something to think about.

Not Practical to fit & remove between trips
Rooftop Tents can weigh anywhere between 50 kilograms and 90 kilograms depending on which style you’re running which means they aren’t exactly easy to fit and remove after every trip unless you have a couple of mates on call to give you a hand. There are ways to get around this, though. I had a mate who rigged up a set of block and tackles in his shed, so all he needed to do was reverse the rig into the shed, undo the bolts holding the rooftop tent to the roofrack, then lift the tent off with the block and tackles and drive out.

Midnight Toilet Run
So the biggest downfall of camping in any rooftop tent would have to be waking up in the middle of the night needing to pee. We’ve all played that mental game of laying there for 20 minuets trying to convince ourselves to just climb down and get it over and done with.

Alrighty, lets talk

:

Quick to Set Up:
Much like Rooftop Tents, Swags are super quick and easy to set up- taking in most cases just a couple of minuets to set up. Again, this is such a vital quality when it comes to camping accommodation because it means less time fighting with guy ropes and tent poles and more time sitting around the fire and taking in the serenity.

Built in Mattress:
Like with a rooftop tent, the swag mattress  gets stored inside the swag and rolled up and away once it’s packed up. If you have a big enough swag bag like the Kings Premium Canvas Swag Bag, you can also leave your bedding including sleeping bags and pillows inside the swag when you pack it up too. This again saves a bunch of space in your 4wd and also speeds up set up the next time you head out camping.

Easy to Transport:
Unlike a rooftop tent, the major benefit to running a swag is the fact that you can simply chuck them up on top of your roof rack and strap them down or throw it in the back of the 4wd and when you come home you can store it in the shed for the next time you head out bush. This means you can still fit in carparks and in most cases- your own garage.

Massive amount of space:
The Big Daddy Deluxe Swag from Adventure Kings has just about the most amount of space inside compared to almost anything on the market today. We have literally fit an entire queen mattress inside of one just to prove a point! That means there’s ample space inside for couples and even enough room for your little ones too if they’re young enough.

And the potential downsides to Swag Camping are as follows:

May feel claustrophobic:
Despite the enormous amount of space inside of modern canvas swags, they may still make some people feel a little bit claustrophobic to some people.

Sleeping on the ground:
The main downside to Swag Camping is the fact that you’re down on the ground. That means you might feel a few rocks or sticks under your mattress and you’ll also feel a lot more of the cold in winter. There are definitely ways to mitigate this though. Setting up your single swag on top of a stretcher bed being one.

There you go! Hopefully this gives you a better idea of the pros and cons to each camping accommodation.