Why a Roof-Top Tent is Better than a Ground Tent

[@glennferrer6349]

As much as RTT are great... I don’t want extra weight, pay $$$, or takes away space. I have a T4 Gazelle that works great for me

[@jcberb]

No RTT for me...large dogs. I'll stick with ground tents. I cannot even argue it is because of cost... between both ground tents I bought I could have bought a large RTT. Between our dogs and kids my wife and I have two separate tents, 6 man 4 season and a 8 man tent. Older kids like their own space so I accommodate to keep the peace. Some of the dogs and younger kids are with me. Older kid, other dogs and wife in the other tent.

[@KMW63]

ROOF-TOP!!!!!!!

[@Burritosarebetterthantacos]

We really want a rooftop tent because its fast but I also like my bulldog. Currently have a Marmot Halo 6 which fits a small army.

[@ianplaysbass]

People who think a ground tent is better, can’t afford a roof top tent.

[@Colorado4x4]

Subscribed! Great video and awesome channel. I thought I would never go with a RTT honestly. Well, last year I took the family out and set up the wall tent and everyone loved it and my buddy convinced me to buy a RTT. I love it. It’s so nice to be “in a bed” and off the ground 👍🏻

[@woolengrappler]

We currently have a Kodiak Canvas 8 person tent for our family of 3. The tent is great, but it weighs 80lbs and takes up a lot of space on the car. It works great for basecampjng, but I think we’ll look at a roof top tent for future family exploring. In my opinion the biggest downsides to a roof top tent are fuel economy and weight distribution. A lot of people claim that ground tents are cheaper, but when you add it cots, good mattresses, good sleeping bags and other items the cost can be similar to a cheaper roof top tent.

[@bquade70]

Excellent vid.... But...Not with dogs, plus makes for a to heavy load... Sticking with ground tents👍👍.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

Dog sleeps outside. Either way.

[@djdrisco123]

My favorite thing is that a good quality Roof tent is 4K and increases gas costs, where a really great quality ground tent is 400 and doesn't increase gas cost. I love spending money, and this does it for me.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

You’re not wrong. However a ground tent doesn’t have to support the weight of sleepers, doesn’t come with a pad, and can’t hold your sleeping bag when packed up. Pricing is probably closer to $2500 for your average RTT.

[@renodemona]

Really well done vid with some good points, the cost of the RTT is a major barrier for many, especially for a larger one. When I do multi day movement trips its just me so I don't mind throwing down my little tiny tent, and when its the whole fam we set up a base camp so our tent-mahal works really well. Plus I can stand up in it to change. I would be interested in maybe renting that bad boy to test out though, that's a cool idea.

[@donotrobme9295]

Any other vids of this tent. Curious a lot about the size for the four of u in there. Is this a four person tent as in comfortable for two or is it a eight person tent comfortable for four etc

[@AllTerrainFamily]

I have a review of this tent. This is NOT big enough for us all. But we have a tepui on the trailer that is.

[@michaelcbakker]

Heyo! Thanks for the vid! How did you mount the tent to the roof rack rails? I have a 3 gen 4runner with a gen2 xl and am struggling to get it mounted neatly to my roof. I was considering the sherpa roof rack feet as an option with some 80-20 tubing. Im just not sure that the gen 2 xl tent rails will not overlap with the sherpa brackets (giving me an awkward mounting spot - unsure if this makes sense - its surprisingly tough to communicate :)

[@TroutWest]

Have you slammed on your brakes and swerved hard with that on your roof? I want to see how that goes. As for me I still prefer the kame rite tent cot oversized. You're off the ground and it's comfortable beyond any air mattress or foam.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

Yes. It’s not ideal, but it’s also not as bad as yours think.

[@Kimey297]

Lol! Love the intro.

[@rael6_4wd]

I’m really looking forward to it. Roof rack first, then I’ll be shopping for a RTT. OIIIIIIIO

[@Dukeanddjango]

Knowing how the winds can pick up in the state, what's your opinion on the impact of that while sleeping? Body rock and such.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

I expect it would be pretty awful in wind.

[@Desertpunk1986]

We had a guy wake up with motion sickness here in CO at high altitude. Said it was like sitting in a tug boat at high chop. Dude was throwing up everywhere. Lol. I felt bad for him. Cool looking tent though.

[@Dukeanddjango]

@@Desertpunk1986 that's terrifying

[@AllTerrainFamily]

There’s movement, but that seems unlikely.

[@Danny_Ruth]

Y’all sleep 2 adults and 2 kids in that?! I’ve been trying to decide between that one or the XL version because my wife and I have two toddlers.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

No. We have a XL that “fits” all of us.

[@kfbob364]

Most roof top tents take longer to set up than my Kodiak tent which takes around 5 minutes. Also I am 6-5 and I can stand up and walk around in my tent. 3rd, that type of roof top tent takes a long time to take down and put the cover on it.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

Those take up a lot of space in your car though.

[@FelixV]

where can I buy a roof top a family of 4? I have no much luck..

[@AllTerrainFamily]

Tepui and CVT make 8 foot models.

[@OverlandPNW]

I have an RTT now and love it. Pros and cons to everything but, for me, I love the RTT.

[@punktexas]

The comments are very negative but the thumbs up are positive. Strange. That's VERY odd. You never mentioned the negatives.

[@HarrySituations]

I’m happy to help in that regard! 🤣

[@AllTerrainFamily]

Subscribe, that video is coming.

[@Dayhaus]

What if you have little kids and need to pee in the middle of the night.. or when your on site and need to grab something in town.. that means you have to pack everything up again.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

Little kids don’t pee at night as much as 40 something dads. And getting down from the rtt isn’t harder than getting out of a tent, just different. But packing up is an issue.

[@soothingmeow22]

Looks like it fits a fam of 4 in it

[@AllTerrainFamily]

Not this one. But we ask for in the tepui on the trailer.

[@getrickygervaisstuff]

This is a mental video.

[@jeromeburrasca6710]

Or you could have a lifted off-road Suburban and comfortably sleep inside and easily drive away if your rig gets attacked by bears, mountain lions and who knows what else at 3 am. Haha! :)

[@AllTerrainFamily]

I’ve slept inside a vehicle 4 times in my life and each time it felt like a failure.

[@donotrobme9295]

@@AllTerrainFamily I’ve slept inside vehicle due to failures of tent or too dark and extreme bad weather. Granted the person commenting here might have a pimped out suburban but I was on I thought a flat suv with room to spare and it was awful

[@jeromeburrasca6710]

Nope, a air mattress, pillows and warm sleeping bag inside a full-size Suburban always leaves me refreshed and ready for eggs and bacon in the morning before a scenic nature hike the next day. Hell, I can even watch a movie on dvd if the weather turns crappy. :)

[@ianplaysbass]

@@jeromeburrasca6710 that’s not camping imo.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

Don’t gatekeep camping. It’s whatever you need it to be.

[@risbill1]

It's a fad. Sure it has a couple advantages but having to climb a lader at 3am to pee would be no fun. Also you have to break it all down just to move your vehicle.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

Climbing down the ladder means you don’t have to stand up from lying down, then stoop to get out of the tent. I’ve found it not worse than a tent, particularly a small tent you can’t stand up in. Just different compromise. Definitely not a fad. Just not for everyone. That said, it better on a trailer so you can still use your vehicle.

[@risbill1]

@@AllTerrainFamily We will have to disagree about whether or not it's a fad. Like most things on KZbin people see it and think they have to have it. I have been tent camping every year for more than 40 years. I would never want one of these especially for the price comparison.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

@@risbill1 People have been saying RTTs are a fad for long enough that even that can't be considered a fad anymore.

[@Desertpunk1986]

You would genuinely be surprised how old RTT are. They made them for Fiats back in the 50’s. I’m talking pop up hinged ones! I just went down a rabbit hole because Eid your comment. Lol. Check out: Maggiolina

[@risbill1]

@@Desertpunk1986 I understand they aren't new. All I'm saying is that the current surge in popularity is more due to social media than their actual usefulness. Just my opinion.

[@adkcampadventures]

If you do your research, ground tents are better. I can set my Gazelle up with the mattress pads in under 15 minutes. Ultimately, the one area not mentioned (obviously) is cost. There is no reason for a RTT to be over $1500. It’s just a tent on a foldable construction with a ladder.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

One of the main places a ground tent is better is in weather resistance. We have an REI kingdom thats roomy and great in the wind and the rain. I’m not a fan of the gazelle for its high profile design and weak rain fly. It does look fast to set up though, but not as fast as my RTT!

[@adkcampadventures]

@@AllTerrainFamily I was worried about the high profile with wind but so far so good. As for rain, no chance. This thing is impressive with sealed seams. I went through 3 days of torrential downpours and not a drop got it. It’s great for ventilation too.

[@mojavered.]

Only KZbinrs and mall crawling "overlanders" have rooftop tents....

[@AllTerrainFamily]

Seems that way sometimes. We’ve had ours out in some cool remote places.

[@donotrobme9295]

They’re popular in our valley.

[@marcusmayhemadventures6479]

Great video. Good points. If i ever get the a trailer built I'll probably get one. My truck is already really tall. I also loved the AntiFa joke. We all know how them Trumpers are scared of them. Also great little jab at their conspiracy theory about the QAnon shaman guy actually being AntiFa.

[@m.hernandez1404]

I'll stick to sleeping on my mama earth.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

Yep. That skin to earth contact is hard to beat.

[@ricbrady]

I was digging everything you were saying, until you got to the “pine box” metaphor. You sound like a fairly articulate guy, couldn’t you come up with anything else to make your point,,,, maybe a little more “classy”.

[@AllTerrainFamily]

I was hoping the antifa joke was going to be the low point. But you can never tell with these things.

[@donotrobme9295]

Loved the video. Be yourself. Cancel culture is coming from everywhere regardless so u might as well be u. And I be me. Tell whatever jokes u can before jokes are officially dead. Anyone thinking of buying this tent should feed the same way!!!

[@AllTerrainFamily]

You may be thinking of Consequence Culture. If you’re getting shut down for the things you say then that’s your problem.

[@Spack005]

@@AllTerrainFamily I liked the Antifa joke