4×4 Car Hire in Uganda with a Roof Top Tent + Camping
What They Do Not Tell You About Rooftop Tents- Pros And Cons
Camping safaris are often the best way to experience the African wilderness. Whenever you mention camping safaris, there are several things to consider, ranging from tents, mattresses, sleeping bags, and camping lights to a lot of other gear that comes along.
There are always several options to choose from when you consider camping on your trip, some of which we have identified above. But let us zoom out to consider the different camping tents you can choose for your trip, and explore the pros and cons of choosing a particular kind of tent for your camping safari.
Hard Shell Rooftop tent
Rooftop Tent Camping in Uganda
A rooftop tent is a tent mounted on the roof of a car, allowing you to use the car’s roof as your camping ground. Anyone who is not comfortable sleeping on the ground during their wilderness camping safari would prefer a rooftop.
However, there are many rooftop tents out there, and you have to be specific about which type you would like to go for. One of the things to consider when choosing a rooftop tent is the mattress size and the number of people it can accommodate, which all influence the cost of hiring a particular rooftop tent.
Ikamper Sky camp 2.0 (Hard Shell)
It comes with an expandable king-size mattress that can offer enough space for four people (average-sized people). It is often preferred because of its hard shell, which makes it easy to set up. It has three window spots, also offering a sunroof-like window to let in extra light. It is opened by unfolding it to the side.
Roofnests Sandpiper
The sandpiper offers ample space for two adults and has a rectangular appearance. It can carry up to 100 pounds on its top. Unlike most rooftop tents, the Sandpiper pops up. It has 4 windows in total.
Feldon Shelter Crow’s Nest
A rooftop tent offers enough sleeping space for two people. It also has a 180 ° unfolding, making it not as fast to set up as the Ikamper or the Alu-cab.
Alu-Cab’s Generation 3
The tent has 3-point access, with a door and a window on either side. It has a 45 ° pop-up style to open the tent, with a hard-shell structure just like the Ikamper; this makes it one of the quickest tents to set up.
The tent can also carry extra gear on top, such as kayaks, solar panels to provide power for phone charging, and other simple accessories.
FSR High Country Edition
Known for reliability, it can sleep up to three adults and also offers a total of three windows. It has a 180 ° unfolding, unlike most other tents, such as the Ikamper Sky camp.
Hardshell VS Softshell Rooftop Tents
Rooftop tents can be classified into two types: hardshell and softshell. Most hardshell rooftop tents have a pop-up opening, while softshell rooftop tents have a 180 ° opening. Out of the above-shared options, some are hard-shell rooftop tents, while others are soft-shell rooftop tents.
Pros of Hardshell Rooftop tents
- They are easier to set up than soft-shell rooftop tents.
- Some hard-shell rooftop tents have vertical walls that create more space inside the tent.
- They can carry extra luggage on top of the rooftop tent, unlike soft-shell rooftop tents.
Cons of Hardshell Rooftop Tents
- They are heavier than soft-shell rooftop tents, so they are not as common on Uganda road trips as soft-shell tents.
- They are also the most expensive; therefore, any company that considers the market competition would often prefer softshells, since they are often cheaper than hardshell rooftop tents.
Pros of Softshell Rooftop Tents
- They are lighter, thus easier to install on the car.
- Very common on Uganda rooftop tent safaris, unlike the hard-shell rooftop tents.
- They are cheaper than hardshell rooftop tents, so you can easily get one from any self-drive car rental company.
Cons of Soft-shell Rooftop Tents
- It might take more than 5 minutes to set up or close after setup.
Rooftop Tents Vs Ground Tents
Below are some of the pros and cons of rooftop tents vs pros and cons of the ground tents
Rooftop tents pro’s and con’s
| Rooftop Tents Pro’s | Rooftop Tents Con’s |
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Ground Tents Pro’s and Con’s
| Ground Tent Pro’s | Ground Tent Con’s |
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With the above comparisons, the only reason you would opt for a ground tent is the ladder required for you to enter the rooftop tent which might be a little bit inconvenient and its cost is more than triple of a basic ground tent.