TWELVE Advantages of the Haven Tent Over Rooftop Tents (Part Two)
- Randy Reek, The Great Out There
- May 1
- 7 min read
How to spend THOUSANDS less than a #RTT and enjoy camping MORE with the Haven Tent!
For many, "overlanding" has become synonymous with rooftop tent camping. In the previous article, we looked at SIX reasons why the Haven Tent is superior to a rooftop tent. In this article we will look at more reasons why so many campers are choosing it over the ubiquitous rooftop tent.
Haven Tent Advantage Number 7: ACCESS to CAMPING SPOTS
Your rooftop tent will only go where you can drive or park your overlanding trailer or vehicle.
This means you need drivable access to several hundred square feet of nearly level ground. If you can’t drive there, you can’t camp there. Preferably, you also need to have clear space – free of brush and cactus - around the vehicle for climbing in and out.
But the Haven Tent System is a lightweight, compact, PORTABLE bundle.
You can carry your Haven Tent with one hand to the perfect spot – far beyond where you can drive. Leave your vehicle and walk down to the lake shore, up the ridge, or along the stream bank.
You can take advantage of inexpensive “walk-in” sites in many campgrounds while vehicles with RTTs are limited to the more expensive RV sites. This is also why the Haven Tent is my choice for “boondocking” on motorcycle and canoe adventures in the backcountry.
ONE system works for both camping from my truck, adventure motorcycle, or watercraft!
Side Benefit: The Haven Tent is also popular with RV and rooftop tent owners (and tiny homeowners) who need a “spare room” for guests or children. The package stores compactly until needed for guest accommodations. Many Airbnb hosts are now offering Haven Tents as both the overflow AND primary rentals!
Then again, sometimes it is just too hot to pack two people into a rooftop tent. We recently ran into temperatures in the 90’s on our Lake Superior Circle Tour. My Wife slept comfortably in the rooftop tent while I enjoyed a breezy night on the lakeshore in my Haven Tent!
Haven Tent Advantage Number 8: FREEDOM
Since the Haven Tent is disconnected from your vehicle, you are free to LEAVE the campsite without dismantling your shelter.
If you need to run into town or want to go four-wheeling in the surrounding area, the Haven Tent can remain at your campsite. With a rooftop tent on your truck, you need to pack your gear, then close and pack the RTT. Your bed goes everywhere your vehicle goes, and the added weight and bulk is a disadvantage on demanding trails in the rocks and woods.
Anytime you spend more than one night at a campsite, packing the RTT and all your belongings each morning is a time-consuming hassle.
Haven Tent Advantage Number 9: UNLIMITED CAMPSITE OPTIONS
Eventually, you will find the epic, “Instagram-perfect”, scenic campsite that is inaccessible to your vehicle and rooftop tent or simply lacks any level surface.
Once again, the Haven Tent eliminates all concerns about the quality and slope of the surrounding area.
RTT owners might offer the objection, “What about the campsites that don’t have trees to hang a hammock?” Yes, this is the single biggest disadvantage of standard hammocks. But remember, the Haven Tent is not a hammock but a sleeping system.
As long as you can find one spindly tree, you can hang the Haven Tent by attaching the other end to your vehicle – no matter how uneven the terrain.
But what about campsites with NO trees at all?
Some Haven Tent owners who specialize in desert travel or above the tree line carry two collapsible poles or use their hiking poles to suspend the tent fly. With any combination of poles, sticks, or fence posts you can pitch the Haven Tent on the bare ground!
The Haven Tent has a waterproof nylon bottom layer. You still have the same thick, insulated mattress, bug nets, and tarp for protection. You will ALWAYS find it much easier to locate a 30” x 80” piece of flat ground than a flat space the size of your truck and/or trailer.
Haven Tent owners sometimes intentionally look for “impossible campsites”.
Backcountry camping often totally rules out all rooftop tents – or traditional ground tents.
Haven Tent campers have pitched on steeply sloping hillsides and lakeshores, in boulder fields, briar patches, ravines, and even over running brooks. When all you need is two trees, often DOZENS of great campsites are available while fellow tent campers may need to travel miles farther to find a dry, flat, clear site.
Haven Tent Advantage Number 10: NO LADDER!
Another obvious difference between the Haven Tent and rooftop tents is the elimination of the ladder.
“Elimination” has a double meaning for those of us who may need to get up during the night. The process of getting out of a rooftop tent is complicated by the position of the ladder. Some RTT’s allow you to position the ladder on either side – if the campsite has room. Otherwise, if the ladder is positioned at the head of the bed, there is no way to get in and out without waking your partner.
Beyond midnight exits, many people simply hate climbing to the top of their vehicle.
If you don’t feel comfortable on ladders on a flat floor at home, you are not going to like climbing a ladder in the dark to get into bed. When camping with small children, there are no worries about climbing ladders with access from the ground in a Haven Tent.
In addition, most people can’t climb a ladder barefoot – which means turning on a light and putting your shoes on. The Haven Tent is pitched so you can sit comfortably with your feet on the ground. Your shoes can stay there, under the tarp – or you can store them inside the tent (with plenty of storage at both ends).
As discussed earlier, each camper has their own Haven Tent so each person can also enter and exit without disturbing his partner.
Haven Tent Advantage Number 11: PET FRIENDLY
The Haven Tent is a better option than rooftop tents if you are camping with pets.
Who wants to haul their dog up and down a ladder? If your dog is small and well-behaved, you may decide to allow it to jump up into your Haven Tent. Personally, my preference would be to fix a comfy dog bed under my Haven Tent and tarp. Then neither of our stirrings during the night disrupts the other.
If you want to share your Haven Tent with your pet, the Haven XL has a combined weight capacity of 285 pounds, and the Haven Safari is rated for 350 pounds.
Haven Advantage Number 12: SECURITY IN STORMS
An elevated rooftop tent is highly susceptible to high winds.
Perched on a trailer rack or the roof of the overlanding vehicle, the surface area and weight add leverage to the vehicle. Every movement inside the RTT and every gust of wind on the outside shakes and rocks the vehicle. The vehicle suspension seems to magnify the effects of the wind, causing the rooftop tent to continually bounce and sway.
One of my WORST nights camping was along the windswept shores of Lake Powell with continuous winds scouring the canyon. There is nothing more miserable than your elevated bed rocking, creaking, and rattling all night long!
The Haven Tent, pitched close to the ground, is much less susceptible to the wind.
Wind speed is reduced at ground level. There are no hinges or frames to flex noisily. Most Haven Tent owners enjoy the gentle (silent) rocking, exactly like a baby’s crib. In the very worst of storms, if you had the Haven Tent fly guyed out for a better view, you can bring in the rain fly and secure it to the toggles on the sides of the tent to form a smaller, tighter cocoon.
The Haven Tent may be pounded by a storm, but it will rock and flex, not get crushed like a fixed tent pulling against ground stakes.
BONUS Haven Tent Advantage Number 13: PROTECTION IN COLD WEATHER
Some Haven Tent owners enjoy winter camping!
The rooftop tent and the Haven Tent share the same advantages of sleeping above the cold, hard, rocky ground. Some Haven Tent campers add the comfort of a wood stove for heating and cooking in a “hot tent” enclosure. Obviously, there is no way to enjoy the warmth of a wood stove in a RTT.
Hot tent camping – and the many advantages of a portable wood stove over an external, diesel heater - will be discussed in a future article. (These advantages include the cost and operation of the diesel heater, the required power source, the stink of diesel fuel…)
Conclusion: “Overlanding” NO LONGER is defined by camping in a rooftop tent!
A MAIN criticism of “overlanding” is that is often associated with over-spending.
Buying a rooftop tent has been regarded as an expensive, but necessary requirement for many. But NO LONGER! Many overlanders simply conform and spend many thousands for a RTT, then a custom rack, an upgraded mattress, etc. You now know the many advantages of the Haven Tent system:
• Lower Cost
• More Space
• Greater Comfort
• Lighter Weight
• No Installation Hassles
• Ease of Use
• Accessibility to Marginal Campsites
• Freedom to Leave Camp
• Camp Anywhere
• NO Ladder
• Pet Friendly
• Security in Storms
• Four-season versatility
I hope you agree that the Haven Tent helps redefine “Overlanding Lite”. You can enjoy more comfort, better campsite access, versatility, AND save money by choosing the Haven Tent over a rooftop tent.
Would you like to SAVE 10% on a Haven Tent? Here is a complimentary link for The Great Out There readers: CLICK HERE.
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