Well, the industry statistics show that pop up camping is declining. Most new buyers are going directly to a TT or a Hybrid.
So, why do you pop up camp??
We will be publishing a pop up buyers guide in the new year and are looking for stories for that issue.
Why do you pop up camp????
We like the convienence of the popup,it isn't to tall so that we can't see over it while towing, it has less wind resistance because of it's height so we can tow it without having to invest in a big tow vehicle. We like the large window area which many TT and 5th wheels don't seem to have. It doesn't take up much room when not in use. We also like the queen size bed which some bigger TT don't have.
Overall we like our popup very much, although we would like one with a slideout dinette to give us a little more floor space. Right now I don't see us camping in anything but a popup.
We camp in a PU because it is a tent, with a lot of windows to see out of and you can hear the sounds of nature when you are in it. A PU has other conveniences that make it easier and more comfortable to camp. We leave our camping stuff in the PU all season long. No more loading the vehicle for each trip. You can have heat and AC (we do) in a PU that make camping in the more extreme weather more comfortable. Being able to cook inside when the weather is bad is another plus. The first time we went camping in the PU we woke up to very windy weather, 20 mph and gust that went higher. I looked out the window at the people in the next site that were tent camping with two young children. They were trying to get their stove lit and it would blow out as quick as they lit it. I thought to myself that was us two months ago. Boy am I glad we have a PU now. :D
Our family started out tent camping, first with me and my husband before we were married, more than 13 years ago! We camped all the time it seemed like. One or two days here or there mostly, because we were young and didn't get a whole lot of vacation time so we didn't want to blow it all at once. We took a trip here, one there... it lasted all summer long.
Then 6 years into our marriage we decided it was time to have kids. We had a little girl and took us on all our camping adventures. It was great! We went on slightly longer trips since I had become a stay at home mom and now that my husband had some years with the company under his belt he had more time off. One thing we noticed was that with an extra person tagging along and longer trips being taken, we had to bring more stuff with us. The car was always packed tight. Packing took longer.
A little less than 2 years later, daughter # 2 arrived! We were thrilled! We still hadn't lost the camping bug and took both of our girls out into the wilderness. We did have to upgrade our tent. When it was just 3 of us, we managed to squeeze into a 2 man dome tent... no easy feat, considering my husband is 6'5"!
But we were cosy... Now with 4 of us, a new tent was a must. We went with a 2 room boxy thing that took FOREVER to set up! And if we arrived at the campground at night, well, don't anyone get in our way and you had better pray we didn't mess up and forget to pack something important because setting that thing up in the dark did not make for good moods. Packing may have taken longer... heck yeah, it took a LOT longer and it seemed that since I was the one who stayed at home, I'd spend all week getting things ready for the trip, spend all of friday loading the car up, Hubby would rush home friday evening so we could get back to nature as quickly as possible. As soon as camp was set up, I would crash from exhaustion.
Then... 2 years later, our son was on the way. It was summer and just thinking of me having to pack all our junk up one more time to get out there and relax was exhausting. We didn't camp that first summer. How sad we were!!!! We missed all those wonderful adventures. Sitting around an evening campfire, toasting marshmallows as the evening turned to night. Listening to owls hoot in the distance as your eyes grew heavy watching the dancing firelight!
That fall, I found a free 67 Skamper advertised in the local paper. I brought it home without ever even opening it up to check it out. It had been getting cold and dark. Whe we did get it opened late that night we stared in shock as dozens of mice came flying out of the camper as we raised the roof. My husband was horrified! "You mean I'm going to have to sleep in THAT?!?!?" were his words. I reasurred him. "It's Ok," I said. "I'll make it good." I could see what this old camper could be with some hard work.
So over that winter, I scrubbed and cleaned. I primed and painted. I put in a new floor. I ordered a new canvas and made new cushions. I hunted for bargains to stock up my camper. And after 5 months and about $900 my husband said "Wow! You really did it! You made it good!"
Our first trip out was the begining of a new way of camping life for us! After 13 years of camping our backs no longer ached in the morning from sleeping on the hard, cold ground. We had real beds to sleep in! No more taking all week to get ready for a trip! We could just throw in some food and clothes and we were off! We could camp for 2 nights on a whim! If it rained during the trip, Who cared?!?! Even if it did mean we were stuck in the camper. We read, took naps, played games and stayed dry! No trips outtside during the storm to dig a moat around the tent! We didn't have to worry about how we were going to cook our dinner! e had a stove... inside! Hurray!
We recently upgraded our camper to a "newer" popup! He he!!! I think it's funny... our "newer" camper is an 84 Starcraft! Ancient to some, I know! But it's such a gem! So lovingly cared for before she became ours that she still has the showroom shine and new camper smell!
I love that a popup still makes us feel like we are really camping. It has that open and airy tent-like quality. Not boxy. You can hear the nature sounds just on the other side of the canvas walls. You can feel the breezes as the air fuffles the canvas making that gently flutter/flapping sound. A hard sided travel trailer would never convey the same essence of tent camping that a popup does. To me it would seem confining. A popup makes us feel free. I love to camp. And I love our popup!
My husband and I both tent camped while growing up and love being in the outdoors. We knew that we couldn't tent camp anymore once our 3yr old learned to use the zipper and our twins were now mobile. After looking at TT's we knew that they weren't for us. They seemed so closed in and small. When we took the tour of a popup we knew this was the vehicle for us. The only question we had was which model to pick and which options we wanted. The popup we picked had most of the conveniences of home like a furnace, hot water, cassette potty, electricity, refrigerator and beds with mattresses. No more getting up during a cold night and risk getting sprayed by a skunk or something to use the restroom. Heck, we now have facilities a few feet away. We liked that fact that the bed area was made from tent material which makes you feel like you're camping and the widows make it seem so much larger than it really is. Another appealing aspect was that it doesn't take much time to popup/down and most of your camping equipment can be stored in the popup leaving more room in TV for toys for the kids. We see ourselves being poppers for many years to come.
Kim & Richard Jensen
We camp for many of the same reasons listed above. First and foremost, we won't tent camp anymore. Second, a popup is all our tow vehicle can handle right now. We will likely move up to a hybrid in the future, but not for at least 2 or 3 years minimum.
We also like the feel of outdoors with a pu that doesn't seem to happen in a TT or fiver. We hope that feeling remains with a hybrid.
Larry
We had tent camped for years and just love being outdoors. I owned both a popup and a TT in a previous marriage and really didn't care for the TT feeling. I felt "canned"...closed in. I loved it when my new DH and I started tent camping again but, our season was more limited with the tent because I can't take the summer heat and humidity. We looked at many different type of campers for several years and just loved the feeling, the openness of the popup. Plus, the king size beds with windows on three sides just can't be beat! I still get the tent feeling, but have my air conditioning and heat for stretching the camping season. This is the first summer in years that we actually camped...and we did a lot!
I've done years of different types of camping, and tent camping was always my favorite. WE had a popup when I was a child, then I owned a TT in a past marriage and I always felt slightly "canned". ;> My present DH and I tent camped as often as possible for many years, however, our camping season was limited as we rarely camped in the summer because of the heat. We looked at many different types of campers for several years and just love the feeling of the popup. It's so open and bright and still gives the outdoors feeling. We finally purchased our PU this past summer and have camped more than ever with the added comfort of the AC. We still look at other campers, but I've yet to find anything else that gives me the same feeling of my PU. I love the kingsize beds with windows all around. I love being able to unzip all the windows on a nice day and having that view.
I guess I'm a "late bloomer" as far as camping is concerned. I became a camper as the result of being a race fan. I remember going to races where I would get up at the crack of dawn (while staying at a motel) and drive to the track hours before the race started to get a good parking place. Then after the race we'd tailgate for another couple of hours before joining the traffic jam. I used to see folks sitting in front of their tents and campers fixing breakfast in the morning or relaxing with a cold drink in the evening. I really envied them not having to fight the traffic!
Finally back in 1997, I decided to give it a try. My "racing buddy" and I were getting ready to go to Martinsville, which we usually did as a "day trip." I read about some activities going on in the community the day before the race and thought it would be nice to get there the day before. This was only about a week before the race so I knew the chances of getting a motel room anywhere close were probably slim and none! So we borrowed a tent, a queen size air mattress, some sleeping bags, threw together some other stuff, and took off on our first camping adventure. (We put the tent up in her backyard first to practice so we wouldn't look like total idiots when we got there! :p )
We got there Saturday afternoon and got all set up. Saturday night it started raining. It rained for about 24 hours and the race was rained out. We stayed over for the postponed race on Monday. The weather was nasty, the camping wasn't all that comfortable, we made the mistake of putting our bags too close to the side of the tent and some of our clothes got wet---and we had a blast!
Before the start of the next racing season, I had purchased a 4-room cabin tent and we started accumulating gear. We had a TON of stuff...tent, screen room, chairs, tables, cots, rugs, etc., etc., etc.! It took a couple of hours to set up and even more to tear down. I loved the camping but dreaded the work it took!
I think I first started thinking about a camper on another trip to Martinsville. We had gone down several days before the race to stake out our campsite (the sites are all first-come). Then we left after I got off work one evening. We got there around midnight. I was so tired--had worked 8 hours and driven 4 hours--and knew we had at least 2-3 hours worth of work to do before I could go to bed. I looked around at all the folks camping in their TT's, 5-ers, and PU's and thought, "Man, it would sure be nice to just pull in, park, and then go to bed."
A few bad-weather experiences (rain that flooded the campground, freezing temps, scorching heat, etc.) added to the thoughts about getting a camper.
I liked the idea of a pop-up for many of the reasons already listed here--less cost, easier to tow, and the roomy feel. I looked around at several RV dealers on different occasions. No matter how big the TT's were (except the huge 6-figure and 7-figure motor homes), I felt boxed in. The pop-ups with the windows unzipped and the curtains opened just gave you more of a feeling of openness.
I did some research online and saw a couple of Coleman models I liked. So last fall I visited the closest Coleman dealer. The 2002 models were on sale, and the prices were substantially lower ($2000 to $3000 less) than what I was expecting--with more features! I checked out everything they had, and finally decided I liked the Utah the best. I like the glide-out dinette, and I like the fact that you don't have to crawl over the dinette to get into one of the beds. The salesman crunched some numbers and a week later I brought it home!
I have not regretted the decision! Especially when it rained for days in a row at Charlotte and we were high and dry in the camper, watching TV and reading. Or when the temps got a little chilly at Martinsville, and I figured out how to turn on the furnace! And now I can take my dog with me! That means I save on kennel costs and she seems to enjoy it.
It takes less time to set up and take down (although we still take way too much stuff), and it's much more comfortable than the tent. We've had five people (all women!) in the PU on at least two trips and didn't really feel that crowded.
I bought the pop-up so that I could camp more comfortably at the races. But now I find I enjoy "popping-up" so much, that I've started camping just to be camping!
Of course, it helped immensely that I discovered Pop-Up Times right around the time I bought the Utah. I've gotten TONS of useful advice from the folks here. Several of the helpful hints have saved me from a lot of potential problems!
Although we have always done quite a bit of hiking, we didn't start to camp until we were almost 60 (well, DH was 60). After trying out a tent we found our age made comfort a big issue. I'm not sure how we discovered the pop-up but we have never looked back. We love the windows that make us feel we are sleeping under the stars (those windows are better than a tent) and the fact that when it rains, we have someplace to wait it out in comfort. We love that our little pop-up will fit in some areas a bigger rig wouldn't. We love the ease of set-up and the storage fee we don't have to pay because it fits in the garage. We like not having to buy a bigger tow vehicle. We like the freedom to go where we want, when we want. We like that we didn't have to break the bank trying to pay for it.
Boy, lots of great, LONG, answers. Ours are pretty simple.
1 - Easier to tow
* light (er)
* low forward wind resistance
* better cross wind performance
2 - Easier to store
* Fits in our garage (barely)
* Storing at home saves money
* Storing at home = more use = better investment
3 - For me, its closer to "real" camping than a hardwall trailer,
* For DW, its closer to civilization than a tent
* For both, its substantially less expensive way to spend more days per year traveling than the hotel/condo/etc route so we get to see more of the country and spend more time together as a family away from home.
Pop up camping isn't for everybody, but then again if it were think about how horribly crowed our campgrounds would be!
I'll try to sum my reply in a few words.
1. After 20 years of tent camping, and a 45 year old's back, I decided to get off the ground... but still have the same tenting feeling.... with out the problems that rain has on a tent. (Like waiking up in the morning, laying in a puddle)
2. I can store the popup in the garage, and eliminat the wear and tear that the weather can have upon it. And it's always packed and ready to go camping when I am.
3. Was always intrigued by the concept of the popup as an engineering marvel. Anyone can build a tin can with wheels.... but a folding can is truly unique.
4. Towing and visability can't be beat.
Keep your kindling dry,
Hoppy
Why do we like PU's more than TT's?
Here's why:
Easy to to.
We can see all around us. We feel closed in in a TT.
I can store it in the driveway.
I could afford it.
I can see out the back window.
Happy camping,
Moose
We've camped lots of different ways, and found that we were filling our garage with the stuff we used for camping in the back of the truck (in the capper), for camping in the station wagon, for camping in the van, for camping in the TT. It was becoming problematical in that we couldn't (actually, still can't) get a car into the garage. A pop up seemed to be the logical choice for all the places we like to go. We can drag it into the back country, we can stop at a state park, we can spend a week on our own place up north, we can travel over the country and stop wherever we please with out a lot of hassle. If we don't like it here, we can move easily. We keep dry, warm and comfy, and have plenty of space. We don't have to get up at the crack of dawn and go out and start a fire in the cold rain for making coffee. We can get inside away from the mosquitos. We can open up all the windows when it's warm, and feel the night breezes on us as we sleep, and hear the crickets. As we get older, we are starting to realise that one of the drawbacks to a popup is that everything is down low, and you spend a lot of time on your knees or bending over, so there may be a change in our camping style at some point. But, for now, the popup suits us fine.
T
;)
First off I grew up camping in a popup. That's probably the start. My DH & I tent camped for the first years of our marriage, but that kind of fell by the wayside - especially after the girls came along. Camping on the ground & dealing with tents was just not the most appealing idea any more.
My parents, after camping in a popup for 20+ years, bought a TT a couple of years ago. It doesn't have the airflow our PU has. We camped in it one weekend & I thought we were going to roast, they have a permanent site at a CG without electric so no AC on that baby! It also doesn't have the open feel of a PU. I can't see myself ever going the TT route!
We've considered a hybrid, maybe will again a few years down the road, but they generally seem more closed in and most don't have the bed size we've grown accustomed to. Besides that we'd have to figure out how to haul the 4 bikes we currently put on top of the PU!
Sure, it's a bit more inconvenient. I can't just go in & fill drawers & cupboards at a moment's notice. Nor can I clean the thing out at the end of the season without a major production. But it is still camping, rather than RVing in my book.
Long live the PUs!
Sharon
I'm really not AGAINST moving "up" to a 5th Wheel or TT - it's just we have never found one we'd be happy in.
We've gone to RV show after RV show, and all we find are miniature "living rooms". They look very cozy and comfortable if you want to spend your time indoors in front of the TV while you "camp", and they might be great for on-the-road type campgrounds that you just stop at on the way to your destination, but when I'm in the middle of a national forest, or sitting in the middle of God's gorgeous scenery, I want to feel like I'm a part of it. I want my pop-up's large tent-like open windows. I want to hear the outdoors, smell the outdoors, and feel the outdoors.
Nope. Maybe someday something larger may be built with the same magical feel as a pop-up, but until then I'll stick with my little pop-up camper.
-Teri
Why do I camp in a pop-up? The short answer is anything else, (except a tent) isn't camping! It's staying in a motel room on wheels!
The longer answer is: I have been looking at Hybrids, TT, and 5ers trying to decide what I want to use when we get on towards retirement age and into retirement. For a while I thought it was going to be a Trail Manor, then a TT, then a Hybrid, then back to a Trail Manor, which I guess technically would still be a "pop-up" wouldn't it? I still haven't made up my mind on any of them except I do know this: No matter what I get (if anything else) I am keeping the pop-up to camp in!
One salesperson mentioned the convenience of having your own bathroom with shower. I laughed at him. Said mister, "I'm 6'3" and 250 lbs, I don't have a problem with "most" State Park bathrooms and showers and I bet you that I can barely fit in the shower in this trailer!" Went in, took off my shoes and steped into the Tub/shower, (which by the way, calling those things TUBS is like calling my swimming pool a pond!) and sure enough, the only way I could fit is by bending my head forward, chin to my chest! Now THAT's a comfortable shower I said! The salesman said perhaps you'd be happier with your pop-up!
I am sure of several things that are down the road; Higher Gas prices and my love of the outdoors. Both of these can best be answered with a pop-up.
I suppose I followed the traditions of my parents, who started out tent camping, and eventually moved up to pop-up's. Their first trailer was a 1962 Apachee, which was pretty much a tent on wheels. Their second trailer was a late 60's Starcraft Starmaster-8 which I remember fondly. This was slightly different than any pop-up I've seen before or since, as the bunk ends had hard cover fiberglass roof, with canvas side curtains. The trailer was otherwise the same as they today.
After I struck out on my own, I too tent camped for many years, but found it increasingly more difficult to carry all the things I thought I needed. Compounding this problem was the size of my car, which kept me pretty limited. I made the decision one year, after packing the cars trunk, and back seat with enough equipment for a week in Maine. That left just the two front seats in my overloaded 88 T-Bird. It was during that trip we decided we had to have a trailer. A pop-up could not only hold most of this stuff in the car, but it could also replace a lot of it too, especially the bulky stuff. Things like tents, air mattress, cookstoves, propane bottles, dining canopies were eliminated. Almost everything else would fit in the trailer.
The following year I bought a Jeep and a used Pop-up. The Pop-up was a $700 1974 Starcraft Stardust fix-er-upper, but did well enough to make a huge difference! However, my Jeep Wrangler was too small to pull it, and the trailer was in too poor shape to maintain, and within six months I had upgraded both the Jeep and the trailer. The new trailer was only a slight improvement, but a familar unit just the same, a 1978 Starcraft Starmaster-8, just like the one my parents had, sans the hard covered bunkends, other than that, it WAS THE SAME trailer!
This worked well, and I used that old trailer for 3 years before upgrading again, this time to a late model Coleman Rio. The Rio was much nicer, and bigger, with an A/C and front storage trunk. But I only kept it a year, before upgrading again...this time to a Hybrid trailer. I'm still under the canvas bunk ends, but get to enjoy all the bennies of the bigger trailer!
I decided to purchase a pop-up camper soon after my son was old enough to camp with me. I found a great used camper, a '95 Jayco Eagle 8, that fit my needs perfectly. It has a simple floorplan and therefore easy to setup & take-down. Our trips are usually short get-aways (1-2 nights), so like many others here, I found that tent camping was too time consuming for such a short stay. I really like being able to adapt & modify my camper, most of the ideas I found here at PUT.
Simply put, it is just the best combination of function, fun, & economy that I have found with camping/rving.
I guess I would really like a hardside trailer or motor home but the pop-up is a nice compromise:
1- I have freinds that tow larger trailers and they quote numbers like 7 miles per gallon. Plus they have a $40,000.00 tow vehicle. My astro gets 14 to 15 miles per gallon and towing is pretty easy. In addition to the better mileage, I can go up a steep grade passing motor homes and travel trailers like they are sitting still.
2- I don't have to pay to store my pop-up
3-Brand new my trailer cost $8600.00, try and buy a motorhome for that.
4- I have most of the conveniences of a travel trailer plus two king size beds.
5- My trailer weathers a storm waaaaay better than a tent and as good as a travel trailer.
6-I can fit in almost any campsite anywhere.
7- maintenance is considerably cheaper.
8- When I open my trailer at home, it smells like a camp fire!
The only drawbacks I have are that you can't pre-load at home without popping up and set up and take down takes longer than a travel trailer. Oh yes and then there's status, for a lot of people an RV is all about status. For us it's about spending time with our kids before they grow up.
Randy
Randy
1. You can buy a unit for a reasonable price.
2. You don't need to have a huge vehicle to tow with.
3. It tows nicely with little or no wind resistance.
4. While inside, it has an "open" feel, compared to most trailers I've been in where you can't see outside except for a small window here or there. It feels almost cave-like in most trailers.
5. You have a wider selection of campsites you can fit into because of the compact size.
6. Pop-up campers are friendlier to each other than the "big boys" seem to be. Total strangers will visit each other at a campsite to ask about their pop-up and its features.
:W
Personally, we looked into a hybrid or trailer when we were going to upgrade from our 8' Rockwood. We had a much bigger vehicle and could easily tow a bigger trailer. Everyone in the family agreed that we preferred the Pop-ups to the trailers we saw. There was only one hybrid we saw that we would even have considered, but it was almost double the cost of what we were looking at in pop-ups.
Quote from: oldmooseWhy do we like PU's more than TT's?
Here's why:
Easy to do.
We can see all around us. We feel closed in in a TT.
I can store it in the driveway.
I could afford it.
I can see out the back window.
Happy camping,
Moose
I found what you were trying to say! Your color code is wrong...this prog doesn't recognize #f1f1f1