We bought our pop up after years of tent camping. We love tent camping but living in the deep south once the dog days of summer would set in, our camping would come to an end until the fall. A pop up with an A/C seemed to be the logical purchase to allow us to enjoy camping 12 months out of the year.
So for us it was the A/C that prompted us to purchase our pop up. Everything else that the pop up offers is just a bonus for us. Sleeping without sweating was the selling point for us.
CajunCamper
My wife and I had been tent camping for years and then decided to get a pop up after our son was born. For us, it is just easier in the pop up than in a tent. Plus, I like the shower! I do hate towing it though.
Quote from: JimSMy wife and I had been tent camping for years and then decided to get a pop up after our son was born. For us, it is just easier in the pop up than in a tent. Plus, I like the shower! I do hate towing it though.
Mainly the kids. But have grown to love it as well. And have made many new friends and great experiences.
For us, it was a combination of reasons, getting up off the ground, a nicer place to be when it storms (we stay outside if it is just raining with no thunder/lightening), the a/c extending our season here (it is sometimes in the 90s by mid-May and can be in the mid-90s into September), being warmer in the colder months which also extends our season, a place to keep our camping equipment so we don't have to load/unload nearly as much (only clothes and food and firewood now). It was a great move for us and we camp a LOT more now than we did when we were tent camping.
For me it was health reasons. I developed Rheumatoid Arthritis, and in addition to the pain, there was exhaustion. Packing/unpacking/setting up of all the tent camping stuff became too much for me. Rather than giving up the camping/travel, I changed my lifestyle slightly and bought a popup camper. When looking, my requirements were AC and potty....and I ended up buying a Fleetwood Niagara which I absolutely love.
Being off the ground is a great pleasure, and not making the toe stubbing middle of the night treks to a buggy bathhouse is an absolute joy. And, sleeping comfortably with the AC on low makes me a much nicer person to deal with in the mornings/daytime as I've gotten sleep.
We decided to get one for a couple of reasons. I am finally off of sea duty (NAVY) and can have some quality family time. It is hotter than snot in the south with the humidity and bugs. Get the family out of the house away from cable t.v., playstations, etc. Acts as a hunting cabin anywhere in North America for the fall.
We got ours for several reasons also. I have back problems and can't sleep on the ground anymore. Eve with an air mattress, I can't get up from being on the ground. Also we too, live in the very deep south (coast of MS) and the A/C makes sleeping much easier without sweating. I still have to make the trips to the bath house in the middle of the night but we try to set up closer to the bath house now.
Honestly it's because we practically stole it. I had wanted a tt but when this fell into our laps I couldn't say no. I have grown to love the pup and I'm glad I have it instead of a tt. It's old (like me) but I love it and look forward to each and every trip.
Fast 30 second set up , no canvas to dry out or mildew after a rain. We'd likely of ended up in a small TT if we hadn't discovered the Aliner. After tenting for years and years I wanted easier and less set up work.
Oops that's 2 reasons.
We got started for family reasons and got bitten by the pop up bug.
Like many others after years of tent camping we hit the mid 50's and ntoiced the ground seemed a bit harder. Also during 20+ years of tent camping you do run into situations where everhything gets soaked due to a storm. In our 20's, 30's and 40's we just shook it off, but today it can really ruin a trip. So, we bought a pop up as the next closet thing to tent camping. We totally enjoy it.
The biggest reason was the ability to go at short notice. Tent camping took so much packing up supplies, carrying to the campsite, setting up, then breaking camp, carrying everything back down the trail to the truck, then unpacking again at home, cleaning everything, usually hanging the tent from rafters to dry, washing and drying sleeping bags, and then packing it back up for storage. It ususally took a couple of days back from camping to feel rested again.
With the popup...throw in a couple of duffel bags, the food box, hitch and go.
It was time to get off the ground - and having a pup has extended our camping season. The a/c makes the summer heat more tolerable (well, almost - I'm still pretty sure I wouldn't willingly go camping when it's 97 and humid like today). And, the furnace means we can camp later without freezing. Love it!
We bought our first used pop-up 12+ years ago so that we could enjoy the beach on the cheap - I had never been camping before, but was happy to be at the beach, in a cozy bed with a/c, a dorm fridge & a used microwave.
Then found out that I loved camping!
We are on our 3rd pop-up & love it for many reasons. Fits in the garage (HOA rules), easy to tow, able to open the windows & enjoy the surroundings. It is still an inexpensive way to enjoy the beach, the local lake or just get away from home!
Pam
Getting up off the ground was heavenly! We didn't even know we practically stole the PUP....$4k for a brand new 12-footer in 1996..from a dealer that was "going out of businiess". (Read that re-appearing with another name....sleaze-bags!) Haven't looked back!
It was the schlepping of all the camping equipment, the prep time before and after a trip, packing and unpacking - my back just can't take it!
I still tent camp some - in places where it is not possible to take the PUP - like on a scout trip occasionally, or on my favorite camping trip each year- canoeing the Wisconsin river and sleeping on the beach - but for the most part, now that I've reached middle age, I like sleeping off the ground, not having to pack/unpack the stuff I might(or might not) need every time we camp, having a stove instead of a campfire for cooking, and occasionally having a site with electric for lights and the dorm fridge. We don't have AC in our PUP, but will use fans - maybe someday we'll splurge for AC. Like many, I still like the 'feeling' of being in a tent - I just don't want to be on the ground anymore!
Laura
When wife and I got married I wanted to tent camp she said no. We bought an old starcraft, and had fun When the 4 kids came all,the last 3 are seperated by 1 year or less. She said no more camping to much work. So we condo for 10 plus years. We bought a house and didn't have a dime left to our name, she took a trip to Iowa with family. My sons then ,I think 11 and 9 years, bought two tents from Bud's Discount[part of Wally World] for 10.00 a piece. They were family tents. I did some yard saling and found the basics cheap. It was the begging of summer. Tents were up in the yard and wife shows up a week later and just looked at me and smiled. I said the boys and I are going camping in the mined wildlife area. After dinner she is out looking at what we have collected. Turns to me and says you have been working allot of overtime and no bills are due, how about a camping trip to Silver Dollar City Campground. So we did a four day trip and bought season passed for day trips that she turned into weekend camping trips. When fall hit it was to cold to camp and campgrounds were shutting down. In bed one night she turns to me and says: We have all of the gear why not buy another pop-up. In the spring we bought the 1980 Jayco. That was about 15 years ago and we are still going only minus 4 kids.
BillMc
My wife
Quote from: br9My wife
That's funny! It's one of my reasons too. But if I had to pick just one reason it would be that I wanted an easier and more comfortable way to camp.
I have had my PU for a little over a year and we all sleep great. I tent camped a couple weeks ago and was tossing and turning all night. And that was with a sleeping pad underneath. Oh the comforts of my PU. How can I go back now? Not.
I grew up camping, mostly in RVs, with a bit of tent camping thrown in-especially with scouts.
We had three pups during those years.
An old Coleman which we replaced with an Apache which was a piece of leaky junk, followed by my family's first newly purchased RV- a 12 ft. Viking which we loved.
We traded that in on a smaller TT, but when my brother and I got into my teens with my brother a few years behind, we outgrew it and bought a 30 foot Prowler Regal. Keep in mind, in addition to traveling, we camped every weekend at a membership place so space was nice to have as it was a home away from home. I camped with my folks into my 20s.
Dad died 9 years ago and Mom sold the trailer. My wife and I have tent camped off and on since then. Then came the kids. Last fall we finally broke down and bought our new-to-us 2003 Rockwood Premier. Why? I guess the best reason is I enjoyed it so much growing up and I wanted to offer that to my children.
It was a deal I couldn't pass up for 600 bucks...plus, I needed a place to sleep while spending the weekend at the Nascar races @ Texas Motor Speedway.... the back of a Durango gets awful rough on the back for 2 or 3 nites!!!!!
Cheaper than renting.
My fiance, me and our mastiff were a little cramped in a 4 person tent, lol.
My wife and I also tent camped for years before we had kids and now we're in our early fortys and its hard for us to sleep on the hard ground, we would have sore backs and butts in the morning. So we decieded we needed to get an RV of some sort. We looked at all kinds and we decieded on a PU because we like the idea of tent camping but with a few of the comforts of home but still get that tent camping feeling. Our daughters are hooked on camping also, i tried to get my brothers family to get into it also but when we took them camping i couldn't wait to get them home, they just didn't get into it. They would rather stay in a hotel. Never again will i take them!!!!
Tent camping had just become a joke with all the stuff we "needed" to bring. I'd never seen a popup up close, let alone been in one. Was sort of looking at what they were going for on Craigs List and then bam, stumbled across something called a Starcraft being sold at a thrift store/soup kitchen for $500. Looked like it was a big model, so I drove 200mi to look at it. Offered them $250 and dragged it home.
Probably the best $250 I've ever spent for a "toy." We love it. No more camping on the ground, no more dragging a million things along. Still cracks me up that it goes from being a box to being a house in just a couple minutes....but what can I say, I'm easily entertained.
We had a choice.....$5 million dollar Malibu Beach home or the PU on any beach we wanted.....
PU won. :sombraro:
1) Tired of sleeping on the ground.
2) Rain in the Northwest
3) Rain in the Northwest
4) 35* temps in July, on the beach, in...you guessed it...the Northwest
5) Limited tow vehicle
:sombraro:
Quote from: br9My wife
So is that to go camping with your wife or to get away from your wife? :eek:
After 15 years of tent camping, the wife wanted to get up off the ground (me too :D - had enough of digging rain trenches)
Quote from: AZsixSo is that to go camping with your wife or to get away from your wife? :eek:
Texas is pretty hot she really wanted a bed and ac so i guess with
Lots of reasons but the main one might be we wanted to see the country after retirement and doing the motel/restaurant scene got too expensive. We can travel for 1/4 the cost of motels and go to many more places that have no motels. The Pup with it's 9 foot picture window and 360 degree views were the clinchers for me, the furnace, hot water, A/C, push button potty were the clinchers for my DW. In our second year of Puping I would now say the great people we have met on our travels.
I wanted a 12 ft box , DW wanted a shower/ potty, and we had to be comfortable towing with a small SUV Ford Escape..... the 2100 lb Westlake was our choice.
Before we had kids, the wife and myself would usually tent camp a few times a year. Did it a few times when we had our daughter and attempted it once when our son was 1. I think he cried almost the entire weekend and I swore that camping was over for a long time. Worst trip ever.
Then the following spring, I ran into my cousin who was selling his old popup so I figured what the heck and we checked it out. It was 20 years old and extremely basic and while it was a step up from tenting, it wasn't a huge step up. So we checked out a few newer popups and I was pretty turned off how poor shape they were.
Then for the heck of it, we looked at a new '07 Niagara and fell in love with it. Had everything we could ever want, it fit in the garage, and my Frontier could tow it with ease. Perfect!
Quote from: jeezyWhy? I guess the best reason is I enjoyed it so much growing up and I wanted to offer that to my children.
Thats a huge reason for us too. Both the wife and myself come from families that camped growing up and I can't count how many good memories I have of camping. My kids get as excited to go camping as they do going to Disney. :)
We bought our PU because we live in an apt building and need to be able to park the trailer in our parking space.
It's really cool because once we get inside the (6'2") garage door, we have 8' clearance inside the garage so we can actually pop-up inside the garage to load, clean etc.
We recently purchased a Trailmanor and I was concerned that we may not be able to open it up but it actually opens all the way with no problem.
The real bonus is that now, we can stop at a view point and open the trailer for lunch and put it back down and keep going. We couldn't do that with our traditional PU. It literally only takes 2 minutes to open and 2 minutes to close. I've opened and closed it about 5 times now. It gets easier each time.
So far.....we love our Trailmanor :sombraro:
I remeber the frist pop up camper was 74 starcraft that my dad bought new campe in it about for times when he retire from the navy he sold it made my mom mad. i did tent campe for a lng time then i got married bought a slid in camper for my truck for 100.00 the wife had our frist child sold it we back to tent camping after my D from wife. bought a pop up camper me and the kids have been camping ever since i am now on my thrid pop up camper a 2005 coachmen cipper and yes the kids live with me. :U
We bought a used Coleman Niagara - but it was meticulously maintained - was only 13-months old - and you would have sworn it was brand new.
What I want to warn others of though is what can happen when you are looking for the perfect popup in various classified locations.
I found a website that advertised various RV's and popup's. I am guessing the advertising/classified publication was legit - but the person that had posted the popup was not! The only reason I was cautious was the language/verbage to describe the popup and how to purchase the popup.
Supposedly the popup was not used, older couple bought it and one of them became disabled so was sacrificing the sale. We are talking a 2002 Coleman Niagara, which retailed for $12,500 new and they were selling this for $4,300. A big flag went up because of the new popup plus the cost.
We actually got to discussing the payment process - this was being done with the website/classified pages owner - but then I got enough info from the real owner, did some internet research, located an actual phone number, called the guy and this is the story we got!
I said we would be willing to drive to New York (near Lake Erie) to see and pay for the camper. I was told that it had been moved into a storage facility because someone said they wanted it but did not follow through on the actual payment process. I was told they had a third-party trucking firm that could bring the popup to us by forwarding the money to the trucking firm. If we approved of the popup, the trucking company would forward the money to the owner, less his hauling fee of $55 - a real bargain . . . right? Well, the man then said he was going to the UK for three weeks business - this is supposedly an American - but being in travel for the past 15 years - there is not an American on earth that refers to Great Britain as the United Kingdom - neither do the Brits. It is Middle Eastern populations that use the term. So I point blank asked, the guy hung up and I reported this entire incident to the classified website - and they imediately removed the seller from their website. We did call the UK phone number (which can be forwarded from any place to any other place) saying they had 24/7 service - but no one answered the phones. We found out from a local police department in England that the address we had was in an industrial section of London, but nothing was in the building??? We also found another address for the exact same ad - selling this same popup - but had a west coast contact number.
Unless you can physically see the popup or RV and you can see the Vehicle ID Numbers on the unit, be very cautious. This scam was almost GOOD - it was just the lingo used by a Middle Easterner that tiped me off as to the possible scam of getting my money.
Our next camper is going to be a new Fleetwood Highlander (if and when the new owners start to advertise?) - the idea of filling an RV gas tank is not my idea of starting a pleasant weekend. It is bad enough when I have to fill my truck gas tank for Monday back-to-work.
We're planning on traveling when we retire in a couple of years. We wanted something more comfortable on long trips than a tent, but not something so big and heavy we couldn't afford to drive it. Our PUP has turned out to be a great compromise. Very roomy for two, easy to pull, and gets 19 to 20 mpg on the road.
For us, it was about better comfort and getting off the ground, while still maintaining a reasonable camping budget. We found out DW was pregnant with our 2nd child, so we didn't want to tent camp anymore. Also, here in the south, it is just too hot to enjoy summer camping without a/c, unless you get up high in the mountains.
So we now can camp 12 months out of the year if we choose to, including those hot summer months! We still head to the mountains during those hot months, though. We love cool evenings around a fire. 60 to 70 degrees is perfect.
Quote from: fallsriderFor us, it was about better comfort and getting off the ground, while still maintaining a reasonable camping budget. We found out DW was pregnant with our 2nd child, so we didn't want to tent camp anymore. Also, here in the south, it is just too hot to enjoy summer camping without a/c, unless you get up high in the mountains.
So we now can camp 12 months out of the year if we choose to, including those hot summer months! We still head to the mountains during those hot months, though. We love cool evenings around a fire. 60 to 70 degrees is perfect.
Hey Fallsrider - know exactly what you mean about being comfortable - especially from the high heat and humidity. Because of our age more than anything else we bought a used (13-months old) popup. We are on our 4th summer season of camping with our 2002 Coleman Niagara and HAVE NEVER HAD ALL WINDOWS unzipped - simply because of the high humidity in the Virginia area. We just returned from a long weekend in Allentown PA and the humidity was almost non-existant and for the first time managed to open all canvas and vinyle windows and had total fresh air. The first Coleman popup I owned was when we lived in FL and DID NOT have A/C at that time and being bagged in canvas when the humidity runs at 90 to 95 percent every day but in December, we used the popup very little. Now we have one or two 4-day weekends per month - as long as we can find WiFi campgrounds - thus allowing us to telecommunicate on Friday and Monday - and literaly my clients have no idea where I am - but we are connected!
AC Definitely. Like you I live in the deep south. In fact judging by your user name, I think I live in the same state you do. A couple of years ago we tent camped in Chicot state park, when it wasn't raining, it was blisteringly hot. The first night I got heat stroke setting up camp. Being off the gorund and cool began to sound really good.
BTW Cajun Camper, I also am a cajun camper. :D
Our biggest reason was to extend the camping season (A/C)!
Quote from: HappyFLCampersOur biggest reason was to extend the camping season (A/C)!
The first Coleman Popup Camper we owned was in Florida - but without canned air on the roof. Was told by the camper repair place that the roof support would not hold the A/C unit. The amount of silver duct tape that the previous owners put on the screen units made it so we looked like the tenament of the campground - but it did keep the bugs out!
We no longer live in Sarasota (used to live off Cattleman Road - where are you located?) but in VA about 30-miles from DC and the A/C and the ceramic heater make it so we can use the Coleman Niagara Popup (a new one) into November. In December we usually drive the popup to the popup maintenance guys and have them "winterize" the thing, bring it home and cover it until the middle of March? and then flush the antifreeze and by the end of March or first of April we are looking for a waterfront site and very few people to crowd up against us.
One of the other good reason's to have a popup (up off the ground) in Florida is to avoid the possible slithering of other critters (I am not a snake lover). The metal box that frames you is one more deterant to things that crawl.
We are looking to upgrade to the Highlander Avalon popup just for comfort of having a comfortable couch in one end, plus inside switch to turn on the water heater. Laying down in wet dirt and trying to light an outside pilot light at 10pm in the dark is no fun! We are moving to PA so the weather will shorten our camping season (maybe?) but we are finding several places that are open 12-months of the season - so there is hope.
Having more and more campgrounds show up with WiFi is also making it so my "mobile office" is doing more 4-day weekends than clients are aware of. What a great way to "work"!!!
We bought our pop-up after years of sleeping on the ground in the Rocky Mountain. ( aptly named) and then we moved to the northwest and needed something more water resitant for our family. Love our pop-up and recently upgraded from a 86 coleman to a 2004 coleman. No more wet and bumpy nights for us.
Mario and Janelle :-()
We bought our pop-up because we love camping and have taken our 6 kids camping as long as we have been together. Well, time has gone by and the 6 kids have grown up, now we have alot less help setting things up. This was the perfect alternative. We just bought our pu in May of this year and are going on yet another camping trip next weekend. I sooo can't wait!
The wife would not go camping unless we got off of the ground. Being newly married a couple of years ago, it was one of the best things that we have done. We really do enjoy the outdoors and the campfire and cooking and such.
For us its all about being economical... that and space limits and towing limits.
A PUT is perfect tow for our Trailblazer. We had a big class c before and it took up so much of our driveway... plus filling it and working on it was a bear. We really like the idea of having something we can tow behind us and still have our regular family SUV to drive around if we want to leave the campgrounds.
Storing the PUP still leaves us with room in the driveway and can be easily moved around ;) Its really perfect for us :)
Wow.....several reasons.
I too live in the South and the summers are brutal to tent camp IMHO. I also have a nasty allergy (anaphylaxsis) to fire ant bites and had too many encounters while tent camping. AND thirdly, I bought my pup as a project. It was structurally sound, but I was in need of something to occupy my time. It successfully did that for at least two months.....I totally needed the mental health. Little did I know that it was the best purchase ever!!