Ugh, what great feelings I have. Crazy. We will have our own traveling house. I can't wait to sleep in the wild, beautiful views and cold nights. And cooking in the trunk (I don't know how we'll do it yet, Vasko will make some kind of wooden addition that will be a kitchen counter and stove) and dinners under the open sky. Or if it rains, pate in the tent. We will simplify it as much as possible.
Well, let's start from the beginning. It's no secret that I love van life and all that . A camper van will always be my dream. But these things have a pretty high price tag. For us, a tent was the right decision and really the only one that was within our budget . Finances were the main reason and that we could afford a tent and that it wasn't such a huge financial burden for us that we wouldn't be able to afford to travel. When making our decision, we went through a system of pluses and minuses.
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Pros: mobility (you can go everywhere with a car), affordable price, everything is more ascetic and minimalist (which actually suits us), quick construction of the "house", easier to go to a more remote plot.
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Cons: you don't have a shower or toilet, the tent stands out a little more (although everything is clear even with a parked camper), security (when sleeping and stealing - but now that I've seen how this thing is assembled, I'm more reassured), less space for luggage.
The biggest concern for me was the shower and toilet. I'll report back on how that will work in practice. We'll just look for more remote places where you can squat and do your thing. We'll definitely use campsites and probably won't be "out in the wild" for more than a few days. We'll just need to take a shower every now and then. We also won't be banging our heads against the wall and always looking for free overnight stays, in the sense that we bought a tent and now we're only sleeping in a tent . If the forecast is bad, if we're dirty, cold, or something similar, we'll just keep looking for more comfortable solutions.
For anyone who is interested in more about the tent: we bought it from the company MAT SPORT. The price of such a tent is just under €2,700. Our tent is the SHEEPIE YUNA FAMILY ( link ). The tent weighs 77kg. Assembly requires a forklift or three adults (even two tall and strong men would be fine). The tent's limit is that it can sleep a maximum of 270kg. We still have about 90kg of luggage . The bed is 200x250cm. We'll be really comfortable. The tent already has a mattress. It's a soft tent that can be covered with a tarpaulin while driving. The external dimensions (when stowed) are 212 x 132 x 38cm. Our car is a Hyundai Tucson. Such a tent is suitable for larger cars: SUV, minivan, station wagon, van. The roof racks must also be good. Ours didn't behave properly the first time we used them, so we'll replace them with proven THULE carriers (after consulting with the Mat Sport store) or we'll have three bars if necessary. (I'll update this post if it works better).
Why did we choose Sheepie and not some other brand? This particular tent model has the largest mattress of all the others. In the long run, we will be most comfortable, and of course the children will grow bigger every year. And it is also the cheapest option. I'll give you a link to the other tents if anyone wants to compare.
The first impression of the tent is great and we can't wait for our first trip. We will be heading to the Dolomites in August.
The post was written on July 26, 2023.
