Thule Rooftop Tents

[Bike Hub Features]

No matter how many kilometers biked, mountains climbed, slopes skied or places seen there are always new adventures to experience and moments to be made. Camping in and around our beautiful country should be top of your wanderlust list, and is the perfect way to unplug and take in the simplicity of nature.    Whether  you’re heading on an overland adventure, rugged excursion or weekend getaway, rooftop tents are an easy solution for campers and who love the great outdoors.   But let’s be honest, you’re going to want to bring your bike along for the adventure!  What better way […]

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[renayg]

A great local option is The Roofpod. Its clamshell design means it takes less than 1 minute to set up or pack down as opposed to fold over models. It's also designed to fit on standard roof racks, which means it can fit on any vehicle with standard roof racks.

https://theroofpod.co.za/

[Shebeen]

Thule make great products.

They also acquire great companies.

I don't doubt they have the mounting part of this right.

I'm scared to ask the price, however.

[ChrisF]

2 minutes ago, Shebeen said:

Thule make great products.

They also acquire great companies.

I don't doubt they have the mounting part of this right.

I'm scared to ask the price, however.

35 to 60k ...

 

Oooo... thats before the list of extras .....

 

 

But going by the brands reputation it should be top quality .....

[Rocket-Boy]

It would probably be cheaper to buy a caravan second hand than a Thule tent, they arent know for being value for money.

 

[The Ouzo]

1 hour ago, Rocket-Boy said:

It would probably be cheaper to buy a caravan second hand than a Thule tent, they arent know for being value for money.

 

have you seen the price of used caravans ?

I only know this because I dropped a car off at a panel shop that is next to a caravan place and saw the prices. eye watering. I only paid a fraction more for my house.

[Rocket-Boy]

30 minutes ago, ouzo said:

have you seen the price of used caravans ?

I only know this because I dropped a car off at a panel shop that is next to a caravan place and saw the prices. eye watering. I only paid a fraction more for my house.

Yeah I do a lot of camping and 4x4 and there are some very fancy caravans that are very expensive, there are also smaller more budget friendly ones though. The one thing most people agree is that rooftop tents are not always practical. If you go away every weekend and spend more time away then home then sure, they can be good for that, they are also good for places with animals if you want to be off the ground. What they suck for is fuel economy, road noise and generally needing to find a flat space the size of the car they are attached to. 

I think the sweet spot is a high clearance trailer with a fold out rooftop tent and all of the kitchen/fridge etc in the trailer, you get to drive a normal car in the week and then hitch up the camping rig on the weekend. Not the cheapest either unfortunately.

[Jewbacca]

5 minutes ago, Rocket-Boy said:

Yeah I do a lot of camping and 4x4 and there are some very fancy caravans that are very expensive, there are also smaller more budget friendly ones though. The one thing most people agree is that rooftop tents are not always practical. If you go away every weekend and spend more time away then home then sure, they can be good for that, they are also good for places with animals if you want to be off the ground. What they suck for is fuel economy, road noise and generally needing to find a flat space the size of the car they are attached to. 

I think the sweet spot is a high clearance trailer with a fold out rooftop tent and all of the kitchen/fridge etc in the trailer, you get to drive a normal car in the week and then hitch up the camping rig on the weekend. Not the cheapest either unfortunately.

With a trailer you need to find as large a flat surface, but it needs to be accessible to connect/disconnect the trailer. 

A trailer is also less fuel efficient, super uncomfortable to drive on rough roads and brings a whole new world of maintenance etc...

If I'm going to Elandsbaai to surf, taking my boy away for a night camp out, quickly getting out of town for something etc the roof tent is awesome. It's also warmer than sleeping on the ground.

Like anything, it depends what level of luxury you need to take with you. A small fridge run off a duel battery and a roof top tent is a win for weekend getaways.

As with most things, there is no right or wrong answer, but roof top tents done right are awesome and make going away far less of a hassle than caravans and trailers. IMHO

BUT, toys are expensive and whether it's a fancy trailer, caravan or roof top tent, if you're only using it sporadically, you have to ask if it's not just worth buying a nice ground tent and good quality camping bed at a fraction of the cost for the 'odd trip' you might take.

[patches]

My wife and I considered ourselves fairly avid campers, until about just under 2 years ago when we hired a campervan to do an awesome 2 week road trip around NZ's South Island. With Covid in full swing we managed to get one of those fully kitted Merc Sprinter campers for a steal.

After the convenience of the van, we struggled to motivate ourselves to camp "conventionally". We also cannot warrant spending $150k - 200k on that type of camper (we're way too far from retirement for that, haha).

So maybe these Thule tents are the middle ground. I'll have to show my wife the pics of how they might look on her XC40.

Edited July 24, 2022 by patches

[Wayne Potgieter]

34 minutes ago, patches said:

My wife and I considered ourselves fairly avid campers, until about just under 2 years ago when we hired a campervan to do an awesome 2 week road trip around NZ's South Island. With Covid in full swing we managed to get one of those fully kitted Merc Sprinter campers for a steal.

After the convenience of the van, we struggled to motivate ourselves to camp "conventionally". We also cannot warrant spending $150k - 200k on that type of camper (we're way too far from retirement for that, haha).

So maybe these Thule tents are the middle ground. I'll have to show my wife the pics of how they might look on her XC40.

My mrs and I are saving for a 2 year "gap year" for when the kids are in University and no longer living in the house. Our plan is to tour Canada, Alaska, The rest of USA and Mexico in this...

 

https://www.winnebago.com/models/product/motorhomes/class-c/ekko

[dave303e]

The reality is that you can buy 3-4 tents for the price of a roof top tent, especially when you consider roof racks/mounting etc.

1- good tunnel or 3/4 season tent for 1-3 nights where you need good waterproof comfortable option

2- lightweight hiking tent, for when you don't feel like sleeping in a glorified 4x4 carpark.

3- big canvas tent for when you need to escape the city for a week or 2.

4- Gazebo because they are always handy

That combination is far more versatile and as comfortable. Also usually has less road noise, doesn't need to be packed up when you want to pop to the launch ramp/pub/start line etc.

[ChrisF]

7 hours ago, patches said:

My wife and I considered ourselves fairly avid campers, until about just under 2 years ago when we hired a campervan to do an awesome 2 week road trip around NZ's South Island. With Covid in full swing we managed to get one of those fully kitted Merc Sprinter campers for a steal.

After the convenience of the van, we struggled to motivate ourselves to camp "conventionally". We also cannot warrant spending $150k - 200k on that type of camper (we're way too far from retirement for that, haha).

So maybe these Thule tents are the middle ground. I'll have to show my wife the pics of how they might look on her XC40.

 

Patches for a roof top tent a lot of the previous comments holds true ...

 

The BEST we have seen thus far is the "clamp shell type".  It pops up in seconds and you are ready to camp.  If you want to drive out of camp, it takes less than a minute to close the clam-shell. Your bedding is always ready.

 

As for what you do with the tent for the other 355 days of the year .... http://www.fredlin.co.za/

 

It takes about 10 minutes to fit or remove the tent.

 

Top tip - once you have the perfect allignment ... mark the spots where the vehicle should park .....  believe me, you dont want to lower that tent when the vehicle is off-centre .... no danger, just a pain to man handle the tent into position.

[mazambaan]

1 hour ago, dave303e said:

The reality is that you can buy 3-4 tents for the price of a roof top tent, especially when you consider roof racks/mounting etc.

1- good tunnel or 3/4 season tent for 1-3 nights where you need good waterproof comfortable option

2- lightweight hiking tent, for when you don't feel like sleeping in a glorified 4x4 carpark.

3- big canvas tent for when you need to escape the city for a week or 2.

4- Gazebo because they are always handy

That combination is far more versatile and as comfortable. Also usually has less road noise, doesn't need to be packed up when you want to pop to the launch ramp/pub/start line etc.

It is horses for courses. A ground tent takes a little more time to set up but doesn't have to be packed up each time you move so ideal for a few days in one spot (Kruger Park) and the lightweight or pop up type is great for quick, just sleeping (Namib dune trip). A little disconcerting when wild camping; somehow you feel better in an RTT when buffalo, lion, elephant and baboon are around the camp (Chitake 2 in Zim).  Has to be heavy canvas as Mr Monkey and Baboon can rip the lighter nylon etc tents (Third Bridge Bots).

If an RTT as ChrisF notes, clamshell is best (we have an AluCab; not cheap) as previously had a fold up hardshell and the 15 or 20 minutes (and 250 calories ) getting it squeezed together on a frosty Botswana morning is painful (particularly while others wait, twiddling thumbs). Does impact fuel consumption but was quick and comfortable (as far as such a thing can be). Quite heavy, leaves no firewood etc space on the roofrack and a 2 man job and half an hour to remove or replace (I have the FRedlin but AluCab will not get into the garage door👺). Did well for a month in Bots and Zim now. If one is considering AluCab try fit only the roofbars; a roofrack is wasted.

[Steven Knoetze (sk27)]

Tentco also locally made and good quality for much less.
The Thule one is really nice but overpriced IMO.

[Shebeen]

On 7/23/2022 at 10:50 AM, Rocket-Boy said:

Yeah I do a lot of camping and 4x4 and there are some very fancy caravans that are very expensive, there are also smaller more budget friendly ones though. The one thing most people agree is that rooftop tents are not always practical. If you go away every weekend and spend more time away then home then sure, they can be good for that, they are also good for places with animals if you want to be off the ground. What they suck for is fuel economy, road noise and generally needing to find a flat space the size of the car they are attached to. 

I think the sweet spot is a high clearance trailer with a fold out rooftop tent and all of the kitchen/fridge etc in the trailer, you get to drive a normal car in the week and then hitch up the camping rig on the weekend. Not the cheapest either unfortunately.

There are tradeoffs for all options here. I have borrowed a camping trailer with rooftop and all the fridge/lighting gizmos. It is awesome, my friend lends it to me for free because he wants it to be used, having all the capital tied up in something that only gets used 6/7 times a year irks him!

The rental model should be a no brainer here, but it's really hard to get them for just the weekend, the minimum is normally a three day. If you don't use it a lot, then this makes more sense than owning. So there's a reason why it seems you can rent a basic trailer from plenty of locations per day, but not a camping one. (there's a shop down the road who rents out roofboxes, also seemed like a good idea but never needed one that badly).

BUT back to the thule rooftop option advertised here. I now see the pricing, it's on the high end, but most of their products are aimed at the "quality is worth it model". With so many local options available, I wondered if they might have bought into one of our manufacturers, but it's an international product so global pricing.

I'm sure they will sell a few locally, many people swear by their products for a reason. It's a competitive market and I can't think of major improvements on a very mature product category.  

[DJR]

I have 2 roof top tents as well as 2 canvas bow (ground) tents. There is no ideal tent, they are all compromises. On some trips the rooftop tents can be considered near essential (Move every day, never stay long, big 5 country and wild camping with big cats.) Other times ground tents are more practical. (Stay for a few days or a week at a time. No predators, more amenities.)

Generally, on cycling or paddling expeditions, we use the ground tents because we usually carry 4 bikes or 2 double kayaks and the only good way (rough dirt roads and tracks) is to stack them on the roofrack..........thus no place for rooftop tents. On the Landy I can fit 1 rooftop tent and bikes, but it is a squeese. On most other cars the rooftop tent take up too much space to allow for more than 1 bike.