Hi all
Am new to this forum and have spent the last few nights trawling through a lot of the camping and bushwalking threads. It all looks like so much fun and was one of the motivators for my OH and I investing in a second hand D3 last week - so we could do some of this stuff with our boys.

So we've got the car. Now we're starting to think about what we need to save for/look for next. So my questions are:

1. A Camper Trailer or a Tent?

2. Is one a better option than another? If you could have your choice of either, which would you choose?

3. Why would you make that particular choice?

4. If you choose a tent, would you get a big one (eg 2+ rooms for a family of 4) or try and keep it as small as possible?

5. If you choose a trailer, are there any specific features that for you are a "must have"?


All opinions gratefully accepted . Thanks in advance.

Camper trailer hands down.
We have had a Cavalier off road for a long time now and they are great. Have done a few mods. Tips, get the best in your budget, there are way too many on the market now. Look for one with a bit of history and back up service. You get what you pay for and the Cavalier IMHO is the best in its class. Think about what you want before buying. The most important items I would want are Treg Hitch, longe drawbar, big solid jockey wheel, water tanks, 9kg gas cylinder holder, at least 2 jerry can holders, good off road trailer, matching wheels and tyres with tow car. Everything else can be added as you need it and most stuff can be stored in boxes etc inside the trailer. They can go anywhere.
We have just upgraded to a bit more luxury buying a Coromal Family F400 off road caravan. Wont go where the camper trailer gos, but we wont miss out on too much either.
Cheers
Craig

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1. A Camper Trailer or a Tent?
Depends where you want to go and how much money you have.

2. Is one a better option than another? If you could have your choice of either, which would you choose?
No it is your personal choice. I have two tents, a softfloor camper and a swag. The one I take depends on where I am going and who is coming with me.
In general we take the camper but if it is just me I take the swag. If we are going somewhere that I think is not an ideal camper place (i.e. a rough trip for only one night or one of the islands and being too much of a tight arse to take a trailer) then we take a tent.

3. Why would you make that particular choice?
As above it depends on various things

4. If you choose a tent, would you get a big one (eg 2+ rooms for a family of 4) or try and keep it as small as possible?
If I was only going to have a tent I would get a good quality canvas one that suited the size of my family and the planned usage.
We have two dome tents though. One small one and one larger that we can stand up in.

5. If you choose a trailer, are there any specific features that for you are a "must have"?
Well the must haves when we bought ours were a rugged trailer and quality canvas. We also got the full annex walls but they have had little use. Worth their weight in gold when you need them though. We got a few other things but anything else we could do ourselves.


Whatever decision you make though don't base it on what you think you need before you actually go camping and find out what you actually need.
Start with a borrowed tent or a rented camper. Try a few things before you commit your $$$. Otherwise it will be a very expensive exercise.

Remember you also don't need a full offroad camper to stay in caravan parks.

Hmmm.... We have a tent only and have never owned a camper trailer. I think keeping it simple is a good call with camping setups.

We tend to move nightly when on trips and we have a freedom tourer type tent. It's very quick to set up. Also we have a system where all our beds roll up with our bedding making deployment very quick.

There are places that you can't go with a camper trailer (ever tried backing down a sand dune with a trailer on ), and many places where it is more difficult with a camper trailer.

I think you need a tent anyway, so start simple and see how you go.

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Craig has just about echoed everthing I was going to say, but I would add a cheap CT isn't necessarily a worthwhile purchase; you want to have the best construction and corrosion restistance (IMHO galvinising is the best) added with simplicity and storage space. Ideally weigh as litle as possible without sacrificing the first 2 points.

Outback Australia is littered with broken substandard rigs that ruin peoples holidays.

I rented a trailer before I bought one, and took it into the gulf country and central QLD. I now own one the same model, as I was very impressed with its rugged construction and simplicity.
This is their site;

Cape York Trailers

JC

Tents are cheaper to register & insure...

What sort of travel do you envisage? ie big trip / move on every day, or find a spot & stay put for a while?

Regards
Max P

Yep, all of the above ....
Utemad covers it similar to what I would have.

depends on what you want to do !

I've posted various setups that I use in this thread and have a browse there to see how many other variations people are using.

Stevo

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I think tents are good for younger couples or couples with maybe 1 kid. Throw a tent in back, or on the roofrack, and it means you can be agile, camp anywhere your car can get to without towing hinderances.

Once more kids come in to the picture, you fill the back seat(s) with kids and need to take more gear, so need a trailer, so it may as well be a properly designed camper.

As you get older and it gets harder to get up off the ground, tents might not appeal so much either ( we're getting to that point but have loved our tenting till now )

Whatever you buy make sure it is quality. Especially with tents, the type and quality of tent itself, mattresses and sleeping bags etc will make the difference between you loving or hating the experience.

1. A Camper Trailer or a Tent?
Easy answer - Both. There are places you can't take a camper trailer or simply may not want to.

2. Is one a better option than another? If you could have your choice of either, which would you choose?
Easy answer again - No. Both have advantages depending on what you want to do. The CT has the advantage of having storage for food, bedding, kitchen but also must be towed. It will also usually place the sleeping area off the ground and the hard floor CT's are big advantage for keeping the living quarters clean and dry.

3. Why would you make that particular choice?
See previous answers.

4. If you choose a tent, would you get a big one (eg 2+ rooms for a family of 4) or try and keep it as small as possible?
Always get a tent at least 2 people bigger than you intend to sleep in it. That way you will have heaps of room. Unless of course its for bushwalking or hiking and then you want it small and light.

5. If you choose a trailer, are there any specific features that for you are a "must have"?
Be solid build have very good off road ability and be easy to set up or pack up, if need be by one person.


We have spent a quarter of this year living out of our Kimberley Kamper, we also have a Black Wolf Turbo Tent. In the three month trip we have done this year we learnt a lot about our trailer and were very happy with it. I will still have a tent as there are a lot of places you really don't want to bring the trailer in to or can't. The Kamper will go anywhere the car can in terms of off-road ability but you really have to watch it when the combined length (Defender + Trailer) is almost 12m.

The best option (which was something we couldn't do) is to hire out a CT for a weekend and see what you think.

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A very open set of questions.

And no correct answer as the answer will differ with people, situation etc.

It probably comes down to what sort of camping do you want to do?

If you are going to stay in a caravan park, don't bother with either, hire an onsite van or stay at the motel would be even easier. If you want your kids to be minimalists, throw your bedding, a tarp, some ropes, a camp oven, one plate per head and a car fridge in and travel light, eat out of the one plate for every course every one washes their own stuff, one pot cooking keep it simple. Between the extreems is where you will settle I suspect.

Try it before you commit to too much of anything.