Experience of Sleeping in a RTT?

[deeve]

Hello, I picked up a Tacoma (DCSB) to use as my daily driver and backcountry discovery rig. I have ground camped quite a bit, mostly off the back of a dual sport motorcycle so I am used to keeping it somewhat small. I would like to get off the ground, for both myself and my wife. I am curious about what it is like to sleep in a RTT. I have a friend, who admitted he has no experience with RTT, thought the tent would move around a bit with the suspension of the truck, finding a flat spot to park could be a challenge and getting in and out is a pain. I figure since so many people use RTT's that the movement must not be that big of a problem, but I am curious anyway. More so about how hard is it to find a level area and getting in and out? My knees are getting kind of shot and I'm not petite, so a ground tent was not much fun to crawl in and out of.

Thanks!

 

[Yarjammer]

Unless you are quite rotund, you shouldn't have a problem with the tent moving about throughout the night. One of the advantages of a RTT is that you DON'T have to find the most ideal location because of your suspension and you are only concerned with where the tires touch the ground. If the spot is still a little off you can carry some RV leveling plates or some 2x4s to shove under a corner or two. A RTT will provide you with a comfortable and consistent night's sleep. Getting in and out painlessly is up for debate depending on which ladder is used (there are plenty of threads on this). I just keep a pair of Crocs or flip flops handy and have no problems.

This space was anything but level and I'd challenge you to have pitched a ground tent and slept comfortably here.

 

[biff]

You are over thinking it.
RTT is way more comfortable than a ground tent.

 

[grogie]

Best night's sleep ever and it puts a smile on my face. It's like sleeping in a tree house with great air flow. I have added extra padding besides the pad in my Tepui. Much faster to open up and close vs. a ground tent. Plus, with my last ground tent, I had gone to cots, which I've also eliminated all that extra stuff.

I'll note that my RTT is on a box trailer so not as far up in the sky. But easy enough to get in and out of of.

 

[tgreening]

RTT has it hands down over a ground tent. Worst case throw a 2" memory foam topper on top the existing and you'll wonder how you ever lived in a grounder.

Now.... One thing I will say is that if you mount it to the top of your driver and plan on moving about at all on your camping excursions, it will get old Real Fast. Putting it up/down every day can start to suck, especially if you've got awnings etc to deal with as well. I'd much rather tote a trailer behind me to the camp spot even if it's ONLY function is to carry the RTT. Mine started on the roof, ended on top the trailer, and I was way happier. I could set up camp one time, and then forget about it till I was ready to head home, or the next camp spot. My opinion of course.

 

[NatersXJ6]

Lots of places to rent one and try it, but I love mine and haven't looked back.

 

[Mr. Snappy]

This being the Internet and all, opinions are everywhere.
However, we got back yesterday from a two night trip around Bill Williams mountain in AZ. First night sucked. Second night, didn't suck as much. Tent is a howling moon 1.4, I think.
Let me quantify the sucking issues. First off, tent set up was not bad, takes about 5-10 minutes. Did a little moving around to try to find a leveler spot. The big problem is that the mattress pad in the tent is like sleeping on a brick topped with a nice smooth coat of concrete, followed by a plate of steel. In other words, we hurt the next morning. And we aren't overweight, I'm about 190, she's 120ish.
Moved the next day to do some more exploring, took a little longer to pack up than set up.
The pluses though, are that the tent is dark ( I hate waking up at daybreak when I'm camping) seems to hold the heat better when it's cold out ( that's coming from her, and that's important) and we left all but our pillows in there when we moved and came home.
So I'm looking for a better mattress solution, cause numb arms and sore hips make a cranky camper(s) in the morning.

 

[seekerbeta]

i love my RTT, i have a TJM Yulara, and on top of my Xterra it works great, i dont need to find level ground almost ever, and the couple of times we've slept in it we never needed more than our -5 bags, and even then after a few minutes we were comfortable. setup is easy enough even my wife can do it unassisted, and it makes packing so much easier, blankets and such, in the tent, more room for stuff in the truck. we actually used to sleep in the truck, with 4" topper, but no more!

Bonus pick of it in Tulameen, She slept in the tent, and it was really cold that night, and she still only used the lightweight sleeping bags. no problem at all

 

[F40]

Much more comfortable than a ground tent in my opinion. Doesn't get as hot as a ground tent if the suns out, great ventilation (I didn't like having the windows open at night on the ground tent). Seems to stay warmer inside if it's cold out. Holds up to wind very well.

 

[Airmapper]

Not the most experienced opinion here, only spent one weekend in my RTT, but those first two nights all my reservations and concerns were removed. I love my RTT.

The largest factor that drew me to it was my pure and simple hatred of ground tents. The selection of a site, spreading and folding a tarp, fooling with those bendy rods. If a ground tent had roots it would be called a Venus Idiot Trap plant. The last time I camped in a ground tent was with a group of friends, and it poured rain all weekend. We had a minor tent city set up, a bunch of tarps strung up, and I didn't get too wet overall, but I had water in my tent when I left despite my best efforts and no visible leaks, and I wadded that wet mess up in my truck and went home. That would not have worked if I planned to camp somewhere else the next night.

It wasn't cold, but it got down to about 50-ish my first night in the RTT, and I was nice and warm in my sleeping bag, a 40-60 degree bag that seemed perfect for it's rating in the RTT. I didn't get cold from underneath, no air mattress but a foam pad. I get chilly on an air mattress anywhere.

I had a little visitor the second night, a big fluffy skunk tooled around my camp not long after I got settled. I unzipped my window, pointed my flashlight at him, and as I had most of my gear stowed away, he wasn't bothering anything, so I slept easy knowing there was little chance of him being a nuisance with me up there off the ground. I really liked that benefit of a RTT. In the same campground area I've heard of them getting into the tent with you from time to time, and a friendly skunk can make for a very bad day once they decide they don't like you no more.

I also have a pop-up trailer camper, and the sleeping experience in the RTT is pretty much the same as the pull out in the camper. A canvas covered flat platform. I actually believe it slept better than the camper, the mattress is a shave thicker in the RTT (I have the Smittybilt Overlander) I also liked using the sleeping bag over fooling with sheets like I usually do in the camper or using an air mattress.

The only thing I don't like, is it's an absolute pain to remove and re-install on my SUV. If my rig wasn't my daily driver it wouldn't be as big an issue. I ran with it installed for like 3 weeks, it's not that hard to deal with, but it does suck gas mileage, plus it gets exposure to the sun and rain all that time your not using it, which might wear out the covers sooner than desired.

 

[Happykamper]

Your asking if an RTT is worth it is like asking if Hallie Barry is worth sleeping with. I know I misspelled the name
But the only thing better then sleeping in my RTT would be if hallie was there with me
Wonder if wife would get mad? Who cares it's Hallie

 

[JackW]

I've spent about 60 nights in my Maggiolina roof tent and its been some of the best camping I've ever done. The only downside is the middle of the night pee breaks that us older guys find necessary.
A friend of mine slept in my roof tent last year (I was in my travel trailer) and he said it was one of the best night's sleep he's had in years. He had a Hannibal roof tent and says the mattress in the Maggiolina is superior.
The hard shell roof tents (Maggiolina, James Baroud) erect faster and easier than the folding tents and are easier to stow (about 1 minute up, three minutes down for mine) so using the vehicle isn't as big a deal as it is for the folding tents.
A couple of the fiberglass leveling blocks from a camper trailer store will usually take care of any sloping issue - I just have the uphill end at the tail of the truck since my head goes that way.

I've replaced the painful stock ladder with one of the collapsing type (also available from Camping World) and a pair of crocs or flipflops to one side of the ladder make the inevitable night time excursions less painful.

 

[deeve]

Thanks everyone. Looks like a rtt it is. Now for that $$

 

[cruiserpilot]

^^JackW has word for word spoken for me. I agree completely. Only difference is my Land Cruiser to his Defender. The thing to get used to is the ladder.
I too have crocs and just bought new flip flops with an LED in them!! Too cool. No more
searching for ladder rung in the dark. I recommend a LED headlamp, crocs, and I wear gym sweats for climbing around in the cold.

 

[acg]

We use these for our kids who sleep in the RTT:

https://www.amazon.ca/TRAVELJOHN-66911-Disposable-Urinal-Pouch/dp/B000NV878S