From tent to Airstream

[orange kayak]

We were tent campers before buying our 19' FC in August '13. We camp more often and enjoy it more. One of the best decisions we've ever made. Heat, comfortable bed, we can get dressed standing up, pee, and make coffee without ever going outside. Shoulder seasons are awesome. Not a single regret. LOVE!

[Ron A]

Like many of you I have gone from tent camping, then a pop-up and recently to a 16' Sport. Yes after 60 I was looking for something more comfortable but did not want to give up camping. After having the airstream I wouldn't go back to anything else.


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[batman]

Papa Smurf,
Since I was a baby my family, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friend all camped in tents. I raised my kids camping out in tents. The kids are all grown and the wife was the one who suggested the AS. It has many advantages like Security and the convenience of a full pantry and kitchen with stove and oven, table, bed and bath with shower and hot water and flush toilet. We love, love , love it. We go camping more often now that we have it. Once we got ours 64 safari it seemed to consume most of our time and thoughts finding new places we had not been. Whether it is a good thing or not, we meet so many people in the AS, folks seem to be very curious about these beauties or they have fond stories of family camping in one. The wife wont go camping any were without it now. We booney camp as often as possible. I still like to back pack the wilderness areas here in California, get up high 9000+ and catch golden trout. So we use the trailer for the wife and dogs to base camp, and I can get my tent fix hiking and fishing the wilderness. No regrets!

[Cottonboll]

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[Cottonboll]

Sorry bout the double post. Started camping in the back yard 60 years ago. Air streaming for ten years. Had to prove to myself I could still rough it last summer. Used a folding stool like a walker to get up off the ground, Gatorade bottle to stay in the tent all night. That sums it up. Go Airstream!


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[RAH]

Funny, if I ever feel I need to prove to myself I can still tent camp, it will likely be in my backyard.
So to end the guessing game, where is the picture of your tent camp from? Looks beautiful!

[Ahab]

We've tented, had 3 sailboats, pop ups, and a motor home. Today we camp in comfort.

[aftermath]

Papa,

Tented for a long time then two daughters came along. Went to a tent trailer for 17 years then the daughters got married. Moved "up" to a hybrid for about 5 years but as retirement loomed and we looked forward to more traveling so we picked up the Airstream.

Every time you move "up" the chain you will have to give something up. With a tent we had total freedom to go where we chose, just needed a flat spot to set the tent. The tent trailer was perfect for us as we could go "almost" anywhere with it an often did pull it off the road. The hybrid was bigger and we had to stick to roads including forest service roads into the wilds. The Airstream keeps us to paved roads and of course out of the steep logging roads.

So, yes you do lose flexibility as you get into larger trailers. Try not to focus on what you can no longer do, focus instead on all the advantages and there are many. I do NOT miss hefting those heavy ice boxes in and out of the truck. When traveling there is nothing better than pulling over for a break or to have lunch with all the comforts of home right behind you.

[MrUKToad]

I backpacked in my younger days, carrying the tent, and everything else, with me. More recently I threw the tent into the car and was able to carry far more, but that setting up and breaking down of the camp site was getting to be painful, especially as we always filled the car to bursting, regardless of its size. Then we went to the Airstream; a proper bed, hot shower and a personal toilet, which is all to the good and something I've earned as I've aged. We still take tents camping, but now they are for the kids and the Airstream becomes an adult haven. Perfect!

[slpiotro]

We were tent campers all of our lives until buying the Airstream at retirement. We have spent multiple months in it at a time and that is the single greatest advantage, you can keep going, seeing, doing and enjoying the same places (or new ones of the same type) for extended periods and repeated visits. We have particularly enjoyed the WBCCI Caravans and rallies, lots learned from other Airstreamers. Drawbacks, much easier to stay warm and cozy in the bed on cold mornings. Our birding and nature hiking has tended towards later in the day and evenings because it is so comfy to sleep in! In the tend, by morning you were stiff and cold and wanted to get up and move, in the AStream you are warm and cozy and want to sleep in. It takes more effort to enjoy all the nature you are surrounded by outside. Of course the first time you stay warm and dry through an rainstorm you will say the tradeoff is to your advantage. You will love the Airstream, but unless you have reasons for going bigger, stay with the smaller sizes, you will have so much more room it will feel gigantic (we have a 23 ft. and still find it comfy after five years plus for spouse and two cats for up to three and a half months at a time)

[B00merang]

Papa Smurf
Note the common thread in all the responses here....NOONE would go back to tent camping. That will include you...trust us. But keep the tent for the backpacking trips and the rare situation where you can't uses your AS. Like the others, I tent camped for 45 years, then bought my 20ft FC in 2010...I love that camper...even when it just sits in the driveway for a couple of weeks. You'll go out to just sit in it and have coffee...and you'll come across better offering visiting friends a night in your AS as opposed to offering setting up a tent for them in the driveway. Pick the right model and go for it. Jon

[rmkrum]

Refer to the "would you loan out your Airstream" thread for a ton of opinions on that idea 😄


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[TwoSporks]

My husband took a sabbatical from work a few years ago and we spent almost three years traveling extensively, sleeping in our tent or SUV for all but a few nights (the roosters got to us in Kauai!). We both tent camped and backpacked extensively before that period of travel and I never saw myself as an RV person. Then, the reality of going back to work hit us and we decided to try working from the road on a part-time basis to keep the travel going. We bought an Airstream in August to facilitate working from the road and I have to say that I am really enjoying the comforts of RV camping - the toilet, being able to cook, staying warm, etc. We also have our cats with us, which makes me happy.

The biggest drawback for us is the lack of flexibility. In our SUV, we roamed wherever we wanted and didn't have to have any plans. This worked quite well for us because we are photographers and like to chase conditions/weather. The RV makes that flexibility impossible since moving a trailer is lot more difficult than moving our car and tent. Things take a lot longer, like the set-up and take-down process. I am also not used to planning so making campground reservations with a large vehicle has been a learning experience. Finally, owning an Airstream has been much more expensive than I anticipated. My budget for buying the trailer and tow vehicle was woefully inadequate one I added all of the unanticipated extras and we have spent more on little miscellaneous stuff than I would have ever imagined. I miss the simplicity of having everything we needed for a three week trip in our cargo box or a few North Face duffel bags and the flexibility of moving around but also am really enjoying being away in a home away from home.

[SSquared]

We tent camped (always in a campground, never backpacked) for years until the time we were camped in bear country and a large, furry, and hungry critter tried to move our tent in the middle of the night, with us in it. (the critter turned out to be a cow....).

From there we got a 13 foot Scamp and used it for 12 years, 160 nights. Then came retirement and the 25 foot Airstream. We have never been tempted to go back to the tent, but we still use the Scamp sometimes.....it fits in some places the big trailer won't go, and we get more of a "back-to-nature" vibe with it. If I had money to burn I think I'd trade the Scamp for a Bambi, and pair it with a 30 foot Airstream.

[Landshark]

Many years ago, we started car-camping, moved on to back-packing, and there we stayed for decades. I finally decided that the ground is just too hard for older bones and the outdoor toilets were always too far away for wee hour (pun intended) forays, so we got into Airstreams and have looked back only to wish we had done it much sooner. An A/S would have made a fantastic base camp in those backpacking years: a hot shower right off the trail! A clean toilet! Real food instead of reconstituted right off the trail!

And that is not even mentioning the camaraderie, friendship, and knowledge available on this forum, at WBCCI rallies, or on the road from fellow Airstreamers. I wouldn't go back to a tent for anything.

Vivian

[Cottonboll]

Originally Posted by RAH

Funny, if I ever feel I need to prove to myself I can still tent camp, it will likely be in my backyard.
So to end the guessing game, where is the picture of your tent camp from? Looks beautiful!

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[Cottonboll]

Mesa Verde Nat. Park Colorado U.S.A.


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[TDOW]

When it rains, I roll over and smile!

[m.hony]

I should have gone from tent to Airstream, but I didn't.
I went from Tent to Forest River Wildwood 28RLSS to Airstream Classic 30.
I should have gone from tent to Airstream Classic 30 in the first place. All I did was prolong the inevitable. It is what I wanted to do in the first place, but I was trying to not spend the money. So much for that...

[field & stream]

We went from the ground, to tents, to VW campers, to the 23' Airstream. We never miss the ground or the tent, and the only time we miss the VW's is when we have to drive by a great campsite because the Airstream is too big. Plus, having an Airstream does not rule out more primitive camping -- you can do both.