Hammock Tent vs Rooftop Tent: Which Is Better for Car Camping?

Haven Tents · October 21, 2026 · 3 min read

Hammock tent or rooftop tent? Both get you off the ground onto a flat bed. A rooftop tent lives on your vehicle, sleeps two or more on a built-in mattress and works anywhere you can park, but it's a big purchase, needs a suitable roof rack, and you have to pack it up before you drive anywhere. A lay-flat hammock tent sleeps one person per hammock, costs far less, packs into the trunk, and hangs from trees, a stand or a hitch mount, so it also goes where the vehicle can't: down a trail, onto a beach, into the backyard. Choose a rooftop tent if you camp as a couple or family from the vehicle in treeless places; choose a hammock tent if each person wants their own bed and you'd like a shelter that isn't tied to the car.

Camper sitting in a blue Haven hammock tent in a pine forest

Quick comparison

	Rooftop tent	Lay-flat hammock tent
Sleeping surface	Flat mattress, off the ground	Flat insulated pad, off the ground
People	Usually two or more together	One per hammock
Where it works	Wherever you can park reasonably level	Two trees, the Haven Stand or a hitch mount; on the ground in bivy mode
Vehicle needed	Yes, with a roof rack rated for it	No (only for a hitch mount)
Leaving camp during the day	Pack the tent up first	Leave it hanging and drive off
On the roof between trips	Often stays on, or is heavy to remove	Stored in a bag
Other uses	Vehicle camping only	Backpacking (Haven Spectre), backyard, river and bike trips
Cost	A major purchase, plus rack	Usually much lower; prices on each product page

Where a rooftop tent wins

Sleeping together. Most rooftop tents fit two or more people on one mattress. Each Haven sleeps one person.
No trees, no problem. Parking lots, deserts and open beaches are all fine. A Haven needs a stand, a hitch mount or bivy mode there.
Bedding stays put. Many rooftop tents fold up with the bedding inside.
Height off the ground and a hard or tensioned base that doesn't depend on tree spacing.

Where a hammock tent wins

Your own bed. Each person gets a flat platform that doesn't move when someone else rolls over or climbs down a ladder at night.
Your vehicle stays free. You can set up camp and still drive to the trailhead or into town.
It isn't tied to the car. Carry it to a better spot by the river, take it backpacking, or use it in the backyard.
Side and stomach sleeping on an insulated pad, with a bug net and rainfly included (see Hammocking for Side Sleepers).
Nothing on the roof. No permanent load on your roof rack between trips.
Price. A Haven, even with a stand, is usually a much smaller outlay than a rooftop tent and the rack to carry it.

Using a Haven as a vehicle setup

For car camping without trees, a hitch mount is a frame that slots into your vehicle's receiver hitch and holds the hammock at both ends. The Bare Bones XL and Mammoth Mount XL fit standard 2-inch receiver hitches and work with Havens. Check each mount's weight rating against your own weight and your model's rating before you buy. The Haven Stand (rated to 300 lb, comes with rainfly poles and a case) fits every Haven model and goes in the trunk. More in The Best Hammock Stand for Lay-Flat Hammocks.

Haven Stand by YOBOGear set up on the beach with a gull nearby

Which should you choose?

Couple or family that camps from the vehicle, often without trees: a rooftop tent.
Solo traveler, or a group where everyone wants their own bed: a Haven each, on trees, a stand or a hitch mount.
You also backpack or camp away from the car: a Haven, because it goes with you.
Mixed: some families use a rooftop tent for the kids and Havens for the adults.

For the wider picture, read Best Car Camping Sleep Setup and What Is an Outdoor Sleep System?, or compare models on our outdoor sleep systems page. The Haven Safari, with its 300d canvas body and 350 lb rating, is built for vehicle-based trips and basecamps. If you're weighing a Haven against a ground tent instead, see Haven vs Ground Tents.

Comments (0)

No comments yet — be the first!

Camper lying flat on the insulated pad inside a blue Haven XL

Camping With Back, Hip or Joint Pain: Pad vs Cot vs Lay-Flat Hammock Tent

How a sleeping pad, cot, regular hammock and lay-flat hammock tent differ in support, pressure and getting in and out, for campers with back, hip or joint pain.

Haven Tents · October 22, 2026 · 5 min read

Haven Insulated Pad Cover on an air mattress, marked warm, warmer and warmest

Do You Need a Sleeping Pad If You Sleep Off the Ground?

Usually yes: air under a cot or hammock pulls heat away and your bag flattens beneath you. What cots, hammocks and lay-flat hammock tents need underneath.

Haven Tents · October 22, 2026 · 4 min read

← Back to Adventure Journal