Hi Vanessa,

Wish I'd found seen post earlier.

I work as an expedition guide and sleep in a rooftent around 120 nights a year, travelling between the Sahara desert and the Arctic Circle. I spend a lot of time at altitude - Alps, Pyrenees, Atlas mountains and I've used a lot of roof tents.

If you're on a long trip, the conventional folding types can be a real pita, especially if the canvas is very wet. I've tried Hannibal, EeziAwn and Howling Moon. I've had experience of the cheaper copies and they're OK if you're only doing one short trip. The materials used and build quality are generally poor. Of the other 3 I'd rate Howling Moon best, then EeziAwn and then Hannibal as a poor third. (got through 3 of those!)

However, the best rooftent by far is the Maggiolina Columbus clamshell. It goes up on gas struts in 5 seconds, comes down in not much more. The internal bungees mean there's not much tucking in of canvas. The roof is fibreglass so sheds water immediately - much less wet canvas to tuck away. You can do everything from ground level. No climbing on roofracks struggling with wet covers & zips & straps. and you can leave all your bedding inside.

OK they don't look "safari" but you'll get a great nights sleep whatever the conditions. They will take up all of your roofrack but how much stuff should you really be putting up there. I bought one of the first carbon fibre Columbus and it weighs 28 kilos - about one and a half jerry cans. They'l mount onto a couple of roof bars so you don't even need a rack.

Regarding condensation, there is none. Vents keep the moisture inside the tent under control and you can get a mesh barrier from BOAB to go under the mattress which provides an air gap providing extra insulation and circulation preventing cold spots and mould on the underside of the mattress.

I've got no affiliation with any of the manufacturers, I just like an easy like and a good night's kip!

Whichever tent you choose, if there are only 2 of you you don't need a 1.6m. I've always used 1.2s - me and my partner aren't sylph-like by any stretch of the imagination and we've always been comfortable.

Hope this is useful,

Happy trails,

Jojo

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Atlas Overland - Specialist adventure tour company providing off-road holidays for 4x4 enthusiasts in Europe and North Africa.
Tours to Morocco, Iceland, Arctic Circle, Portugal, Alps, Pyrenees, Eastern Europe, Corsica, and UK weekend tours.