Pop Ups

[armdave]

Would love to know what owners of Pop Ups think about them. We had a Road Trek and didn't really use it enough so we sold it. We're now thinking about getting a pop up for quick trips to the Fort.
Any thoughts would be much appreciated

Thanks!

 

[Tri-circle-D]

There are quite a few of us here who camp with pop-up campers.

I have a 2000 Coleman Utah CP, which I bought new in November, 1999.

It was always my intent to upgrade to a travel trailer, and eventually a motorhome.

But, the pop-up has been perfect for us, and we have used it extensively to visit the Fort. I have seen no reason for us to upgrade, and we continue to enjoy our camper.

TCD

 

[ElementCamper]

I can relate as I bought and sold my popup.

They are a great way to get an inexpensive means to go camping up off the ground which is why I quit tent camping and bought a camper.

The reason I sold my popup was because of the hassle of it getting wet at the end of a trip. I camp solo and found that if the canvas was wet at the end of a trip, I would have to fold the camper up and haul it home. Then set the camper up again at home to allow it to dry completely. Doing it by yourself is a total pain and for me was not worth the hassle. Now if you have a crew (as in spouse, or free labor (read as kids)), then I would say go for it and have fun camping. But never store one even the slightest bit damp or you will have major mildew issues.

I also found I like having a hard side camper for the quiet. When you are in a popup you really are in a tent sitting on a box. Off the ground, probably with AC but still, can hear everything going on around you. This can be a good thing (crickets, birds chirping, etc) or a bad thing (Disney busses at 6am, neighbors, etc).
I enjoy camping much more now with my T@B trailer.

 

[ehstrojette]

I have owned 2 and we love it. I like the feeling of camping when you can hear the bird chirping in the morning but still have a/c and heat if needed. With a popup you can take it anywhere most campers can't go. I have bigger beds in the popup then most campers too, we enjoy a king and queen on the bunk ends. Yes it may take more time to put and down but we make up for that in gas savings with not having to pull a big trailer. We could pull the popup with my mini van if needed.
If you dont want a popup you could do a hybrid which has the ends like a popup but full kitchen and bath. Alot of popups now have toilets and showers in them but we always go to the bathhouse because there is more room and only use the porta potty at night
If you get one make sure you buy bunk end covers(popupgizmos.com)to keep the bunk ends clean and also keeps in inside cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter...love it

 

[bord1niowa]

We have had several pop ups. We like a lot about them. The feeling of being outdoors with the sounds etc. They are easier to tow with a wider range of vehicles, including better mileage than a bigger unit. We had a port-a pottie type bathroom in one of them but never used it. Some of them can be roomy, depending on their layout and the number of people in it. We moved to a couple of trailers and now a motorhome, due to an upcoming move to retirement in it, but we still miss our pop ups.
The only drawback we had with the pups was the putting them away wet thing. Sometimes it could have been several days before we could open it up to dry out, as we did not have a garage to open it up in. Other than that....Go for it!

 

[bama_ed]

I love my pop-up. It's a Jayco 12HW (HighWall) from 2005. I've spent 124 nights in it so far. We bought it new with the intention of using the heck out of it and we have.

You (OP) didn't say what state you're in so don't know how far it is to the Fort for you. The wet canvas thing is something you have to stay in front of. If you go home with wet canvas (which in Alabama where I am is almost every morning with the dew, humidity, etc) you have to set it up at home and let it dry. So when we get home usually on Sunday afternoons at the end of a weekend I pop it up in the driveway for an hour or so then pack it up and roll it into the garage (I have an unfinished basement/garage that still leaves room for 2 cars inside). Garage storage helps preserve it.

Like others we tent camped initially. Ours is fully tricked out with microwave, oven/stove, a/c, cd/radio, potty/shower combo and slideout dinette. We have 3 kids now all teenagers and it's still roomy enough for us. But we take most of our vacations now with it and staying in campgrounds and cooking our own meals saves us tons of $$$ versus hotels and restaurants. Based on reasonable estimates of costs I can honestly say it paid for itself already.

Naturally there are trade-offs but I like unzipping all my windows and having a a 360-degree view out of my trailers and let the breeze blow in if I want to - can't do that in a travel trailer. We don't camp that much in December-February because staying warm at night is a challenge (although we've done it). It is easy to hear your neighbor's diesel truck start up at 5 a.m. which might wake you up but most times all you hear are the birds outside singing to the rising sun.

It also allows us to stay at the Fort in the Partial sites which are the cheapest. Shoot, last Thanksgiving at the fort I cooked a 20-pound turkey and fed 18 people from my pop-up (took some planning). So it's a good entry level way to enjoy the RV/camping lifestyle.

Bama ED

 

[anolefan]

We absolutely love our pop-up. We have a 2007 Fleetwood Avalon which is a huge box at 16ft. We are a family of 5 and have found it to be more than enough room for us. I enjoy the ease of pulling and backing up as well as the open feeling we have inside. The sleeping capacity is great as we have 2 king beds, a full dinette and a jackknife sofa. We have looked at several travel trailers and will probably upgrade eventually, but I don't see that happening for several years.

 

[armdave]

Thanks much for all the feedback
we live in upstate ny but get to Mickey's 4-6 times a year. we always loved staying at the Fort with the Roadtrek but are seriously looking at the Pop Up option

 

[ehstrojette]

where in upstate? I used to live there and my family still does

 

[AuburnJen92]

We started with a pop up, then eventually moved up to a class a. We just bought another older popup for a nice price as a pull behind so that we won't have to upgrade our MH. (I have too good of a deal on my MH to get rid of it) Our MH was originally made for a retired couple, so the popup will be for the DS and friends in the future when he is of that age. It was definitely worth the purchase and not to have the worry and hassle of going through another upgrade on the MH, loan, interest rate shopping, blah blah blah.

 

[armdave]

Albany area

 

[clkelley]

We started with a pop up, then eventually moved up to a class a. We just bought another older popup for a nice price as a pull behind so that we won't have to upgrade our MH. (I have too good of a deal on my MH to get rid of it) Our MH was originally made for a retired couple, so the popup will be for the DS and friends in the future when he is of that age. It was definitely worth the purchase and not to have the worry and hassle of going through another upgrade on the MH, loan, interest rate shopping, blah blah blah.

OK, Jenn, how ya gonna pull all the other toys!!!!

Pretty soon your gonna need this:

 

[Thumper_ehhhhh]

If you plan on towing to disney make sure it has A/C. Ours didnt have it when we towed it in May 96 man it was unbearable the first couple of nights. 95f plus tons of humidity. A/C for us now lol

 

[AuburnJen92]

OK, Jenn, how ya gonna pull all the other toys!!!!

Pretty soon your gonna need this:

omg don't show that to Chris!

 

[kimsdreamvacation]

http://s826.photobucket.com/albums/zz185/KIMSDREAMVACATION/

NEVER POSTED PHOTO BEFORE, BUT HERE IS A PIC OF OUR POP UP,SHE AIN'T THE PRETTIEST BUT SHE'S OURS AND PAID FOR AND WE JUST LOVE HER! CAN'T WAIT TO BRING HER TO THE FORT!!!

 

[stacktester]

omg don't show that to Chris!

Where is Lonestar? Ok I don't need the car hauler part but the jet skis could go on top. golf cart is ok there, and my 4 wheelers can go on the bottom but I need a place to sleep. Can we convert the top into a loft cabin lol.

 

[LORNADUCK]

OK, Jenn, how ya gonna pull all the other toys!!!!

Pretty soon your gonna need this:

Wow I would love to have that, I wonder if it would fit a 26ft deck boat and a jet ski.
Maybe this would slove Donnie's problems

 

[Ellen aka Snow White]

We too loved our pop-up. We had one for a couple of years then upgraded to one with AC! We kept that one for 15 years! It was like a member of our family. We took many trips to the Fort as well as other places. After this last trip however, my DH made the comment that he thought we had finally outgrown our popup.Our girls are now 18 and 21 so it was a bit tight but it was amazing how we spent 10 days together in it and got along better then we do in our "big" house!!
We did just recently purchase a new to us TT (from someone on these great boards!) - the main reason being the time involved in setting up and breaking down camp - then resetting it up once we got home to dry it out and the second reason being our girls being older and needing more space. It was sad to watch it drive away!
Ellen

 

[TOGA]

We've had our 2001 Coleman Bayside Elite for almost 3 years now and truly love it. For 2 adults, 2 kids and a medium sized dog this pop-up rocks and is our first answer to vacation and travel needs {it also serves as a handly 'guest house' in the driveway when people with cat allergies come to visit us}. It's got 2 king sized beds, dorm fridge, 20 gallon fresh water tank, electric brakes, slide out dinette, sink, indoor and outdoor stove, furnace and tons of room for us to grow. I floated the idea of upgrading to a TT, but like most have said already, we like the tent camping feel of unzipping the 'walls' and being able to see 360 degrees around. It also fits in my garage for storage to help make it last.

I'd highly recommend a pop-up to anyone and hope you enjoy yours.

 

[armdave]

Thanks so much for all the input, it's much appreciated

I gotta ask though
what does DH, etc. mean?

Thanks everyone!