Swags have come along a fair bit over the years. Most now have a couple of small poles to hold the canvas up and off you while you sleep, and some even look like small tents, advertised as large enough for 2 adults to comfortably share. You can even save on set up and pack up time and leave the blankets or sleeping bag set up when rolling it up. I even roll mine up with the pillow inside. Swags are simple, quick, no mess, no fuss and my favourite way to camp.
I have found that a swag works very well for solo camping and touring but not as well for camping with your family as there is not much privacy (not everyone in your camp will appreciate literally seeing you roll out of bed in the morning). Despite this lack of privacy and personal space, they strap to your roof rack very well and are my first choice for most types of touring.
After comparing camper trailers, tents and swags, it is a bit hard to say which is the best way to tour, and if you are anything like me you are always changing things up anyway. I suppose you need to look at how much space you want, the set up and pack up times and if you are happy to do it every day of your trip. My wife and I got our own swags for a trip up the Cape a couple of years ago. She insisted on the super deluxe queen sized option with all the bells and whistles and an extra yoga mat underneath, while I was happy with a standard off the shelf single swag. I’ll finish by saying, if she can survive a swag for 16 days, then anyone can.
