This article was written by The Zillennial Zine’s summer editorial intern Connor Hanrahan. Find him on Instagram at @hannerhansmh. If you would like to share an article with The Zillennial, send us an email at thezillennialzine@gmail.com.
Camping is hit or miss with zillennials. We either relish the time outdoors, away from society, or we resent the dirtiness of it all and see no reason to leave the comfort and technology of our abodes behind. This is such a black and white way of viewing camping. Especially when there is a TON of gray area between. This gray area is called glamping, short for “Glamorous Camping”. Some technology is totally extra and unnecessary for a nice glamping trip, but some will absolutely revolutionize your experience. Let’s take a look at some of the best glamping supplies on the market.
iKamper 3.0 Rooftop Tent – $4,500
We’re starting off strong here with an item that people our age can only aspire to own later in life but let me tell you, this thing is AWESOME. Setting it up takes no more than 10 minutes, which essentially involves opening the outer shell and propping the tent up. Taking it down is a little trickier but still involves only 4 steps.
The canvas of the tent itself is designed to block all light from entering so you never have to worry about the sun waking you up too early and the mesh vents/windows open up to let just enough light in to wear you can easily see the entire inside of the tent, but not so much light that you think “ow, that’s bright.”
The only drawback I have noticed about this tent is that it becomes a sauna if the sun is shining straight on it. In the shade, it’s heavenly. Not many of us have the money for this, and I know I certainly don’t, but man is it worth it if you do.
Now, let’s get to some more affordable supplies.
Lone Rock Concepts Water Tap – $90
Whenever we go camping somewhere without running water, we bring our water in refillable containers. This does the trick well and our containers have usually had spigots for water distribution, but some don’t. This is where a tiny water dispenser helps immensely.
The dispenser uses a small, quiet pump and a straw that reaches the bottom of the container and appears like a household RO faucet. It looks clean, does a good job, and simply screws onto the mouth of the container. Very easy to use, very efficient. 10/10 product.
This water tap can be found here.
LePro Battery Powered LED Camping Lantern – $28
These things are awesome. Lanterns have proven a nightmare for me in the past because the actual flames lanterns die out and are hard to restart and some of the LED ones are far too bright and will turn your campsite ambience into a dirt lot with warehouse lighting. These do neither of those.
They are small, easily hangable from any canopy, and have different light settings for different functions. The highest setting is bright enough to use as a flashlight and the medium setting is perfect for lighting up a small area. We bought 4 of these and we hung them around camp in the pitch black and all of a sudden we could see where we were stepping again. Another affordable 10/10 product.
This lantern can be found here.
REI Co-Op Camp Roll Table – $80
This thing is awesome and somehow, it’s only $80. I think it might be the only item I’ve ever seen at REI that isn’t a price gouge. The table top is 28” x 28” and requires three steps for assembly and disassembly. The steps are easy and fitting it back in the bag is even easier because unlike most camping utilities, the bag is big enough to comfortably fit all three of the table’s components.
It sits sturdily on its legs and its aluminum frame makes it light weight and more than durable enough for any common camping use. It gave us just the surface area we needed under the canopy for us to put our drinks and portable battery on.
The portable battery is next and unfortunately, it’s amazing but pretty expensive.
Eco Flow Delta-2 Portable Power Station – $1,000
I’m vehemently against being on my phone while camping. I think of it as an opportunity to escape my work life and the distractions of modernity and look around at nature. But, some people don’t and that’s totally chill.
This battery is a weatherproof behemoth and charged everything my family brought for 4 whole days when we camped. The website even says this unit can run a refrigerator for 7-14 hours, or a blender for over an hour and a half. It’s built to last too, as it can endure over 3,000 recharging cycles and has a 5 year warranty. This thing is a beast.
I can’t tell you that this unit is the best way for you to spend a grand, but I can guarantee that it’s the best portable charging unit you can buy for that amount of money.
This power station can be found here.
Eurmax PRO 10×10 Pop Up Tent – $250
This is and always will be my canopy of choice. We used to use a cheesy blue Kirkland one that structurally failed after about four years of bi-annual use. It was kind of trash and we knew that. Meanwhile, my uncle had brought one of these Eurmax’s for over a decade and it maintained integrity and functionality the entire time. Eventually we caved and we have never looked back.
The canopy fabric is thick enough to endure wind to any reasonable capacity and the drop-down awning walls have weathered two blizzards and several 100+ degree weekends, and they still stand strong and tall. The metal itself has never bent no matter how intense the wind was and the joints within the upper expansion have shown no signs of degradation.
However, despite all of this, my favorite part of this pop up is that the telescoping legs use levers to insert the legs into the height holes. No more murdering your thumb trying to compress the little metal peg into the leg. This was the seller for me.
This canopy can be found here.
I’ve been camping for over 20 years now and these are the glamping supplies that revolutionized my experience. What do you think? Do you use something I don’t? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below!
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