Ditch the ground on your next camping adventure to the parks with a tent cot. A tent cot elevates you off the ground but provide more stability than if you were lying in a hammock. There are single and double tent cots available to choose for camping.
There are many advantages to sleeping on a cot while camping. First, a cot generally offers more support and comfort than sleeping on the ground. We bought a pair of cots that are extremely comfortable to lay on when there was a good deal at a REI garage sale. They are perfect for car camping, when you have can transport them to your campground and campsite with sufficient ease. They are obviously not good for backpacking, since they are too heavy and bulky to carry on your back for any distance.
Nevertheless, they are supremely comfortable – on par with a high quality air mattress and without the risk that it will spring a hole and require you to sleep on the ground for the rest of your vacation. We even use them on our back porch as recliners due to their comfort. They fold up for transport – not as small as an air mattress or sleeping pad. However, they are much more durable.
Sleeping on an elevated cot also allows you to avoid the cold ground. The cold ground is one of the primary ways that a human in a tent loses heat. If you are sleeping on the ground, you can use an insulated sleeping pad. However, the cot avoids the need for that since the air underneath will separate you from the ground.
The cot also allows you to avoid insects and bugs crawling on the ground. You stay above all of these creatures without having to worry about the risks from them.
Tent cots are a combination of a cot and a camping tent. They essentially affix a tent to the top of the cot, and it folds up and down from the folding camp bed.
If you already have a cot and a large tent, you can obviously put a regular cot inside it without buying a combo. When we bought two cots a few years back, that was our plan. We are still on the lookout for the right large tent to accommodate our very comfortable cots. A tent cot does offer more privacy than setting up several cots in a large tent.
You will sometimes see these referred to as a tent bed, where they provide a combination cot, tent, mattress and sleeping bag. However, this also appears to refer to a canopy and bed which would go in a bedroom. This version is different than a tent cot and obviously not what you are looking for if you are going camping in the outdoors.
Here are a few of the tent cots that we have seen for sale:
This is a larger than normal single bed fully enclosed off-the-ground sleep shelter. It is made by Kamp-Rite, which was founded in 1999 and became known for the “Original Tent Cot”.
Kamp-Rite 2 Person Double Tent Cot
This is a two-person elevated sleeping platform made of 190 TPU nylon fabric with a lightweight aluminum frame. The “tent” contains zippered openings at both ends with no-see-um mesh doors and windows.
This kit from the popular outdoor gear manufacturer converts any luxury cot into a freestanding solo shelter. It contains a rain fly for weather protection, mesh floor, and door for entry. Hubbed poles provide for quick setup.