Tents vs Hammocks: The Honest Truth From Three Lads Who Ditched Tents Forever
Tents Are Familiar… But Familiar Isn’t Always Better
Everyone starts with a tent.
It’s the “default setting” of camping. Something your dad throws in the boot without checking if all the pegs are there (they aren’t). Something you fight with in the wind. Something you wake up drenched in, even when it hasn’t rained.
We grew up doing all that.
Half of our childhood was spent trying to pitch a tent on ground that clearly didn’t want it there.
Then we discovered hammocks—and questioned every life choice up to that moment.
Hammocks: The Upgrade Nobody Told You About
Hammock camping doesn’t feel like “roughing it.”
It feels like cheating the system.
Floating sleep.
No lumps.
No puddles.
No wrestling aluminium poles at midnight.
No condensation dripping onto your eyelids like budget torture.
Just two trees, your hammock, and that feeling of being suspended between “asleep” and “I’ve just unlocked a new level in life.”
Comfort Level: Hammock Wins Without Trying
Let’s be blunt.
Sleeping on the ground is never that comfy. Even with a decent roll mat, your hips, shoulders, and back are having a word with you by 3am.
A hammock supports you naturally.
You lie diagonally in it, so you get a flat lie like a bed.
Add a decent bug net and a tarp and you basically have a tree-house without the house.
You wake up feeling human.
Not like a medieval peasant who’s spent the night on gravel.
Weight & Pack Size: Hammock Absolutely Smokes a Tent
A proper wild-camping hammock weighs less than your packed lunch.
A tent?
Even the lightweight ones feel like you’re carrying a small nephew up a hill.
If you want to shave weight off your pack, a hammock setup is the biggest upgrade you can make. Lightweight, small, efficient. You can hike further without feeling like your spine is trying to resign.
Set-Up Time: The Bit We Actually Tested
We’ve timed this more times than we want to admit.
Tent:
10–15 minutes if it’s calm.
25 minutes if it’s windy.
A lifetime if it’s dark and you’re arguing.
Hammock:
2–3 minutes, even if the weather’s having a tantrum.
Clip. Clip. Throw tarp. Done.
When you finish a long hike, this matters more than you think.
Bad Weather? Hammocks Are Secretly Better
This surprises beginners.
If your tarp is pitched right, rain is a complete non-issue. You stay above the wet ground, above the wind that funnels at floor level, and away from mud.
In summer: airy, breathable, perfect.
In winter: add an underquilt or pad, and you’re laughing.
Tents trap condensation. Hammocks avoid it entirely.
“But What If There Are No Trees?” (The Classic Question)
Two responses:
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In the UK, if there’s no trees… you’re probably in the middle of a sheep field wondering where it all went wrong.
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You can genuinely hammock in more places than you think: woodland, coastal forests, hedgerows, riverbanks, national parks, even abandoned railway lines if you’re feeling spicy.
And if you’re really somewhere barren, you can pitch your hammock as a bivvy on the ground.
Not ideal, but better than lugging a tent “just in case.”
Festivals: Hammock Takes the Crown Again
Picture this:
While everyone is sleeping in tents hotter than a greenhouse at dawn, you’re gently swaying between two trees, breezy, above the mud.
And when the rain hits?
The tent lads are paddling.
You’re floating.
Festivals with hammocks = elite behaviour.
The Only Genuine Downside of Hammocks
We’re honest lads, so here it is:
They take a tiny bit of learning.
Not much—maybe one or two practice hangs in your garden or the local woods. After that, you’ll be faster than a tent user and comfier than all of them.
Once you’ve done your first successful hang, it clicks. After that, tents feel like outdated technology.
Why We Built the Two Trees Hammock
We didn’t want a hammock that looked good on a product page but fell apart in bad weather.
We wanted something we could trust on real trips—rain, wind, midges, Yorkshire weather (which is its own bioclimate). Something lightweight, tough, comfortable, and friendly for beginners.
So we built it.
Tree-friendly straps
Full bug net
Rainproof tarp
Comfort-first design
Lightweight
Stupidly easy setup
The works.
Final Verdict: Hammock > Tent
(For almost every scenario)
Wild camping
Backpacking
Festival camping
Travel
Quick overnighters
Stealth camping
Chilling in the garden because the weather is fit
Hammocks just win.
And once you switch, you’ll rarely go back.
Want to Try It Properly?
Check out the Two Trees Original Hammock and join the growing tribe of people discovering that two trees and a bit of fabric can change how you experience the outdoors forever.