“Don’t camp, glamp” says MyGlamper, the manufacturer of what is billed as the world’s first wheel-less tent trailer. Designed to be super compact, very light, and incredibly versatile, the product of the same name, MyGlamper, offers a new way of camping.
That new way of camping is halfway between what you’d get with a traditional rooftop tent and a caravan/travel trailer. It’s neither, but it’s also a bit of both, and it came to be out of the desire to do away with the disadvantages of both solutions.
The inventor of the MyGlamper wheel-less tent trailer and the founder of the company of the same name is Gene Corbett, a man who hardly needs an introduction to Australian readers. A professional driving instructor, an awarded performance driver, and a driving safety advocate often featured in the national media, Corbett is also the Guinness record holder for the title of the Fastest Simpson Desert crossing, a feat achieved just recently in a Mahindra Scorpio in 13 hours, 21 minutes, and 5 seconds.
All these are more than just notches on a belt, impressive as they might be. They add credibility to the startup, since said startup proposes a product created, tested, and built by an experienced adventurer and true professional.
Photo: MyGlamper
It also proposes a different way of camping, with a tent trailer that has no wheels. MyGlamper is actually very similar to a pop-up rooftop tent but, instead of being attached to the roof, it’s hitched at the back. Corbett calls it a “trailer” but you’re not towing it, since it travels upright, flat against the rear of the vehicle, so you can could still attach and pull a trailer if you wanted to.
As Corbett explains, that means you have improved aerodynamics traveling down the road with no impact on fuel consumption, but you can also bring an entire home along with you. Well, the sort of home you’d get from an inflatable canvas tent, but let’s not get lost in technicalities.
MyGlamper will be available in three configurations, none of which is physically available right now. There’s a Lite version that’s exactly what its name implies, a basic, stripped-down, and smaller variant; there’s a Plus version that’s a near-complete solution, and then there’s the Pro variant, which is the biggest and highest specced version.
Photo: MyGlamper
We’re looking at the MyGlamper Pro today, because it promises to offer sleeping for as many as 12 people “comfortably,” a kitchen, a shower, and even extra stuff like a water heater and off-grid capabilities. The Pro variant doesn’t even have official renders for the interior as of this writing, which probably means the manufacturer is still ironing out the final details, but if it’s everything it’s promoted to be, it should be a winner.
Construction is with 300 gsm RipTech Polycotton canvas for the tent part, which comes with separate chambers that inflate (and deflate) with an automatic pump.
The base, which is both the off-the-ground platform on which a double bed sits and the box that carries the entire structure during transport, is a customizable composite case. MyGlamper plans to offer options for carbon fiber construction, maybe with optional colors, later down the line.
Photo: MyGlamper
The hitch that attaches the MyGlamper to your vehicle is high-quality carbon steel, and the legs and brackets are aluminum or stainless steel.
The Pro version weighs 110 kg (242 lbs) dry, and is 35 cm high, 140 cm long, and 120 cm wide (13.7 x 55 x 47 inches) in transport mode. These are the exact dimensions for the box on the back. At camp, you open the box and secure it with the provided support legs before you deploy the tent.
With the Pro, you get a bedroom on top of that elevated base and a fully-enclosed annex. Since there are no renders available for this model, it’s difficult to see where MyGlamper thinks you’ll be able to fit 12 beds, including the two in the bedroom, but dimensions of the entire structure come in at 225 cm in height, 460 cm in length, and 480 cm in width (88.5 x 181 x 189 inches).
Photo: MyGlamper
The list of features for the Pro is impressive for a camper of this type but, again, there’s no mention on where they’d have to travel, since the box will only fit the deflated, flat-packed tent structure.
That list includes includes a 30-liter (8-gallon) freshwater tank, full electrics including a heating water element, plumbings and fittings for the shower, a foldable shower base to capture and recycle water, multi-stage filtration system, self-composting Flatpack toilet, a kitchen with a 3-burner gas cooktop, queen air mattress, a power pack to charge devices and run house functions, lights, and a solar array of unspecified capabilities.
As already noted, MyGlamper is still working on the final specs list, since some of these features, like the toilet, the solar, and the kitchen, are also featured as add-ons on the same page for the product.
Photo: MyGlamper
The idea is that MyGlamper wants to offer the Pro as a complete solution, whether that means for you a higher sleeping capacity or the full range of creature comforts. After all, they do say it’s “designed for full-scale exploration, off-grid living, remote travel, maximum comfort.”
The Pro is also designed to be “stable by design” so there won’t be any need for guide ropes or tent pegs, at least according to the manufacturer. Corbett has been testing the Lite version of the MyGlamper for a long time and working on the final design for even longer – “years,” he says.
Photo: MyGlamper
He’s also been showing off the first completed unit of the Lite at local trade events and gathering, and even offering it to fellow adventurers for independent reviews. The two videos below and some photos in the gallery show the Lite version, which doubles as a concept demonstrator.
MyGlamper Pro is now open for pre-orders, with an AUD8,997 (US$6,300) deposit locking you in for a Founders’ Limited Price of AUD29,990 (US$21,000). Once the Pro reaches production, it will retail for AUD35,245 (US$24,800) before options. There is no delivery timeline for this version.
