I have owned a Ventura Deluxe 1.4 roof tent with awning and annexe for a while now but I wanted to wait until my wife and I had returned from a 12-night trip around Scotland (Skye, NC500 and Fort William) in September to leave a review. The tent has now been used for 15 nights in total, this is relevant for some of the not so good points below. Good points:- Great price. I did a fair bit of research before buying and, taking into account planned usage (i.e. not overlanding or expedition use, although Ventura state that their tents can be used for this) and what was included, Ventura offered the best value for money. I also bought the anti-theft bolts and the anti-condensation mattress. Total cost c.£1,200 (some competitors cost double that or more). - Easy to install. Took two people to get it on the roof bars as it's pretty heavy, however bolting it on was straightforward. The instruction leaflet that came with the tent isn't very good however the online manuals are simple and clear. - Quick to erect and take down. Full set-up (i.e. tent, awning and annexe) takes about 30 minutes max without rushing and one person can do it. This includes removing the cover, straps etc. (and the reverse when packing up). - Weatherproof. Scottish weather (high winds and driving rain!) did not penetrate the tent.- Comfortable. The mattress is quite thin and therefore hard, which may not suit everyone but it's fine for my wife and me. Also there's plenty of room (the mattress area is probably a bit wider than a double bed and is longer, and there's plenty of height). - Little condensation. Whether due to the anti-condensation mattress or not (haven't used it without so can't compare), we stayed largely dry.- 2 year warranty.- Damaged awning collected and replaced free of charge (see comments below).So why not 5 stars? Not so good points:- A couple of the velcro straps are coming apart already.- The groundsheet that zips onto the annexe only has 4 peg loops on it (one in each corner) and it could really do with 3 more (one on each side and the front) in order to keep it square and taut. - The outer 'door' at the front of the annexe does not zip shut all the way round (just the sides) allowing some water ingress. - The metal 'poles' that keep the window cowls up are fiddly to put up and not particularly stable, although I did learn that the more they are bent the better they are. - The mattress gets wet around the edges, both because it touches the 'walls' of the tent and also when packing the tent away wet (unavoidable on our Scottish trip!). It did however dry quickly, by pulling up each end to allow air to circulate around it. - Collapsed awning. Despite being put up according to the instructions, the weight of water that collected during one particularly wet night (annoyingly, night 2 of 12) resulted in the front metal bar and one of the legs on the awning bending meaning we couldn't use it for the rest of the trip. I was annoyed about this given the claims made by Ventura as to the durability of the product, so I emailed from holiday and got a response the next day quite reasonably requesting photos/video of the damage. I did this on returning home and was quickly offered either a new replacement or the parts to repair it myself together with an extended warranty, no quibbling at all (I opted for the new replacement). The damaged awning was collected and the new one delivered, for free, in the same week. Also a word of caution (nothing to do with Ventura, but I would think applicable to most roof tents) - depending on the size of your vehicle you will likely need to climb all over it to set up and take down, so obviously if it's wet/dirty then you'll get wet/dirty. This didn't particularly bother me however it might put some people off, but you are camping! We have a Land Rover Discovery so it's pretty tall to start with, so I bought a couple of the metal steps that hook over the door catches so I could climb high enough to reach everything. Overall I'm really pleased with the tent and very happy with the service provided and I can recommend both the product and the company.
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Ventura is proud to offer premium quality roof tents direct to your door. Based in Epping, Essex. Most affordable yet highest quality roof tent on the market.
