Wairarapa blogger and photographer Larissa Carlson (@theleostyle) bought an Armourdillo Rooftop Tent for her and her family in 2019. We were stoked when we came across her awesome review of the roof tent on her Instagram page. Often when we're creating these products, we're so focussed on the engineering and technology that we can lose sight of the experiences the product can help to create. Larissa's review was a nice reminder. The Carlson family currently have the Armourdillo set up on their 4WD Jeep, "Alba". The fact that Larissa's such a great photographer helps to show off the Armourdillo in its best light. 

Review: "We purchased our @bushbucknz rooftop tent around this time, two years ago. For our whanau it has been a gift that keeps on giving. It’s not just a tent. It’s a memory-making machine. For us it has inspired adventures beyond our wildest imaginations and the memories with my boys are unquestionably, PRICELESS! Lessssgo Summer roadies!"

Image credit: theleostyle.com

Backyard camping with the kids. Image credit: @theleostyle

Jenna and Carly, a couple from Bass Coast in southern Australia, knew they needed a rooftop tent when they bought their epic Land Rover Defender 90. After doing their research, they settled on the Bushbuck Armourdillo. We came across Jenna and Carly after discovering their incredible photos on Instagram, many of which include the Armourdillo set-up in stunning desert and beach locations. Their Armourdillo review goes more into the practical features of the roof tent and how it's held up after using it on many adventures since. 

Image credit: @jennaandcarly

Review: "Welcome to our home, known as ‘upstairs’ or ‘the penthouse’. When we decided on a Defender 90 to travel around in, we knew it was going to be too small to sleep inside. Not wanting the bother of towing a caravan around, we went straight to a rooftop tent. Buying a hard-shell rooftop tent was the best thing we did. We love that it always stays clean inside, gives us a better view of wherever we are staying and provides a rooftop deck when it’s closed. We went for the @bushbucknz @bushbuck_au Armourdillo and have zero regrets! Here’s some of the reasons we chose this tent:

• all our bedding, including pillows, extra blankets and a big doona fit inside when it’s packed up, meaning we don’t have to move anything up and down from the car each night apart from our bags

• aluminium shell, strong enough to jump on and one day mount roof racks if we need to carry anything else

• the ladder folds up into the shell as well

• price! We got this on a preorder and it rivalled any other hard shell on the market

• easy to set up when you’re short there’s only 2 clips and then the gas struts do the rest

• no dust! We did The Savannah Way, The Mereenie Loop and countless other off road tracks, and while our car has red dirt in every crevice imaginable, the tent and our bedding is all sealed and hasn’t seen any red dirt

• after months of use, setting it up everyday, there’s no obvious signs of wear

We love this tent, and this is not a sponsored post but you should get one if the rooftop life is for you!

Image credit: @jennanadcarly

Image credit: @wegotlostinaus

Kaz, Mayo and Sierra from Brisbane, Australia, go camping with the Bushbuck Armourdillo Rooftop Tent every other week so they've certainly put it to the test. We saw some of their camping photos on Instagram and decided to reach out to see how the Armourdillo was performing on their family camping adventures. Kaz said they had upgraded to the Armourdillo after using a soft-shell roof tent for about eight years. He shared with us some of the reasons why they went with the Armourdillo over other roof tents on the market. "The first is to minimise set up and pack up time maximising the camping experience. We are planning to do The Big Lap (a 15,000km, 6-12 month road-trip on Australia's National Highway 1). This was a major consideration for us as we needed something that was fast and easy to pack up and move around. The Armourdillo tent ticked this box and allowed us to set up the tent in a minute and pack up in a few minutes, giving us more freedom. "The second is the size of the tent. Since we welcomed a new member of the family, our daughter, we needed a bit of extra space to accommodate her. The 20cm of additional width gives us enough space to enjoy the night without bumping into each other. "The third is the outer shell. The soft-shell cover we had previously was not only cumbersome to zip up and down, but it deteriorated over time. We wanted to have a solid shell to protect our tent from the elements. We considered other options like plastic hard shell, but the aluminium shell is a much better option for us in the long run. We have also decided to leave the tent on the car all the time so the aluminium shell gives us the assurance that it's can withstand prolonged exposure to the elements. "The fourth is the pricing. It is adequately priced compared to other hard shell tents that were available at the time of purchase. It is also a bonus that it's designed in New Zealand."

Image credit: @wegotlostinaus

Review: "We rate this tent really highly. The tent really suits our camping style and our needs. We like the lights in the tent, the shoe bag, the height adjustable ladder, the little pocket to store poles, and well insulated floor and fabrics. We go camping every other week so it's been used heavily in the last six months. Mostly one or two nighters but occasionally we go on trips for a few weeks."

Tim Watts from Vitoria, Australia, almost didn't buy the Armourdillo because he wasn't able to see it in the flesh before ordering it online. However, after tracking down a couple of video reviews on YouTube, he bit the bullet and bought one - and he's glad he did. We saw a few photos of his Armourdillo set-up on Instagram so flicked him a message to see how he likes it. "The thing's been great," he said. "Everyone who sees it is blown away." Review: "I bought my Bushbuck Armourdillo Rooftop Tent about midway through 2019 (what a great time to be alive). I chose it over all the other hardtop tents available because it offered a minimal footprint, was a really well thought out design and looked the best. "Since buying the tent, it has been used countless times for many missions in weather of all kinds. It literally takes 3 minutes to set it up and close it down again, which is awesome, especially when the weather's not being kind. "The tent has plenty of room inside for two people and your gear. I've even had the dog up there with us. The whole tent is of great quality and I cant see any real issues after heaps of use over the last couple of years. I've recommended this tent to anyone who has asked about it for good reason. 5/5 score."

Image credit: @fastabusa

If you're using the Armourdillo Rooftop Tent and you'd like to share a review, please email . It would be awesome to hear from you.