Tailgate tent

A tailgate tent, sometimes called an SUV tent, attaches around a vehicle's open rear hatch or tailgate so the cargo area becomes an extension of the tent floor. This lets you sleep partly in the vehicle and partly in the attached shelter, or use the tent purely as covered gear and cooking space while sleeping inside the vehicle itself.

It differs from a fully separate ground tent because it depends on the vehicle staying in place and its dimensions matching the vehicle's hatch opening, so fit varies significantly between SUV, hatchback, and minivan models. Many are designed to pack down small and set up faster than a full tent since part of the structure is the vehicle itself.

When buying, check the tent's listed vehicle compatibility carefully, since a mismatch in hatch height or width can leave gaps that let in rain or insects, and consider how the setup handles condensation given the enclosed connection to the vehicle. A common mistake is assuming universal-fit tents work equally well on all vehicle shapes without checking real dimensions first.