How to Find the Best Tent for Your Camping Needs
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Choosing the right tent for your outdoor adventures is one of the most important camping-related decisions you will make. Tents come in a variety of shapes and sizes. It can be an overwhelming process to narrow down the best one for your needs. We hope that this tent buyers guide will simplify the search process for you!
This tent buyers guide post may contain affiliate links. You can read our full disclosure here.
Seasons
Tents are most commonly designed as either a 3 Season (Three Season) or 4 Season (4 Season). Sometimes you can find a tent that is rates as 3 Season + where it may have a slightly more substantial build than a normal 3 Season tent but it won’t be as heavy as a 4 Season one.
3 Season Tents
Tents designed for three season use will work for the majority of your camping needs. Unless you plan to camp extensively in severe winter conditions with heavy snow and strong winds, a Three Season Tent will likely be best for you. 3 Season Tents excel with how versatile they can be. 3 Season tents can be found in extremely small and lightweight packages designed for backpackers but they can also be huge, several room, mini-cabins designed for family getaways not far from the vehicle. They are designed to provide good ventilation and can be used year-round if you plan accordingly.
4 Season Tents
Tents designed for four season use are best used when your life will depend on the quality of your shelter. If you plan on camping above the tree line in the middle of winter, you will want a Four Season Tent. If you are someone who tends to get cold easily, you may want to consider a Four Season tent as well since they are designed with less ventilation and thicker materials. Single person 4 Season Tents exist, but they are most commonly found in 4+ person configurations or even large canvass-walled lodges. 4 Season Tents tend to be much heavier than their 3 Season Tent counterparts and they can be sweltering to use in the heat of summer.
Size
The size of the tent that you require is determined by how many people will be sleeping in the tent, how much gear you have, and how much time you plan to spend in the tent.
Interior Sizing
Tent sizing is commonly dictated by the number of people that can fit in a tent for tight sleeping arrangements. If you like more spacious sleeping, it is suggested that you go at least one size up to allow some room to spread out. While a Two Person Tent can fit 2 average sized people in mummy-style sleeping bags, they will likely bump into each other during the night and there will not be much room for gear. Most backpackers and campers find that a tent listed as 2 Person capacity is actually ideal for a single person, and a 3 or 4 Person Tent is actually required for a comfortable stay by 2 campers. The most common tent sizes are 1, 2, 3, and 4 person. However, much larger tents are available that can sleep 10 or more people.
Exterior (Vestibule)
Many tents come with an outdoor storage area called a vestibule. This is most commonly located at the entrance to the tent. Some tents only have a single vestibule, but others have several. Vestibules come in handy for keeping backpacks, boots, cookware, and even pets out of the main tent area but still protected from the elements. Different tent designs allow for vestibules that are always present or some
that are only there when the rainfly is on.
Style
As stated before, tents come in all shapes and sizes. How the tent is designed is dictated by it’s intended use.
Dome
Dome style tents are the most common in the marketplace. They typically allow a good amount of height / headroom and have steep pitched walls to help buck the wind and allow rain to run off. If you are buying your first tent, a Dome Tent is a good place to start.
Bivy
Bivy style tents are very popular with the military and weight-conscious backpackers. They do not offer much room to spread out and the headroom will be limited. A bivy tent is designed to be lightweight and keep you out of the elements, but you won’t want to be inside of it for longer than you have to be. These style tents are not recommended for people that are claustrophobic but they are excellent for backcountry use.
Cabin / Lodge
Cabin and lodge style tents are the largest tents on the marketplace. They are often referred to as “wall tents” and are designed for camping near your vehicle or to be packed in by horses, mules, llamas, or other livestock. Lodge and cabin tents will be heavy and you will not want backpack with one. However, these are the most spacious tents and are often favored by backcountry outfitters and families. These tents often have steep side walls that make them shaped more like a house than the common curved dome tent. Some cabin tents even have interior fabric walls to create separate “rooms”. Many lodge tents are designed to accommodate stoves to provide an additional heat source or allow cooking inside.
Tepee
Tepee style tents have become increasingly popular with the backpacking and backcountry hunting community as they are lightweight, spacious, and offer good headroom. The one downside though is that most tepee designs don’t have a floor, so water or bugs may make their way in. Many tepee tents are designed with a stove jack though which allows them to be used in all 4 seasons. The Native American inspired tepee tents are versatile in all elements and are still great to use camping today.
Walls
The number of fabric layers that the tent is constructed with will tell you a lot about the tent’s durability.
Single-Wall Tents
Single wall tents only have one layer to protect from the elements. A single wall tent typically means that there is no extra rainfly. A single-wall tent offers a very lightweight and breathable design, but it may allow some moisture and drafting through.
Double-Wall Tents
Double wall tents offer more protection that single wall tents, but come with added weight. If there is no rain or adverse weather in the forecast though, the user of a double-wall tent can leave the rainfly in the truck to shave some ounces. Double-wall tents do a good job of blocking the wind but they can allow for moisture to build out inside. So having vents on double wall tents is an important feature to look for.
Important Features – Tent Buyers Guide
Height – Some tents are designed to allow camper to stand inside of them. Others only allow you to crawl in. Determining how tall of a tent you require is an important to determine before you buy a tent.
Length – If you are a taller person, you’ll definitely want to consider a tent’s floor length. Also if you have a lot of gear that you’d rather keep inside of the tent instead of the vestibule, extra floor length can be beneficial too.
Material – Most tents are currently made from durable nylon or other synthetic materials. The thicker the denier the fabric, the more abrasion resistant and durable a tenant will be. However, thick fabric typically means a heavier tent. Typically, it is only the large lodge-style tents that are still built with canvas fabric.
Rainfly – The rainfly acts as the roof to the tent and is essential to have in rainy or windy weather. For the casual camper, a roof only rainfly will do. To provide the best protection from the elements, a full coverage rainy is best.
Weight – If you’ll be backpacking in with your tent, the weight is always an important item to consider. If you are “car camping” or staying near the trailhead, then the weight of the tent won’t matter as much.
Modular – Some tents are designed to interconnect with other tents of the same model type. This may allow you to directly connect two tents together, add additional vestibules, etc.
Freestanding – Some tents are designed to stand in place without needing them to be staked down. Having a freestanding tent is incredibly helpful if you are setting it up on your own without a helping hand or if the assembly process is taking place in undesirable conditions, like the dark, rain, or snow.
Doors – At a minimum, every tent will have one door. However, having more doors is often a good thing as it can mean more vestibules. Also if more than 1 person is sleeping in the tent, that may mean less mid-night wake ups when “nature calls” for your camping buddy.
Poles – Most tents come with poles as part of the tent package. Some tents do not though and are designed to use trekking poles as their main support system to save weight. Tent poles can be made out of many different types of materials. Aluminum and carbon fiber are the most common currently, but wood was a popular option in the past.
Floor – Some tents have a floor or “basin” and others are floorless. Floorless designs are popular with weight-conscious backpackers and those that plan to use a stove inside. The floor material is important to consider. The thicker the denier floor fabric, the more water and abrasion resistant it will be.
Footprint – A footprint is an additional layer of fabric that goes below the tent. It can increase the durability of the tent’s existing floor / basin or it can act as one if the tent is a floorless design. Some tents come with a footprint as part of the package, but some require the footprint to be purchased as an add-on. If weight isn’t of the biggest concern, a basic tarp of correct size can act as a great tent footprint.
Vents – If using a double-wall tent or a thick material single-wall tent, vents are a must have feature! They help reduce condensation build out inside the walls and can help with air circulation.
We hope you enjoyed reading this tent buyers guide and are now better prepared to purchase the best tent for your needs!
This tent buyers guide post may contain affiliate links. You can read our full disclosure here.