Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 86 total)
  • Family sized tents
  • mrblobby
    Free Member

    The time has come to take the kids camping so looking at big family tents. A tunnel tent like the Outwell Montana 6P, probably with the extension, seems the obvious choice. Wouldn’t want to spend much more cash than that. Anyone got an opinion on them or care to suggest an alternative?

    Thanks.

    superfli
    Free Member

    If you are getting the Montana 6P with extension, you might as well go Vermont LP (although discontinued, you might find one cheap). Or Vermont XLP if you have 4 or more.

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    Our tent is too old to be much help with recommendations but I would say have a read of the tent reviews at http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/tents/index.asp

    Proper reviews by actual owners. I found them pretty helpful.

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    mrblobby
    Free Member

    Thanks, been checking that out. Lots of good reviews.

    All the tentists out tenting today?

    juanking
    Full Member

    Ive literally just got the Montana 6p with fleece carpet got both for £670 with a £50 voucher from Yeoman’s. First erection trial this afternoon!

    northernmatt
    Full Member

    We have a Vango Nadina 600. Massive inside, plenty of room for sitting about in the living area, nice and airy due to a couple of big windows and 3 doors. 3 separate bedrooms as well.

    Drawbacks are, the sheltered bit at the front isn’t that big so cooking if the weather is inclement is a bit pot luck depending on which way the wind is blowing. The other thing is the weight of it. Steel poles so bloody heavy and it’s a bit of a bugger to get back into the bag. We only use it if going anywhere for a week or longer.

    hebdencyclist
    Free Member

    We have the Outwell Aspen 500. The two “bedrooms” each have enough room for an inflatable double mattress so the kids (8 and 4) go in one and us in the other.

    We’ve got the side extension that we use as a kitchen (actually, we often leave all that shit at home and just go to the café to eat)

    sadexpunk
    Full Member

    We have an outwell Nevada M with extension for sale if interested. Itd be pick-up from lincs…..

    bruk
    Full Member

    Just done this recently. Ended up buying a Decathlon Air Seconds 6.3 tent.

    Only used it for 1 night so far but pretty happy. Goes up in minutes and lots of space inside and then came back down again very quickly. It is a big heavy thing when packed however. Real shock when pretty much all my previous camping was in 2 man lightweight tents. Being able to stand up inside to get dressed and sit under the awning to have a cold beer in a chair was very nice though

    Decathlon stuff usually seems to be decent quality. I would happily recommend it so far.

    rockhopper70
    Full Member

    We went for a v large tent for our first two years, a vango Amazon 600.
    This was ample for five of us plus a dog but the effort to put it up became too much.
    We downsized to an outwell whitecove 500 but this is probably too small in hindsight.
    Had we planned on camping more this year, likely we would have bought a vango rivendale 600.
    It’s an air beam and has in integral foyer/canopy and having trawled many many shops and sites, that is where my own money would have been spent.
    Don’t under estimate the benefit of a dry rain shelter if the weather is pants.

    silverbirchdan
    Free Member

    Just purchased and am very impressed with our new Outwell Drummond 7. The steel poles are essential if it’s windy and it’s huge inside, plenty of room for the 4 of us.
    Got it for £580 delivered from Blacks when they had a 10% offer on.

    muddydwarf
    Free Member

    We bought a Vango Amazon 400 for £300 including carpet (really makes a difference). It weighs 40kg but the two of us can erect it in half an hour and we are both shortarses.
    Extremely light and airy inside,plenty of room even for us claustrophobes, and nice and solid feeling in bad weather due to steel poles.

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    Thanks all, shall check those out.

    Don’t underestimate the benefit of a dry rain shelter if the weather is pants.

    Definitely. Was thinking the tents with an extra porch or awning look a good bet for that if on a longer stay with potential for dodgy weather.

    What’s the verdict on the air beam ones? Seems a lot of extra cash for the feature. Not had to put up a tent that big before and would probably be doing it on my own while the missus manages the kids.

    muddydwarf
    Free Member

    Friends have a Vango airbeam. Goes up very quickly, and the beams are replaceable whilst the tent is erected which is a handy feature.
    They are bloomin’ pricy though, for an equivalent size to our Amazon 400 we were looking at around £1000 and decided it wasn’t worth that much to us personally – your situation may differ of course.

    EDIT: whatever you settle on, think about how the doors open & if they have a rain porch/canopy. You really don’t want to be opening the door on a tunnel tent in heavy rain & have all that water flowing off the roof & onto the floor of your tent.

    Skankin_giant
    Free Member

    Wow that tent is massive, we’ve just been away with our 2 and dog in a Vango Beta 550XL, all had enough space.

    Cheers, Steve

    WorldClassAccident
    Free Member

    We have a Vango Marista 600 for sale if you are near Southampton

    http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/tents/p/Vango-Maritsa-600/2177

    Used a couple of times before the Wife decided that we no longer like camping.

    £585 New so £400?

    Also got so instant uo beds in the attic I think but might be keeping those ‘in case’*

    email in profile

    *no, I have no idea in case of what but she said it

    lllnorrislll
    Free Member

    We have an Outwell bear lake 6 and this will be our 8th year of Camping in it. The heavy canvas has taken everything thrown at it and other than being a little sun bleached it still looks like new. The only thing of note is that it is very heavy and can take up a lot of space when packed.

    riddoch
    Full Member

    If you aren’t in a rush it’s worth stick an eBay search for local tents on. We’ve just picked up a outwell Tenneesee 6 for £140. Didn’t realise even when packed quite how big it would be, barely fits in the boot.
    The guy I picked up the Tennessee from has just moved to a larger vango air beam, he claims the quality isn’t quite as high as the outwell.
    Have you got a camping shop local that has a selection of tents to wander round?

    superfli
    Free Member

    Not too sure about air beam tents. The fibre glass tents flex in the wind and if raining, then collect water and can leak. Steel poles ensure rigid at all times and taught so rain just runs off. The air beams although pretty solid, don’t keep the tent as taught as steel. However, the up and down time is very convenient.

    cheers_drive
    Full Member

    Were making a similar decision at the moment. Currently have a cheap 5 person Higear tent plus canopy which was a bit big for 2 of us but is about right now we have a baby apart from the hassle of setting up and taking down.
    Mrs CD doesn’t do minimalist camping so anytime saved is good, especially as its normally just a long weekend.
    We are now looking at the Kampa Croyde Air Polycotton but the air beams and poly cotton are twice the price of standard but on paper it will work good for longer trips to France and family expansion.

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    Outwell bear lake 6

    A mate has one of these too, very nice but difficult to justify the extra expense for the amount of camping we’re likely to do.

    Have you got a camping shop local that has a selection of tents to wander round?

    Checked out the local go outdoors. For size and layout we liked the HiGear Oasis 6, but don’t really know much about the brand. I’d rather an Outwell.

    EDIT: whatever you settle on, think about how the doors open & if they have a rain porch/canopy. You really don’t want to be opening the door on a tunnel tent in heavy rain & have all that water flowing off the roof & onto the floor of your tent.

    Did wonder about this when looking at the awning or extension option. Better to have an open fronted extension or an awning with a slopey door? I guess the Montana has the covered side door porch as well which would be good for getting in and out in the rain.

    ji
    Free Member

    Definitely get a porch if it is a tunnel tent for the reasons given. Bear in mind though that lots of the porches will fit most similar sized tunnel tents, so you can buy second hand and pick up a porch that will fit if necessary.

    Garry_Lager
    Full Member

    mrblobby – Member

    Outwell bear lake 6

    A mate has one of these too, very nice but difficult to justify the extra expense for the amount of camping we’re likely to do.

    Have you got a camping shop local that has a selection of tents to wander round?

    Checked out the local go outdoors. For size and layout we liked the HiGear Oasis 6, but don’t really know much about the brand. I’d rather an Outwell.The Oasis 6 is boss – I have one and you see them up and down the country for family camping. Very sturdy. It’s prob as good as the Montana in general, but may not have the longevity [just on the basis that HiGear have some dodgy tents in their range IME, so the brand isn’t at the same level as Outwell].
    The Montana is tried and tested and well known as an excellent tent. So you’ll not go wrong there.

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    The inflatable Outwell Montana looks good – but the price is eye-watering:
    http://www.getoutwiththekids.co.uk/camping/tents/inflatable-montana-smart-air-tent/

    ade9933
    Free Member

    We looked around at options and when we figured out everything we would need to take we reasoned that we would need a trailer… so we ended up getting a trailer tent which has a 4 bike rick on the a-frame. A sunncamp 400 SE, bought second hand, came fitted with 8 power points and comfortable beds raised off the ground and a 4m2 living area.

    Bit of a faff to put up and take down but if it’s just at the beginning and end of a holiday it’s fine.

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    we figured out everything we would need to take we reasoned that we would need a trailer

    We just use a massive roofbox.

    ade9933
    Free Member

    We just use a massive roofbox.

    3 kids? 6 bikes? roller skates, fridge, tables, chairs…. could have left some stuff but.. hey ho

    johndoh
    Free Member

    Buy something from EBay and save your money. We got everything we needed (tables, storage, inflatables, stoves, lights, electric hook ups etc) for less than £200 – and that included two 8 man tents.

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    The Oasis 6 is boss

    Doing a bit of digging it does look like their premium range is fairly well rated. May give them another look.

    3 kids? 6 bikes? roller skates, fridge, tables, chairs…. could have left some stuff but.. hey ho

    Two kids and a dog here, hoping a massive roofbox and a tow bar bike rack will be sufficient!

    Buy something from EBay and save your money.

    Always think used tents would be pretty manky, but there do seem to be some very lightly used kit for sale out there.

    GrahamS, thanks for the link, useful that. Does make a good case for inflatables! Though really don’t think I could justify the cost for the sake of saving some 20 mins a few times a year.

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    Likewise – if I was going to spend £1269 on a tent I’d buy a van! 😀

    GetOutWithTheKids is a good general site though – lots of helpful info for camping and outdoors stuff with kids.

    While I’m at it, check out https://www.pitchup.com/ which is really handy for booking UK & European campsites.

    johndoh
    Free Member

    Always think used tents would be pretty manky, but there do seem to be some very lightly used kit for sale out there.

    Yup – the stuff we got was all pretty clean, just the inflatables had got a bit of mould on them (they looked like they had been upcycled as they looked way older than the rest of the stuff) so they were replaced, but everything else has been great.

    PaulMc
    Free Member

    We came very close to buying a Montana as friends have one but it really is huge when packed and heavy. It is a bit of a faff to pitch and our friends are usually grateful for an extra pair of hands when putting up/taking down theirs. We went for a Robens Cabin 600 instead. It is not quite as big internally as the Montana but plenty big for a family of 5 and much lighter as the poles are aluminium. We are really pleased with it. We also brought the Shadecatcher extension which provides an excellent covered cooking/chilling area. That said the Montana will be easier to buy on ebay and there are some crazy bargains to be bad. Why do some people buy evey camping accessory available and decide after one trip that they don’t like camping!

    Bimbler
    Free Member

    **FREE TENT**

    If anyone wants a free Montana 6 with front sun shade (not estension) and footprint ground sheet then contact me via my email. It’s from 2007, prolly a couple of seasons left in it, the last time we used it, August 2015 it was damaged in a big blow, the hole is on the side so not that critical and was successfully patched at the time. Pickup from Hertford.

    Disagree that the montana is difficult to put up, it’s definitely hard to do it singlehandedly but very easy with two.

    Imo these large family tents are not optimal, I’d go for something smaller and then a day tent or something like the coleman event shelter. If the weather is good you don’t spend any time in the tent, if the weather is poor then a day tent is more comfortable for the never ending tea/coffee drinking, kids can hang out in the tent.

    If you’re in the mood to push the boat out and/or you’re planning on camping in that Europe then get a polycotton or canvas tent.

    sv
    Full Member

    We bought a Vango Orava 600 last summer and its perfect. Have a cooker stand and two tables setup inside the main part of the tent, dog cage in the covered in porch bit and two/three sleeping compartments. Its very spacious…

    http://www.thefamilytentshop.com/PRD_ProductDetail.aspx?prodid=2394&gclid=Cj0KEQjwvtS6BRC8pcKn8OXIg_wBEiQAqtpizw19b5ofY993zFgHnWPeatLjr8LXA2ZpNwKdSt2bYrIaAnP28P8HAQ

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    Am wondering if a smaller tent and optional extension and/or day tent combination is a better more flexible bet as most camping will probably be weekends away.

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    Am wondering if a smaller tent and optional extension and/or day tent combination is a better more flexible bet

    This is our main tent by the way:


    SunnCamp Evolution 600

    Not as huge as those big Montanas, but two bedrooms and plenty of room to sit in if it is lashing down outside. Cheap (£250 new) and only three poles so it can be pitched by one person (though a second definitely helps!).

    We added a footprint and fitted carpet for extra glamping points. We’ll probably add an awning and/or a little tarp at some point.

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    GrahamS, looks pretty good that.

    The Kampa Croyde 6 seems to come up a lot when reading about big family tents. Anyone got an opinion?

    GrahamS
    Full Member

    GrahamS, looks pretty good that.

    That’s why I married her. 😉

    jam-bo
    Full Member

    We have a bear lake 6 that is great for a week or so away but puts you off going for a night or two as it takes 2 people and about an hour to put up.

Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 86 total)

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