Haven’t been camping since our daughter was born last year and I don’t think I fancy camping in my 2 man quasar with a toddler so was wondering what people would recommend/warn against?
looking for ideally one with a bug proof living area that I can sit in a camping chair in with the blackout stuff for the sleeping bit and was considering air beam so I can pitch it myself.
I think they're much of a muchness between brands etc.
Air is handy for one man pitch, but the pack down size is about 50% bigger than the equivalent pole tent. For us when we go as a family of four the car is packed to the rafters and an air tent would mean leaving something else behind.
The feature id prioritize would be a good overhanging porch where you can sit under it if there's a bit of rain.
Also get a footprint to save you need to dry out the bottom when you get a dry day to pack down on, and a carpet for the living area makes it much nicer too.
I have a Kampa which are inexpensive but has lasted us well and had plenty of use.
They don't seem to do our model anymore (hayling 6) but this one looks similar and has decent porch
https://kampaoutdoors.com/product/dawlish/
Having put up a friend's air tent recently, I'm underwhelmed. The pack size is enormous and they're not that much quicker to pitch than a standard poled tent. The one advantage, as above, is that it's a one person pitch.
Bought a Berghaus branded 6 berth from go outdoors a couple years back. Ticks all the boxes but weighs a bloody ton.
Solved the car over-loading issue with a trailer (which I now need to sell as bought a van)
Footprints and carpets may sound ridiculous but they make the experience much more pleasant when family camping.
We've had a Decathlon air beam one for years, and it's been great. It is a bit bulky when packed down, but is only used for car camping so it's fine for us.
It's very easy to put up, and can easily be done solo, which is pretty useful.
Blackout lining works brilliantly - one of our kids will sleep until well past 9 on a summer's day in there (needed after staying up late the night before toasting marshmallows etc.)
And we do have a carpet in the sleeping area. Does make it a bit nicer. Living zone is great for getting dressed etc. without waking each other up, and plenty of space for games if it's raining.
I love my robens kiowa. Easy to pitch, loads of space inside to sleep and do stuff if the weather is crap.
Can get an inner tent too
We've had a Decathlon air beam one for years, and it's been great. It is a bit bulky when packed down, but is only used for car camping so it's fine for us.
It's very easy to put up, and can easily be done solo, which is pretty useful.
Blackout lining works brilliantly - one of our kids will sleep until well past 9 on a summer's day in there (needed after staying up late the night before toasting marshmallows etc.)
And we do have a carpet in the sleeping area. Does make it a bit nicer. Living zone is great for getting dressed etc. without waking each other up, and plenty of space for games if it's raining.
is the living area midge (bug)proof? Pretty much a necessity if we go camping in Scotland? And I couldn’t tell from the website
We have one of the big 5 berth olpro inflatables
Contrary to the above it's far quicker than any similar sized traditional pole tent I've had to pitch my quecha seconds excepted.
It's bug proof and bathtub floor for the whole tent not just the sleeping. Area.
I will concede it's a large pacsize but then it's a large tent. It's the same pitched size as the ex army metal pole canvas tent I grew up with but it's about 1/3rd the pack size and doesn't need it's own trailer to move the 4 canvas sacks the army tent came in.
We have just bought and used for the first time our Decathlon 4 man air tent. Really pleased with it, well made, mesh nets to keep bugs out, blackout sleeping area is great, plenty of ventilation. We had an Outwell 6 person tent for years but we are probably done camping now and that was a big old beastie. Will miss the extension though which was great for cooking under.
We've had a Decathlon air beam one for years, and it's been great. It is a bit bulky when packed down, but is only used for car camping so it's fine for us.
is the living area midge (bug)proof? Pretty much a necessity if we go camping in Scotland? And I couldn’t tell from the website
On our one, the living area isn't midgeproof, no (sleeping area is). Might be worth looking at recent models though in case they're different, ours is pretty old now.
We've had both traditional pole and air tents (both Vango). I much prefer the air tent (way easier to put up, especially when your grumpy children refuse to help), but it is about double the pack size volume of the equivalent pole tent and quite a bit heavier. It was an eBay purchase that came with stuff we'll never use (wardrobe) and stuff that's quite good to have (carpet). The one thing I wouldn't do without is an awning (whether add-on or in-built) as that's a really useful space to either separate yourself from the kids when they're younger (and hopefully asleep), or to sort out meals etc without messing up the interior space.
We inherited a vango rivendel 6+2 from my sister. It had air beams which were fine but if was massive. We sold it and downsized to a vango joro poled 4 berth. More than big enough. We got it from the vango resale website. It was a return with a few defects but it's into its 4th season with us and was £250 so I've just restitched etc myself.
Things I wish it had, the side door doesn't fully seal (we avoid midgey areas as my eldest would be driven nuts) , more internal hanging places like vangos sky hooks.
I can pitch our tent myself, it's just easier with 2.
We have 4 bed rolls, at the decathlon 7.5cm ones. I run 3 across the way and 1 lengthways so we have an uninterrupted mattress for when youngest decides he needs a cuddle at 3am.
We also got a vango family shelter and a couple of king poles. I've modded that so it's betterer as well. It makes a huge difference to outdoor seating in poorer weather
I love my robens kiowa. Easy to pitch, loads of space inside to sleep and do stuff if the weather is crap.
Can get an inner tent too
plus 1 for the kiowa get the inner and a carpet and its comfy. It is a 1 man pitch but you have to be strong ( do able if you need to ) and the head room is spectacular. If i was going to buy again i would go for a chinook ursa and a tarp as the entrance would be more useable - the kiowa is great but the entrance depth is small due to the slanting door
I’ve got a 4 sided airbeam gazebo (it’s basically a tent without an inner) and worked out that I need to lay the airbeam leg with the valve one side, the other three stacked the other, and then roll the three legs up so it pushes the air out, when you end up with a long sausage you then start folding it over the remaining leg. Seems to be the only easy way to get all the air out and all the fabric fairly well compressed, otherwise it’s a fight trying to get the stiff legs and all the flappy walls zipped into the bag!
We also got a vango family shelter and a couple of king poles. I've modded that so it's betterer as well. It makes a huge difference to outdoor seating in poorer weather
Yeah we bought one of those, and prefer it to the zip on dining shelter extension, unless the weather is really bad. I found it works best with three king poles at the front.
If I can make a slightly 'outside the box' suggestion - have you considered something like the Robens Klondike? (I just googled it and got a huge shock - they're now twice the price that they were when I bought mine a few years ago so apologies if this comes across as an expression of privilege!)
The thing about the Klondike is that it's a teepee, this is good for standing upright (I'm 6 foot), but the shape means that hot air is drawn up and out of the tent so you don't get that 'sweat box' feeling that is common in many tents. In terms of size and space - I've done very comfortable trips with a girlfriend and had plenty of space for both of us and a couple of chairs when the weather turned. I've also done lads trips with three of us being comfortable sharing the space.
As for ease of putting it up - it's a few minutes work. You peg the groundsheet out then put the pole up and porch in. Peg the rest of the tent out and you're done.
Look on ebay or fb marketplace for second hand robens tents. I got our kiowa with everything, carpet stove etc for less than half the new price of the tent alone. They are also near bombproof so little chance of getting a crap one
When kids were young we had a 5 person tent that was fairly comfy for 3-4 nights. When they're toddler age you need to bear in mind that someone will be on toddler control while the other pitches. So something that can be done single handed is probably an advantage.
Air tents
More bulk, more weight, easier to pitch a big one solo than poles, sods to fold (especially large ones), poles cannot snap in high winds but beams can collapse and recover.
We had an 8 berth air tent and we could live in that moderately comfortably for ten days in mixed North Welsh weather (four of us plus a dog bigger than a lab).
Carpet is money well spent as are black out bedrooms.
We ended up with a large trailer for camping trips after just one trip pre-dog. There was so much misery loading the car with four people's gear that it just wasn't worth it.
I loved camping as a kid/teen but then I wasn't the parent assembling and packing everything back then - tidying up a family worth of paraphernalia is quite different to dropping a two man tent and washing up your brewkit.
Campsite etiquette was sometimes lacking on a number of our last few trips (most recent was 2023 I think). Loose dogs, antisocial arrivals / departures, loud music and weed/heavy drinking. Some of that was no doubt COVID staycation factor.
Maybe I'm getting old but I think I prefer a cottage with a proper kitchen for longer trips and a lightweight setup for the odd night away.
Edit: sorry I'm a right grump!
I’ve got a 4 sided airbeam gazebo (it’s basically a tent without an inner) and worked out that I need to lay the airbeam leg with the valve one side, the other three stacked the other, and then roll the three legs up so it pushes the air out, when you end up with a long sausage you then start folding it over the remaining leg. Seems to be the only easy way to get all the air out and all the fabric fairly well compressed, otherwise it’s a fight trying to get the stiff legs and all the flappy walls zipped into the bag!
To get air beam tents etc. packed back down, it's a lot easier if you use the pump to suck all the air out of the beams.
I don't believe anyone can erect a pole tent in anything approaching the time of an air beam tent.
I've never had a family tent, but have used a Quecha 4 man (2 really) at a festival. I'm pitched and having a beer whilst mates are still threading poles.
The other plus is, they bend. Suffered storms on a couple of occasions at Ynot festival (it's on a hill in the Peak District). I've been virtually the only tent standing amongst the pole tents.
But all that said, I think I'd only use a (small) tent for a personal getaway - bike packing etc these days. The amount of rain we have, I think I could count on one finger when I've put a tent away dry
DP, good to see this forum is still as glitchy as it was 25 years ago
Triple post ffs
I've never had a family tent, but have used a Quecha 4 man (2 really) at a festival. I'm pitched and having a beer whilst mates are still threading poles.
But a small tent is quick to pitch regardless, I really couldn't care less if it takes me 15 minutes instead of 10.
Air or tipi for a quick solo erection (fnarr, fnarr). Will probably have to be the former for a selection of midge proof barriers and black out linings.
Air takes a load of space, but not a massive concern for us with a crew van. Quite often use our small pole tent still with a stand alone tarp for cooking and shade/shelter.
The way you pitch the tent is more important than it being air or pole, air beams are very bulky so if I was to buy again I'd go for poles, and with blackout sleeping areas, especially with young children.
They are a faster to put up, and the beams do collapse rather then snap, but I've only had one pole snap once in many years of camping so IME thats not a big issue.
IMO Decathlon tents are incredible VFM and I wonder how other brands justify the price increase.
Haven’t been camping since our daughter was born last year and I don’t think I fancy camping in my 2 man quasar with a toddler so was wondering what people would recommend/warn against?
Minimum 4-person tent, or bigger if there's potential future expansion.
We've been using a 6-person Vango airbeam polycotton for a few years now, family of 4. Large bedroom and huge, sealed/bugproof inside section plus further enclosed-with-separate-groundsheet front area. The thing is a beast: 7m x 4m footprint, 5 airbeams, 50kg weight and packed size is HUGE - it'd fill the whole boot on a large family car. Total luxury (in relative terms). Not difficult to erect and feels seriously robust.
Recently bought a second, smaller tent for shorter trips: Vango Lismore 450 polycotton, poled. Still big at 6m x 3m but weighs <25kg despite same fabric as our big tent, and pack size is a fraction of the big one. Bigger than we set out to buy but we like our big polycotton Vango so much this made sense at the price we paid. This sort of thing would be ideal for a small family IMO. Rear 2/3 is sealed with bathtub groundsheet, etc. Front 1/3 had a detachable groundsheet.
any comments on this? Think they weight and pack size will end up putting me off the airbeam tents and I'll just end up doing a lot of swearing trying to put up a pole tent on my own.
^ Vango Icarus 500 was on our shortlist but ended up buying the similar-size Berghaus Adhara 500 instead. Don't underestimate how much space you 'lose' by the less vertical sides compared to a more upright tent like the Lismore.
Ended up replacing the Adhara 500 with the Lismore 450 pictured above. We're too used to the space of a much bigger tent and really like the polycotton fabric. Finding it at <£500 at the time helped too.
any comments on this?
The only issue I found with tents like that is when it's raining it ends up pouring into the tent when you go in & out because the doors slope into the tent volume. We had a Vango Orchy 600 which was like that and after our first camping trip with it bought a canopy for the front of it & never used the side door in the wet again.
There used to be tons of tents with small canopies built in at the front which would be something I would look for. Go Outdoors used to do a tent called the Hampton (maybe a Hi-Gear) that had a great canopy at the front, but looking on their website they now only seem to do it in a giant size. Same with Vango tents. We have a Stargrove II 600XL and that has a built in front canopy where the whole front zips back which we tend to leave permanently open.
Something like this, from Decathlon is what I mean about the built-in canopy but it's quite a bit larger than that Icarus500
Easy Camp Tent Skarvan 6 | Decathlon
They also do it in a 4 & 5 person size.
Kampa do one called the Dawlish 4 that looks pretty good & reasonably priced:
Dawlish - Larger Tents - KAMPA
There's a Vango one called the Whitby but living area looks a bit short although it is quite wide.
Vango Whitby 500 Tent - Outdoor World Direct
any comments on this?
Unless I'm looking at it wrong, there's no porch area. You really want an area that covered, but still 'outside' (ie. no groundsheet), so if it's wet you have a covered area to take off muddy boots and you can open the tent without rain coming straight in.
Contrary to the above i don't think its that big a deal.
Having had a tent very similar to that stay up during storm Floris when other tents ere literally being shredded a design that doesn't catch the wind has its merits. Especially as you can just pop a tarp up for rain entry
Our vango jora poled tent with family shelter and STW required Octavia estate.
The family shelter Guy lines were spreading the fabric tabs so I made wee slings with a metal ring on one end and a thimble on the tarp end. The central point on the front has a pear shaped million rapide. The central rear line has some small hose on it so the guy doesn't abraide the tent.
I tend to pitch the rear into the wind and drop one side of the tarp as a windbreak.
The fire pit was the token effort for the kids to discover that open fires are pretty crap for heat unless they're massive.
When we had our air beam out years ago in Solway it was horrendous weather and the water was pushed through and pooled inside at the base of the beams. That was a trying weekend stuck in a tent.
That looks spot on @jamiemcf - looked it up and your Jora is basically the non-polycotton version of my Lismore TC 450 pictured earlier. I've been researching a canopy and after seeing that the Vango one looks ideal.
I've got a decathlon tarp that I use at the moment, I'm sure I could bodge a canopy with that, my fear with the tents with an inbuild canopy is that it will turn into a paraglider if the wind changes direction in the night or you can't pitch it rear into the wind for some reason, think Id take needing to open and close the door quickly over that.
I'm also reluctant to go for the huge tents coming from the nice little backpacking style ones I've always used but this might be daft though pack size is a consideration as my since my fabia estate died we're down to a honda jazz as a family, which for a hatch back has a pretty good boot but with camping plus activities kit it fills up quickly.
I'm looking for a similar tent myself for me and the kids (10 and 13).
Quick question, is a blackout tent worth the money? I'm just wondering if the extra cost is going to be worth it compared to everyone getting a sleeping mask.
It's going to be used in July in Norway so there will be an excess of daylight.
I'm looking for a similar tent myself for me and the kids (10 and 13).
Quick question, is a blackout tent worth the money? I'm just wondering if the extra cost is going to be worth it compared to everyone getting a sleeping mask.
It's going to be used in July in Norway so there will be an excess of daylight.
if it was me I'd just get some of these if the kids will wear them I have one for at home at this time of year and its like being in a completely blacked out room.
with a toddler I think I'm going to go for the blackout tent, though I think its only an improvement not a solution.
Just replaced the snapped poles in the scouts Vango Icarus and mended broken peg loops on a couple of their other Vangos, I think the quality has gone downhill. However, we've been really please with our Decathlon tents 🙂
We have a 7 person air tent.
IMO packed size is too big, its like 50% of the boot used up just on the tent.
Next time I'd get
- smaller 6 person pole tent
- standalone shelter
Just a bit more flexible. Smaller tent for weekend trips, use the shelter for longer stays. Gives kids more space on rainy days
We have a big 6 man air beam Kampa job that we used for family camping for 5 of us. It's very big and spacious but a lot of effort to put up and need to be at least 3 nights to be worth it. Also, as others have said, it's massive and heavy. Used to take up half the boot in a Peugeot 5008 people carrier.
A couple of years ago I got a Decathlon 4 man one for less than £100 and it's perfect for a couple of nights away when it's just me and one or two of the children. Anything more than that would be a squeeze. But a porch that you can comfortably sit 3 people in camping chairs in and also stand up in (I'm 6ft2 and no problem in the middle). There's a lot to be said for a tent tall enough to not have to crawl round everywhere.
https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/4-person-camping-tent-arpenaz-4-1/4123/c98c241m8648383
There is a blackout version but it's twice the price. Also, the front groundsheet is a bucket sheet rather than sewn in so probably not 100% insect proof but we've never had any problems.
At the one campsite we stayed at in France a couple of years ago, it seems that most people have an outdoor shelter / gazebo and a medium size tent, whereas the UK trend tends to be one enormous do it all tent.
At the one campsite we stayed at in France a couple of years ago, it seems that most people have an outdoor shelter / gazebo and a medium size tent, whereas the UK trend tends to be one enormous do it all tent.
Not surprised given the climate differences between the UK and France. Much more scope for outdoor living in France compared to the UK. Spent many a rainy day on a UK holiday inside our big tent, comfy as you like.
Most campsites in the UK want to change you for a gazebo these days.
My Experiance of France is you pay for the people and the pitch not the size of the tent or number of tents.
I think a bug proof living space is pretty much an essential for us as my experience of Scotland as a kid is that any gap no matter how small will let the midges poor in. I've had them come through the air vents in cars before.
Bruce Is the black out worth the extra? IME It's darker than a regular tent but far from blackout.
Ally. If you do, buy the 2 pack of king poles, much better than the one it came with . If it's windy I drop one side, if the wind changes while we're out, I drop the front right down. Like I said I made a wee sling that the guylines are secured to so I don't wear out the webbing eyelets which I think is a design error on vangos part.
