There are lots of tents on the market, which makes choosing the right one tricky. Big ones, little ones, models for car camping and thru-hiking. We鈥檝e put together this simple guide to help you buy the right tent.
Decide on Use
It鈥檚 best to be brutally honest with yourself here. Do you really need that ultralightweight tent, or can you get away with something a little heavier (and thus less expensive) because you鈥檒l just be out for overnight and weekend trips? Will you have time to go backpacking, or should you just buy a simple car-camping tent?
Decide on Size
Rule of thumb: If you鈥檙e car camping, buy a giant tent. Bigger than you need. Be obnoxious. You鈥檒l appreciate the extra space to roll around in, and you鈥檒l have plenty of room for dogs and kids. If you鈥檙e backpacking, buy a tent that鈥檚 one person bigger than you need. Just you and your partner? Go for a three-person tent. Again, you鈥檒l have more room to store gear, and the weight penalty isn鈥檛 huge.
Pay Attention to Weight
If you鈥檒l be huffing a tent on your back, buy a backpacking-specific model, which will likely be made from lightweight materials. Sometimes people ask me about nonfreestanding tents with guylines rather than dedicated tent poles. They鈥檙e great if you鈥檙e thru-hiking because they鈥檙e ultralightweight, but for regular users, freestanding tents are much easier to set up and still pretty packable. If you鈥檙e car camping, weight isn鈥檛 an issue.
Know What Kind of Weather You鈥檒l Be Camping In
Backpacking on the Olympic Peninsula? You鈥檒l need a good three-season tent with a bomber fly and a good vestibule to store gear out of the rain. Car camping in the Southwest? You can get away with a two-season tent鈥攋ust make sure it can protect you from the sun and has lots of vents to keep air flowing when temps rise. You鈥檒l need a four-season tent only if you鈥檙e winter camping in high-alpine environments.
Pay Attention to Packability
Weight is the most important consideration, but you still need to make sure your tent fits in your backpack or easily straps to the outside of it. Once you buy, practice packing the tent in its stuff sack, and think about the best way to distribute the load among multiple packs.
Pitch Before You Buy
It鈥檚 one thing to read about dimensions and occupant capacity and another to actually get inside a tent to test its roominess for yourself. One three-person tent design might feel bigger than another three-person tent, so try to visit a camping store that has your tent pitched before pulling the trigger.
Research Durability
This isn鈥檛 as much of an issue for car-camping tents, but definitely read reviews for backpacking tents. Most shelters these days are pretty well made, but see what users are saying online before you plop down a couple hundred bucks.
Research Ease of Use
This is another online search or, better yet, a conversation with a camping store employee. Most tents these days are pretty intuitive, but some are easier than other to set up in a gale-force wind or in the pitch dark. Tip: Always practice setting up your tent in your backyard before you go camping.
All set? Here are some buying recommendations.
Ultralight Backpacking
These are the tents you鈥檒l use to set speed records or for thru-hikes on the Pacific Crest, Appalachian, or Continental Divide trails.
What to Buy: We love everything we鈥檝e used in the Hyperlite Mountain Gear line, particularly the , which will keep you safe from both rain and bugs yet weighs just over half a pound.
Backpacking
These are the tents you鈥檒l want for weekend or weeklong backpacking trips when speed isn鈥檛 an issue.
What to Buy: are a general favorite that I鈥檝e used for years. They鈥檙e easy to use, fairly light, and affordable.
Car Camping
These are the tents you鈥檒l use at established sites or as a base camp when you鈥檙e parked off a forest road.
What to Buy: I gave my brother and his family a because it鈥檚 easy to assemble, thanks to color-coordinated poles.