Eureka Solar Intent Family 11-foot by 11-foot 6-person Tent
The research
- Why y'all should trust u.s.
- Who this is for
- How we picked
- How (and where) nosotros tested
- Our pick for ii people: Kelty Thou Mesa iv
- Our pick for families: Eureka Copper Coulee Sixty half-dozen
- Upgrade picks: REI Co-op Base of operations Camp 4 Tent and Base of operations Camp 6 Tent
- Also neat for families: Coleman 6-Person Instant Motel
- Upkeep pick for families: Coleman Sundome 6-Person Tent
- Care, use, and maintenance
- The contest
- Sources
Why you should trust us
Kit Dillon has worked for Wirecutter for eight years in various capacities, writing most everything from backpacks and cooking gear to baggage and road-tripping. He has also written for Pop Science, The Awl, Metro, The Observer, and Fortune. When he was younger, he worked for five years on oil rigs as an NDT (non-destructive testing) inspector, testing metallic and welds for signs of corrosion, rust, and whatever other breakdowns and chaos might happen to the steel in the body of water. Information technology is oddly relevant piece of work for testing aluminum tent poles.
More relevant to this guide, possibly, is the seven-calendar month stint Kit spent living in a tent in Hawaii. During that time, he sat in his tent through windstorms, rainstorms, and Pacific hurricanes. He swept out centipedes and cleaned upwards patches of mold with an alcohol solution. He patched that tent with duct tape and trash numberless. He lived in information technology until both poles snapped and his rain fly tore through. Living in that tent was sometimes fantastic and sometimes awful. Either manner, he knows what a tent needs in order to be a comfortable place you lot can call home.
Kalee Thompson has evaluated gear for magazines including Wired, Popular Science, and National Geographic Adventure, where she was a senior editor. She's a longtime hiker and camper who embraced the transition from backpacking to machine camping after her first son was built-in. She'south now the mom of two piffling boys and a former resident of Southern California, where weekend motorcar camping ground is a year-round activeness. She has also camped in a range of locales, such as New Hampshire'due south White Mountains and New York's Adirondacks, as well equally in Due west Virginia, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, and Utah. She's originally from New Hampshire, and while she was testing these tents, she futilely attempted to convince other SoCal parents—including her own married man—that 35 °F nights are "non that cold."
In addition to drawing on their personal experiences, both Kit and Kalee scoured online reviews; collected informal opinions from a range of campers and camping parents, from Maine to Alaska; and (in Kalee's case) recruited 11 other California families to examination gear on weekend camping trips. Kalee also talked with experts such as Helen Olsson, whose guide provides a fun and practical intro for parents looking to get into regular car camping, and Bob Howe, a prolific tent designer who has created tents for companies including Easton, Marmot, and The North Face up.
Who this is for
Every bit yous can tell from strolling through any decorated campground, in that location are dozens of diverse tent designs, ranging from snug, single-body cocoons to multiroom, polyester palaces that sleep 10 or 12. If you lot already own a tent you love, you don't need this guide. A shelter bought for backpacking, scouting, or festival-going can as well double equally a car-camping tent. Just if you're looking to get into car camping for the showtime fourth dimension, or if you're a backpacker who at present has kids, embracing your new reality and investing in a shelter made for car camping can make sense.
Finding the smallest, lightest tent that meets your needs is the logical arroyo when you lot're backpacking. Only if yous won't exist carrying your tent more than a couple hundred feet, more than space means more comfort (as well as more than room for your stuff). Tent makers measure out tent chapters by how many people can fit in them sardine-fashion, lying inside mummy bags. That means yous can fit six adults in a six-person tent, but yous probably wouldn't want to, considering those adults would be sleeping hip to hip, with piddling spare room for gear. (If you accept five or fewer people, withal, a six-person tent can be very comfortable, especially if a few of those people are children.)
With that in heed, we concluded that the best option for two people is a smaller, four-person, dome-style tent. Dome-fashion tents, which are tall in the center and sloped at the sides, are more flexible than their boxier, cabin-style cousins—some four-person domes are even light plenty to double every bit backpacking tents for shorter hikes. Usually designed effectually two- or 3-pole arches, dome designs too tend to exist stronger than cabin-style designs. Whereas cabin-style tents maximize ceiling height by sacrificing some structural integrity, dome tents are better for inclement conditions. The dome shape does reduce overall livable infinite, but it's meliorate at deflecting winds and shedding rain, something you lot're likely to appreciate if an unexpected storm hits.
If yous withal want a smaller setup after reading this guide, be advised that our top pick for couples, the Kelty Grand Mesa 4, too comes in a smaller version: the Grand Mesa two. Although we haven't tested that version, we've heard good things. (After being out of stock for months, it's predicted to be available again in September 2021; we'll keep an eye out for it.)
As for bigger groups, we ended that the best choice for families with three to five members is a cabin-way tent rated for six people that's also tall enough for an adult to stand up in. Some experienced camper-parents nosotros talked with wanted a much smaller tent—these were mostly people who had transferred their pre-parenthood, minimalist backpacking ethic (and aesthetic) to car camping. Others wanted to go large, with multiple rooms for kids of unlike ages, and mayhap a separate room for the canis familiaris and the gear. (Nosotros recollect that by the time the kids are old plenty to need their ain room, anybody will be happier if they merely have their own tent.) A couple of our favorite tents come in larger sizes to satisfy get-large campers.
"When y'all camp with kids, you camp with a lot of gear," Olsson, writer of The Down and Muddy Guide to Camping With Kids, said in an interview. Olsson has three kids, a canis familiaris, and a 6-foot-2-inch husband. Bigger is ameliorate when it comes to car camping ground, she told us. "Await for a base-camp-style tent that is meant for when you lot pull up in your car and pitch your tent right there." All of the tents we considered fall into that category.
How we picked
The outset pace in finding the best machine-camping tents was for us to narrow down the field. After near 20 hours of studying online reviews and company websites, too as fourth dimension spent consulting with frequent campers (both with and without kids) and considering our own diverse automobile-camping experiences, we found that the best car-camping tents pulled in loftier marks on the post-obit criteria:
Size: A four-person dome-style tent takes up, on average, roughly 60 square feet, which is enough room for a total-size air mattress and ii people, plus their gear, or for three occupants sleeping on more than-common camping pads, along with their gear. We concluded that for a family unit tent, the footprint should measure between 80 and 100 square feet: enough space for a double-bed-size air mattress and two smaller Thermarest-type sleeping pads; or for five sleeping pads and a line of duffle bags; or for a queen-size air mattress, a pack-and-play crib, and a huge dog. Nosotros also plant that the minimum peak interior elevation should exist 6 feet, assuasive nearly adults to comfortably stand up upright within (and to lull a cranky baby to sleep past rocking back and forth while standing). These dimensions give you a tent that's a good size for well-nigh families, with room to grow.
Weatherproofing and durability: Any tent should be able to stay dry in a light shower, and a adept dome-style tent should also exist able to withstand loftier winds and driving rain without pitching or collapsing. We causeless that most motorcar campers would probable not exist camping in snow, and so we focused on three-season models instead. Well-nigh of the tents we looked at could handle an unexpected flurry or a blanket of frost, but we wouldn't intentionally take them on a winter-camping trip.
It's natural to focus on the quality of a tent'south pelting wing—you need that piece to work when the skies open up up. But co-ordinate to our experts, the immovability of the floor of your tent is really more than important. "By and large, I would rather have a high-quality floor fabric than a high-quality wing fabric," tent designer Bob Howe told usa. If a tent has a coated fly and steep walls, even if that fabric isn't of the best quality, "it's going to shed most of the rainfall; you'll seldom have problems with leaking." (Most of today's tents have seams that are sealed with heat tape at the manufacturing plant.) A divergence in flooring quality, however, will likely become obvious fairly apace as y'all use and abuse the tent. No tent is impervious to floor punctures, though. Howe, who has adult models for most every major tent maker, including Easton, Marmot, REI, Sierra Designs, and The North Face, said that when it comes to a tent floor, two lightweight layers are often stronger than one heavy layer; he suggested using a groundsheet or footprint, even with a high-quality tent flooring. For whatsoever tent you buy, we recommend also purchasing a companion footprint, if 1 is available. A footprint doesn't accept upwardly much space, is relatively inexpensive, and is much easier to repair or supervene upon than a tent bottom if it tears.
Materials: A tent'southward materials are, of form, important. Howe explained to us the pros and cons of dissimilar types of poles: Aluminum poles are far lighter and slide together more than easily, while fiberglass and steel are often trickier to fit together just are stronger in high winds.
Howe besides told us about tent walls and flies. On well-nigh tents, these components are made of either nylon or polyester. "A nylon tent is much stretchier," he said, "and tin absorb a lot more shock," which can exist an advantage in the backcountry, where your only selection in a windstorm is to ride it out inside your tent. Simply in sudden, trigger-happy storms, car campers always have the easy (if perhaps pathetic) selection of collapsing their tents and retreating to their cars.
Nylon is also more susceptible to UV damage, which, as Howe pointed out, is a top tent killer. In the backcountry, campers are generally making camp each evening and and then packing upwardly again in the morning, whereas machine campers more often than not leave their tents up for much longer periods of fourth dimension, increasing the material'south UV exposure. (Howe suggested setting a tent upwards in the shade to prolong its life.) Polyester is stiffer and heavier merely not as susceptible to UV damage, and information technology doesn't absorb water like nylon does, Howe told us. Information technology's besides less expensive. The takeaway here is that polyester is arguably the amend fabric for automobile campers, who oftentimes want to pitch their tents in a sunny spot.
To compare tent fabrics, you lot also need to know their overall rip strength. For nearly fabrics, rip strength is expressed as a measurement of the diameter of the fibers in their thread, or a denier—the college the denier, the stronger the fabric. Nosotros institute 40 denier up to 150 denier to be typical for machine-camping tents; you tin can read more almost these measurements in gear manufacturer MSR's blog post and in this Outside article. Every bit for waterproof coatings, tent makers generally treat the fabrics with a water-repellent coating described in millimeters; 1,200 mm to iii,000 mm is the typical range found on family unit tents. That number does non refer to the thickness of the coating or the textile; instead, it measures a specific test of water pressure, namely, how many millimeters of water tin sit on top of the fabric before water starts leaking through. (As a Coleman product manager told u.s.a., "Null's waterproof, not fifty-fifty submarines. Given the right weather anything will leak.") A higher number means amend water resistance, only such stronger coatings aren't always necessary: Every bit this MSR blog post explains, "the more than coating you add, the heavier and more rigid the cloth becomes, and—after a bespeak—the more susceptible to tearing." A typical umbrella has a rating of only 420 mm, the company's experts signal out, and it does merely fine at keeping y'all dry.
Although we wanted to empathize the pros and cons of various tent materials, we didn't want to get blinded by a "best is e'er better" philosophy, especially with regard to our picks for family tents. Both Olsson and Howe emphasized that a great family unit tent is one that gets more kids outside—which means 1 that's affordable to about families.
Ease of setup: We looked for dummy-proof tents that were intuitive to set upwardly, that a lone person could erect adequately speedily. If you've e'er arrived at a campsite after dark with two small kids who accept been stewing in the backseat for hours, y'all know that dealing with a tent is often a one-person job. We've also found that a car-camping tent is the kind of item your friends may want to infringe from time to time. Those friends may well be novice campers, and then nosotros wanted something that the uninitiated but reasonably intelligent could cock, fifty-fifty if the original instructions had disappeared long ago. (You're going to lose the instructions. Anybody loses the instructions.)
We also wanted self-standing tents, which stay up on their ain before you stake them down. Even with a self-standing tent, ideally you should stake down each corner securely; in some crowded campgrounds, however, finding a apartment spot with soil soft enough to practise that tin can be difficult. A tent that requires staking to stand up is unwieldy—especially a larger, six-person tent—and it's impossible to prepare on a hard surface, such as blacktop or on the raised wooden tent decks necessary in some sensitive or rocky environments.
It is as well important to consider the way in which the tent poles attach to the tent. Many of our picks use grommet attachments, which are more secure and uncomplicated to repair if annihilation should happen.
Some of our tent picks also have guy-line systems that secure their outer rain fly—although most people probably won't need to utilize those often. Guy-line systems are somewhat unique to each tent, with every model boasting its own specific rope bites and necktie-downs. (Kit scoured YouTube tutorials and establish this video to exist the most informative tutorial on guy lines. With this video and a little practise, you lot'll shortly be pitching tents like a pro.)
Price: Automobile-camping tents should exist relatively inexpensive. They don't need to be the top of the line or fabricated of the lightest possible materials or the nearly advanced fabrics (something you'd probable expect for in a pure backpacking tent). In fact, one could contend that in some cases, such as at a festival or another public event, these covetable bits of equipment could exist a liability when yous're abandoning your tent in a field for most of the day. We decided that the tents for this guide should non be precious items—but they shouldn't be disposable, either.
When information technology came to price, our informal surveys found that most couples considered between $150 and $300 to be a reasonable amount to pay for a four-person tent. So we didn't look at anything with a list price above $350 at the time of testing (some models accept since crossed that barrier). For 6-person tents meeting our size criteria, prices ranged from about $100 to about $600. Those same informal surveys found that most families considered betwixt $200 and $400 to exist a reasonable amount to pay for a tent for family unit auto camping ground, so we didn't test any tents with a listing toll of more than than $450 at that time (once more, some accept since gotten more expensive). In general, tents in that upper price range are made for harsher conditions than the typical car-camping family is probable to encounter or are focused as much on hip, retro aesthetics equally on child-friendly utility. (We can't deny loving the wait of classic sheet on tents from Kodiak and Springbar, though.)
Actress features: Pole force and arrangements, rain-fly tie-downs, door structure, attachment force, and gear-loft placements all play a role in the overall condolement and enjoyment of your tent. Nosotros also considered privacy, vestibules, actress headroom, and whatever other bonuses.
Once nosotros had our criteria nailed downwardly, we scoured Amazon reviews of four- and vi-person tents, every bit well as possessor and professional reviews on sites such as Backcountry, Cabela's, Campmor, Dick's Sporting Goods, Eastern Mountain Sports, GearJunkie, GearLab, L.L.Bean, and REI. We perused the lines of height outdoor companies like Big Agnes, Marmot, and The Northward Face. And we studied the offerings of big-box stores including Costco, Sears, Target, and Walmart. We so requested test samples of the models that met our established criteria and also had a consistent record of positive reviews.
We knew that nosotros wouldn't be comparing apples to apples. Beyond their general size, the tents in our test group were very different from one another, with a wide array of pole configurations and window, door, and roof designs. And several have features that are far from essential, such as protruding storage "garages" for keeping gear out of sight, gear hammocks that permit you hang stuff from the ceiling, reflective roof panels to increase lantern light, hanging iPad sleeves, and built-in doormats. In our evaluations, nosotros focused on basic function and blueprint, looking for big mesh windows to provide a cross breeze in nice weather condition; convenient, built-in pockets for stashing car keys, headlamps, and glasses; zippers that pull smoothly; and a fly that's quick and like shooting fish in a barrel to get on and off as the weather shifts.
How (and where) nosotros tested
We tested the smaller tents and the larger, family-size tents in two dissever groups. To evaluate the pocket-sized tents in real-world situations, we took them get-go to Greggs Hideout, on the Arizona side of Lake Mead. During our tests in this area, temperatures reached upwards of 110 degrees Fahrenheit, and at night, every bit the sands cooled, whipping windstorms kicked up around u.s.a.. It got so hot one afternoon that we spent the day taking shifts in the auto, cooling our photography equipment while monitoring ourselves for signs of heatstroke and aridity. If tents can withstand those conditions, they'll withstand only about anything.
Nosotros likewise tested at the Mountain Oak Campground, located an 60 minutes or so eastward of Los Angeles, where at nighttime the temperatures stay much cooler than in the surrounding valleys. Here, we also faced an onslaught of no-see-ums (or biting gnats). Our testing also included sitting through thunderstorms on the public land just due south of the Hualapai Indian Reservation, near the Grand Canyon. Finally, Kit somewhat cheekily borrowed many of these tents and thrust them into the hands of guests at his own hymeneals. Several couples with various levels of camping experience slept in these tents at the wedding, giving u.s. their impressions and helping the states whittle the grouping downwardly to the finalists.
To test the family-size tents, we planned a series of weekend camping trips with a total of 12 California families, all with kids between the ages of nine months and 9 years. The first was an early February trip to Indian Cove Campground, in Joshua Tree National Park, where daytime temperatures in the loftier 70s (Fahrenheit) plunged to the mid-30s at nighttime. Our 2d trip, in early March, was to the oceanside Sycamore Coulee Campground (PDF), in Oxnard, California, where we experienced mild temperatures in the 50s and 60s, as well as a pelting, early morning time downpour and violent gusts that sent camp chairs and picnic shelters hurtling into nearby wood—the best testing conditions we could accept hoped for. (A later check of the weather at nearby Point Mugu Naval Air Station confirmed that the recorded winds had topped 40 miles per hour.) A third trip brought us to Wheeler Gorge Campground, outside Ojai, California, in April 2016. A year later, in early April 2017, we took another group trip to Indicate Mugu, in an effort to evaluate three additional family tents. Before and afterwards these weekend trips, nosotros turned a neighbor'due south big, flat thou into a tent testing ground. We erected nigh of the original tents just in advance of a 24-60 minutes pelting, checked for leaking midstorm, and watched for puddles and dampness in the backwash.
To test the smaller tents, we first opened them, splayed out their parts, and tried to put them together without consulting the instructions. Nosotros assembled and disassembled the tents on all of our testing sites multiple times. Bones dome tent structures remain largely the same, so setting upward all of our picks was relatively straightforward. Nosotros tried the rain fly for each tent too, one time rushing to go several of them upwardly during an unexpected rainstorm at nighttime. Again, our meridian picks stood out for their simplicity in a tense situation. (Nosotros did need to refer once to the REI Base Army camp instructions, conveniently sewn into the conveying case, to confirm our pole arrangements.)
Then we used the tents. We wanted to know how it felt to be inside them for long periods of time. Did we feel claustrophobic or rejuvenated? If nosotros had to spend a mean solar day in the tent during a storm, would it be comfortable? After first removing the models that failed the structural tests, we slept, watched the stars, and ate our meals in all of the tents, too as planned hikes from them.
Most of the tents nosotros tested were roughly equally comfortable to sleep in. However, those that provided the best dark'due south sleep all seemed to accept some features in common: accessible gear pouches and enough of carabiner loops in the ceiling. And nosotros found ourselves feeling rather affectionate toward models with zippers that didn't snag when we tried to open them, probably because then many of the cheaper tents failed this simple test.
For the family tents, we observed the difficulty and elapsing of the setup process for each one, and we asked each family, during and later on each trip, for feedback on the experience of sleeping in their tent and on specific qualities they liked and disliked. We plant some common themes. But about every family unit appreciated a tent that was quick and intuitive to set. And the families universally praised tents that had mesh roofs with little obstacle, and that had built-in pockets within like shooting fish in a barrel reach of a sleeping position.
Nosotros timed the one-person setup for each tent, and we later on clocked the time information technology took for ane person to break down the tent and get it dorsum in its purse. We also repeatedly zipped and unzipped doors and windows, looking for annoying snags. In spring 2017, we put up our three new contenders in the aforementioned neighbor'due south one thousand and left them in that location for a couple of weeks, during which time we had the chance to see how they responded to two smaller rainstorms. None of them leaked. In 2020, we tested the updated version of the Eureka Copper Canyon six—renamed the Copper Canyon LX 6—to brand sure we still thought information technology was the best. We did.
Our selection for two people: Kelty Grand Mesa 4
Our selection
Kelty Grand Mesa 4
The best car-camping ground tent for 2
Easy both to fix upwardly and to pack abroad, the Grand Mesa 4 is reasonably priced. The more often than not mesh pattern excels in warm weather condition, when you want to do cypher but look at the stars. It too has a total wing for rainy nights or when you're at crowded campgrounds.
A rain fly can be something of a hindrance if you live in a dry out climate. In Southern California, for example, the clement heaven near ever leads to starry nights if y'all're far enough away from the urban center. Rain is rare. And so if you love to take in the grandeur of those celestial nights through a barely there awning, the Kelty Chiliad Mesa 4 was made for you. (And should you live in a not-so-dry climate, this tent comes with a full rain wing. In improver, Kelty sells a companion footprint for the Thousand Mesa 4, which we recommend that yous go.)
With four sides of no-meet-um mesh and a depression, ane-pes skirt wall, the Kelty 1000 Mesa 4 was the favorite tent at our Arizona-desert exam location. Not only could we watch the night heaven for miles, just the Kelty's low walls also allowed the desert winds to blow correct through the tent. Instead of trying to fight those breezes, this tent seemed to absorb them, sheltering and keeping united states cool without collapsing similar a sail. When nosotros tested during 100-caste Fahrenheit nights, gratuitous airflow was a definite benefit—just you lot'd probably want to put upwardly the pelting wing if temperatures began to drop.
Supported past a pair of tensioned aluminum poles, the Thou Mesa's polyester awning is fastened to its frame by a serial of plastic clips. Near of our picks accept this blueprint (except for the REI Base of operations Camp 4 and Base Camp six, which also thread their poles through sleeves sewn into the dome itself). The clips on the Grand Mesa are unique, though, among those of the tents we tested, both for their strength and design: The double-locking machinery offers a tighter seize with teeth forth the tent pole and an audible snap when it's secured. (Notation that Kelty has released an updated version of the Grand Mesa 4 that incorporates sleeves at the base of operations of each corner of the tent, in addition to the clips higher up; we'll be testing that version when we can get one.)
The Grand Mesa's rain fly is easy to attach to the tent with plastic buckles and guy lines, and it adds a vestibule to the front of the tent that gives y'all 14 square feet of space, in improver to the tent's 55-square-foot area. It's not much, but it'due south plenty to store any extra gear you don't want to drag inside. One more than discussion in favor of using a rain fly: condensation. Moisture will inevitably build up within your tent. Condensation (video) is worse in moisture and boiling conditions, and also when you have a large temperature difference betwixt the inside and the outside of a tent. Condensation is not leakage, only should you have a breathable inner layer, the condensation will get together on the fly instead of on the interior of the tent itself.
Weighing but 6 pounds thirteen ounces, the Grand Mesa four is calorie-free plenty to apply every bit a backpacking tent in its own right, also.
Flaws merely not dealbreakers
Our only quibble with this tent is that it has only one door, which sometimes means waking your partner if you're trying to find a snack or you need to exit the tent in the middle of the dark. The tent also has just a unmarried ventilation port, but the fully exposed sides allow for plenty of air movement below the rain wing.
Our selection for families: Eureka Copper Canyon Threescore half-dozen
Our option
Subsequently examining more than 20 six-person tents online and comparison 10 of them side by side on family car-camping trips, we concluded that the Eureka Copper Canyon vi (the current version is the Eureka Copper Canyon LX half-dozen) is our favorite tent for most machine-camping ground families. Of all the models we tested, it offers the best balance of generous interior space, ease of setup, skillful immovability, and reasonable toll. For an additional $150 to $200, yous can get a tent from a more-elite brand that volition counterbalance 5 to 10 pounds less, pack slightly smaller, and use arguably superior materials, such equally lightweight aluminum poles and coated nylon, instead of steel, fiberglass, and coated polyester. But those higher-end tents—sometimes super-size versions of tents the same companies make for backpacking—are also less spacious, harder to set up, and arguably no more durable than the Eureka Copper Canyon LX half-dozen, a tent that was clearly purpose-built for family unit car-camping.
If you regularly camp in rain and need a vestibule—that's the camping word for "mudroom"—y'all should consider a more serious tent, like our upgrade pick, the REI Base Army camp half dozen. But if you're a off-white-weather camper, relieve your money: The Eureka tent will see your family's needs.
The boxlike Copper Canyon 60 half dozen is easy to set upward, and one person can cock it in xv minutes or less. Working together, two people familiar with the tent can gear up it up in about five minutes. Our testers constitute this tent to be among the most intuitive to set up and take downward of all the tents we slept in. The 7-foot center height, near-vertical walls, and 10-past-10-human foot footprint put the Copper Canyon among the roomiest of the tents we tested. The all-mesh roof provides aplenty ventilation and is ideal for stargazing: One dad accepted to solid tent roofs said the view from his bag during the kickoff nighttime in Joshua Tree brought tears to his eyes.
The Copper Canyon also has large mesh windows on all four sides. When all the windows are open, existence inside the tent is nigh like existence outdoors. When they're closed, the solid walls provide wind protection, even if the wing remains off. Nosotros also liked the versatile windows for privacy reasons: Most of the other tents nosotros tested—including the more-expensive Marmot Limestone 6P, Mountain Hardwear Optic 6, and The North Confront Kaiju 6—have mesh walls. Mesh walls are appealing when y'all have a private camping spot and want to gaze out at a lovely view, merely not and so much when you desire privacy in a crowded campground.
The Copper Canyon Lx 6 is the least-expensive pick in a line that as well includes Eureka's similar Jade Canyon X6. Although we liked the pricier variants well plenty, we mostly don't think that they're worth the markup for the extra features.
Unlike the precursor to the Jade Canyon X6, the Eureka Jade Coulee six, which nosotros likewise tested, the Copper Canyon has heavy poles made of fiberglass and steel. We institute out immediate during our camping trip to California's Point Mugu that the added weight also ways added forcefulness. Although the Copper Canyon twisted in on itself in high winds—peculiarly after its inhabitants, who were previously weighing it down, emerged for breakfast—its poles suffered no harm. Meanwhile, the aluminum poles on the Jade Coulee 6 and on the more-expensive North Face up tent were bent and permanently damaged by the same winds. (The Jade Canyon X6 still has the aforementioned aluminum poles.)
We talked through the Copper Coulee's specs with Ryan Flynn, sales manager for Johnson Outdoors, Eureka's parent company. Flynn told us that the reward of the lighter aluminum poles found in the company's Jade Canyon tent is purely about weight. The Copper Canyon'south rugged steel-and-fiberglass poles are really preferable for what he called "costless-country" camping (machine camping on Bureau of Land Management state, for instance) and for anywhere else where weight wouldn't exist an upshot.
The Copper Canyon's lower cost is partly related to the coating materials, according to Flynn. Whereas the Copper Canyon 60 has a 1,200 mm waterproof coating, the Jade Canyon X6 has an ii,000 mm coating (more on what those coatings are all about here). Flynn explained: "Practice the actress coatings mean a whole lot? It's similar going from buying Patagonia's H2No jacket to Patagonia's Gore-Tex jacket. Both go on you dry and warm. They do the same affair."
Kalee bought the Copper Coulee tent for her ain utilise in 2010 or 2011, around the fourth dimension her commencement son was built-in. Her decision at the time was based entirely on Amazon reviews and cost—the tent is consistently cheaper than models of a like size from college-end brands, and it gets great reviews from Amazon customers. Since then, she and her family have used the tent between five and 10 nights a year and experienced no bug in terms of ripped fabric, broken zippers, or bent poles. Those lower-level coatings have stood up just fine to multiple rainstorms. In 2020, Kalee tested the Copper Canyon 60 half dozen, a slightly redesigned version (the offset time in 10 years that the tent had been modified) of the Copper Canyon half-dozen that we tested originally. She came to the conclusion that the (few) changes were for the ameliorate. The rain fly now extends upwards and out over the front end door; information technology's however non a true antechamber, but the little canopy is an improvement over the quondam fly, which provided no protection for the doorway. The conveying pocketbook is also sturdier and—thanks to an additional zipper and a shoulder strap—much easier to use. The tent is, she believes, still the all-time choice for families who desire something spacious and affordable that's easy to put upward and take down.
You know who else slept in a Eureka? Sir Edmund Hillary. He used the innovative (at the time) Eureka Draw-Tite in a return Everest expedition in 1960. Eureka went on to make the shelters for the first entirely American expedition to Everest, sponsored by National Geographic in 1963. The visitor however makes tents for use in the harshest places on globe, merely it also understands that a tent for your summer route trip looks not at all the same.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
The boxy shape is not great in high winds, and the tent's stakes are the opposite of heavy-duty. We surmised, perhaps accurately, that merely the weight of our bodies inside the tent prevented it from ripping out of the ground and blowing away with the biggest gusts of our Pacific Coast windstorm.
The i,200 mm blanket on the Copper Coulee's floor is less water-resistant than the 2,000 mm coating used on the floor of the pricier Jade Canyon, as well every bit on many of the other tents we tested, though nosotros have not had a trouble with a leaky floor. As did almost all of the tent companies we asked, Eureka recommends that campers employ a tarp or ground material for added protection. We've noticed that people who apply hard-toed article of furniture, such as rigid cots or a Pack 'due north Play, inside the tent too often apply a Mexican blanket or thin rug over the floor for added protection and warmth; we retrieve this is a great idea.
Upgrade picks: REI Co-op Base Camp four Tent and Base Camp 6 Tent
Upgrade pick
If y'all're heading into an area with unpredictable weather, you'll need a tent that has extra reinforcements and a full rain fly, to create a large and protected vestibule. Your tent should too be big enough to protect y'all and your gear. After many hours of testing, the REI Co-op Base Camp 4 Tent (for two people) and REI Co-op Base Camp half dozen Tent (for families) rose to the top of the pile equally the tents that best deliver on those requirements—if you lot tin can afford to spend a bit more. (REI makes defended footprints for both the Base Camp four and the Base of operations Military camp 6, and we recommend that you buy ane to protect your tent's floor.)
Superior anteroom space helped both the Base Camp 4 and the Base of operations Camp half-dozen ascent to the top of their respective test groups. On the Base of operations Camp 4'southward original model, which we tested, the ii vestibules (front and rear) added upwards to xl.5 square feet (the area of the tent itself was 60 square feet); on the updated version, released in 2018, the two vestibules have grown slightly, totaling 44 square feet. (The area of the tent itself remains the same, at sixty square feet.) As for the Base of operations Camp 6, the vestibule area covered past its front end fly and rear fly decreased from almost 65 square feet on the original model nosotros tested to 44 square feet in the 2018 model. Still, that's more foyer space than nosotros saw in any other tent we considered, except for The N Confront's Kaiju 6, which has since been discontinued. (The Large Agnes Large House half-dozen likewise has a large anteroom, but yous must purchase that separately, for an extra $140.)
The other changes made in the 2018 models of both Base Army camp models include the addition of a depression side vent and more stuff pockets on the walls and ceiling. Likewise, those walls are at present made of polyester instead of nylon—we'll monitor them in long-term testing to run into how they wear. These tents are strictly meant for car camping ground; the Base Army camp iv and the Base of operations Camp 6 counterbalance 16 and 21 pounds, respectively, so yous won't desire to carry either i very far. This is especially true with the 2018 redesigns because you can no longer wear either tent'due south storage sack similar a backpack—you now have to sling information technology over i shoulder.
Both Base Military camp models accept 2 doors and lots of mesh in the primary tent trunk. The mesh on each starts high on the walls—more than than 4 feet from the footing—which makes the Base Camp half dozen the rare high-end family shelter that offers privacy without the fly attached. (The mesh on virtually of the family tents nosotros tested started much closer to the basis.) We recall this design is a large plus for people who regularly camp in crowded campgrounds and don't like to get naked in front of strangers. And y'all tin unzip the front door, remove information technology, and neatly stash it into ane of the tent'due south internal pockets—a useful feature if y'all're feeling sociable.
If anything happens to your Base Camp, REI's warranty and replacement program has an impressive reputation. Kit lived in the 2013 version of the larger Base Camp half dozen for seven months, and information technology stayed up the unabridged time—with the tent poles under constant tension—that is, until two of the poles snapped within a week of each other. Afterward a short call, REI offered him a full replacement. (This was before Kit started reviewing tents for Wirecutter, then REI didn't know who he was.)
The geodesic structure used in the Base of operations Army camp tents is congenital to withstand air current and rain. It has two main cross supports that thread through sleeves, stretching between the four corners of the tent. Generally, we like the prune-on design better, since it's easier to put together. Merely in the instance of the Base of operations Camp models, the sleeves add extra tension and stability throughout the tent fabric. There are too two poles that cross over each doorway and downward the sides of the tent, to add together extra shape and support. The rain fly has an additional tent pole, as well, to support the vestibule. Overall, these poles contribute to a specially sturdy construction, with or without the rain wing. During our testing, our Base Campsite shrugged off both a rainstorm and a desert windstorm every bit if they were zero.
In the 2018 update, the Base Camp half-dozen's base changed from a rectangular shape to a nearly square pattern, which adds fifty-fifty more stability. The tent covers an area similar to that of the seemingly more popular REI Kingdom 6 (84 square feet for the Base Camp 6, versus 83.3 square feet for the Kingdom vi), but the Base Camp vi has a very different appearance. The Kingdom half-dozen, which typically costs nearly $thirty more than the Base Camp 6, has a distinctive half-barrel design and a smaller vestibule than the Base Camp half dozen. Judging from conversations with owners of both the Base Military camp 6 and the Kingdom half dozen—every bit well as discussions with our local REI salespeople and a careful review of tent specs—we think the Base Camp 6 is the better option for people who want a tent that can stand up to harsh, iii-flavor weather. Rodney Hsueh, a longtime employee at the REI shop in Arcadia, California, told u.s. he always recommended the Base Campsite 6 over the Kingdom 6 for campers who were headed for windy locales. If you lot're willing to spend superlative dollar for a tent that will stand up upwardly to the elements and keep y'all comfortable in pelting and mud—as well as offer privacy at a crowded campground—the REI Co-op Base Camp 4 and 6 are the clear choices.
Also great for families: Coleman vi-Person Instant Cabin
Too cracking
Coleman is the "lowest make" when it comes to tents, and the Coleman vi-Person Instant Cabin ranks amid the company'due south about popular family tents for good reason: With a simple but comfortable design, it remains easier and faster to set up than any other similarly sized tent we could discover. The tent's telescoping poles are pre-attached to the fabric; to erect the tent, yous only extend them. (Coleman claims setup takes lx seconds. It took us 2 minutes and 29 seconds on the beginning try, and between 1 and two minutes in one case we were familiar with the tent, which we nonetheless consider to be quite impressive.)
The boxy tent is similar in style to our top pick, the Eureka Copper Coulee LX 6, but it falls curt of that tent in several ways. The Coleman tent is noticeably smaller, with a footprint of ninety square feet, versus the Eureka's 100 foursquare feet. With a vi-foot-2-inch center height, this tent'southward roof is almost 10 inches lower than the Eureka's. The bathtub-shaped floor (the floor curves up a couple of inches into the walls at the edges) is fabricated of polyethylene. Tent makers utilise this heavy, crunchy, tarp-like cloth in cheaper models, and it's unlikely to exist as durable as the softer, stronger polyester in the Copper Canyon LX 6 and nearly of the other tents we looked at.
The feature we missed near with the Instant Cabin, though, was the Copper Canyon 6's mesh roof. The Coleman Instant Cabin doesn't accept a fly at all (though you can buy a "pelting fly accompaniment"). And so to protect against rain, the tent employs a solid, coated-polyester roof—though some reviewers have complained that it doesn't always protect well.
Nevertheless, nosotros recollect the Instant Motel is a solid choice for casual campers who don't desire any hassle with setup and who would be likely to cancel their plans—or retreat to a nearby motel—if prolonged downpours were in the forecast. Well-nigh Amazon reviewers agree.
The Coleman Instant Motel comes in a couple of other sizes, including a two-room, eight-person model that feels about twice every bit big as the six-person tent.
Budget pick for families: Coleman Sundome 6-Person Tent
Budget pick
The square footprint, ample windows, and functional fly of the Coleman Sundome 6-Person Tent make it a good choice for occasional or backyard campers who want an inexpensive tent that's piece of cake to put upwardly and that looks and feels reasonably nice to army camp in.
Unlike a couple of other cheap tents we've tested over the by two years, the Coleman Sundome has a simple shape and pole pattern that should be easy for fifty-fifty inexperienced campers to figure out. The base of operations is a square: 2 identical fiberglass poles feed through sleeves on the tent roof to form an X. Pegs at the corners of the tent skid into the ends of the poles, and so the dome-shaped tent pops up (video). The separate wing uses a third, shorter pole to form protective peaks over the single door and back window. In our tests, an experienced camper took but well-nigh half-dozen minutes on the first try to set the tent body lonely and stake information technology out. Getting the wing placed and staked properly took well-nigh five more than minutes. That's pretty fast.
And although the Sundome isn't nearly as quick to prepare every bit the same Coleman Instant Cabin, experienced campers who don't intendance as much about setup time may find several other reasons to like the Sundome better. Measuring x by 10 feet, the Sundome covers a slightly larger expanse (100 square feet) than the Instant Motel, though its dome roof leaves information technology with significantly less headroom. (The Sundome'south middle tiptop is exactly 6 feet, while the Coleman Instant Cabin and the REI Base of operations Army camp both take a center superlative of half-dozen feet ii inches.)
Like the Base of operations Camp, only unlike the Instant Cabin, the Sundome has mesh loftier up, to facilitate stargazing when you apply the tent without the wing on warm nights (two of the four walls have mesh from near thigh height up to the roof). That mesh also keeps the tent feeling more than airy and cool in hot climates than the more closed-in (and dark) Instant Cabin. Overall, we idea that the Sundome looked and felt more cheery both inside and out than the Instant Motel.
Similar to the Instant Cabin, the Sundome has a crunchy, tarp-like polyethylene floor; Coleman makes no dedicated footprints for its tents, so nosotros suggest that you buy a groundsheet. The tent has two small, internal pockets—fewer than any of our other family unit picks—and a loop at the ceiling eye to hang a pocket-size, lightweight lantern or other light. Information technology too comes with a niggling chump. The tent weighs merely 16 pounds, less than any other family tent we tested for this guide.
The Sundome is highly rated on Amazon; owners call it "no-nonsense" and "roomy without being huge." Although our test tent lasted through ii moderate showers with no leaking, be aware that a couple of Amazon buyers have experienced leaking in rainstorms and poles breaking in high winds. When information technology comes to tents, y'all tend to become pretty close to what you pay for. If you're likely to be camping in downpours or high winds, don't rely on a sub-$100 tent.
Care, use, and maintenance
We found that visitor representatives are reluctant to approximate the lifespan of their tents. When pushed, most of those we talked to estimated 5 to 10 years, though the actual lifespan will vary widely depending on intendance and frequency of utilise (for more advice, read REI's excellent tips). In researching this guide, nosotros heard multiple tales of careful campers who'd been using the aforementioned tent for 15 years or more.
There are several straightforward ways to make any tent last longer:
- Use a groundsheet. A footprint made by the same company that fabricated your tent and that is sized to friction match is platonic for preventing pooling water—and fugitive the wrinkles and crumply sound of a cheap, $10 tarp. That said, a inexpensive tarp will practise the job only fine every bit long equally you buy it or cutting it to fit. A tarp that's too big volition collect rainwater off the fly and funnel information technology right nether the tent.
- Clean your campsite. Before you lay out your footprint and tent, make a reasonable endeavor to remove from the site any pocket-sized stones, sticks, and briars that could puncture your tent floor.
- Set some basis rules. "Your tent is your sanctuary," said camping expert Helen Olsson, who would always bring a "play tent"—an erstwhile, two-person backpacking tent—for her little kids to utilize as a daytime play space. When they were in the "real" tent, everyone followed Olsson's "No shoes in the tent" rule.
- Zip information technology upward. Similarly, keep your tent zipped to keep bugs and critters out, and go a pro zipper user: A pollex placed in the area forward of the direction you're pulling the attachment volition clear the fabric path and assist prevent snags.
- Sweep out before packing. Tiny pebbles or sticks packed within the tent can rub and erode the textile over time. Another nice matter most tents that retain their structure without being staked is that a couple of people should be able to team up to lift the tent and shake out detritus earlier removing the poles and putting the tent away. You could also follow the pb of type-A campers and bear a small whisk broom and dustpan to keep the tent flooring tidy during your trip.
- Dry out before storing. "Zero will destroy a tent faster than mildew," tent designer Bob Howe told united states. "And if it doesn't destroy information technology, information technology just makes information technology unlivable." To avoid mildew (and the accompanying stink), never, always pack away a tent that's nonetheless clammy. Line-dry out it or hang it up in your basement—or set it upwards in your garage—until whatever hint of dampness is gone.
The competition
Tents for ii people
AmazonBasics four-Person Dome Tent: Similar to every other tent we tested nether $150, the AmazonBasics tent only couldn't stand up to the elements. Its fiberglass tent poles were too narrow and flimsy to offer real back up against anything but the lightest of winds.
Big Agnes Big Business firm 4 Tent: This is a cabin-mode tent that we tested as a command. We wanted to know whether a dome-way tent was really ameliorate than a motel-way tent for two people. Though this tent had a niggling more livable space, the broad, flat walls had some problem during loftier winds.
Big Agnes Rabbit Ears four Tent: The Rabbit Ears tent, which is at present discontinued, would have been decent if it were $70 cheaper. Our testing simply revealed improve options; you lot'll get more for your money with our other picks.
Coleman Sundome 4-Person Dome Tent: We recommend this tent in its six-person design for families, but the four-person model we tested was besides weak to back up itself when subjected to even mild air current or rain.
Coleman 4-Person Pop-Up Tent: The Popular-Upwards is packed into a iii-pes-wide carrying instance that, when opened, shoots the tent forth similar a snake-in-a-tin gag souvenir. Presto—there's your tent. The only trouble is that it'south non a very proficient tent, and we rate it merely for backyard duty at all-time. (And another thing: This tent may be like shooting fish in a barrel to unpack, simply packing it support is a nightmare.)
Eureka Tetragon Hard disk drive 4: The Tetragon wwe tested wasn't every bit bad as the Coleman Sundome 4-Person or the AmazonBasics tent, but its fiberglass poles were still weak. (It's since been replaced by the Tetragon NX, which has similar fiberglass poles.)
Tents for families
Eureka Jade Canyon vi: The Jade Canyon's poles are steel and lightweight aluminum instead of the Copper Coulee'due south fiberglass and steel, and the Jade Canyon is slightly easier to prepare up. Nonetheless, in the severe gusts of our Signal Mugu windstorm, i of the Jade Canyon's poles bent badly; a couple of other poles bent slightly merely remained functional. (Eureka will supercede poles for around $10 each.) We also had an issue with ii of the Jade Coulee's poles sticking together at takedown, making it impossible to get the whole tent dorsum in the already-fashion-also-snug conveying bag. (The Jade Canyon has since been replaced by the Jade Coulee X6, which has similar poles.)
Eureka Desert Coulee vi: This model, which is now discontinued, came with a larger pelting fly that y'all could detach and use every bit a standalone shade construction for your military camp. Though you likely wouldn't need the extra rain cover and the extra shade at the same time, switching the rain fly back and forth during a sudden change in weather was frustrating. The tent also didn't have a back window.
Cabela's West Wind 6-Person Dome Tent: We didn't include this tent in our original spring 2016 testing because information technology has a slightly smaller footprint, a lower meridian tiptop (half dozen anxiety iii inches), and a more complicated design than many other six-person models. But after several readers raved about the tent, we decided to compare it against our existing picks; we did this on a kindergarten camping ground trip to California's Indicate Mugu, in April 2017. The couple who volunteered to try out the tent—forth with their 6-twelvemonth-former twins—struggled for well over one-half an hour to get it upwards, somewhen attracting the attention of other campers, who came to their rescue.
Marmot Limestone 6P: The Limestone 6P was the loftier-end tent we liked second best, later on the REI Base Camp 6. Like the Base of operations Army camp 6, it has ample vestibule space (though non about every bit much as the REI tent) and an intuitive, quick-to-cock design. But the Limestone is slightly smaller than the Base Camp. And it'southward missing some of the other features we liked, such equally the privacy that comes with a pattern that keeps the mesh up high. Too, the Limestone has a list toll of about $545, making it the well-nigh expensive tent we tested.
Big Agnes Big House 6: Although we liked the await and feel of this brightly colored tent, the vestibule is a separate, $140 purchase, making the full package significantly more than expensive than our family unit tent picks.
REI Co-op Kingdom vi Tent: We quickly identified the REI Kingdom half-dozen, which is typically most $500, equally one of the about popular tents in this category. (Wirecutter deputy editor Christine Cyr-Clisset, a mom of ii, owns an earlier version and loves it.) The spacious, barrel-shaped tent has a congenital-in wall that can divide the sleeping space into ii, a characteristic that could be a depict for families with older kids. The Kingdom tents are known for having problems in high winds, though. A friend who was using the tent for only the 5th time had a pole snap and tear through the fly in what she described as 35 mph winds near June Lake, in the southern Sierra Nevada; a second pole bent. Yet, a 2020 update, which REI says is more stable, is now bachelor; we plan to test it when we can.
Coleman Tenaya Lake Fast Pitch half-dozen-Person Cabin Tent: Often available for close to $200, the Coleman Tenaya Lake tent looked like a skillful deal at offset. With a ceiling height of 6 feet 8 inches and a shoebox-like shape, information technology felt roomier than its 91 square anxiety. A couple of our reviewers praised the rigid, hinged door, which allows lilliputian kids (and lazy adults) to run in and out without bothering with a zipper. Alas, the Tenaya Lake fared poorly in its outset rainstorm. After a steady—but far from torrential—daylong rain, there were inch-deep puddles inside the tent's two storage "garages," equally well as a smaller pool in ane corner of the principal tent. Across that, we plant the setup process to exist far trickier than for most of the other tents we tested: An experienced, lifelong camper needed more one-half an hour to gear up it upwardly on the offset attempt.
Northwest Territory Hawkeye River eight Person Tent: Northwest Territory is the store brand of Kmart. Though the Eagle River didn't strictly run across our criteria—it'southward an viii-person tent with 144 square feet of space, and it is not self-standing—we noticed that large-box stores such as Costco, Kmart, and others sold tents that were both bigger and cheaper than the ones our original research pointed united states of america toward, so we wanted to compare what you'd get with these bigger tents. The specially cheap Eagle River 8 Person Tent became our guinea pig. It didn't fare well. The tent was frustrating to set up, especially for i person, since information technology took 33 minutes to wrestle the primary tent body into continuing up and another 14 minutes or so to go the fly on right. Confusing the poles was all too piece of cake, and the battle to erect this behemoth confirmed our original assumption that tents of this size must be cocky-standing to be manageable. Even in a friend's flat, grassy backyard, getting this tent to stand taut was difficult. The tent also leaked severely in its outset rainstorm; multiple puddles formed in the lowest corners.
Sources
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Bob Howe, tent designer, phone interview , March 10, 2016
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Helen Olsson, author of The Down and Dingy Guide to Camping With Kids, phone interview , March x, 2016
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Ryan Flynn, salesperson for Johnson Outdoors, parent company of Eureka, telephone interview , March 7, 2016
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Tent FAQs, Campmor
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MSR Tent FAQ, Mount Safety Enquiry (MSR)
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Tent Fabrics Office 1: Textile Specs, Mountain Safety Research (MSR) , November 16, 2015
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Tent Fabrics Part ii: Waterproof Ratings, Mount Prophylactic Research (MSR) , November 22, 2015
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Compare Camping Tents, GearLab
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-tent-for-family-and-car-camping/
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