Outwell - worth the money? Advice please...?

[gerbo]

Advice needed.

We bought a Vango 8 man tent this summer and have had one trip in it. It worked fairly well, however we were disappointed to find it had a separate groundsheet.

We minded enough (tons of earwigs and draughts - we aren't that tough!) to think we should probably flog it soon (cost £150 - maybe we will recoup £50?) and try another type.

We don't have oodles of £, and love camping, so figure that seeing as we won't be going on any villa holidays to Portugal for the next decade or so, we may as well invest in a super duper tent and then really look after it, using it a few times a year for all our holidays.

We are gathering that Outwell are the best. What is the opinion out there?

We want a large, comfy tent (2 dc, 3 and 6months) with attached groundsheet, that is hardy and reliable, and will go the distance. We'd carry it in the car, so weight isn't too much of an issue.

So - Outwell - are they worth it?! (They seem to cost £3-700ish). We are willing to pay that if they cover all bases and will do us for several years of family hols...

Thanks for any help.

Hi
We bought an Outwell Minasota 4 two years a go and have been very pleased with it. We have 2 dds now aged 4y and 18months.
It has stood up well to some very wet windy weather. Other tents with flexible poles were really distorting in the wind.It can get very hot in the sun but I think no more than other nylon tents. It is pretty quick and easy to put up with 2 people.
The attached ground sheet is good with young children as not only does it keep out most of the wild life, it keeps out the drafts so kids ( and adults) can play on the floor. Particularly if you get the 'fitted carpet'

I've had an Outwell for 9 years, it was still going strong till we lent it to friends who packed it away wet and then it came back with a couple of very small holes in the roof. I think it would have still been fine if we hadn't lent it out. DH is mad with me.

I do think they're worth it.

we bought an Outwell at the end of the season this year (one trip with it); lovely tent, nicely designed, BUT the shock-cording on two poles has gone already
from research before buying I'm told the customer service from Outwell itself is rubbish so make sure you buy from a reputable supplier so they can sort any problems out for you rather than your having to deal with Outwell direct if quality is not up to scratch.

We bought an Outwell Oakland 5 man tent tis summer for £200 in the sale at Go Outdoors. We hav camping in it twice and it is fantastic. We hope to get many trips out of it.

Outwell aren't the only good tents. So maybe it's worth another look around. Kyham...Vango...Coleman and many others make great tents. Lots do sewn in groundsheets too. It's about finding one which suits (bedroom configuration? sig? double skin?), is sturdy enough (steel poles maybe if you really want it to stand up to gales) and has a good hystrostatic head rating.
We have an Outwell Montana and a Terra Nova wild country tent.
The Terra Nova is my favourite tbh.

It's worth having a look on the tent reviews on ukcampsite.co.uk

Had disappointing vango in past as well now have 2 outwells but would also recommend khyam SIL has coleman and not as waterproof/sturdy saw a wild country in the summer it looked good but the people who owned it said it was v heavy -but stable..

we have friends with Wild Country tents - they are beautiful and solid as a rock but very heavy. We left a campsite this Aug/Sept the day before strong winds were forecast and the one family that was still there on the site had a Wild Country which looked like it could cope with anything.
I thought hard about whether we should get one but it was the weight and pack size that put me off in the end - we don't camp in severe enough conditions for it to be worth the space in the car/lugging.

We have an Outwell nevada and it's fantastic. Very windy when we went to Wales in the summer and because of the design the wind just scooted up the sides and over the top (more or less!) whereas some others in the site were straight sided and hit the wind head on and didn't fare so well. Love the sewn in ground sheet, and we have the carpet as well so it was completely toasty inside even though the weather was awful.

Easy to put up too, and although I've only experienced this one tent in the wind, I've been told that because of the material they use it doesn't flap and make so much noise in the wind.

Go Outdoors have some good bargains, worth a look, and they have loads set up so you can stand inside and get a feel for the ones you like.

Agree with above post, we also have a Outwell Nevada M and we love it (husband and i plus two boys 3&5). You can pick them up for around £230.

We are looking to buy the front extention for our camping trips next year, can't wait!! Love the built in groundsheet.

Very straight forward to put up, husband pretty much does it by himself while i amuse the kids

I've got a huge outwell florida 6 for long camps and a Kampa Frinton 4 for weekends. Dh and I camp with dc's aged 6 and 8.

Both are excelleny quality - the Kampa is just as good as the Outwell. I've had Easycamp, Eurocamp and Vango tents in the past - all disapointing quality compared to Kampa and Outwell.

As your dc's are so small it might be worth looking at the Frinton as it is part of the ultimate range which has a thick flysheet and darker bedroom pods.

frinton here Plus you can buy an extra canopy for more space as the dc's ger bigger.

Hi Gerbo, I second troutpout - the reviews on ukcampsite tend to be quite useful so have a look there.

We looked at loads of tents online and in RL(tent porn!) before buying a family tent - and went with Outwell both times. We've got the Idaho L which is a monster for longer trips (but they're no longer making it) and bought the Virginia earlier this year for weekends. Love them both and most importantly so do the kids!

If you can hold on until the spring, you could go to a tent show and review different models before making your decision. The Decathalon near us erects tents outside the store so you can have a nosey around inside (not just their own brand tents). Don't know if other branches do this too?

Alternatively the lovely lovely people at Yeomans Outdoors do tent shows around the country. Can't recommend them highly enough for advice and good customer service and their web site seems to indicate that they will be putting up their dates for 2011 soon www.yeomansoutdoors.co.uk/camping-shows-list.aspx.

Happy tent shopping!

We've got a Vango which has been fine, but now we've been camping and seen lots of different tents around and about, I wish we had an Outwell just for the windows. Being stuck in a tent when it rains and there isn't that much natural light is pretty grim.

We have a sewn-in groundsheet and we got a footprint too, this has been great as the tent stays clean and easy to fold, whereas we saw other campers having brush off lots of mud.

We've got a kyham - used to be called a classic XXL but now ?Harewood. It is a fab tent - has stood up to some serious weather where most otther tents have been flattened and is incredibly easy to put up.

Not cheap but worth every penny.

We've had several tents over the years, little popups, 5 man Khyam, 10 man Khyam, but this one we bought this year is my favourite one so far - Coleman Deluxe Six man - www.leisureshack.co.uk/coleman-coastline-deluxe-6-tent-205117.aspx
So easy to put up - four rods, a few pegs and some guy ropes out and you're there.

I am the least practical person - always considered putting up the tent to be a "blue" job but had to take the kids away to a sports event for the weekend by myself and was childishly pleased to be able to put this up single handed.

Built in ground sheet was chief reason for buying but I am so impressed with it. Best bit is sitting around with a glass of wine watching fellow campers bugger about for far longer trying to put their tents up. Think they also do an 8 man version if you want something a bit bigger.
I know I sound like an advert but I love this tent. Like everything about camping especially the 3 way camping fridge (how sad am I!!)
Hope you find something that suits.

have you tried looking on ebay?, we got our outwell hartford xl off ebay in july for £160. it's a couple of years old, and is still in really good condition.

Slight thread highjack - apologies - rambling have you seen the Youtube video showing how the Mini can be pitched by one person ?

WE have this one
Far cheaper than an Outwell, was very sturdy, survuved a fortnight in wet and windy Cornwall.
Has sewn in ground sheet and handy porch area.

Outwell Florida 5 here. LOVE IT :)

Slightly smaller than the Montana but v similar (camped next to one this summer) and I like the fact that you could stand up in it throughout. It withstood hideous gales in a cliff-top campsite in Devon in August and is fairly easy to put up once you have done it a couple of times so although it is big it is easy enough to manage for weekends as well as longer trips.

Can't comment on other brands as we are converts to canvas from a campervan but we spent quite a long time researching and settled for outwell after reading loads of rave reviews here, on ukcampsite and other websites.

We have an Outwell Hartford XXL (older model) and I have to say love it, however it is big, heavy and takes a good hour to get it up (when you do all the guy ropes properly)

Its stood up to some really bad weather conditions, we've had it 3 years and got it off ebay from someone who'd had it for about 2 years.

before we bought it we loked around at loads of tents and were told that Outwell were the best but everyone else was now starting to catch up.

However we now have a new tent which is absolutely wonderful and I can't wait for the new camping season (having definitely decided it is now far too cold!!!) We got a bell tent - goes up in 20 mins and is just gorgeous!!!

We got the 5m ultimate which has the zipped in ground sheet, however on those rare hot days, you can unzip and roll the sides up to let the breeze through. We also got the inner tent so the sleeping area is sectioned off - a lot bigger that I thought it would be and doesn;t ruin the look of the tent at all.

We went over to Obelink in Holland for ours as Belltent.co.uk don;t have any in stock yet and apparently they are bringing out the Emperor with a ZIG next Feb (now that one is huge but gorgeous - much better in RL than the photos!)

Also the bell tent is canvas so its cooler on the hot days and retains heat on cold days.

Well worth a look and they last for years (apparently - well I bloody hope so!)

Hi Teej . Ive just had a look .I think DH could get it up on his own , but I cant get the pins in the end of the polls. Must be a bit of a weed