Oh camping experts - please come and help a novice with tent choices!

[Kingsroadie]

So oh knowledgable ones - which tent brands are considered good? Outwell? Vango? Coleman?

We have one daughter (19 months) and a puppy and are considering a camping holiday this summer. We were going to go the "glamping" route but it is fairly pricey and for a week in the summer at one of the cheaper places even (£395 for a week in August which is a lot cheaper than most) we could buy a smart tent which would last a long time. I know we don't have to go in school holidays but quite wanted to go in August as my husband's work will be a bit quieter so he wouldn't be attached to his blackberry the whole time and also to get maybe a slightly better chance of good weather...

We have a tipee already which is nice but not the sturdiest and whilst good for overnight camping with just adults (sleeps 6) might not be as comfortable with a toddler and dog. Also like the idea of separate rooms so we can put the baby to bed (if we want - she will probably stay up later anyway) and we can still be in the tent without disturbing her.

If we do buy a tent I would like a big one. As I would like to have big living and storage space etc in case of bed weather etc. And to make it as nice as possible! Looking at various, incluing Coleman Coastline 8 Deluxe, A few Outwell ones and Vango ones too. Would like an 8 sleeper as we plan on having (hopefully 2 more) more children and with a dog as well I think a 6 sleeper would be too small.

Any suggestions/recommendations/considerations?
Also - when you go camping do you need all the cooking/sleeping kit etc? (When we have camped overnight before we just used blankets and duvets etc and got food out).

Thank you in advance!

Oh and no you can't boil water on the Cobb, you'll need a separate single stove for that.

I would never take a gas lantern inside my tent either. Solar lanterns make for lovely night lights.

Hahahaha

Cooking THINGS

You do not need to don a thong to cook while camping.

OK last post and then I have to go and crack on with things to do.

Beware! Not all polycotton is the same. This is where you really need to try and get to a tent display to check things out. When you are in the polycotton tents feel how warm it is, and feel and look at the inside of the tent fabric. Good polycotton should feel pretty much like cotton canvas and the inside of the tent should feel discernibly cooler than the plastic tents you go inside. If the fabric feels plasticy and sheeny then it's probably got less cotton and more poly-whatever in it, making a hotter, more condensationy tent.

I LOVE outwell's polycotton tents, but you will pay for that quality.

The converse of this is my polycotton utility which is so plasticy and hot it's a joke.

its a bit early to be on the gin love!

Slubber don a thong

We've had Outwell and Vango (not polycotton though) and I'd say the quality control on the Outwell is better. Still pleased with my little Vango but there were various niggles such as D-rings missing and guy ropes tied to the wrong bit of tent when I pitched it the first time.

Notwaving, I was swept along on a wave of tent buying/polycotton feeling euphoria and committed the underwear based Freudian slip. No gin is drunk before 6pm in this house [5 hours and 45 mins and counting]

HerbWoman, I want to like Vangos as much as the ubiquitous Outwells but I agree, thing the finishing quality of the Danish stuff is better.

And who at Vango had the bright idea of making a BLACK tent!?! Like walking into a sauna at the tent displays.

Thanks everyone! Aw slubber - I was really looking forward to cooking in a thong. And selecting a particularly nice one...

Good point re pitching time. Would a 6/8 man fibreglass poled, polyester tent take less time? Or is it mainly size related?
Any feedback on sprayway?

Okay so... Haven't heard back from friend yet so assuming I can't borrow the big tent, these are my options:

1. Take teepee, but a 3-6 night trip with us and toddler and a puppy might be a bit cramped?!

1. Buy cheapish polyester large tent which we could use for the future if we wanted.

1. Buy proper steel poled, polycotton tent.

Sorry again for all questions and thanks a lot!

I've just re-read your OP Kings, you say your teepee sleeps 6 (is it like a bell tent?). That is plenty room enough for two adults a toddler and a puppy. We have a 4 man (3x4m) that sleeps 4 of us and a 25kg Labrador just fine. As it is the children and /or dog will end up sleeping practically on top of you anyway [thermal layers].

It's an Orla keily teepee (not why we chose it!) which we bought for weekends and overnight (parties etc) and so have no idea how waterproof/sturdy it is. Have just looked online (on iPhone as Internet broken! Bloody annoying. And someone said approx 14ft diameter). Here is link to a picture - hopefully! www.retrotogo.com/2007/07/orla-kiely-re-1.html Will be planning on going for at least 5 days if not a week (obv if it's awful weather or going horribly can come home early)

Do you think will be big/warm enough? What if wet - no porch area etc - although suppose can just have an area of wet!

Apologies if my typing awful - hard to see on iPhone...

And slubber - thank you - you are officially my camping hero.

Well £100 should give you reasonable waterproofness. It has a sig so that's good. It's quite snazzy isn't it .

Can you do a practice overnighter in it in the back garden and see how you go? Get someone to put the hose on and give it a good drenching while someone sits inside to see if the water stays out.

I love doing tent chat Kings, so no worries

Ha - I know we will be the snazziest people on the campsite. Lots of people have in fact commented on the snazziness of it...

Ah see don't think it will work in garden - we don't have one! Sw London houses tend to mostly have patios... Ours is approx 15 ft long so am thinking it wouldn't work. Could take to park along with buckets of water?

Have just texted my friend with the big tent (pretty sure it is fairly large having camped by it before - bet it's a disappointment now rather than the wondertent I have built it up to be!)

Fingers crossed for your big tent.

Sorry, living out in't cuntry I forget city folk aren't well endowed in the garden dept.

She said we are welcome to it with any other camping stuff though need it back mid/end august. Have asked when exactly as that's whe we were thinking of but we haven't actually decided on the dates yet so we could go before! Phew. Fingers crossed it is a good one...

Yes our garden is the size of a pocket handkerchief!

Sorry kingsroadie I have nothing of use to aid your tent purchasing but had to come out of lurkdom as I am sniggering like a school girl at cooking thongs...camping, cooking thongs.

Sorry again

Haha scaryt - we're all very mature in this thread. As you can see

My first thought (not slight obsession with new camping investigations) was that there were such things as cooking thongs! Like a pyramid from which you hung your kettle. And then I thought of an actual thong... And laughed!