Pop up Tents

[punkincowcat]

Good Morning

I have bought various tents over the years from expensive tunnel tents to cheap one skin tents from Tesco! And have had good and bad experiences with each.. the most hassle coming from the expensive vango tunnel tent!

I am hitting Rockness first this year and last year noticed a lot of pop up tents.. I wondered if these are reliable enough for a long weekend of camping and, in the worse case scenario, rain! I wanted to go for something that looks nice and not pay loads of money for it.

Any experience of pop ups or advice would be much appreciated

[Milbert]

I borrowed a couple of different types before now. They did the job. Bit of a bugger to transport, what with the huge disc shape, but they were alright for camping in.

Couldn't really get the canvas as taut as I would have liked, but it was dry so no bother. Packing them up is a practised art, and some are easier than others. The smaller ones are easy enough once you learn the technique, bigger ones need several hands, and can be pretty tricky. Make sure you try them in the shop, and make sure you try packing them away *into the bag* on your own just so you know what you're getting yourself into.

I wouldn't buy one myself, the time saved pitching is of no concern, and I rather have something compact when packed, and easy to pack.

[eoinca]

They're shite tbh.

We went to Electric Picnic a few years ago and someone(ie me) forgot our tent, so we borrowed one of these from friends who were sleeping in their car.

Tiny, cramped and a pain to carry around. I definitely wouldn't recommend them.

[eoinca]

Also if it rains, they're completely useless.

[Paul ™]

I wouldn't bother... is it really that hard to spend 10 minutes getting your tent up?

[punkincowcat]

Bit of a mixed response to this one.. I thought there might be

My gut feeling tells me that pop up tents are not the way to go despite some positive experiences...

I was just hoping to find a tent that I could just literally pop up on arrival and then get on with things... but I do need it to be waterproof.

Anybody have any other suggestions? 7

Thank you for all the responses x

[alanr]

Bit of a mixed response to this one.. I thought there might be

My gut feeling tells me that pop up tents are not the way to go despite some positive experiences...

I was just hoping to find a tent that I could just literally pop up on arrival and then get on with things... but I do need it to be waterproof.

Anybody have any other suggestions? 7

Thank you for all the responses x

[theampersanddevil]

The most time I have ever spent putting a tent up at a festival is about 15mins and that was by myself and it was a 4 man. A typical 2 man dome can be done in less than 10 mins easy, although first time i tried it took me about 30mins and wasn't done right. Luckily this was in my back garden. I have spent longer trying to put down a pop up tent.

My advice is quite geeky, practice putting up your tent and taking it down a lot before you go. Organise the poles, if they are different lengths so that you spend less time looking for the right ones (even band them with different colours if neccessary, but shouldn't be). A bit extra effort, but might be worth it if it in the rain and makes everything quicker in the long run.

Edited February 17, 2011 by theampersanddevil

[jeffie]

Depends how many people as well.

I've got a Vango Dart DS (Dual Skin) 300 (3 man)which is big enough for me and a 65 litre rucksack, beer, etc......

It goes up in 40 seconds, 10 seconds out of the bag, 30 seconds to pin down.

Goes down in 40 seconds as well - just experiment in the shop (although i bought mind off the t'interweb).

Has a small porch for boots and things.

Was great year before last when we arrived at 2am, although then I ended up helping all my matres with theirs..

[kingjamma]

I have a three man Quechua pop up tent and think it's excellent. It's survived me eight festivals now and has seen all different types of weather from heavy rain to very high winds and has survived them very well compared to other tents and had no problems what so ever. It cost me about £70 and will be going to Glasto and the other festivals I go to this year. The only thing I can recommend is practice putting it down when you get it as they can be awkward, but once you got the technique it's very easy and fast to put away.

[incident]

It is fairly simple -

The good ones are good. The bad ones are bad.

Shockingly, the small ones are small although that seems to have surprised some people..

The same advice applies as any tent purchase - buy one that's the right size for you, buy a good brand (in this case Quechua or Vango), and most importantly avoid anything single skinned at all costs.

Once you've got that sorted they're excellent, personally I wouldn't even consider taking anything else to a festival.

[G1T]

Don't know how true or common it was, but I heard it from some security last year, so worth passing on.

Apparently, they noticed last year that single person pop up tents in pink or flowery designs were getting robbed more than other types of tent, on the basis that the occupant was more likely to be younger, female and of course on their own, and thus less likely to be a threat to a robber if found to be at home when they came calling.

Might have just been a theory on the part of the security people I was chatting to, but as a general rule it's best to make your tent look as crap, battered and non-stand-out-ish as possible anyway.

[kingjamma]

Don't know how true or common it was, but I heard it from some security last year, so worth passing on.

Apparently, they noticed last year that single person pop up tents in pink or flowery designs were getting robbed more than other types of tent, on the basis that the occupant was more likely to be younger, female and of course on their own, and thus less likely to be a threat to a robber if found to be at home when they came calling.

Might have just been a theory on the part of the security people I was chatting to, but as a general rule it's best to make your tent look as crap, battered and non-stand-out-ish as possible anyway.

[scappaflow]

I have a Eurohike pop-up tent that has seen me through about 5 festivals.

It is still in good nick and would use it again, or lend to a good friend (who I thought would bring it back).

Space is at a premium and you don't get a lot of room for dirty boots in the front, but when I am just on my own in a tent, I would always choose this over a dome / tunnel tent.

NB - Do not use a Tunnel tent for a festival as you have to rely on guy ropes to keep it sturdy. A dome tent is not as reliant on ropes, so doesn't matter so much if people trip over them and pull them out the ground.

Invested last year in a Vango Dome tent for me and the missus to go to festivals / camping. Really only cause a popup tent would be far too small for both of us.

So the only real drawback is a lack of space... and you MUST learn how to pop-down your tent before you travel.

[cejx]

can't recommend Khyam enough.

I've 3 of varying sizes.

The rapidex pole system means you get a proper tent, with the speediness of one of those pop ups.

http://www.khyam.co.uk

You get what you pay for, but mine have lasted for years.

xxx

[HurrahBrother]

I bough a Quencha Air tent, travelled by coach to Glastonbury (2007?), driver has put it at the bottom if the compartment, the 'non-slip surface' had rubbed right through the bag and tent to the poles from the moving of the luggage on the journey.

Thankfully not in a place where it let water into the inside.

So get one that packs up smaller than 3 foot across otherwise it may end up at the bottom of the pile and get damaged.

The zips got gunged up as well, (no porch) and failed me at beautiful days later that year.

So get one with a porch.

That said it kept me dry (through a year of constant drizzel and rain), and the ventilation was glorious (no tent heat) and as a billed 2 man tent it was certainly good enough for me with space to spare.

It is looking like the Vango DS200 and DS300 and the Quencha XLs are the best of the breed.

I've personally gone back to the old school with a polish army canvas mini-tipee. I like the old school charm, the fact that the hand holes can be opened to ventilate it, not so sure on the lack of built in groundsheet (I must be very picky about where I pitch it!) but I have used it in rainy conditions and it does keep the rain off.

Edited February 18, 2011 by HurrahBrother

[irons]

Good Morning

I have bought various tents over the years from expensive tunnel tents to cheap one skin tents from Tesco! And have had good and bad experiences with each.. the most hassle coming from the expensive vango tunnel tent!

I am hitting Rockness first this year and last year noticed a lot of pop up tents.. I wondered if these are reliable enough for a long weekend of camping and, in the worse case scenario, rain! I wanted to go for something that looks nice and not pay loads of money for it.

Any experience of pop ups or advice would be much appreciated

[grumpyhack]

You've got to live in it for the best part of a week so the difference between 10 and 30 minutes putting it up will be more than outweighed by the days and nights you spend in it. Go for the best you can afford and the biggest you can carry.

[themuel]

I have a Quechua base seconds 4.2 and it is amazing. I got it last year and it's the best tent I have ever had. Two bedrooms, large living area and tall enough to stand up in. Takes 4 mins to put up and 6 to take down without any help. Highly recommend it.

[ukmountie]

I think weight is far more important than pitch speed. You're potentially going to be carrying that thing a long way. In as well as out hopefully.

I use a Vango Beta 350 and to me it's the ideal compromise between weight and size. If it's raining you can pitch the outer and then hang the inner inside of it, keeping it dry. Glasto last year wasn't much of a rain test, but at Green Man it kept me dry even when it was raining so hard I thought we might float away.

Only down-side is that it's not standing height. If you want that you will have to carry more weight.

But back to the original question, A pop up may save you some time setting up, but far better to have space and comfort. In my opinion.

[Bisque]

I have the Eurohike Flash III. Quite a large disk shape when in the bag but is large enough for me & the girlfriend + each of our bags + booze. Double skinned too so no bother if it rains. I don't even bother using the guy ropes sometimes as its pretty sturdy & won't blow away with the amount of alcohol we take with us.

This summer I used 2 Gelert Quick Pitch (I believe they have another model name) 2 man tents which were definitely not as good as my Eurohike one. Barely enough room for me & my bag. I managed to fit the two tents in one bag so was handy having a spare tent to put chairs & booze in, save space when turning up & in case anyone needed to use it for the night.

I would recommend my Eurohike one but I may try Quechua as they seem to be very popular at the moment.

[Liam13th]

I acquired a really good pop-up tent from the local Cost-co last year. Was a strange one as it was more like an octopus with a tent attached to it, and you just had to lock the legs straight. When taking it down i just had to flick a little switch and it collapsed back into its bag. I shall dig it out tomorrow as i have forgotten who it is made by.

[JC-Mo'Fucka]

My main rule is to get a good waterproof one with double skins.

I personally have a three man vango - easy to put up and reliable. Gives me a nice bit of room for me and my stuff and easily enough room for an extra person if the occasion calls

I really dont find putting up the tents a problem, had a bit of a laugh putting up my mates 6 man last year.

[Spindles]

I work for a national retailer who sell tents and can tell you that the failure/complaint rate for popup tents is not particularly high in comparison to dome or frame tents, so that counts for them.

However, I am personally not a fan, and as others have said it is the weight/bulk when carrying that is a more important factor than pitching time.

Personally I have a eurohike avon (currently on offer at millets for £39.99) which has survived 4 festivals and multiple camping expeditions, I cannot recommend this tent strongly enough, it is the ideal festival tent for 1-2 people, takes literally 5 mins to put up and no more than 10 to pack down, weighs literally nothing and fits in a bag that is approx half the volume of a standard sleeping bag. It survived torrential downpours thursday, friday, sunday in 2009 with no water coming in and we managed to fit 6 people in with relative comfort at a minor festival in '08 where friends tent suffered a disaster.

[tjamest]

Three person Quechua is ideal for one + your bits & bobs.

Been to Reading 08, Leeds & Bestival 09 and last years Larmer Tree with mine and no problems whatsoever