we have been looking this afternoon at the Khyam Ridgi-Dome Tourer 400 Tent - and think it will suit our small family well. any advice or experience that you can offer ? - we would particularly like to know what type of mattresses fit well into the sleeping areas.

Many thanks

Hi

 I brought the khyam xxl last year , I do put it up by myself , but I now think it is a bit big for weekends but great for a weeks hols . so I am looking at the khyam 200 they are very good tents the 400 has the other bedroom , I got my sleeping mat from a large sports store and take my own pillows and quilt , tried the blow up beds but to much work.  there is plenty of room in the bedrooms

Quote: Originally posted by cemh on 05/9/2006

---

...A porch would be nice but not available at the moment. I actually visited my local camping stockist today and they said there may be a porch attachment available next year...

---

ColemanBig Cypress

£174.99  Was £349.99 — Save £175

Having been seduced by all the good things said about Khyams, we strayed on to web-sites selling other makes of tent (!!)  Saw a Coleman Big Cypress 8 man tent (looks great on the photo) (and sounds good on features) for £175 (reduced from £350) and wondered why should we pay such a lot for a Khyam?  Surely Khyams aren't that much better than other quality makes (Cloeman is a quality make, isn't it?).  Can anyone enlighten me - is the smaller Khyam worth the extra cost?  Is the Coleman I refer too so inferior?  Is it all about the quick erect system?  If so, how much longer will the Coleman take me to put up.  Grateful for your advice.  Thanks.  Nick.

I got my Tourer 400 as an ex-display model from Aspinalls for £110, which was a massive saving over rrp.

Dont know when they will have their next batch in though?

I recently bought a Colemans Big Cypress from Black's at the same price as you mention. It's one of the best family tent bargains I've seen.

Coleman's is as you say a company which makes quality kit you can trust: I've had a Colemans Peak 1 Dual Fuel Stove which has given me 12 years' superb service when camping on my motorcycle. Funny you should mention Khyam as I have had for the same period of time a Khyam 3-man tent and the company's quick erect design is a fantastic feature.

When I got my family into camping this summer (with the help of a borrowed tent) I was really keen on getting a large Khyam - possibly the Ultimate Classic because it had loads of space - but then having forked out a fair wedge of cash on equipment, I realised the £500-odd asking price was simply too much money.

Onto the Big Cypress: It is a superb tent - and I'm talking from many years of camping experience: It has more than enough ceiling height, loads of room in the central space, a very very generous porch which allowed me to do cooking in, fully sealed-in groundsheet. In other words, when the inner doors are closed, nothing gets in, especially insects! The way the pods are placed means you have the feeling of space in the central living space - it also has zipped windows along with flyscreen and plain window covers. And so many little touches which give you that sensation of quality - compare that with the cheap giant 'argos' tents which will probably fall apart after two seasons.

As to putting it up. Do not attempt alone unless you have lots of time on your hands and no hungry kids to feed before bedtime. The guide recommended 80 minutes and they were correct. Poles are colour coded, but the sewn-in instructions leave too much to the imagination - a blow-by blow idiots guide would have been much more useful. But again, it's all quality: The poles are thick and very strong, the pegs are thick and strong.

No doubt the Kyam is also seriously good quality kit, but for £175 the Big Cypress is superb.

But we all know the reality is that if you're just using the sleeping pods they'll comfortably house two in each. And you have the provision for sleeping twice as many.

My personal preference for tent space vs. open space is that you need to plan on the basis of bad weather and I've tried a small family tent in bad weather with hyperactive kids and it's not funny. Better to have space for the kids if it rains and if it's fine weather then there's loads of room outdoors!