Hi,
We have just returned from 5 days camping that was a trial for the wife to see if she likes it, I have personally done it years and love the camping spirit, apart from when it is torrential rain all week :-)
The tent I have had is in fantastic condition, must be nearly 10 years old, has been well looked after but is now too small (the wife's comments).
So we are looking to get a new one and again one that will last a good few years. One thing that we are looking for is a ply-cotton so that the temperature is more manageable. We have narrowed it down to the Outwell Montana 6 SATC and the Vango Rhapsody 800XL so if anybody knows about each tent and could give pro and cons for each, or own one of them and can give their own personal experience that would be fantastic.
One thing we would like to know is (based on the UK price that is frankly ridiculous) where is the cheapest place to buy the tents? We don't mind UK or abroad?
Thanks in advance,
Mark & Helen
Hi, we have the rhapsody and it's a beautiful tent. I have yet to see a rhapsody on display at any of our local camping stores but I would recommend viewing one if you can. We saw ours at the camping show in February in Birmingham and fell in love with it. Having owned the Eden this is a huge improvement. The beams are bigger this year and are solid. The polycotton is warmer in the cooler months and cooler in the warmer months. We camp April to Oct. We like the layout with the porch area for cooking in. Plus we have the canopy which provides an extension to the porch area. We are a family of 2 adults and 2 kids and have plenty of space, we don't use the extra pod which also gives you extra floor space. The only down side is only one side door which limits some of the air flow through but then who sits in a stuffy tent when the suns shining? Its also a nice space when it is a bit cooler to sit reading or playing games with kids without feeling like being couped up in a giant carrier bag. It's a large tent at 7.5m x 4.5m plus the canopy but I've yet to have any trouble with pitch size on any campsite I've been to. plenty of light hooks and the zip up curtains are an extra plus with this tent including the TBS system which in windy conditions it does give you piece of mind that you have a secure structure. I adore this tent and hope to get many years out of it. I know the Montana is a favourite for a lot of people and there are pros and cons to all tents. At the end of the day it's a personal choice but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this one to anyone.
Go outdoors are ok but don't forget buy cheep get cheep
The thing I would spend more on are your tent and sleeping bag
Think of it this way you by a cheep tent for £100 then you get a bit of wind and rain which you will this is the uk and it leaks and the polls brake or seams go you then have to go out and by a good tent which costs you £400 that tent has really cost you £500 and a spoilt holiday
And the worst gong is a bad night s sleep becouse you are cold
------------- 2017
June honeymoon
August not sure. Yet
Sep long weekend Rome
October week. In Devon
Thank you all for your feedback so far, it is very much appreciated. Please keep them coming :-)
Thank you JacsB318 for your personal review of the Vango, it is very helpful. Did you buy the carpet, ground sheet or porch?
We narrowed our choices down and then got our Maritsa on Preloved. Got a real bargain, but with second hand there's always the risk that you'll buy a lemon.
We were really fortunate though, and it's still my favourite tent.
Go Outdoors for us (we live in Plymouth) is a godsend as there is nothing anywhere near us where we can actually see the tents, they have over 40 tents erected indoors ranging from £100 to well over £1000.
I like my Outwell tents (a bit obsessive if I'm honest), yes they cost a fair few quid but IMO they are well worth it as are the Vangos.
The Outwell Montana is a very popular tent, as is the Vango Nadina.
My advice, if you have a Go Outdoors nearby then go check it out, you'll soon see what you both like and don't like.
As an aside if you can afford it try and go for a tent with steel poles, I personally find these a lot more comforting than the fibre glass poles, but as I say this is just a personal opinion.
If you expect one to last 10yrs or so then support your independent local dealer you may pay a few quid more but most will price match anyway and if you had a problem you would be looked after better
------------- its our imperfections that makes us perfect
Hi, sorry for the late reply, we're away camping! Severe weather warnings here in Cornwall, winds approx 40mph and our rhapsody is solid. Others have packed up and gone but we are sitting it out. Canopy away, delta pegs are in (as recommended by ukcampsite members) and all is still good. Yes we bought the footprint which comes with front porch groundsheet. We also purchased the carpet and the canopy all at the same time as the tent. Having bought a second hand tent before we soon learnt that the extras sell out quickly and then you struggle to get anything later on.
Thanks for the advice so far, much appreciated! :-)
I saw on the news that Cornwall is getting a battering with the winds, stick it out I think it will blow over by the end of the weekend ;-)
We have decided to buy brand new so that we can try and get the footprint and the carpet etc. at the same time and have a good idea of how it has been treated. We have sold our old tent now so need to buy something in the Spring. We are thinking of going the camping and caravanning show in the Spring, has anybody been to it before? Maybe we can get a deal there?
We have also definitely decided to get a poly-cotton tent so that it is more useable and will hopefully last longer. Do people have experience of these?
We have just returned from a site . We are caravaners but there were lots of tents on site most of them were the air tents .
I always look at tent as we used to have one . Not sure about the air tents . What happens if you get a puncture plus they seem to take a lot of work to blow up and still need pegging and guy ropes.
Also a few excellent tunnel type tents but I don't think you can get these now .
I go to go outdoors a lot with my son he does D of E groups . So we look at the tents quite a lot . They have some good offers . Not sure about the shows.
Good luck .
We got a factory second air tent from http://www.a2zcamping.co.uk/ it had the porch groundsheet missing but other than that the tent was fine, and it was 1/3 cheaper than we'd seen it anywhere else. It arrived really quickly.