Having had tents, trailer tents and a caravan we've now sold that and are going back to tents. Got rather a lot of catching up to do on the advances in camping gear since we last camped. I'm more of a glamper than layer up with clothes camper.
I only use "Polyester" tents for back packing and cycle touring, not that I have done much of either of late.
For family camping "Heavy Cotton Canvas" does it for us, as a compromise I would consider "Polycotton", and for camping in UK which we don't do due to the shocking climate, "All Season Polyester" would be the canvas of choice.
If I was in the market for a tent again, then my only choice would be a Karsten, but seeing as my Cabanon has got around another 20 years life left in it, I doubt that I will ever need to buy a tent again.
Quote: Originally posted by Francais on 24/10/2017
...for camping in UK which we don't do due to the shocking climate, "All Season Polyester" would be the canvas of choice...
I'm a big fan of Cabanon all-season polyester canvas, which is lighter and easier to handle than cotton and has more easy-care properties (you don't have to re-pitch to dry out as no risk of shrinkage and you have more time before the risk of black mould sets in), but you still have the benefits of a high-quality canvas and no discernable condensation. This should not be confused with other synthetic tent fabrics.
We've had cotton canvas tents for many years but as we're getting older, we appreciate the reduced weight and bulk of the all-season polyester alternative.
By the way, is the OP actually asking for thoughts on tents and equipment available today?
So much depends on what you want to do. Are you likely to spend much time in the tent/on the campsite? Do you tour or stay in one place? Setting up a big canvas tent and taking it down/humping it in and out of the car can get old very quickly. Same goes for airbeams.
Thanks for replies. We found the layout of air tent complete with footprint, carpet, porch, trailer, mini fridge and some furniture for £600 on eBay so grabbed the bargin. Our trailer tents were canvas and great but the budget is much smaller at the moment. As I like change the idea of a tent lasting me decades doesn't appeal. The 8 berth via-a-vis suits the kids now they want their own space and gives us a really good sized pod the other end. I may look for a smaller tent where the kids have to share a pod for weekends as the air tent is quite a beast.
Looking forward to trying out sims in the spring to find a nice comfy bed.
Airgo Nimbus 8. All the reviews I could find of it seemed good. We've previously had Outwells and Vangos but for the price it was a no-brainer. I thought we might have compromised on the trailer by buying one which was smaller than I would have bought (if paying more) but it's a great size and in excellent condition. V v pleased 😃