Message Forums

Hi guys, i am looking to buy a BIG tent for small money LOL. I would like a minimum of 8 - 10 berth tent but i want to get it as cheap as possible (dont we all)

Could you guys reccommend me a good tent?

Cheers guys

Hartford L is good price at the mo at Yeomans sleeping up to 10...

http://www.yeomansoutdoors.co.uk/products.asp?category=Tents&subcategory=9-16+Man+Tents&product=Outwell%20Hartford%20L%20-%202005

It's a pretty good spec and has some good feedback.

Hi,

We have a sunncamp vario 900 which has four bedrooms that sleep nine in total but the living space is 3.5m x 6.2m so you can sleep additional bodies there too. The pic in our profile shows it without the annex, which is another good point as when there's less of us we leave the 2 bed annex off. Other plus points are that its big and spacious but easy to put up. We did have teething problems with leaking side doors but seam sealant solved that and on the whole it is the best tent for our purpose. Headroom is 2.1m and you can stand up in all bedrooms which is great. The living area is the equivilent to two gazebos side by side, so plenty of room whatever the weather. It has stood up to a number of storms this year (every time we went camping we got caught in electrical storms and heavy downpours) and apart from the leak problem at the start, it has kept us dry and warm (with the heater on!).

As for price, ours was £400 but worth every penny when we added up the previous 'cheap' tents we had the last two years that didn't hold up to the weather or have the space we wanted.

There are pics of this on World of Camping website I think, just google 'Vario 900'

Have a look here:

http://www.tentsdirect.co.uk/dome_tents.php?minBerth=8&maxBerth=17

Great company to deal with, very easy to speak to on the phone, fast free delivery, if you see something you like give them a ring and ask their advice.

Kate

Hi there Nath - re Maid Marian's tent, I have a couple of points to make. Vango are a good reliable make; the Colorado range has been around for a number of years, and goes up flysheet first, so I that means that the groundsheet is not fully sewn in throughout the living area.

Knowing the year of manufacture is helpful, but what you really need to know is approx how many DAYS it has been up. This is the crucial thing with manmade tents as the bonded waterproof treatment gradually breaks down under UV exposure. Once that has peeled away no amount of re-proofing with Fabsil etc will make the tent weather-tight again. This is why manmade tents don't last as long as cotton canvas, which is much more resistant to UV degradation. Having said that, a manmade tent with "normal" annual usage ( some weekend use, plus a fortnights break) should do you for up to 10 years.