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Hi folks advice needed please!

Our coleman columbia has served us well for a bit but being scottish campers it has taken a severe battering!!!  poles and fly sheet have been great but the porch construction has not faired so well  We are a family of 5 and would like to choose a new tent in the next week or 2 for a fortnight of scottish summer weather!

We have looked at the hartford xl, great, but we  thought a little too big is the montana 6 too small?  We need extra quality fly sheet, fully sealed ground sheet and sleeping for 3 kids and 2 adults We use our tent a lot! every 2 weeks from april to oct if poss so it needs to be compact but with living area for wet weather. I have scoured the net and cannot make a decision so any help would be great.  We are well experinced in pitching etc and don't mind inner first!

Cheers in advance I just can't decide,  kid in a sweet shop

Hi Shirley,

We had the same dilemma - Monty 6 too small but Hartford xl too big.......so we went along to Winfields and looked at all the alternatives on display. Our choice was the Vermont L.

We are over the moon with it as we too wanted a practical living area for wet weather and it came into it's own over the last (wet) bank holiday ! It's brilliant and the carpet was a real bonus. We also wanted something we could comfortably use for a full week or more and we have been thoroughly impressed with it......so much so I could live in it

Good luck with whatever you choose and remember - enjoy looking for the right one

Let us know how you get on......

Hi,

We have the Outwell Georgia XL, which has 3 sleeping pods one of which is larger than the other two. It has a large living area and porch, with separate groundsheet. It is a new range from Outwell this year.

If that is a little large, then they do the Georgia L with two large pods.

Both varients can be seen on the link below.

http://www.outdooraction.co.uk/acatalog/OUTWELL_GEORGIA_TENT_RANGE__2007_.html

Why not have a look at the wild country halo 104? We have the halo 73 as our weekend/ out in less favourable weather tent and it's done us proud in terms of quality and stability. Yes, it is quite heavy but the steel poles in the central area give it solid strength where needed and the flysheet is quality you can feel. It pitches inner first but has SIG and the porch area is a great asset.

Wild Country are part of Terra Nova, a company that make mountaineering tents, and although they're not as popular as many of the 'household' tent manufacturers, I think they're well worth a consideration because they're hardy tents, if nothing else.

we've been out in ours since February and faced rain and strong winds with no problems, so it should cope with a Scottish summer!

Thanks every one great advice,  the vermont looks ideal but a bit pricy for me!

The georgia looks brill but again outwith my means and a bit too big area wise

The halo quality seems great very sensible choice, not pretty but hey does that matter in a storm by the sea!  I may need a bigger budget but the monty 6 was about our limit!

Any price spotters out there might find me a bargain, I, having no luck!

http://clkuk.tradedoubler.com/click?p=1856&a=282492&g=19117&url=http://www.gear-zone.co.uk/eshop/Tents---Wild-Country.html

This is for the halo 73, which is the one we have, and its £20 cheaper than we paid!!

We are a family of five, and our kids have to be slept seperately as they fight(!!!) so we sleep in the living area and each child has a bedroom. We then stack our bedding in  bedroom during the day. One bedroom will only hold a single air bed, but the other two will take two singles in each. Depending on your configuration it may be that the 73 is big enough. You can also get  a porch extension which means you have some extra space.

You can also zip two halos together via the porch, so you could buy one and then save up for another, creating a HUGE tent!! (OH won't let me do this)