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I'm thinking of taking my three eldest (4, 7 & 8) camping.

I haven't been before. I've looked at the site so have a basic idea of the requirements.

My first task is buying a tent. I want to get an 8 man tent, for room and if more of us go later. I've looked at ebay and on here, but am confused slightly as to what to get.

What would people recommend? It would need to be fairly easy to put up and take down and I believe with a sewn in groundsheet.

Any advise much appreciated.

I hadn't thought about bed pods or canopies/porches.

2 or 3 pods.

Are canopies and porches for the weather?

I would guess that a trip to go outdoors or similar may help and view the tents.  Go also have a sale on at the moment which might be better on the finances until you have given it a bash. :)

I borrowed a vis a vis style tent and tried that first, didn't like not being able to stand in that one, or pods end to end, so I went to go and had a look and prefer the sleeping areas next to each other to keep kids nearer to me, and standing height.

Hi PaulMJOB and welcome to the forum.

The canopies/porches provide several uses....... they are ideal for cooking in and if you decide to get a tent carpet can protect it from rain and mud (cos you can take your shoes off outside and leave them in the porch). 

For your tent, you do really need to consider your budget, remember its not just about the tent, there is all the other stuff to get too to get you started.  Also consider when you will be camping, for example summer only and on what type of sites this will help you plan what you need. 

Go to some camping shops and look at tents too - it will give you more of an idea of what you want.

Happy shopping.

Jewels

  Hi PaulMJOB

  Welcome to UKCampsite, the most informative source on camping there is and welcome to camping.

  Although I'm not going to recommend a specific tent, as others have already offered some useful idea's, but what I will offer is that before parting with your money you spend as much free time on here reading up on the advice offered, try using the 'Search' facility to check out any specific questions you have, because you're not the first and won't be the last to ask them.

  Also jot down all your requirements and then most importantly go see some tents in person! Because what you think looks nice or might be the one for you gets blown out of the window when you look round them.

  Check out Yeomans tent shows or even your local Go Outdoors or Cotswold Outdoors or The Family Tent Shop.

  You don't necessarily have to buy from these, as you can then search online for the best price or even better use a local knowledgeable camping store.

  Then its just sorting something to sleep on and in, something to sit on and something to cook/eat off, as well as lighting.  Buy the main gear to start with then add to it, especially from home.  Don't be tempted to buy gimicky camping things like pans when you can take ones from home for example.

  And with little ones try getting a bucket with a lid for night time wee's to save trugging to the loo back and forth in the night, empty. rinse and drop of disinfectant in the morning sorts it. Oh and baby wipes come in handy for everything!

  Good luck and Best wishes Sam

  PS: Avoid Halfords and Argos starter kits, as you will always replace everything the next time you camp and you can put that money to decent sleeping bags (or duvets from home!) and tent.

  Oh and insulation under and over the beds is really important to avoid being cold.

  Best wishes Sam

hi there, 

We are a family of 4 (2 adults 2 kids age 9&7) After spending what seems like months trawling the internet and going through the reviews on this gem of a site we decided on the hi gear kalahari 8. We are complete novices and neither of us had ever erected a tent, however we managed to get it up in the garden in 48 mins which we thought was pretty good going for a first time 

It has 2 bedrooms at either end which fit a double air bed each (but nothing more) so me and other half in one, the kids one each and one spare for suitcases etc so they are out of the way. It has a good sized living area too, and sewn in groundsheet. If your on a budget (which we were) i think its great for the money and will hopefully get a few years out of it.

Good luck in your search

Although not recommending any tent, as what suits one person may not suit another, may I say this.
Avoid those with a central dome, and bedroom pods around the outside as you have alot of wasted pitch space.  although looking around the camping shops (one of my favourite passtimes) they do not seem to be as popular as they were a couple of years ago - now tehy all seem to be the tunnel tent style,
Consider the bedroom section arrangement , as the last thing you want is to be crawling across to the other side of the tent at 2am when your little one needs you.

Somewhere to sit in comfort, inside when the weather is bad.    Much as we would all liek to portray camping as being sitting outside the tent on a lovely sunny day , we know htat is not always true., and it is far easier on the bad days if your are comfortable inside.   Our first tent didn't ahve a living area, and after one very wet weekend when we were stcuk in a tent witho nowhere to move or sit we decided that we needed to get a bigger tent with a living area.   Kids were almost three and six.
Got one next season, and made a heck of a difference.