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Please can anyone help.  We are selling the caravan and buying a tent (moving house, need money) we don't know whether to go with an outwell nebraska xxl or sunncamp family vario 900.  If anyone has one of these can you please let me know some pro's and con's etc as i really have no idea what to look for. Thanks Paula.

Hi Paula & welcome to the forum

I don't know anything about either of the tents you mention, but just had to welcome you to the most addictive forum on the www.

Thank you i was quite excited to get a reply so soon.

Paula

Sorry but I can only make observational comments, as I have not been involved with either tent - just seen them on display or sites.

To me, there is not much between them other than the style - they both have SIGs and I think even both pitch outer-first. Are similar priced. Both pitch around the same area (7x7m). Neither has been reported to have major problems.

So to me, just on observations of the two, it would come down to just a matter of which you "liked more".

Have you seen both of them in the flesh? How did you rate/compare them?

No haven't had chance to view any in flesh yet, our friends have an outwell bear lake in the polycotton fabric and they say that it is really warm but not sure if it is the fabric or the SIG.

I think we may visit a "tent show" at the weekend if its not too wet!

many thanks for reply.

Paula

If it's pouring down with rain, then that's the best time to view an outdoor tent display - you'll certainly know if particular tents aren't completely waterproof

Just put on your wellies & hooded macs and go for it!

Hi there Paula!

We are looking into selling our caravan too - so that we can swap it for a tent  - as its too expensive to insure and store the caravan as we don't use it that much.

Won't you miss the comforts of the caravan? i think i definitely will but am aiming to make the tent as comfy as possible inside, complete with TV, fridge, heater etc etc - the works!! 

Have you done a lot of research on tents then? We are worried about damp in particular but i'm sure it will all be fine in the end - and great fun too!

Thanielle

hello Thanielle

I think i may miss caravan at first but because we always go with friends who have an outwell tent, and i've seen there layout and how cosy it is i'm not too worried.

However, we are looking into taking a small fridge, portaloo, kettle and toaster not to mention small tv.  We are planning to be away for 3 weeks next august at trevornick holywell bay, so i will need to be slightly prepared.

The children are so excited about "camping" so i'm sure it will be fun.

The only tents i really like are the outwell nebraska xxl or sunncamp family vario 900 our friends have a bear lake in polycotton fabric with sewn in groundsheet and it was so warm they said they could never go back to any other tent now but its just not quite big enough for us.  Not really worried about damp as we always have good weather in cornwall (fingers crossed, touch wood etc) and there is always a bar nearby!

Hi again Paula

Good to hear youre not dreading the swap (I do have my wobbles now and again!!)

We are looking at the SunValley 8 and we have 3 kids - but our friends have a Nebraska xxl, like the one you like and they only have 2 kids, so i wonder if we might be buying something too small, but after the caravan the sunvalley 8 seems absolutely HUGE!!! We will be seeing their tent this weekend and see how much room it has.

what have you heard about tv reception in a tent? i'm not sure the friends with the nebraska 'do' TV in tents i so might not be able to ask them that.

Thanks, Thanielle

Hi Thanielle

No I haven't heard about reception in a tent, but whilst in Newquay in the caravan begininng of August this year we had a dreadful picture and could only watch one main chanel same for my mobile too as we are selling our house I needed to be able to recieve calls but aroung that area couldn't.  We had to wait to get to the main A30 road, normally wouldn't have bothered me.

So if we can't get a picture, nevermind, the children can always plug in portable dvd player and watch a film.

Portable dvd's are a necessity if you have to travel about 9 hours in a car and don't take up too much room.

Let me know what your friends do about tv in their tent.

Thanks, Paula

Paula, yes i'll let you know about the tv.

We, too , were in Newquay area (Perranporth) in 2nd week of August this year and you're right - there was a rubbish tv signal, our freeview box wouldnt work at all - and we had very snowy pictures from the status AND no phone signal. Like you, we would have been lost without our DVD player,(which we will be able to use in a tent too) we had to let the kids get a couple of new ones to watch because the weather was so horrible. Sunny Cornwall eh??

Thanielle

hi

if tv is important, ask when booking site, many have ariel points you can plug into on the pitch, alternatively we take an outside ariel bolted onto an old extendable tent pole and use guys to erect it.. but if you are going somewhere remote, with no signal, then yes, dvds prob the only option.

hi Thanielle

We arrived in Newquay on the 28th of July and stayed for 2 weeks.  The weather was actually quite good.  Not as good as last year, but we were on the beach most of the time including Peranporth beach.  The first day on the beach it rained briefly and 4 of us shot into our little tiny beach shelter which was a little bit leaky but did the job not bad for a fiver!

See you

Paula

Paula, we must have just missed you - we went there on 11th - and weather was windyto start with then turned rainy!!

Just packed up our caravan for this weekend away and must say am now thinking twice about this tent lark, it seems so cosy, but its a 1and a half hour trip just to collect the van from where we have to store it (now weve moved areas) and its a real pain, so much so that we don't get to use it much at all now.

Mind you, I can have a good look at our friends tents and set ups this weekend and have a much better idea!

Bye,Thanielle