Righto, I know we are a strange and varied bunch so can anyone recommend good 4 man/ 5 man tents please? I'm doing my head in looking at all the variations/ brands available.
I'm off in early July for an off road weekend in my Defender (just two of us in the tent) but in late July I'm away with my boys as well - so 3 of us then, plus plenty of kit for the kids I'd think...
North Face look good - but jeez, rather expensive!
Anyone got any tips please?!? Help?!? If I have to look at another camping web site I'll cry....
Simon Moore
1958 356A
1978 Aston Martin V8
1988 Jaguar XJS 3.6 manual
1959 Lambretta Li125
The next one is in Wokingham, Berks, 3 July – 25th.
I swear by them, hundreds of tents set up to look at, tons in stock and 2 barns full of equipment etc. All very well priced as well (you can buy the display tents very cheap but can’t take them until the end of the exhibition).
I would recommend looking at tents in the flesh as you cant easily judge how easy they are to set up, or how spacious they are, or how many vents they have etc etc online, also count the number of guy ropes as some tents have way to many for me to be bothered with!.
Craig
----------
'69 911T
'79 VW Westfalia Berlin deluxe
Gone but not forgotten: My rusty old '75 bay
what campsites are you going to ? If any are camping & caravan club ones they have a size limit.
I have an Outwell Montana 6 & it is a great family tent, but a PITA to put up & take down if you are touring between sites. They are more suitable to 3 or 4 day stays.
They are not the trendiest brand, but my Decathlon 2.5 man tent has seen me through 14 Le Mans (modern + classic), one Glastonbury (a Somme year ) , and a heap of other events.
And it is still waterproof and looking presentable.
Not bad when you consider it cost me just £45 (although that was 11 years ago!)
I was up at Decathlon Surrey Quays on Sunday, and their latest range of 3/4+ man tents look excellent value. You can order online.
If you are in Kent there is a Decathalon at Lakeside now near Ikea - and they have a lot of camping gear and tents on display in store. Its my favourite shop and I never get out of there without spending less than 200 quid! They do everything!! I have no knowledge of their tents but I see others on here do.
I got a four man Eurohike from Millets for a 100 quid last year. It had two doors a lounge and two double sleeping areas which can be made into one giant sleep area for two if reqd. You can stand up in it which is important at my age! It also has handy storage pockets everwhere, and lots of vents and the front door turns into a sun shade if reqd. Bargain!
If you want a really decent brand then Vango make superb but more expensive tents. It will last and stay dry and the zips wont fail - if you go too cheap you may realise its limitations after a week in it and wish you had spent a bit more. I have done 10 le mans in my vango and love it.
I just got a 4 man regatta tent from Argos for Le Mans last weekend. Kept out the torrential rain on Friday night and we fitted 3x 6' lads on big airbeds easy... bonus at £35 last week!
Blimey! Thanks everyone - I didn't think anyone would have a view on this, but forgot about CLM etc!
Vango - yep, they do look good. I read a couple of reviews where people said they were tricky to get up - what do you think? (I'm sure there will be various replies about having no trouble getting it up etc...!!)
Decathalon - yep, was in the one at Thurrock recently. I loved the fact they were all out to see. Do they last?
I borrowed a mates' tent last year (£70 from Argos), and was great, but one of the zips broke real easy and it kind of put me off a bit - maybe I was unlucky?
Simon Moore
1958 356A
1978 Aston Martin V8
1988 Jaguar XJS 3.6 manual
1959 Lambretta Li125
I think if you plan on camping more than once or twice then go for a better tent. They will last and perform better in wind and rain and hot weather. My eurohike is ok in fine weather but the vango stands up to proper storms and heavy rain. There is nothing worse than a leaky bendy tent in a heavy downpour. I would avoid the argos/aldi/lidl route from personal experience!!
We bought a Gelert Lakesbury 5 last year. Love it. Easy to put up and take down, good sized 'living' area if it pees down, and 2 bedrooms so some privacy for all. http://www.gelert.com/Products/Lakesbury_5_Tent.aspx
RRP is £279 - but you can get them for well less than £200 if you shop around on google.
I've always found that white jeans a silk shirt , and some prada sunglasses is good "camping gear"
ddk member# 1527
Austin Healey 100/6, 1957 Fast Road ( now sold)
75 2.7 S backdated to "r" and very light (now sold).
Adria Camper
Buddy McCrae kneeboard.
Friar Tuck kneeboard.
Lots of Bicycles.
Like someone else has said it really depends on how much camping you intend doing as invarably you get what you pay for. We go camping alot and have an Outwell Vermont XL which is great for 2 adults and 2 kids and a dog and spent over 2 weeks in south of france last year in it without any problems. Been camping twice so far this year for short breaks on south coast and had terrible rain but no water came in.
But Outwell are not cheap but very good quality.
David
1969 914 now crushed!!
1971 914 now sold
1973 914 now sold
1975 914 now sold
