Personally I have two Gazelle knock offs that are just absolute chefs kiss. Unfortunately that company sucks and they don’t make them anymore.
I would be hesitant to buy an Ozark Trail tent, but I do have a $30 tent from Academy that I use for outdoor storage and it stays surprisingly dry.
I love my Alps tent, and I think it was Eric on YouTube that did a budget trip and the Featherstone tent he really liked.
I've spent a lot of time in my Alps Mountaineering tent. It's not the best quality, or lightest, or cheapest, but it's the best of all 3. Great quality, not too bad on the price, and very easy to set up.
The kingdom tents from REI are great. the tubeshape and features are quite nice so are the extras.... but if you want easy to put up an down the instant tents from Ozark Trail I used with my family when kids were young in cub scouts for 5+ years. I the integrated poles made for putting it up and down very quick and easy even by myself, and I could stand up and had 4 cots in them. The may be cheaper than others but there are a few brands that make the instant tents with integrated poles. I was surprised how well my ozark held up. also
check out the alps brands, they are built well, but heavy.
Came here to say Alps Mountaineering. I have their 4p tent for car camping and one of their aluminum tables. Good stuff, not light, but therefore it's more durable.
For a week of Cub Scout camp in the summer, something you can stand up in to change is good. We’ve used an ozark trail one for the past three summers and been fine, but that’s with a family of four. I’ll thread that one below so this comment doesn’t get deleted if the link gets flagged.
For just one parent one scout, we’ve used the done style 4 person tents from Alps and they’re pretty comfy, but even short adults can’t fully stand in them. At that age, most of our cub scouts don’t mind sleeping just in a sleeping bag on the ground (I’m also cubmaster for our small pack).
Some families like to use the Coleman quick cabins. These are heavy and don’t do great in high winds, but if you’re driving right up to the campsite they’re super quick to set up and have good head room. Links incoming
Alps mountaineering Lynx series is a great option IMO. Our troop uses the 3 person variant but they do make a 1 and a 2 person size. You do sacrifice a little bulk and weight for very good durability.
A lighter but less durable option would be the Alps Mountaineering Helix. Mesh walls and thinner nylon. I have the 2 person size and it’s perfect for 1 person plus gear. This one might be a little outside your budget though.
Troop scoutmaster here.
If you are in a troop (11-17 year olds). I strongly recommend getting two tents. One for you and one for your scouts. The scouting program wants to encourage SYT best practices and youth independence by having adults and youth tent separately if at all possible.
The challenge is finding a tent that is big enough to be comfortable but small enough to pack and travel well. In general, a 3 person tent will be big enough for two people plus their gear. A two person tent will be big enough for one person and their gear. You can go smaller or larger but that’s a good starting point.
If you’re just starting out, I might recommend looking at more car camping style tents which will be bigger, heavier but more durable and comfortable than more compact backpacking style tents. Depending on your area and typical weather patterns, you might want to look for something with a full rain fly that goes all the way to the ground and has covered vestibules. These will keep you the driest in rainy weather.
As for specific recommendations, I strongly encourage you to create a free account/profile on www.hikerdirect.com. It is an unpublished website owned by Alps Mountaineering that is intended for scouts to purchase good quality gear at nearly 50% off retail prices. I have used their products almost exclusively in my 8 years of scouting with my kids and everything has been great quality.
My favorite tents are the Lynx, Taurus, glacier 4 and Ranger 1. (I currently own over 7 tents)
Coleman tents will work fine. Consider the additional effort required of setting up a huge tent and then having to set it up in your home to dry it out afterwards. If it’s just you, you don’t need anything bigger than a 4 person tent.
If you wanna step up in quality/duarbility, I’m a huge fan of Alps Mountaineering. I camp once a month with the Boy Scouts so I need something that holds up well.
I know people who use Ozark Trail brand and it works for them.
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