Coleman - Excursion Instant Darkroom Tent

I have the 10 person instant setup dark room Coleman for my family of 4. It’s not technically 2 rooms but it has a fabric divider you can use to separates one side from the other effectively making it like 2 rooms. A huge plus is it blocks out most light which should make it easier for the kid to nap. It’s also much quicker to setup than a traditional tent. It has 2 entry/exit points but I’d consider this a plus since it gives you options. I previously had a Wenzel tent which did have 2 rooms…it was an OK cheap tent but would highly recommend the Coleman over it.

We have a Coleman dark room tent with vestibule. I highly recommend it. I love the extra space. Our dog is a big fan of hanging in the tent at night, so we can put him in and with the vestibule, he has lots of space to hang. If it rains, we have plenty of space for activities in the tent. We use tarps for rain. I hate dealing with wet tents and tarps keep the tent dry. It’s easy to set up and can give more space to hang out.

I have two kids, 5 and 3, and have a Colman 10p dark room tent. We got the dark room to make sure the kids could have a mid day nap when they were younger, but now the youngest has dropped the nap. The darkroom is a sweat box as soon as the sun hits it in the summer, but it stays a nice temp in autumn. I've also got a 23 zero bandit swag that I hoped to take the eldest with away as setting up the 10p tent when he was 4 was a lot of effort while trying to keep him entertained. So far we have only used it in the backyard. If I had my time again I would probably grab a oztent rv5 to go with the swag and our gazebo, because normally our trips are very short, 2-3 nights. So I want to keep the setup time to a minimum to make sure it is worthwhile. Most of our holiday time is spent visiting family interstate and overseas. I'd consider what type of camping you are doing? Are you staying in one spot for a while, or touring etc? Maybe with having 2 extra kids, a second hand soft floor trailer tent would be the go if you are doing 1-2 week trips.

I recently bought a Coleman 10 person dark tent I recommend it for families who are car camping like you describe. Lets the kids sleep in more. I have pics of it in my profile in one of my posts. For my kids I just use a reflective heat pad thing under their sleeping bag and then bring a lot of extra blankets in case people get cold. Bring fun little dollar store activities like glow bracelets or those little whistling slingshot helicopter things you shoot in the air. Main issue will be if the 2 year old requires a lot of attention at night. Some are good sleepers and some wake up screaming. I’ve gone through both situations and when it goes bad it can be very tiring but you know what your kids can handle. Not sure what else to say but I’ve taken my young kids camping every year multiple times for many years so if you have specific questions I can try to answer. I think it’s super good for them to do it even when it’s hard for the parents. Edit: white noise app on a phone hooked up to a battery overnight can help a lot with the quiet/random loud sounds at campgrounds. I recommend that too.

Good buy! Man I had a dark rest tent for a while and freaking loved that thing

Are you saying there's no point in camping if you don't want to be up with the sun?

So you've kind of answered your own question. It doesn't make sense to you so don't buy one. I've been camping for going on 30 years and we bought one and it's fabulous. I don't find that it adds any extra bulk or weight, it wasn't really more expensive, and we enjoy the extra sleep in. Don't buy one if you don't want one but leave everybody else alone about it if they do.

Then it isn't a good one. My dark rest tent does not let any light in whatsoever except a few specks where the zippers are.

I love the Coleman 6 person dome tents. I use them for my Girl Scout troop. If you want to use them in colder temps, I recommend the Darkroom over the Sundome. The rainfly goes lower and provides more insulation.

Love my Coleman Darkroom for car camping. I need to use a lantern to see during daylight hours with the rain fly on. I've had it for about 5 years with no major issues.

Get the cabin tent!!! I work stage crew for festivals, so I live out of my tent in the summer. My issue with the other tents is the flimsy poles that split and break with use. I got caught in heavy storms in a field with a Coleman darkroom tent last year, it completely flattened and the poles split on two sides. I sprung for a cabin tent and have lived through at least a dozen storms (did you see what happened at Secret Dreams last month?) with no issues at all. That tent cannot be bothered!