Coleman - Instant Up 4P Gold Series Evo Tent

Coleman instant up 4P tent would be ideal for you - big enough for 2 people and room for your things, easy to set up and pack down and you can stand up in it no worries. It is a bit more than your $200 budget, at $299 currently from Tentworld for the silver series (which is a perfectly adequate tent). Keep your tent zipped up to keep critters out, but it's highly unlikely you'll have a snake enter your tent.

Yep same haha. I love using my Coleman instant up for car camping trips :)

I camp approximately every 1-2 months in Victoria, and my Coleman Instant Up 4P gold has served me very well for several years now. Still in good nick. Find it easy to put up on my own as a short person. Have used it winter camping (not alpine area though, but in June this year past Ballarat it was -3) and it's fine with a good warm sleep set-up. Can't speak for the other option you asked about.

I 'accidentally on purpose' broke our old Aldi dome tent, because I really wanted a coleman instant up tent... but my husband was being stubborn about the old dome 'being fine'. This 'accident' happened while we were packing up in the rain at our first stop on a 3 week camping/road trip. We got the coleman instant up 4 person tent (as I'd planned) on the way to our next stop. It is absolutely fantastic. I love that I can stand up in it to get changed, my feet were no longer poking out the door of the tent, and it survived a hail storm and extreme wind at Brunswick Heads. He's now saying it was the best decision we ever made, and he's forgiven me for 'accidentally' breaking the old tent. It's honestly a fantastic tent. The hailstorm had us pretty worried, so we tied everything down that we could, put most of our stuff in the car, and bagged everything else in plastic bags and headed to the pub until the storm passed. Came back expecting the worst, but it was 100% fine.

I have a 4 person Coleman Instant Up and it is very good.

I started out with that Coleman Gold series tent when I first got into camping couple years ago, and it’s been super reliable for me. I’ve taken it through some pretty wet weekends and it’s always kept me dry. The setup is a breeze and the space makes it way more comfortable, especially when you’ve got a lot of stuff to keep organized. Just make sure to practice setting it up at home before your trip so you’re not fumbling around at the campsite. Also, I think the extra space really does make a difference when you’re camping solo with all your gear.

If the budget can afford it, stepping up from the Coleman Silver to the Gold/Northstar range is a significant increase in quality and experience. Treat it well and it will last for years.

I'm obsessed with mine and have recommended them to friends for years. Excellent for car camping, easy to set up with one person, and super easy to put away. Mine has internal lights that easily connect to any power bank with a light switch right inside the door.

I have the model with the mesh top and rain fly. For car camping it's awesome. I've used mine dozens of times. Minutes to setup/breakdown solo. Been through some decent thunderstorms too. My model has a tub floor, which that one looks to have too. For pack-in or hiking its FAR too heavy. I'll bring a more traditional style if I'm doing trails with my gear. But tossing it out of the trunk is perfectl. I got mine on sale thinking it would last a few trips, exceeded my expectations and I've gotten multiple seasons out of it.

I own one. I bought it new and took it camping, but after four hours, I could NOT get the tent up. I had to drive home, over an hour plus, and grab another tent. When I took it home, my whole family was over for a BBQ and we decided to see what "I had done wrong". (That was said over and over.) We learned that the top spoke piece in the center was flawed and the tent could not be set up! My BIL spent a good hour "operating" on it, and fixed it. We have used it in the yard several times, but I have yet to again solo with it, given I camp a good drive away now. I will try it again this summer.

I used to have one. As a tent it worked fine, it got a little lopsided after a few years. It had the rain fly and it never leaked. It does set up remarkably fast. My main gripe was it doesn't pack down well. It gets, crumpled and rolled and fits in a large bag. It was always a pain to pack because how large the bag is. If you're car camping and have a lot of extra space it should be fine.

I’ve had this tent since 2018 and used it probably 70-90 times. It’s been great. Only reason I’ve more recently stopped using it is we got the larger version of the same tent that’s been just as good. I’m sure there’s higher quality brands that people will recommend, but it’s been great overall.