Skydome Screen Room Tent with Dark Room Technology

I second this tent.

A Coleman skydome would be a good tent for you. To save money, I would suggest using as much stuff as possible that you already have. Use blankets instead of buying sleeping bags. Instead of buying a camp stove, you could get a small grate to go over the campfire and cook hotdogs. Premake some wraps for lunch and breakfast with eggs, bacon and whatever else you want. Wrap them in tinfoil and warm them over the fire. If you guys love fishing, you'll probably spend most of the day doing that anyway. I know my son will fish for hours. I'm lucky to live in a location with lots of public land that is free to camp on. If that's an option for you, it saves some money as well. You can also look on marketplace for cheap used gear. Basically all you need is shelter, sleep comfort and food. A couple of activities during the day and you'll have a great time.

I camp with my son in a Coleman Skydome tent, I got the 4 person dark room + screen room version. The Wawona 6 was also my dream tent but was not at all in my budget when I bought a tent. I love this Coleman though! Since you are also camping with a little one, I just want to highly recommend considering the “dark room” feature (my son sleeps well past sunrise - it’s great), multiple companies make blackout tents like this and it’s a nice feature to have. I also LOVE the screen room on the tent, it was very easy for my kid to get in the habit of kicking his shoes off in there so the big room / bedroom part stays clean. It also has plenty of room for storing things like the tent bags / our sleeping mat bags / shoes, and on this past trip I even set up a little folding potty in there which came in so incredibly clutch for last minute late night needs when it would have honestly sucked to have to trek to the bathroom. I just unzipped the tops of the lining in the screen room part when so it was just screen and ventilated, and then zipped up the inner room fully, couldn’t smell anything and I’m a super sniffer. Also the tent has plenty of room inside for two expedite megats (the medium size), a storage bin (doubles as a table), and some big tote bags. It’s very easy to set up, their marketing says 5 minutes which is b.s. but it doesn’t take me long at all. I’m going on and on but I really do think this tent is terrific for a parent/child camping team.

I have the Coleman Skydome Darkroom (the version with the screen room). I live in New Mexico so probably dealing with weather not too far off of yours, albeit less humid. I'm always camping with my son, who wouldn't wear a sleep mask or keep it on, so the dark room is honestly clutch. The first time we tried it out in our backyard, he slept in way later than he does regularly! I do recommend some sort of fan for circulation on hot days, because they don't have a second door or anything for breeze (the design definitely prioritizes keeping out the light) but honestly it gets so hot here I'd want a fan in any tent. This is a great solid tent, easy to set up, durable.

I just finished my first cub scouts campout in a Coleman Skydome tent, the kind with the "Dark Room Technology" which I \*highly\* recommend if your child is on the younger side (mine is 7) because it really does stay nice and dark in there, great for kids being able to sleep even with late sunsets and early sunrises. We were not the only Coleman "Dark Room" tents in our pack. We have a 4-person and we fit two cots in there with some room in the middle, but if you go with [the 6-person version](https://www.coleman.com/camp-sports/tents-by-size/skydome-6-person-screen-room-camping-tent-with-dark-room-technology/SAP_2206907.html) you'd absolutely have plenty of room - it'll be downright spacious if you get the screen room. Setup is a breeze. I've only ever set this thing up by myself or with the help of my 7-year-old, which probably makes it take a few minutes longer but it's good for him to help. ;) I do have the one with the screen room, which is great for extra storage and keeping the sleeping area clean (our system is shoes don't go past the screen room), and the Skydome model has zip-up panels so the screen room stays dry even if it rains (which it did this past trip). The Coleman Carlsbad Dark Room has a fully mesh screen room which I'd imagine would basically trap water along the floor when it rained. Honestly the WeatherMaster pictured in your post looks like it would also let rain inside the screen room area, I'd make sure it has panels to zip up behind the mesh. I \*love\* having that extra screened in area though so I do recommend that.

I second the Skydome. I have the 8 person with screen room. It's just me, my husband and our pittie. So much room. My husband puts it up solo. On a side note, Coleman stands behind their products. My Skydome had some little pin holes in the rain fly on first set up. Contacted Coleman and they no longer made my exact model so they sent me a more expensive one. We now have 2 tents, one to use in the rain and one that is just for summer camping.

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 love mine. It's my best tent for longer weekends/trips at campgrounds. My other go-to is a Coleman SkyDome Darkroom 8-man tent for shorter trips, since it's lighter and easier to setup/tear down. But it's not nearly as sturdy/strong as the Cabela's tent. I also have an REI SL3+ half-dome for backpacking, and a Columbia Mammoth Creek 8-man 2-room cabin tent I've been meaning to try out but haven't had a chance to set it up yet.

I have the 8-man version of this tent. SOLID tent, easy to setup, and my main go-to!! The darkroom rainfly also makes it nice for skipping out on early-morning sun and for better privacy during night too.

8 gives me plenty of room as a 6’ 2” guy to stand in and stretch and keep all my stuff in. But you mention 3-4 people….I’d spring for the 10-man model. I’d use the 8-man for two people max, unless you plan to pack everyone in like sardines each night, depending on their size. Also the models below 10-man have no walls in them, it’s just one big space.

Sure thing!! Yeah unless Coleman has changed things since I got mine two years ago, it’s just one big dome tent with one big space. It’s easy to setup and tear down. I’d say the rain fly is the most complicated part of the tent for setup, and even then it fits only one way and will be obvious because of how the logo lines up with the tent door.

6-8 person tent. Coleman makes dark ones. They’re great and help to sleep in. Love the vestibule options. I’d recommend something you can stand in. It’ll just be more comfortable. The more straight sided tents are nice because you have more standing space than dome tents.

I have the coleman skydome 8 with 'dark room' covering. Our toddler needs pitch black, and the tent worked very well for that. We took heavy rain and even with the rainfly, the side corners leaked a little bit, like beads of moisture so my pillow got damp. Our dog also caught her leg while walking out of the porch and it ripped the fabric off the zipper for like 18 inches in the lower corner, it's pretty fragile.