Core Equipment - 10-Person Straight Wall Cabin Tent

The 10 person core will be amazing for you. I've used it for years before moving most of my camping to my pop-up. But I still use mine for the occasional trip.

The 10 person is going to be a god send. I have both and with 4i would go for the larger tent. When you get hit with rain you can simply hang out inside and have plenty of space for the kids. And the dark room helps so much. It'll be good for years. Not only that but buy some cots and 2 inch foam for the top. Much better then any air mattress. If you have a Costco or Sam's club you can get just about everything there for a good price.

I've had two seasons with the Core-4 Straight Wall Cabin tent and it's held up well on the PNW coast \[rain/wind\]. It is not as ruggedly built as my Timberline-2 by Eureka, but for $129 it's a good deal. I'd definitely recommend you get the Core-6 model. It's on sale for $159, but you'll also need a tarp-groundsheet. I also use a cheap \[$35\] tent fly so I can erect a lounging-cooking space out of the rain. \*These Core tents allow standing room. I still use my Timberlane in harsh weather, but it's damn nice to be able to stand inside the tent.

I originally bought the Timberline 2 for backpacking in rugged terrain during Fall/Winter seasons in northern VT and NY. The simple A-frame style is superior to most designs in high wind or snowy conditions, but most folks today demand more space and comfort. As a retiree, with creaky bones, who can no longer manage hiking, I now normally use an Alps 3-man dome tent or a Core 4 cabin-walled tent. These two are not as rugged as the Timberline, but are spacious and inexpensive. I drive an F150 with a full 8' canopy so I keep the Timberline is case of full-storm weather. The Pacific coast can have wicked winds and sheeting rain during the colder months.

I had the Core 6 person for several years. It's a great starter tent for my two little kids and I, but for four people, especially two that are still growing, go for the 10 person. I guess you can get all four into the six person, but there won't be room for much else and you'll be tripping over each other if someone needs to go pee in the middle of the night or whatever. If the 10 person has a room divider, that's especially nice since they can have their own little area.

I’m really happy with my core brand 10-person cabin tent that I got at Costco.

If you have Costco, check in your warehouse to see if they have core 10p remaining. They're a good buy for your money and of course, Costco has the best return policy. They also have awesome camping friendly stuff out at the moment - lanterns and flashlights, cook tops, chairs, I think they even had a few cots out.

To be honest the 3 brands you mentioned are pretty solid for budget friendly tents. I have a Core 10 person, my friend has the Gazelle T4 and both are solid and easy to set up.

I have the core 10 person that Costco had this year. Literally 5 minute setup, super roomy, and it has lights. I think it was about $299.

We have a 10 person core tent, from Costco. We are a family of three and it is perfect! We also use it as the adults tent when camping with family. I would say it is a tad bit small for four adults and all out crap but I would absolutely recommend getting the 10 person over a 6. You’ll be thankful later.

For what it’s worth I have had a core 10 person (with intent) to grow into it) for me and my family of 4. We’ve used almost monthly from May-Sept the last 3 years and it has kept up great for just car camping. I picked up a tarp at Harbor freight for a footprint. As you grow more and need different tents if you get into backpacking or more specialized gear you can go from there.

I have a Core 10-person tent for our family. Super spacious, super easy to set up and take down. The one downfall I would say is the rigidity of the tent poles. Was setting up the tent on a windy day and the wind caught the tent just perfectly so that it bent one of the poles. Luckily the tent still worked but the bent pole was eventually going to snap so I had to get a new tent. With our 2nd tent we did do a camping trip when it was super windy and the tent held up no problem. So I'd say just be careful when setting up if it's windy – it's fine once you get it set up and staked down.

I've had a couple of the instant set-up cabin tents throughout the years, I will keep buying this type until I make the jump to travel trailer. However, I cannot recommend the 10p Core with the built in screened porch. The porch is basically useless in the rain, it doesn't detach & holds the front part of the rainfly. If you decide to keep the screen open it just collects bugs that quickly make it into the tent when you unzip the doors to get in. This is my first Core & probably my last, will probably go back to the Coleman in the same size for my very last tent. Choose Wisely.

I did the same. Bought a 10-12 person Costco behemoth for 2 people (usually). It was embarassingly large, we only used a small bit of the space, and I ended up getting a 4 person that is still very spacious but reasonably sized.

Look at Core Cabin tents. I think Costco sells them. Easy to set up for first timers and you can stand in them. Get a 6 or 8 person. Keep in mind that the number is the number of average sized sleeping bags it will hold crammed next to each other.

I have a core cabin tent and I adore it. It’s my home in the woods. My partner and I bought it five years ago and we use it at least 6 times a year going camping with my parents. We only had one issue with one pole snapping (after a toddler got hold of it) and it was easily repaired with a kit we got at Walmart.