MSR - Hubba Hubba LT

I have two MSR tents for over 20 years.  Both have been outstanding.  That said...it's been 20 years so I cannot vouch for current quality. Make sure you look at all the features you want.  Do you want free standing?  Does it have a vestibule?  Is it long enough to fit your body?  Are you camping in snow (get a four season tent, otherwise 3 season is the language you want to see).  Single wall or double wall. Recommend double unless you need very light weight. If you want a capable tent without a huge outlay of cash...look at the REI ones.  The halfdome specifically has been around for many years. They often go on sale. They also sell other top brands and often on sale or closeout so check that out.  If you buy from REI pony up the extra 20 bucks for the membership. On a tent purchase it will likely pay for itself. I'd also recommend getting the footprint to protect the bottom but you can always improvise one or go without.

Yes! I have the hubba and the hubba hubba.  Both on their second fly (just due to wear not failure) and I did have them send me a couple poles noting taking it in the snow wasn't the best idea.  Still worked though! I forgot we also have the REI 6 person - the basecamp.  It's been great for car camping.

I have two MSR tents for over 20 years.  Both have been outstanding.  That said...it's been 20 years so I cannot vouch for current quality. Make sure you look at all the features you want.  Do you want free standing?  Does it have a vestibule?  Is it long enough to fit your body?  Are you camping in snow (get a four season tent, otherwise 3 season is the language you want to see).  Single wall or double wall. Recommend double unless you need very light weight. If you want a capable tent without a huge outlay of cash...look at the REI ones.  The halfdome specifically has been around for many years. They often go on sale. They also sell other top brands and often on sale or closeout so check that out.  If you buy from REI pony up the extra 20 bucks for the membership. On a tent purchase it will likely pay for itself. I'd also recommend getting the footprint to protect the bottom but you can always improvise one or go without.

Yes! I have the hubba and the hubba hubba.  Both on their second fly (just due to wear not failure) and I did have them send me a couple poles noting taking it in the snow wasn't the best idea.  Still worked though! I forgot we also have the REI 6 person - the basecamp.  It's been great for car camping.

Same. Have hubba and hubba hubba. Both have been outstanding. Second fly for both.

Same. Have hubba and hubba hubba. Both have been outstanding. Second fly for both.

TLDR - Vango make solid cheap tents. If you want fancy go MSR or Nemo. Mid range Terra Nova Wild Country make some exceptional stuff. Avoid OEX. Alpkit make some cracking stuff. For convenience go dome style self standing tents ( ie elixr or Nemo Dagger or MSR) I work in a hiking shop in Scotland and I'm an avid keen hiker and camper. One thing I'd suggest is the tent you use to wild camp, if you care about it, I wouldn't take it to festivals. This is for me any way. My tents are precious you wouldn't see me putting my nice MSR or Nemo tent in a boggy field full of drunks. Personally I'd take any old Decathalon tent to a festival one with a front entry and cross bar easy peasy. Any way wild camping it's a whole different box of frogs. I'm not going to tell you the best because that is largely dependent on what you want out of a tent. So here are some questions you need to be asking yourself and what your priorities are. Am I back packing long distance or do I want luxury? - weight - pack size - Head room - strength of the face fabric Am I a fair weather camper or am I putting my tent through serious duress? - strength of the tent - hydrostatic head - construction of the tent (so these are how the poles are orientated) - shape effects how well it handles wind (wedge low profile = better for wind however less room for you) Do I want free standing or a tent I have to tension? - free standing is great for convenience - tents you have to tension are normally lighter and more Packable. Do I need storage? - Somewhere to store gear from the rain - Vestibule for things like beer and festival stuff Where am I camping? - depends what you mean by wild camping - is it campsites - am I camping on a windy peak or near a loch/ lake Few more things to consider. -I'm sorry but no one is back packing or wild camping in a 3 man tent. You go wild camping in England in a 3 man tent chances are you'll be moved on very quickly. In Scotland. It's very different. 3 man tent you're not bringing very far and I'd be surprised if you can find many spaces in Scotland to put a big 3 man tent. Also do you want to carry a 3 man tent? I certainly don't. You CAN break it up a 1 Carey the poles 1 carry the top sheet and 1 carry the inner. -2 man is a much more sensible option. -Make sure your camping mat fits in it. -Most or if not all 2 man tents are going to be fairly straightforward to put up if you know what you're doing -Go to a hiking shop and ask the folk there. You can actually get in them and have a look yourself. - side entry is a lot easier to climb in and out of. Couple tents I'd suggest that are roughly around your price range I'd say £250 + that covet these aspects 1. Good head room, strong, easy to put up, spacious However they lack in packablity and wouldn't make the best pack packing tents. These normally have 2 side entries. 2 vestibule for cooking in and a cross bar or dome style tent for better space MSR - Elixr 2 Terra Nova - Helm Compact 2 Wild country - Axis 2 (they may not make these any more) 2. Light weight is always going to cost more or you're going to have to compromise on headspace and luxury. Lighter back packing tents tend to be single pile or a 2 poke wedge style tent Terra Nova wild country - Coshee 2 (small wedge - tiny pack size but not a lot of head room) MSR - l hubba hubba like the elixr but light and more expensive Vango - Helvellyn (cracking inexpensive 2 man with decent head room and front entry) 3. Cheap and cheerful no frills place to get your head down for festivals (this is what I'd pick) Quecha - 2 man HM100 (self standing cross pole 2 man. What more can you ask for ) Vango - Nevis 200 (bit of a darling in the hiking/ tent world everyone has a soft spot for this tent. 1 pole bang. Up. Inexpensive. Easy tent and isn't too heavy. Top picks for me. If it was up to me if you want strong and longevity get the MSR Elixr. Little bit of the heavier side but it can handle a lot. If you want a reliable tent thats solid for medium length backpacking and wild camping. Get yourself a helm compact 2 Cheap and cheerful - anything by Vango is going to be solid. Avoid OEX like the plague their stuff is dogshite. I'm sorry they have some serious major design flaws. Avoid the Phoxx 2. Alpkit have some decent tents around that price range - for example the Auronaught 2. Bonus if you made it this far https://www.ddhammocks.com/collections/tents?utm_source=google&utm_medium=paid&utm_campaign=google_shopping_ads&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21929368775&gbraid=0AAAAAD-IR3dVnNRUuSjzhMDqi_nR2JXg9&gclid=Cj0KCQjw_dbABhC5ARIsAAh2Z-TBB2Q7VWM_b9wkYJ452ExPlpsaw1A2Hp7gwwht6DVUNVt8JbEmWt4aAqscEALw_wcB These guys sell big pyramid tarp style tents. That require one pole and some of them are for entire families. They range from £100 to £150+ they also have midgie nets and ground sheets you can use in conjunction with. Great for a bit of everything. And they have your superlight backpacking/ wild camping stuff I hope that helps.

We just returned our Hubba Hubba (broken pole after a few uses) and got a Nemo Dagger. The Nemo seems more durable so far, very impressed with the design.

I've had my MSR Hubba for 8 years now, still absolutely perfect imo. Only had to replace the shock cord after my last trip a month ago. It's on the more expensive side but I'm very pleased about it.

Also, if you do happen to buy the MSR Hubba: buy the extra footprint aswell.

It depends really. I hike in the UK with a MSR Hubba which is inner first. Out of a hundred or so pitches I only had issues with torrential rain a few times. Drizzle is fine, it only takes a minute to stake out the inner and secure the poles so it doesn't get too wet. If the rain is worse I either head for some woods to pitch or throw the fly over everything and set up under it. If it is windy as well then it's a struggle but it always is in that weather. I followed a YT video and made up an outer first hack, basically a length of cord with four rings that you can attach the frame to do that you can go fly first. I've never had to use it.

That will be so easy to drop a ton of base weight when you get a good tent. I was at 6 lb 2 person eureka. Got a 3.75 lb MSR Hubba Hubba in 2020. Last 2-3 years I have had the extreme pleasure of carrying the just over 1 lb Durston xmid pro 2. It’s pricy but the regular xmid is much more affordable. And double wall vs single wall of the pro. Nemo Hornet and any of the BA tents are great too.

Maybe see if your local REI (if you’re in the US) has any in their resupply corner. I saw an MSR Hubba Hubba in ours for less than $200 (and that’s the tent I use, and love).

The MSR Hubba Hubba I found really awesome for setting up fly-first. You can set up the fly without staking anything into the ground. Just stick the pole into one corner eyelet of the fly, bend it and stick it into the opposite corner. Attach it at the top in the center. Then do the other pole. Now you have a free-standing roof that took like 40 seconds to set up and you can crawl under to attach the inner tent. I have not used many different tents so I'm not an expert but this one I found extremely quick and easy to set up in the rain.

Hubba hubbas aren't particularly great once the wind gets up. The pole design just isn't up for it. If you want to go lighter than the HUbba Hubba , pretty much any good trekking pole tent if well pitched, will do better. That means well pitched tautly with decent long stakes fully in the ground And all guys deployed. Tarptent or Durston both do roomy two person shelters. But if you don't mind the weight, there are plenty of other tents that will do better than Hubba Hubba.

I really love my Mormot Tungsten. It is a little heavier than some of the other Recs but is roomy and has withstood some intense PNW rain. It also comes in an ultra light version (I don’t think it’s actually ultralight, but it is lighter than the OG version). Don’t pay full price for it though, Marmot tents are on sale all the time. I don’t like the zipper geometry on the MSR elixir and hubba for heavy rain and damp/dew- it’s meant so you don’t have to reach so far out into the vestibule to open your fly, but i find it means the zipper can drip into your tent through the open door.

If you want a free standing tent and like your MSR Hubba NX, you can’t go wrong with a copper spur. I own an MSR Hubba Hubba, Copper Spur HV UL1, and a Zpacks duplex. The MSR and copper spur are basically the same tent with a few minor differences: - copper spur is marginally lighter - msr has more metal clips so is likely more durable than some of the plastic clips on the copper spur (although I haven’t had any issues) - I prefer the interior pockets on the copper spur vs the msr and like that it’s two perpendicular zips per door instead of one big curved zip which is sometimes harder to open when not pitched perfectly taut.

I’ve seen to many guys in these courses get a four season tent and then have condensation. You need a three season tent. I love my hubba hubba. Would recommend the ultralight.

Both are single wall tents, which means condensation is a bit of a challenge to overcome. No amount of airflow will completely prevent condensation, many people in that type of weather usually have a door open if weather permits. I’d personally go for the Durston, because well… it’s a Durston, but the Dipole has 4 more sq. ft. For a third option, freestanding tents are always an option, and you can always split up the parts to make it lighter. I like the MSR hubba hubba because it’s close to 20oz per person, and it’s fairly spacious. Any double wall tents help with minimizing condensation, but might feel stuffier.

Hmmm. Hard to say what's going on without seeing how you pitch your tent. I camped for many years in the Pacific Northwest with a MSR hubba hubba and never got wet. Are you getting wet in serious storms with wind blowing sideways? Edit: I notice you mention the fly touching the inner. It should not touch the inner lining if it's guyed out properly.

Makes sense. To some extent, I feel like gear manufacturers make gear for their home climates. However, the way OP describes the fly touching the tent strongly suggests that they aren't setting it up correctly. There is no place on a properly tensioned hubba hubba that the fly touches the tent.

I do agree with this, but it also depends on the tent. If you get an MSR Hubba Hubba it can be easily big enough for 2 and your gear and sit outside the tent, but inside the fly. I love MSR tents and have been very happy with them.

I've had a Hubba Hubba for years and it's an amazing tent for fair weather. But when it rains with a bit of wind, your feet and head get wet. It happens because no matter how you pitch it, the fly doesn't go to the ground at your head and feet. That's just how it's designed, you can clearly see the unprotected inner in MSR's own [photos](https://cascadedesigns.com/cdn/shop/files/13706_msr_hubba_bikepack1_fly_dooropen.jpg?v=1724820229). This isn't unique to MSR's tents, all the tents of this sort of design seem to have the same flaw. See for example the Sea to Summit [Ikos](https://seatosummit.eu/en-nl/products/ikos-lightweight-tent) or the Mountain Hardwear [Strato](https://www.mountainhardwear.com/p/strato-ul-2-tent-2102671.html?dwvar_2102671_color=063). Rain hits inner, inner soaks through. The fly also touches the inner so it transfers moisture that way too. So ... is everyone with this sort of tent just getting wet? And has anyone got any tent recommendations for lightweight tents for 1 or 2 people good for hiking and bikepacking/cycle touring that are actually storm proof? Needs to be under 1.5kg for 1 person and under 2.5kg for 2 people. Inner height of at least 95cm. Uses tent poles not hiking poles. Preferably fly-first pitching, and free standing.

Yes, I am guying, girling, everything. Still get wet. Even on a perfectly flat pitch.

You know you're replying to OP yeah? haha. But no I'm not even talking anything extreme honestly. I got wet in the Hubba from consistent rain but it wasn't a storm or anything. It's just that the fly is that high up off the ground that the inner gets splashed, or if there's enough wind then the rain hits directly. It soaked my gear! If the Durston tent avoid that then that's enough for me.

MSR Hubba Hubba is really solid, tough and light.  Big Agnes Copper Spur is a pound lighter, just not as sturdy.  Both about $600.

Hubba tent has a single top tube, this design is made to be lightweight but it cannot withstand wind. You have to choose tents with another type of construction: half barrel designs (papa hubba type but smaller ones), two arches crossed two times designs (elexir type) or several arches forming a dome designs (3f ul Taiji and it's Hilleberg original).

love my MSR Hubba Bubba

My only comment on Big Agnes in my experience is that the tents are fragile because they are so ultralight. I’ve had my Copper Spur poles snap twice. BA is great with repairing stuff but it’s not great when you’re in the back country and you’ve got to hold everything together with duck tape just to make it through the rest of the trip. My MSR on the other hand, while a little heavier, seems a lot more substantial while still being a light weight backpacking tent.