Aurora 2

I got this tent on special a few years ago and it’s great: https://www.paddypallin.com.au/nemo-equipment-aurora-2person-tent.html (I don’t work for Paddy Palin by the way!). It’s small and light enough to take hiking, which I do once or twice a year. And it’s also sizeable enough to take on a 4wd trip. It’s more pricey than an Aldi tent (I like the sound of the Aldi tent I must say), but it’s quite good quality. It costs between $400-500 so it’s not ridiculously expensive but it’s more than a nice meal at the pub!

I use a similar sized tent (Nemo Aurora 2p) as my backpacking/car camping tent. It's workable, but a little bulky so take that into account. I also should ask the obligatory "Have you tried hammock camping?" For backpacking especially in warmer weather I've really enjoyed the hammock rather than the tent as the hammock saves space vs the tent and I don't need a sleeping pad. Just a thought

So basically you're now doing car camping (which is a lot of fun btw) and want to aim more towards shorter trips with friends or alone? It's quite difficult to give specific recommendations, but there's kinda a rule of thumb. You have the big three: sleep system, shelter and backpack. These give you either a great camping experience, or a miserable one. Of course smaller things like cook kit, a good flashlight etc is important, but smaller and not as easy to do wrong. For shelter I'd pick a tent personally. If you want to go alone: aim for a 2P backpacking tent to give some extra room for your stuff and to pack. For 2 persons, pick a 3P tent for the same reason. I can highly recommend Naturehike as a brand to start with and test the waters. Depending on your climate maybe the Mongar 2 or Star River 2. I started with this brand and it's well regarded, lightweight, easy to use and not expensive. If you want to go all the way I'd recommend Durston (X-Dome 2 or X-Mid 2), Big Agnes (Copper spur UL2) and Nemo (Dagger Osmo 2p, Aurora 2p or hornet 2P) For sleep system this gets personal. But a few things are important. Comfort, warmth, weight and packability. Again you have so many options and everyone has different needs. Make sure your sleeping pad is R rated to about 3 or 4 at least for late spring until early fall. Also make sure your sleeping bag has a COMFORT rating that's lower than your expected temperature. In practice it's mostly colder than you expect. For a pillow you can either go very comfortable, or more lightweight. Again brands like Nemo and Big Agnes are good. Therm a rest, sea to Summit, and others also offer good sleeping pads and bags, though expensive. Backpack, again choose if you want more ultralight or more feature packed. Having less weight makes a huge difference on long trails, but will be neglectable when doing car camping. The comfort of a pack is also very personal. I'd suggest trying out a few at an outdoor store close to you. I did test some gear, from cheap to a bit more expensive and been down the same route. Starting out as you, and doing it more and more often, upgrading the gear along the way. If you have any questions or want some suggestions, feel free to send me a DM or just respond to this text :)

Hey! You're welcome of course 😁. And yes I actually thought you meant that. Although the term car camping is indeed people sleeping in their car. I did a similar trip last summer where we took the car to bring everything we needed but then proceeded backpacking. The car was more like a central supply station hahaha. Indeed separating the big three gives a bit more direction in what you need and a segmentation as well. That tent actually melted?? That's insane hahaha. Again if you need some advice on models, or experience, I did quite the research on a lot of items including smaller things. Just hit me up if you want to know more 👌🏼

Coleman would be my recommendation for anyone starting out and not sure if they will really get into it. If you’re looking for a solid tent that fits the mid price range, I’ve found REI to be fantastic. I’m a big fan of their half-dome and have owned two of them. My other tents are Nemo, and they have great mid to higher range tents, but there are many other great brands. I have the 2p and 3p Aurora for car camping, and the 2p Dagger for backpacking. They make a snap on thin rug for the floor in the Aurora called a Pawprint, and it’s great for protecting the tent from dogs and kids. I own a lot of Nemo gear and have had a couple of warranty issues, and they really took care of me. They stand behind their lifetime warranty, which is what’s kept me coming back to them. Best all around tent without breaking the bank……REI all the way. Look for sales, which they have all the time.

Coleman actually makes a decent budget friendly tent that’s perfect for car camping. It’s my recommendation for those that are getting started with camping. For mid range, REI makes great tents. I’m a big fan of their half dome. When I decided to spend money on a good tent, I ran into similar paralysis. I narrowed it down to Big Agnes or Nemo and ended up going with the Nemo due to a thicker floor, since I’d be camping with kids and dogs. I’ve omen very happy with Nemo and have since purchased two more tents.

Previously had the Nemo Aurora, same thing just cheaper and a little heavier. Also highly reccomend that rent