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Reddit Reviews
6 person at least. Room for sleeping setups, and some gear. You don’t want to be right up against the tent wall. Also look at the center standing height, for the tents you look at they will tell you. Ex: I have ozark trail 6 person instant up dark rest tent. For me alone, it’s great. I can sleep myself and wife if needed. I would still want bigger. Coleman instant cabin tent, 6 person, a bit more room than OT, and taller in center. I personally like OT more for the features, but just one example of size being different among brands for 6 person. But ya it’ll depend on your sleeping setups. If you are trying to do a single queen size mattress, 2 cots / pads, etc. When you aren’t worried about weight and size as much, you can be more comfortable. 4 person will get it done, 6 person probably sweet spot, anything more and you’d be just looking for more room. It can be good to have a lot of room when rainy / buggy / something keeping you in tent for some reason.
I put it up in the garage and sprayed some waterproofing on it and put some seam “goo” on the seams. It’s easy to set up other than the rainfly.
I have a variety of tents based in the situation I am camping in. Backpacking -REI half dome 2SL Car camping short trip - Ozark trail 6 person instant tent (used to have a core instant tent that was better quality. Started leaking on a trip after around 100 nights of use and did a quick replace at Walmart due to continued rain in the forecast. This is also the one I lend out to friends when needed.) Car camping longer trip - Coleman 8person skydome Car camping but walk in site of 1 mile or less Core 6 person dome tent with vestibule.
If you are car camping, go big on the tent. The space is great. I use a 6-8 person tent for myself and two dogs. I can fit a queen sized cot, side table, and double camp chair in the tent with plenty of space left over. Really nice when there is bad weather. Plus being able to stand up and move around in a tent is great. The exped megamat is one of the most comfortable sleeping pads you can get. I recommend putting it on a cot to get yourself further off the ground. I don’t bother with an electric cooler and just have a good Rotomolded cooler from Ozark trail. Can hold ice for a 5 day trip when packed correctly. For cooking I bring a Coleman stove and a tripod so I can good over the fire or on the stove depending on what I’m making. Between that and a cast iron pan and a pot I can make just about anything. I just bring my pillow from home. I’m by my car so space isn’t an issue. Especially since I switched to a minivan this year. Even with two large dogs along I have a ton of space to pack. I used to have a small sedan and packing was a bit more interesting in that. A roof bag came in handy. For water I bring a 7 gallon igloo container that I put under the table. I have a USB powered faucet and a hose runs down to the container. Works out great and so much easier to use. I get a lot of heat on sale, second hand, and from Sierra. My tents are Coleman and Ozark trail. The Ozark trail one is a 6 person instant tent that I bring if it’s a quicker trip and good weather. The Coleman is an 8 person but not instant. Has better weather resistance though so if rain is in the forecast I bring that one.
Walmart ozark trail tent. The easy up kind with straight ish sides. Get a 6/8 person one. You’ll have plenty of space to stand. Any dome tent you won’t. Coleman also.
I had a 6 person Ozark that withstood 60 mph straight line winds one year and a freaking tornado another. (We headed to town for the actual tornado. Got back to camp & there were tents down and lawn chairs in trees, but our chairs were under the picnic table where I had stashed them & our tent was fine, even dry inside.) Always use all the stakes, lol. Had great luck with that Ozark. I recently downsized to a 3 person Coleman Hooligan. I love it.
Honestly I don’t think you’ll have much trouble. I bought a 6 person Ozark tent for me my son and partner when we went to Utah last year and hadn’t gone since I was 11 or 12 and set it up on my own because they’re so different now lol!!!! Didn’t have to slide poles through fight anything etc. mine just clicked to the poles. So as long as you feel comfortable with the price and brand 2 person Ozark should be ok! Esp to start off. We had good blankets weren’t cold at all had 0 tent issues (:
I'd also recommend an ozark trail instant tent, They're the new coleman from decades past. The average mans tent, for whoever is just getting into the hobby and doesnt want to break the bank. Great for familys who may go camping a handful of times a year in mostly fair weather. They'll last some rough handling for minimum a few years to a decade, plenty of time to get use out of it and upgrade. Any from the instant tent line will be big, bulky, and heavy but quick and easy to set up even if its just one person going it. Ive personally set up a 10 person myself in less than 5 minutes. I've also used mine during souther arizona monsoon storms, high winds and sideways rain and I stayed nice and cozy with room to sit around to relax in unlike a dome tent.
The kingdom tents from REI are great. the tubeshape and features are quite nice so are the extras.... but if you want easy to put up an down the instant tents from Ozark Trail I used with my family when kids were young in cub scouts for 5+ years. I the integrated poles made for putting it up and down very quick and easy even by myself, and I could stand up and had 4 cots in them. The may be cheaper than others but there are a few brands that make the instant tents with integrated poles. I was surprised how well my ozark held up. also check out the alps brands, they are built well, but heavy.
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