Soul 100 Treetops

Hey there, my first ever tent was the Vango soul 100, I think I've camped 75+ nights in it. Do not use it in temperatures under 10° or if it's gonna piss it down. I loved that tent but I was lucky enough to groW up in the south of France so the temperature was normally mild to hot. I would recommend getting something secondhand of vinted. I would suggest you aim for the 2-3kg mark as I'm assuming your budget is below £100. DO NOT get the Vango NYX 200 😂 terrible tent. Also I would recommend aiming for something with aluminium poles (this tends to be a good indicator of a bit more quality) forceatt do a good cheap tent in the sub £100 range :)

Do not take that tent up mountains in Winter. It could barely survive rain & some gusts at a festival.

I had one briefly and although it's small, light and cheap. It really doesn't have much room inside. Makes for an uncomfortable evening lying down.

I've just spent 2 nights in one last weekend. I'm 5'10" and chunky. It's tight inside, especially at the toe end, and getting in was awkward. Once in it worked ok. The hydrostatic head is only 3000mm though iirc so I wouldn't trust it in foul weather. And the vestibule is too small for anything. In reality it is more of a large bivvy bag. If your sleeping system is good and the weather stays fine you'll probably be ok.

If you can, get something more robust.

I’ve actually measured a 5°C difference inside my Soulo. But you’re absolutely correct that your gear should still be appropriate for the conditions. You should never rely on a tent for warmth.

I was surprised too, but then, the Soulo is pretty small and has exceptionally poor ventilation! I measured that difference (on my Kestrel anemometer) one night in the mountains in Wales; it wasn’t still though and I suspect that difference was largely due to the tent blocking the wind chill. But yeah, not something I’d ever factor into my loadout for a winter camp.

I'm assuming you're UK? Something by Vango or berghaus from GoOutdoors will do you fine. No reason to spend money if you don't need it (I killed a Vango tent in 3 weeks last year though so if it's more than an emergency tent then you may want to) Warning - last year camping in the black forest was near impossible without booking. I crossed it twice and it was slammed everywhere. The Vosges in contrast was lovely. Nice and quiet by school holiday standards so I'd head there first.