The best tents
Family weekends, festivals or a night on the hills: tents worth pitching, compared on how many they sleep, how much rain they keep out and what they weigh.
Tent sizes are snug. The berth count is how many people can lie down side by side, not how many can live in it, which is why owners of the 3–4 person Portal here find it most comfortable for three. For room to dress and store kit, pick one more berth than you need, and check the headroom: at 170cm you can stand, or nearly, at the highest point; at 110cm you'll be sitting.
Waterproofing is given as hydrostatic head (HH), in millimetres: the higher the figure, the more rain the fabric keeps out, and the tents here run from 2,000mm to 4,000mm. Weight matters as much as size: a 2.5kg tent can go on your back, while a 9kg family tent goes from the car boot to the pitch.
What matters
- Berths: most tents are roomiest with one fewer person than they sleep.
- Waterproofing, as hydrostatic head (HH): the higher, the drier.
- Headroom: around 170cm to stand, or nearly; lower tents are for sleeping.
- Weight: under 3kg to carry, 7–9kg from the car.
#1 of 5
Best overall
Vango Apollo 500 Five-Person Family Tent
£100–£150 Price range
Room for five to sleep and a big porch to sit out a shower, under a 3,000mm Protex flysheet. Vango began in Govan, Glasgow, in 1966, and its name is an anagram of Govan.
What owners say: Owners find it well designed and easy to put up and take down, with a good-sized living space at the front for sitting and handy storage pockets on each side.
A closer look: The flysheet goes up first and the bedroom hangs inside it, so the sleeping area stays dry if you're pitching in the rain. The porch groundsheet detaches and rolls under the bedroom when you'd rather have grass underfoot. If a fibreglass pole ever snaps, replacement Apollo 500 poles are sold by tent-spares shops.
- Sleeps 5
- 3,000mm Protex flysheet
- Large porch living area
- Detachable porch groundsheet
- Big clear windows
Best for: Family weekends
- Sleeps
- 5
- Type
- Dome
- Waterproof rating
- 3,000mm
- Weight
- 8.91kg
- Headroom
- 170cm
- Poles
- Fibreglass
#2 of 5
Runner-up
Portal 3–4 Person Dome Tent with Porch
£75–£100 Price range
The highest waterproof rating here, 4,000mm, on a double-skin dome with a sewn-in groundsheet and a porch for bags and boots: a sound choice for two or three at a festival or on a campsite.
What owners say: Owners find it well made and easy to pitch and strike, roomy for three, and good at keeping the rain out.
Heads up: Owners find it roomiest for three, so if four are sleeping in it, keep the bags and boots in the porch.
A closer look: Portal's way is inner first, then the flysheet over the top, and it reckons on about 15 minutes, so on a wet day wait for a dry spell if you can. The mesh door on the bedroom keeps bugs out on warm nights when you want the outer door open.
- 4,000mm waterproof rating
- Sewn-in groundsheet
- Porch for bags and boots
- Mesh bedroom door
- Side windows with curtains
Best for: Festivals and campsites for three
- Sleeps
- 3–4
- Type
- Dome
- Waterproof rating
- 4,000mm
- Weight
- 5.1kg
- Headroom
- 130cm
- Poles
- Fibreglass
#3 of 5
Best lightweight
Forceatt 2-Person Dome Tent with Aluminium Poles
£50–£75 Price range
Light enough to carry at 2.58kg, with the only aluminium poles in this list, and a door and porch on each side so nobody has to climb over anybody to get out in the night.
What owners say: Owners call it a great starter tent that's quick to put up and take down and light to carry, with doors on both sides for a breeze and a view.
A closer look: At 2.58kg and 41cm long when packed, it's small enough to strap to a rucksack for a night on the hills or a weekend at a festival. Inside it's 220 × 130cm, room for two sleeping mats side by side, with packs and boots in the porches either side.
- 2.58kg, packs to 41 × 14cm
- 7001 aluminium poles
- Two doors, two porches
- Taped seams
- Mesh window and two roof vents
Best for: Carrying on your back
- Sleeps
- 2
- Type
- Dome
- Waterproof rating
- 3,000mm
- Weight
- 2.58kg
- Headroom
- 110cm
- Poles
- Aluminium
#4 of 5
Best for families of four
Eurohike Sendero 4 Family Tunnel Tent
£100 RRP
A four-berth tunnel tent with a 210 × 240cm bedroom and 170cm of head height, so getting dressed is less of a wrestle, plus a porch for muddy boots and camping kit.
What owners say: Owners rate the quality, find the lounge area big enough for a table and chairs, and say it goes up and comes down easily.
Heads up: At 2,000mm it's the least waterproof tent here, so it's at its best on summer trips and at festivals.
A closer look: The fibreglass poles need only short sleeves, which makes pitching quicker, and the guylines glow in the dark, which saves stubbed toes on the way back from the shower block. Practise once in the garden before the first trip, and draw the curtains on the side windows for privacy on a busy campsite.
- Bedroom 210 × 240cm
- 170cm head height
- Fully sewn-in groundsheet
- Luminous guylines
- Packs to 61 × 23 × 23cm
Best for: Families of four
- Sleeps
- 4
- Type
- Tunnel
- Waterproof rating
- 2,000mm
- Weight
- 9.02kg
- Headroom
- 170cm
- Poles
- Fibreglass
#5 of 5
Best for couples
Coleman Coastline 3 Plus Tunnel Tent
£150–£200 Price range
A compact three-person tunnel tent with a sewn-in bedroom and a covered living area nearly as big as the bedroom, so two people can sit out of the rain with their kit. It packs into a slim 66 × 18 × 18cm bag.
What owners say: Owners find it an easy first tent that goes up quickly, with room for three and a porch big enough to sit in.
A closer look: A tunnel tent stands up by being pegged out, so peg both ends and every guyline firmly, ideally with the back of the tent to the wind. The big PVC window lets daylight into the tent on grey days.
- Sleeps 3
- 3,000mm WeatherTec flysheet, taped seams
- Sewn-in bedroom groundsheet
- 3.78m² living area
- Packs to 66 × 18 × 18cm
Best for: Couples who want a porch
- Sleeps
- 3
- Type
- Tunnel
- Waterproof rating
- 3,000mm
- Weight
- 7kg
- Headroom
- 140cm
- Poles
- Fibreglass
How they compare
| Feature | #1Vango Apollo 500 | #2Portal 3–4 person | #3Forceatt 2-person | #4Eurohike Sendero 4 | #5Coleman Coastline 3 Plus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall | Runner-up | Best lightweight | Best for families of four | Best for couples | |
| Picked Rating | 8.9 | 8.8 | 8.7 | 8.6 | 8.5 |
| Price | £100–£150 Price range | £75–£100 Price range | £50–£75 Price range | £100 RRP | £150–£200 Price range |
| Sleeps | 5 | 3–4 | 2 | 4 | 3 |
| Type | Dome | Dome | Dome | Tunnel | Tunnel |
| Waterproof rating | 3,000mm | 4,000mm | 3,000mm | 2,000mm | 3,000mm |
| Weight | 8.91kg | 5.1kg | 2.58kg | 9.02kg | 7kg |
| Headroom | 170cm | 130cm | 110cm | 170cm | 140cm |
| Poles | Fibreglass | Fibreglass | Aluminium | Fibreglass | Fibreglass |
| Best for | Family weekends | Festivals and campsites for three | Carrying on your back | Families of four | Couples who want a porch |
| Check price | View on Amazon | View on Amazon | View on Amazon | View on Amazon | View on Amazon |
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