My questions are directed to members that use tents :

What features of tent design are the most important to you ?

Have you found a tent or tents that satisfy those requirements ?

Speed and ease of setup and take down are of primary importance to me, especially in windy and rainy conditions. I prefer external pitch tents with integrated double wall or single wall design. I also prefer freestanding or semi freestanding design for strength,interior space and ease of placement. Weight, compactness, weather resistance, interior space, ventilation and outside visibility are important secondary features I consider.

Freestanding. Double doors. Double vestibules. 90"-ish inches long. 40"-ish width per person. Gear attic. Absolutely NO POLE SLEEVES - pole clips only. Noah's flood better be upon us before the rain fly stops working.

If I am sharing with another person it has to be:
double wall; double door; double vestibule

Kendis: "Freestanding. Double doors. Double vestibules. 90"-ish inches long. 40"-ish width per person. Gear attic. Absolutely NO POLE SLEEVES - pole clips only. Noah's flood better be upon us before the rain fly stops working."

These features plus the ability to sit up to get dressed, play cards, etc.

TZ

My old Mountain Hardwear Habitat 3p has a few good ones I don't ever seem to see on others and one bad one:

Good:
1. Tent shape makes 1/2 of each vestibule as interior space. Good for a little extra length or adding a nook for the dog. Gear storage without worrying about spray and dirt from rain.
2. Has exterior pockets within the vestibule that are great for all those things you need access too regularly without the need for unzipping can reaching into the main tent.

Bad:
1. Has 2 small clear vinyl windows in the rain fly that both fell out after about 12 years. The professional repair was more than the entire tent was on sale. So clear gorillatape has sufficed since.

Weight and packability are key for me. I carry all my gear in a Granite Gear Blaze 60 AC pack. For the last few years I have avoided using tents with poles. Current set up is a Cuben fiber tarp (11x8) with amsteel blue ridgeline and a MSR 2P thru hiker tent that attaches to the ridgeline (< 2 lb for everything) - no poles. Finding trees for the ridgeline hasn’t been an issue.

If I was going to get another tent I’d probably get a Tarptent Stratospire or Tarptent Protrail and use trekking poles for setup.

plander: "If I was going to get another tent I’d probably get a Tarptent Stratospire or Tarptent Protrail and use trekking poles for setup. "

I have a Protrail, used it for the first time last summer. Generally liked it, but the silnylon floor was so slippery I would slide into the side of the tent if pitched on even the slightest slope, which was every night in the mountains. Why does every tent have to have one significant design flaw?

I think a closed cell pad will make it workable, but a required feature for me in any new tent would be a non-silnylon floor.

My priorities for a tent on my solo trips:
1) Stays dry/shelter from bugs
2) Lighter weight
3) Durability
4) Ease of setup

I alternate between a copper spur and MSR hubba...both work well for me.

Priorities for a tent when I trip with my daughters:
1) Two tents so my teens have their space or one larger tent with my younger daughters
2) Mostly the same as above but with a bigger emphasis on staying dry in any storm

My favorite tent for trips with my younger daughters is the Eureka Mountain Pass - it has kept us dry time and time again in heavy storms.

YetiJedi: "My priorities for a tent on my solo trips:
I alternate between a copper spur and MSR hubba...both work well for me.

Priorities for a tent when I trip with my daughters:
My favorite tent for trips with my younger daughters is the Eureka Mountain Pass - it has kept us dry time and time again in heavy storms."

My tent preference when solo is the Nturehike Bear UL2.

My tent preference with my wife is the Northface Stormbreak 2P.

brulu: "

plander: "If I was going to get another tent I’d probably get a Tarptent Stratospire or Tarptent Protrail and use trekking poles for setup. "

I have a Protrail, used it for the first time last summer. Generally liked it, but the silnylon floor was so slippery I would slide into the side of the tent if pitched on even the slightest slope, which was every night in the mountains. Why does every tent have to have one significant design flaw?


I think a closed cell pad will make it workable, but a required feature for me in any new tent would be a non-silnylon floor."

Paint a couple stripes of silnylon seam sealer on the floor and your problem is solved!

My preferred tent features vary depending on the activity and season.

For canoeing and backpacking (2 people and a dog):
- Lightweight build and fabrics
- Spacious enough for 2 humans and a 60lb dog
- Double wall
- Well-ventilated
- Additional tie outs or poles for heavy weather/snow

My Tarptent Hogback satisfies these criteria. What it lacks in vestibule space it makes up for with interior space. This is a 4 person tent that weighs less than many traditional 2 person tents.

Backpacking solo has mostly the same needs but less space. And because I use trekking poles I want a tent that doesn't use poles to save weight. My Durston X-Mid 1 has been great for this purpose.

I have never found freestanding to be a necessity for my tents. I always take/tie-out my tents for weather and maximizing space/ventilation.

#1 Feature: Full coverage rain-fly. Like down to the ground coverage.

Pretty hard to find full coverage on the larger family camping tents. The REI Kingdome always looked full coverage yet the back door was uncovered. I also find the MSR Hubba Hubba and Nemo Dragonfly/Firefly lacking on the ends where the "bathtub" seems to be the exposed portions to falling rain or rainfly run-off. I think the Nemo has a tab to allow pulling it out further but also has the higher cut.

The most compact and lightweight tent I have owned is the Vargo No-Fly 2P. At 2lbs 10ozs it is spacious and easy to set up.

I have been using a Timberline 4 for 40 years. I first chose it when I was taking trips where I would be 1-2 weeks from my vehicle. The feature that I most liked about the timberline after being free-standing (which lots of tents are) is that I think I could successfully use it without the poles should one break or get dropped in the lake or something. Many popular tents seem to me like they would be impossible to use if a pole broke or got lost.

Now, I have to admit that in the last 40 years I never broke or lost a pole so I accept that this criteria might not be so important after all. :-)

We purchased a new tent last spring after our REI Quarterdome T3 finally wore out. Before that, it had been a succession of four-man Eureka Timberlines for forever, and a North Face of some kind for soloing.

So when we purchased a new tent last spring, we had a list of what we know we wanted. Must haves were:

1. Free standing. This is a MUST for camping in an area that is basically one big rock.
2. Full coverage rain fly.
3. Bathtub floor.
4. Window coverings that could be unzipped from the inside.

Though many tents had the first three, the window coverings that unzipped from the inside was a little tougher to find. After testing a few out, we settled on the Big Agnes Salt Creek 3. It has all of the above and other creature comforts which we appreciate, such as an extra door (it has three doors), is big enough to sit up in, internal gear loft, and it's lightweight. Very happy with it.

Mike

Trips with husband:
3-4 person
2 doors
moderate to light weight
easy to use zipper for buggy nights
keeps me dry in storms
double walled
lots of headroom

Solo:
1 person
ultra lightweight
spacious vestibule

MikeinMpls: "
4. Window coverings that could be unzipped from the inside.


Though many tents had the first three, the window coverings that unzipped from the inside was a little tougher to find. After testing a few out, we settled on the Big Agnes Salt Creek 3. It has all of the above and other creature comforts which we appreciate, such as an extra door (it has three doors), is big enough to sit up in, internal gear loft, and it's lightweight. Very happy with it.


Mike


"

Thanks for the share, Mike. I had no idea this was an option but could see how it would be cool to have. Now to make a convincing case to the budget committee that I need one! :)

full coverage vestibule
dual doors for airflow
aluminum poles
clips, not sleeves
fully freestanding
vestibule that only requires door stakes
headroom
square

Absolute must haves (backpacking and canoeing):
1) Light weight! (but no hiking pole set-ups)
2) Double walled
3) Free standing
4) Fast set-up
Added bonus when canoeing:
5) Two person tent with two doors/vestibules

It's just me in the tent, so I go with a Big Agnes Seedhouse 1 for backpacking and a Copper Spur 2 for canoeing. I've slept in Big Agnes tents exclusively for about 15 years and have always been very happy.

brulu: "

plander: "If I was going to get another tent I’d probably get a Tarptent Stratospire or Tarptent Protrail and use trekking poles for setup. "

I have a Protrail, used it for the first time last summer. Generally liked it, but the silnylon floor was so slippery I would slide into the side of the tent if pitched on even the slightest slope, which was every night in the mountains. Why does every tent have to have one significant design flaw?


I think a closed cell pad will make it workable, but a required feature for me in any new tent would be a non-silnylon floor."

Apply strips of seem seal on the tent floor. That will fix it

I purchased all of my outdoor gear in college the late 90’s and viewed it as the peak of cool, the IMAX film Everest and Krakauer’s Into Thin Air were all the rage, so Mountain Hardware and The North Face were b-l-o-w-i-n-g up. I worked in an outfitter store at the time and ended up with a handful of tents that only just now are failing to the point of being untrustworthy, that’s 25 years or so of use! The four season Mountain Hardware Trango 2 is still going strong!

Imagine my surprise when we bought a new two man tent, a Nemo Dragonfly, that is less than half the weight of the tent it replaced. We’ve only used it a handful of times this far, but I’ve learned a bit about it, and what I’d want in a dream tent where weight was at least a minor issue.

1 - Space. I like a few inches or more of space between me and the walls of the tent, at 6’2” this is not a given, I can’t imagine what taller people use for tents as I touch head and toes in most. The Nemo is not great for this, but tolerable thanks to my wife being just 5 feet tall. For minimalist bike packing it’s good enough.
2 - Removable Rainfly. My favorite thing about sleeping in a tent is having a mesh net ceiling so I can look out at the sky above while falling asleep. One of my now failed tents, a palatial Mountain Hardwear Skyview was awesome for this, but the Nemo tent can’t stretch out to its fullest size with out the rainfly.
3 - Drum tight pitch. I’ve only used free standing tents in adulthood because I like the reassurance that it’ll pitch where’ve I go, I also like how you can really batten down the hatches and feel comfortable in storms knowing the stakes aren’t going to give way. That being said, I’ve never used a non-free standing tent in adulthood so maybe it’s no big deal.
4 - Vestibule - like huge vestibules, especially ones requiring their own poll. I think these are going by the wayside in the ultralight wars. MSR used to make one called the Velo that had a vestibule big enough to put your bike in! I lusted after that tent but never got one. THe North Face made a Big Fat Frog that may have been able to get a bike in, but I never got one of those either.
5 - Interior pockets. I wear glasses. I’m intrigued by Salewa tents, but they don’t have any interior pockets which is a deal breaker.
6 - Dome lighting. I like to be able to hang a lantern or candle, or use one of the new style headlamp illuminated dome pockets.
7 - Short Poll Breaks. For bike packing, it’s helpful to have slightly shorter poll lengths so they can fit between your handlebar drops, but this only matters for bike packing, certainly not canoeing.
8 - Front and/or Rear Doors. I prefer the doors to sit at your head and/or feet as opposed to the side, and I like the round doors of North Face tents, to the D doors of most everyone else. On convertible or colder weather tents, I prefer the mesh netting to be on the outside and the nylon inside, which seems to differ from manufacturer to manufacturer.

When weight isn’t an issue, say on our canoe trips, I like gigantic tents with huge living quarters and windows. I got the Salewa Midway 6 which is so bizarre, so Euro, but so fun, especially for family camping. It’s a gigantic tube rainfly, with two separate tents that hang inside with a “living room” area between that we put a tarp down for a floor, big enough to sit four and play card comfortably in a rain storm. I haven’t weighed it, but I’d guess it’s a thousand pounds and requires a city block to pitch. https://www.salewa.com/midway-vi-tent-00-0000005908

Great topic!

truecyclery: "7 - Short Poll Breaks. For bike packing, it’s helpful to have slightly shorter poll lengths so they can fit between your handlebar drops, but this only matters for bike packing, certainly not canoeing."

It is not difficult to custom cut poles to reduce the collapsed length.

Kendis: "Freestanding. Double doors. Double vestibules. 90"-ish inches long. 40"-ish width per person. Gear attic. Absolutely NO POLE SLEEVES - pole clips only. Noah's flood better be upon us before the rain fly
stops working."

Agree with all of the above. Two vestibules are very valuable for storage.

Deleted

pretty much most of the stuff others have mentioned, in terms of a good fly/vestibules etc..
When I do a search in Campmor, REI, Backcountry or other sites, the things I always filter to are that it's free-standing and it has aluminum poles, not fiberglass. From there I compare everything else, including price.

One design feature that I avoid are rain fly roof vents located near the peak of the roof. I've found that in wind driven rain even with the roof vent secured shut water can pass under the vent opening, onto the vent screen and drip down onto the inside canopy.

I know one tent manufacturer that has addressed this issue by adding an additional sewn in flap to block water that is blown under the roof vent opening.

One design feature that I use with my shelters that have external pitch poles is guy line connectors that attach directly to the poles. In windy conditions I can erect and guy out the poles before attaching the canopy. This lessens the amount of time the shelter is exposed to the wind before it is fully set up and guyed out.

I'm inline with many others. Double vestibule...easy X pole, clip set-up design. I've had a Kelty Gunnison for years and years.

Using the Lean+ changed my view on tents & I'll never go back. Just about the only thing I'd adjust is making it a bit taller so I can stand at the entrance.