Clearly I need a tent.... but which one?

[CrinklyLion]

Well, I've now successfully introduced the smaller cub to the joys of living in a field, and a great hit it was too.  CrinklyCub the elder has camped a few times with a grandad and once with me on the Edwardstone WARTY, and is already very keen.  I always quite liked camping, and lived in a tent for about 4 months once but until this year hadn't done it for over a decade. 

However, very successful as it has been so far, I suspect my cunning strategy of camping without a tent and relying on the kindness of YACFers to provide may not be a wise long-term strategy.  We own precisely no camping kit whatsoever at the moment, and are unlikely to go camping again this year but I think that before next summer some investment may be necessary.  Hopefully by then the smallest be tagalong-ing, so would be able to tag along sometimes.  I'm not going to get into stoves and stuff, as that seems like a very bad plan with a very small person along, so would expect to be camping in places where food etc could be bought (and possibly continuing to rely on occasion on the kindness of YACFers allowing me to steal hot water for a morning cuppa!).  I might potentially do a bit of proper-ish touring with the biggun, up to the 30-ish mile a day mark.  Anything with the littly would need to be much shorter hops with (probably) train bits involved. 

I'm considering asking various grandparents for kit for Christmas.  My boys are of the sort who would consider a sleeping mat/sleeping bag/camping cutlery set to be a Most Excellent Present.  A tent would be an amazing present, but I think even I'm not mean enough to organise a pressie that they wouldn't be able to use for several months (so I might ask for that for me!).

So what do we need?

Their dad Doesn't Do Camping, so is unlikely to accompany us.  I reckon that whilst I could squeeze me and 2 cubs into a 2 man tent (as opposed to a 2 pixieannie tent which is what most manufacturers sell as a 2-man  tent) we realistically need a 3-man one.  What would the panel of experts recommend?  I can't afford top of the line bells and whistles, and probably wouldn't use it enough to justify that anyway.  It does need to pack small and light, if I'm going to be able to cart it around as well as everything else that the 3 of us would need.  CrinklyCub can carry a certain amount, but not that much.

So, cheap, light and reasonably decent 3 lion tents... what's good?

[Ariadne]

We have an Octane 3 from Blacks, and it's been great - lightweight, has a nice big porch and plenty of room inside.

Blacks Blacks Octane 3

[onb]

Now seems to be a very good time for buying tents.

[Kim]

Well worth a look at Alpkit for sleeping mats (they've recently expanded their range), possibly bags, and other random bits and pieces.  Their stuff is excellent value.

And yes, keep an eye out for tents etc. in the sales.  Now is definitely the time to buy them.

[Oscar's dad]

Decathlon, Decathlon, Decathlon!

Previously you needed to be able to get to a store.  Now you can buy on-line and they deliver.

We have a couple of their pop up tents which won't be suitable.  We also have a T2 Ultralight Pro and T2 Ultralight.  These are probably a bit small so try the T3 range (Ultralight and Ultralight Pro).

Why Decathlon?  Light, excellent quality, small packed size and CHEAP!!! (less than £100)  The tents did us proud on our recent 2 week trip in France and we saw plenty of other cycle tourists using them.

CLICK HERE

[arabella]

3rded to buy now.  they'll disappear from the shop until next spring at some point.

We have a Lidl 3-person tent (as seen on at Edwardstone).  while it does the job and cost very little, it doesn't pack at all small, nor does my Lidl sleepingbag.
So it needs to be 'real' kit.

I liked the Octane 3 on account of its big porch, but I forgot to notice how small it packed.
I alsways wish I had an awning, to stop the vertical rain going inside the tent

[Wowbagger]

That Black's tent looks like excellent value. It's similar to the Hilleborg nallo, or the Vango Spirit, but a lot cheaper.

[Hot Flatus]

I found these guys to be the cheapest for my recent purchase:


   2 Man Tents | 3 Man Tents | 4 Man Tents - Yeomans

[jogler]

This is one of those "how long is a piece of string" things.If you get twenty answers you are likely to get twenty different suggestions.
Have a look in the Review Database .
Use the forum Search Facility.
You have plenty of time so there is no need to rush into a purchase although the autumn is typically a good time to buy because some folk will have bought something in the springtime,tried it once or twice & decided for whatever reason not to do it again & therefore sell to recoup some £.
Buy the best you can afford:this includes selecting a bells&whistles tent & then looking for a second hand one here or EBay etc..Put a post in the Wanted thread here & any other forums you use plus The Fell Club forum.
If you buy new,ask the retailer for a CTC-member discount.(eg:-Cotswold Outdoor,Blacks)
You are not far from Spa Cycles.Keep an eye on their website for Sales or Specials deals.They sell Saunders tents: a well respected lightweight,good quality manufacturer.
When you have made a choice,ask someone with experience whose opinion you trust for their opinion.
IIRC Cotswold Outdoor & Blacks organise tent exhibitions & have indoor tent displays.Seeing them in the flesh is a must IMO.
I'd recommend a "pitches outer first" or a "simultaneous" pitching model.
Be aware that some flysheets requie seam sealing before use.
With regard to recommendation my view is that if I see a lot of one type/model of tent being used by cyclists that in itself is a recommendation.

[The Mechanic]

That Black's tent looks like excellent value. It's similar to the Hilleborg nallo, or the Vango Spirit, but a lot cheaper.

And on special at £115 at the mo.

[plum]

I also have a Decathlon T2 Ultralight and am very pleased with it. I would add that Decathlon seem to rotate all their tents into sales on a regular basis, so if you're in no hurry I wouldn't pay full price for one. I waited and I think paid £45 or £50 instead of the £80 rrp.

[clarion]

You saw an Octane 3 at Mildenhall.  We were in one.

Blacks & Milletts are both having sales right now, though, so go have a look for something big enough for a Lion's den with cubs that's not too heavy or bulky (some tents are inexplicably weighty).

[The Mechanic]

I bought a Wild Country Duolite Tourer a couple of week ago.  It was on sale at Nevis Sport in Aberdeen for £175 (RRP £250).  I managed to get another 10% off because the bag had a couple of chalk marks on it.  I have not used it yet but put it up in the garden and it is huge.  Only 2 man but with a massive porch claimed to be big enough for 2 bikes.  I am sceptical but will try it soon.  Looks like a brill tent and made by Terra Nova so should last.

[jogler]

The tent you used over the weekend is marketed as a 3 person tent.Having used it you are able to malke your own judgement.
It is a Vaude MK II Light.
HTH

[CrinklyLion]

I thought it was blinking lovely!  Very spacious for the two of us, CrinklyCub the elder would have fitted in nicely, and even I could understand how it went up... Clarion and Butterfly's also looked good.  I'm not going to rush out to buy anything straight away, but I'm idly researching to see what's out there

[pcolbeck]

Tents are so good these days that you don't need the expensive ones unless you do winter camping or high altitude spring and autumn. Anything from the big makes should be OK. It comes down to weight and room really. If it's car camping then just buy on a good size for your needs so long as the hydrostatic head is OK if its cycle camping then look at weight and whether it can be broken down over a couple of bikes if its a bit heavy.

[Oscar's dad]

Tents are so good these days that you don't need the expensive ones unless you do winter camping or high altitude spring and autumn. Anything from the big makes should be OK. It comes down to weight and room really. If it's car camping then just buy on a good size for your needs so long as the hydrostatic head is OK if its cycle camping then look at weight and whether it can be broken down over a couple of bikes if its a bit heavy.

This very true.  20 years ago I bought a Robert Saunders tent which at the time cost a fortune (or it was a fortune for me).  The tent was as light as a feather but leaked badly in heavy rain.  Those were the days before sealed seams.  Now even the cheapest tents have sealed seams and are better than the expensive tents of days gone by. 

I'm amazed now good Argos, Tesco and Decathlon tents are.  Unless your needs are quite specialised I struggle to see why you should spend lots of money on tents.

[Polar Bear]

I've always worked on the rule of thumb for tents that you need n+1 for the number of occupants.  So, for two of us we have a 3 person tent, etc.   Bear in mind that crinklycubs will become crinklylions and that space will be limited.

Having said that the Blacks Octane 3 looks great value.   



 

[clarion]

As the cubs get larger, they can venture from the den and sleep in their own tents (which they can carry on their own bikes).

Just sayin'...

[RW]

The tent you used over the weekend is marketed as a 3 person tent.Having used it you are able to malke your own judgement.
It is a Vaude MK II Light.
HTH

We have the very same tent.  What sold it for me was the speed and simplicty of pitching.  We used it for touring last year and it was fine.  We've got a Khyam four man tent that you can stand up which we use for festivals and gigs, but now often take the Vaude because it's so much less hassle and warmer.

[Kim]

It is a Vaude MK II Light.

We've got a Khyam four man tent that you can stand up which we use for festivals and gigs, but now often take the Vaude because it's so much less hassle and warmer.

While I'm wary of making any comments involving temperature on a CrinklyLion thread, I must say that I was very impressed by its windproofness and resulting warmth.

[CrinklyLion]

Indeed, it was most cosy.  Mind, my boy clearly takes after his mum (and not just in the insufficient leg length stakes - poor wee mite couldn't get a toe on the floor on even the smallest islabike!) as on the last night, when Ara needed to borrow about 7 extra layers from everybody, the smallest cub managed to escape his sleeping bag and turn up in unlikely corners of the tent about 4 times!  So it had the central heating effect of two of us who run warm