But according to our experts, the durability of the floor of your tent is actually more important. If the tent you buy doesn’t come with a footprint (two of our recommended tents, the Mountain Hardwear Mineral King 3 and the Marmot Tungsten 4, do), we recommend purchasing a companion footprint, if one is available. A footprint doesn’t take up much space, is relatively inexpensive, and is much easier to repair or replace than a tent bottom if it tears. Some campers might find the Wawona 6’s footprint unwieldy in smaller campsites, or they might simply prefer a tent with a more straightforward design. If you want a six-person tent made with high-quality materials but a traditional profile, we recommend the similarly priced Big Agnes Spicer Peak 6, or Nemo’s Aurora Highrise 6.
The Base Camp also offers more privacy compared with our other picks—with or without the rain fly. At the Good Housekeeping Institute Textiles Lab, we’ve tested hundreds of products for more than a century, including the best mattresses and best pillows. To find the best air mattresses, we evaluated everything from overnight leakage and indentation over time to puncture resistance and bursting strength.
Air mattresses have a bad reputation for sagging over time, but this two-pump system is designed to prevent just that. The first pump inflates and deflates the bed and has an automatic shut-off once fully inflated. The second pump stays on all night and automatically ozark trail shower tent adjusts the air pressure to keep it fully inflated. You can pick between three pre-set firmness levels and adjust the firmness from there. It stands at an 18-inch height and features circular coils for support and a flocked finish on top for softness.
If you can afford to spend more on a family tent, we recommend The North Face Wawona 6. Everyone who tested this tent loved it, and it’s not hard to understand why. With plenty of interior space, near-vertical walls, and a gigantic vestibule that could accommodate a golf cart, the Wawona feels more like a tiny home than a tent. Coleman makes no dedicated footprints for its tents—the idea being that the polyethylene is tough enough not to need one. (Still, we suggest that you buy a groundsheet.) The tent has two small, internal pockets—fewer than on any of our other picks—and a loop at the ceiling center to hang a small, lightweight light.
This shouldn’t be an issue in most situations, but if you’re headed into a particularly windy place or simply want some backup, we suggest picking up four extra tent stakes at your local outdoor shop or online. These inexpensive stakes are comparable to the ones that accompany the Mineral King 3; these slightly more expensive stakes will serve you well in any car-camping terrain. The Mountain Hardwear Mineral King 3 Tent is the best car-camping tent choice for couples.
The main tent body has a giant front door that’s oriented to make entry and exit easy for all the tent’s occupants at night, and a smaller back window that doubles as a second door. After researching 30 six-person tents and testing 15 side by side on a total of five trips, we chose the Kelty Wireless 6 as the best entry-level camping tent for most families. It’s spacious, easy to set up, has weather protection, and is durable, all at an affordable price. The Wireless 6 lacks some of the premium materials found in pricier tents, but it features solid workmanship and should provide dependable, comfortable shelter in most three-season camping situations.
When pushed, most of the reps we talked to estimated five to 10 years, though the actual lifespan will vary widely depending on care and frequency of use (for more advice, read REI’s excellent tips). In conducting research for this guide, we heard multiple tales of careful campers who had been using the same tent for 15 years or more. In terms of flaws, there aren’t much to speak of with the Wawona 6, apart from the price. The North Face offers a limited lifetime warranty on the tent, and will repair most flaws and damage at its discretion.
Getting our hands dirty with the top-rated 9×9 Neso Grande lightweight beach canopy tent. It is made with a steel construction frame and polyester material for the canopy, which is in line with just about every shade… She points out that, when shopping for tents, you will absolutely get what you pay for. What better way to enjoy a ballgame, picnic, or any outdoor activity than with a little bit of shade! This 10’x10′ canopy pops up easily, and will keep sun burn and overheating at bay. Own brand name furniture at up to 70% off, always re-certified and always in-style.
Lexie Sachs is the Executive Director of Strategy & Operations at the Good Housekeeping Institute. She has more than 15 years of experience in the textiles industry, including merchandising and product development for home products, and holds a B.S. Lexie joined GH in 2013 and has extensively tested all types of bedding. Air mattresses are some of the first products Lexie ozark trail shower tent tested in the Textiles Lab, and she swears by them for overnight guests or sleepovers at her home. Still, taller beds are more of a hassle to fold down and store and take longer to set up when compared to a lower-profile or “single-height” bed (typically under 12 inches). It all comes down to personal preference and whether you’re using it at home or on the go.
The Queen size took around 4 and a half minutes to fully inflate in our tests. According to the brand, it can support up to 600 pounds — meaning two people can share the bed. Its walls are 75-denier polyester fabric (tougher than the Wireless 6’s 68-denier polyester and the same as the REI Co-op Base Camp’s) that extends about two-thirds up the tent’s sides, and then is topped with mesh. The partial fly does a great job of keeping rain out of the upper, mesh areas, and cleverly placed vents maintain airflow so it never feels too stuffy. In terms of how the two tents feel, the Marmot Tungsten 4 is more geared toward hunkering down and providing stalwart defense against wind, rain, and sun. In contrast to the Mineral King 3’s triangular vestibules, the Tungsten 4’s vestibules are trapezoidal, opening via a central door with protected areas on either side.