The Best Family Tents Give You More Breathing Room and Less Grief During Setup
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."
Whether you're camping at a national park or on a cross-country road trip , the right family tent is one of the most important elements of your camping gear system. A shelter that's challenging to pitch or the wrong size is a surefire way to ruin what should be a nice night outside.
While family tents come in a wide range of styles, sizes, and designs, I always make sure I'm choosing one that fits how I'm camping or whom I'm camping with. Tall adults? That calls for a tent with a lot of headroom. A whole crew of kids? Time to find something with a larger capacity. Dogs coming along? Better take the model with the more durable floors.
Next, I make sure my tent is easy to pitch or that I've practiced pitching it at home . Finally, I check the specs to ensure I have ample interior space and at least two doors. I like at least 80 square feet for six people.
The Best Family Tents
-
Best Overall: Coleman Skydome 10 with Room Darkening
-
Best Value: Coleman Skydome 8
-
Best for Extra-Large Groups: Core 12-Person Cabin Tent
-
Best Weather Protection: Coleman WeatherMaster 10-Person Tent
-
Most Headroom: Cedar Ridge 8-Person Ironwood Tent
How I Selected and Tested
I've been camping since I was a child and backpacking and road-tripping well into adulthood. I've used everything from ultralight solo trekking-pole shelters to horse-packed wall tents and everything in between. While I don't camp in groups as much as I camp solo or with a partner, I've also used plenty of frontcountry, family-style tents during testing and my own trips.
For my recommendations, I reviewed family tents across a range of capacities and price points. I ensured they all had ample headroom, and most have at two or more doors and vestibules.
They also had to be relatively simple to pitch and available at accessible retailers. Once I narrowed down the contenders within those criteria, I used my decades of experience to find the ones that work for a range of families and camping styles.
1) Coleman Skydome Dark Room 10-Person Camping Tent with Rainfly
Coleman consistently lands at the top of our picks for budget-friendly, reliable tents, and their recently updated and expanded Skydome line has a capacity for every need. The latest features is the incorporation of a light- and heat-blocking material that's ideal for keeping the kids comfortable and sleeping past sunrise.
This tent has a reasonably simple pole structure considering its 144-square-foot interior space, and it sets up in less than 10 minutes. The pole hubs are color-coded, and the spacious horizontal poles allow for plenty of headroom. That simpler pole structure does make it less stable in the wind, which is something to consider when planning the direction of your pitch.
We're also fans of the 12-person Coleman Skydome XL , which forgoes the blackout material but fits four queen-size airbeds and offers excellent weatherproofing thanks to the tall bathtub floor, welded seams, and reinforced rainfly.
The 12-person XL has a whopping 180 square feet of interior space and two large entrances to make hauling gear in and people out easy. You can't go wrong with this lineup, from the tall height to the expansive shoulder space; the tents are perfect for budget-friendly group camping. The hardest decision is how big you want to go.
- Light- and heat-blocking material
- Two doors
- Color-coded pole setup
- E-port allows easy access for interior electricity
- Not as wind-resistant as we’d like
2) Coleman Skydome 8-Person Camping Tent with Rainfly
In truth, nearly any Coleman tent is a solid value. But if you don't want to spend much more than about $200 and can deal with having a single door, the Skydome 8 is worth a look for frontcountry or car camping.
Like our Best Overall pick above (which is a newer model), this tent features pre-attached poles for easy setup. The anchor points are wide enough to maximize headspace, which is a respectable 76 inches, and the 108-square-foot interior fits two queen-size inflatable mattresses side by side.
It's decently weatherproof against condensation and rain (the rainfly is included), and I appreciate having four mesh side pockets for storage The biggest issue is access, though.
As mentioned, the tent comes with just one door (though it's fairly wide), which is a questionable choice for group camping. I typically look for family tents with dual entries and vestibules.
- Pre-attached poles for fast setup
- Spacious with ample headroom
- Decent waterproofing
- The single door might be a dealbreaker
3) Core 12-Person Cabin Tent with LED Lights
Core is a new-to-us brand, but it has consistently released budget-friendly family camping tents in a range of large capacities. This 12-person tent eliminates one of the main issues we have with gigantic tents: the time it takes to pitch.
Even setting up a six-person tent with two people can feel like a chore, but this cabin-style tent takes the complications and headache out of it with pre-attached poles integrated into the tent body and canopy. Just lie it flat, lock the poles in place, and pop it up to fully pitched in just a few minutes.
The steel pole system and base, paired with the fiberglass canopy, add significant weight to the build, but the durability is unsurpassed, especially paired with the 68-denier body material and tough mesh that keeps all bugs at bay.
One of our favorite features of Core's family tents is the integrated LED lights, which are controlled by a wall switch and have three modes, including a night-specific, low-light option.
The interior can be divided based on group needs, and the generous full-height doors make this an excellent base-camping option. Fit up to four queen-size mattresses inside, and you have luxurious living quarters that keep the whole group outside in comfort.
- Tall door and recessed entry make it easy to get in and out
- LED lights included with three light modes
- Steel base is stable and durable
- Very heavy and not as portable as others on this list
- Interior light batteries not included
4) Coleman WeatherMaster 10-Person
For families and groups setting up base camp in a rainy area or with a questionable weather forecast, we recommend the weather-sealed and reinforced Coleman WeatherMaster.
The frame has a sturdier pole structure than Coleman's standard large-capacity tents, which makes it somewhat more complicated to pitch, but it can withstand higher winds than the less robust system on the standard Skydome.
The WeatherMaster line uses a specialized WeatherTec design with inverted seams that add an extra layer of assurance against driving rain and welded corners to protect potential failure points where the material comes together.
The covered zipper also helps keep water out, and the windows are angled to shelter from rain without fully closing them, allowing continual airflow without getting your family and your gear soaked. We also love the hinged door, which has more structural stability than a standard tent door and doesn't flop shut as soon as you let go of it.
The tent comes with a room divider for parent-kid separation, and the pole sleeves are easy to slide even the longest segments through. The main downside here is the weight and entry: it weighs more than 10 pounds more than the 10-person Skydome and has only one door, which is a lot for a tent of this size.
- Windows are angled so they can stay open for airflow, even in the rain
- Welded corners and seams for added waterproofing
- Hinged door doesn’t flop shut unexpectedly
- Heavier than the same-capacity Skydome
- Only one door
5) Cedar Ridge 8-Person Ironwood Tent
With an 88-inch peak height, 140 square feet of interior space, doors, and a removable divider, Cedar Ridge put together one of the most convenient, comfortable tent designs in the budget-friendly group camping category.
The combination of steel and fiberglass poles is weather-resistant and flexible enough to withstand moderate winds, and the tent comes with massive 8-inch steel stakes to keep the shelter firmly anchored in the ground. Because of the height, we recommend using all of the guylines for the best weather resistance, though the nine different pole segments were designed for maximum stability.
The Ironwood Tent has a full-zip interior divider that can be removed for one large interior space, or zipped shut to separate the sleeping area from the living area. The six windows are evenly spaced around the shelter to enhance airflow and light, and the seam-sealed exterior can withstand short bursts of heavy rain.
We also love the high number of interior pockets that make group organizing easier, and the overhead mesh storage that can serve as a light diffuser for a headlamp or camping lantern. We recommend allowing extra time for pitching this one. It's fully freestanding, but it's still not as easy as a pop-up tent and requires at least two people to pitch, along with careful attention to the instructions.
- Tall headroom and generous interior space
- Two large doors for easy entry/exit
- Removable interior divider
- Harder to pitch than others on this list
- Need to secure guylines for best wind resistance
6) Core 9-Person Tent
The award for easiest pitching goes to Core Equipment's nine-person tent, which uses a pop-up design with preattached poles instead of the separate package of snap-together segments in most other tents. This also helps increase stability and wind resistance, with a strong, centrally located hub that can withstand inclement weather nearly as well as our technical backcountry options .
Core also includes a lovely LED light system in this nine-person model, similar to the 12-person model we listed above. The lights are built into the overhead poles and the fabric diffuses each light segment for soft interior lighting that illuminates without too much harsh light in the campground.
We also love the thoughtful details like the adjustable ventilation options that can be fine-tuned based on condensation and weather conditions, the pop-up front door that turns into an awning, and the weatherproofing treatment on the full-coverage rainfly.
Be aware that this tent weighs nearly 50 pounds, and you might want a dolly setup to wheel it from your car to your tent site. And with a 126-square-foot interior, this tent is certainly not small, but its space-to-weight ratio falls short of that of our Coleman frontcountry tents. It's sturdy and wind-resistant, but you are paying a weight penalty.
- LED-lit interior makes nighttime organization easy
- The zipper system is built to be snag-free
- Pop-up style design makes pitching a breeze
- Absolutely immense weight
- Smaller interior space than other 9-person tents
7) Kelty Wireless Freestanding 8-Person Tent
The Wireless is one of Kelty's most popular car-camping tents, and it released an updated version this year with increased mesh for better breathability, moisture management, and stargazing. It also added the eight-person size and updated the color to a classic woodsy green-and-orange while keeping the convenient dual vestibules, durable pole system, and spacious interior.
The peak height reaches a lofty 83.5 inches, and the interior space of the eight-person is nearly 120 square feet. This is more than enough room for four full-size sleeping pads and multiple children sprawled on blankets. But if the eight-person is too intimidating, Kelty also makes this in four- and six-person sizes.
Setup is easier than with other supersized tents, thanks to the brand's patented Quick Corners—essentially fabric sleeves that the poles slide into for security and simplicity. The Wireless has two doors and two large vestibules built for simple entry and exit, with zippers at the tent corners so people can stay inside while opening, closing, and rolling up the vestibule.
Like others we recommend, the Wireless comes with taped seams for added protection against water, though Kelty saved some weight elsewhere. The floor is a 68-denier polyester, which is thinner than even the lightweight Big Agnes Big House and requires a little more care to maintain.
- Ventilation is better than most
- Eight interior pockets for organizing
- Simple entrance/exit points in both vestibules
- Not the best weight-to-material strength ratio
8) The North Face Wawona 6 Tent
The Wawona is one of my favorite designs for long-term base camping thanks to its tunnel-like layout, which increases livable space without a significant weight penalty. The tent's latest model reduces condensation buildup with an updated hybrid double-wall construction, keeping weight low while avoiding the pitfalls of a single-wall shelter that can get overly soggy inside.
The massive front vestibule is nearly 50 square feet, adding more than 50 percent of additional protected area to the giant tent. I've also had great luck with the Wawona's durability, including tough materials, quality connectors, and poles. You'll pay more for this rugged shelter, but the storage and livable space are worth it for long trips or base camping for backcountry objectives.
I recommend practicing pitching this tent before heading out, though, as it's not the easiest to get right the first time. That said, the pole structure allows for extra peak-height headroom, and the tent was clearly designed to be lived in during poor weather. It's a great choice for extended trips and is among the more weatherproof for family tents thanks to the 150-denier floor and long, domed shape.
- Hybrid construction is very breathable
- Long, spacious interior and vestibule
- Rain fly doesn't give the best coverage
What to Consider
How much capacity do you need?
Before you take off on your trip, consider not just the number of people who will be sharing the tent, but also any pets and the volume of gear you'll be storing inside the tent as well. All of the tents I've tested fit a minimum of four people, and you can estimate that each person will want at least 12 square feet of interior space for comfortably moving around.
When in doubt, I always size up. So if I have four people and the option of taking a six-person tent, I'll go with that for added comfort and livable space. Vestibule space matters too, so check the manufacturer's page to see how much additional storage space you get aside from the interior. Finally, remember that the larger the tent's footprint, the more space you'll need at the campsite.
Consider storage and packability.
While most tents I listed are for frontcountry use (which means you won't be packing them for a backpacking trip), you have to store them when they're not in use, and some models can be quite bulky. Everything here comes with its own storage sack or carrying case, and I've been able to fit the smaller ones on closet shelves and the larger ones in my garage.
Consider how you're transporting these as well. Some of them are several feet long even when fully stashed and can take up a lot of room in a small car trunk or a bin. Check the retail page for packed size, and consider your priorities with regard to a larger model for more space or a smaller model with a more compact travel size. Lastly, store these out of direct sunlight to avoid degrading the storage bag materials (and ultimately the tent itself).
What features and designs are a priority?
Each of these family tents has something extra to offer, whether it's additional interior pockets, a particularly massive vestibule, or better waterproofing and windproofing. All else the same, families with a lot of additional gear will likely appreciate additional interior pockets as well as ceiling mesh to hang a headlamp and help stay organized after dark. Planning a trip in a muddy area with a lot of changes of clothes? You might opt for a family tent with a giant, standing-room vestibule for changing and keeping shoes away from the tent interior.
Extra waterproofing tech and more weatherproof materials are good for rainy conditions or outings in the Pacific Northwest, whereas a family traveling in hot, dry areas will appreciate more mesh and venting options to keep the interior cool.
You Might Also Like
