Gone are the days of being woken up by light streaming in through the tent fabric, and as a bonus, it helps get kids to bed early when there’s still light outside. As time has gone by, the Coleman name has become synonymous with having fun and crafting lifelong memories while enjoying the great outdoors. A lover of the outdoors, and especially the mountains, Spencer has always enjoyed pushing people to step outside their comfort zones.
Like our top pick, the Tungsten 4 is a sturdy, two-door dome-style tent that can be deployed in about 5 minutes. It uses high-quality materials such as aluminum poles, breathable mesh, and water-resistant polyester fabric, and it comes with a full fly and a footprint. The Tungsten 4’s larger size accounts for the higher price tag (about $40 more), but campers who would like that extra room may find the expense worthwhile.
This tent also includes the instant setup technology, which allows one person to pitch this tent in under 60 seconds by simply extending and securing the pre-attached poles. Like our couples’ tent pick, the Wireless 6 is a dome-shaped tent with a tried and true two-pole design. It has an interior footprint of 87 square feet, which sleeps four adults on single pads, or two adults and two or three children, and can accommodate a crib. That wasn’t the tallest we encountered—the Eureka Copper Canyon LX 6 and the Alps Mountaineering Camp Creek 6 each topped out at 7 feet—but it’s enough space for most adults to maneuver standing up. The tent comes with a full rain fly that adds two vestibules for storage (each 14 square feet), totaling 115 square feet of livable space—which is fairly generous yet still practical for most campsites. The best-selling Coleman Sundome 6-Person Tent has a footprint larger (100 square feet) than that of our top-pick tent for families, but it felt smaller because it has a lower ceiling, no vestibule, and only one door.
Vents are openings in the tent fabric — usually with a mesh screen to keep out bugs — that promote airflow through the tent. A small tent-top fly keeps drizzle and dew out of the tent while allowing plenty of airflow. A full-coverage fly offers maximum protection from the elements while maintaining airflow across the tent wall.
Once you understand the fundamental differences, you won’t be as confused when Coleman throws the third twist at you by then adding an annex, patio, screen room, or sauna to your tent. Also, keep in mind that a two-person tent will barely fit two people. The Coleman Sundome 6 person tent maybe the most purchased six-person tent on the market today. The Sundome is Coleman’s take on the traditional dome tent with two poles thread through sleaves in an X formation with their ends placed into cleats in the four corners.
Instant-tent models are particularly easy to pitch, especially those with integrated rainfly designs that don’t require any additional preparation for weatherproofing. As for drawbacks, the size and weight are the main contributors, but we’ll note a few other things here. For one, because this is essentially a “wedge” shaped tent, the walls are fairly steep, so there’s not much coleman sleeping bags extra shoulder room inside the shelter. Still, the Hooligan is one of the best-made tents in the Coleman lineup, and also one of the least expensive. Try it out, and if you love it, consider building it up with better components. Drawbacks here are few and far between, but our biggest gripe with the Skydome is that it doesn’t deliver the level of wind resistance advertised.
Check under the category Tents for 3 people if you need more options. You might want to compare this tent with yet another from this brand, the Coleman 3-Person Connectable Tent that is also a cabin-style tent, but see also their Coleman Rock Springs 3 Person Tent built as a dome tent. The 6-Person Sundome® Dome Camping Tent has large windows and a ground vent to help push heat up and out to keep you comfortable when camping in warm weather. You’ll also enjoy plenty of headroom for stretching out thanks to a 6-foot center height. There are only two pockets in this 6-person tent, and in our version, the manufacturer sewed on one of the pockets backward. Getting in and out of the Evanston is also oddly difficult, as the doors only open halfway.
The back window does not have a roll-up cover, so you must use the rain fly. This is an excellent choice for campers looking to make their experience more comfortable with a lot of inside space. You have already seen the poles, there are many 8 + 8 in total, and this is all strong steel.