The Best Big Tents for Family Camping

The first thing you should know about buying big tents is when they are advertised as a 6 person tent, they mean just that. It does not mean six people plus a chair, your suitcase, a lamp, or any other gear you want within easy reach. For true comfort, especially on an extended camping trip, you should try to buy a tent that holds more people than you plan on having there.

When you are shopping for large tents, you will see they are rated for 1 to 4 seasons. By buying the ones rated at least 3 seasons, they should be able to withstand wind and rain. This protection; however, varies greatly by both the brand and the model of the tent, so read to make sure they are wind resistant and waterproof.

A good tent, if properly taken care of, will last for years, so if you have small children, buy a tent that is suitable for them at this age, but will also work as they get older. The Eureka Tetragon 1610 is one of my favorite large family tents and sleeps up to 9 people. It has the ability to form 3 rooms or be one open room. With 3 doors, 4 windows, and a 6’4” height at the center, it has plenty of room for the whole family on drizzly days. The Equinox 6, also by Eureka, is slightly smaller, but boasts of easy set up, wind stability, and maximum weather protection.

Chinook offers three promising models for big camping tents, with the 6 person easily set up clip sleeve pole system which is waterproof and has bathtub style floors with high sidewalls. The Chinook Twin Peaks Guide Fiberglass Expedition Tents offer both a tent and a screened dome, which can be used together or separately. The floor on the screened dome is removable for such uses as setting it over a picnic table. The Cyclone Base Camp model changes from one room to two with a detachable divider wall; it is stable in wind and has an extra large front vestibule for storage or living area.

The Chinook Twin Peaks 6 Person Tent

The Cyclone Base Camp 6 Person Tent

This gives you an idea of the features you should look for in a large tent. Most of them are lightweight, pretty easy to set up, and store in a pretty small space. A lot of them will have an awning to put up for shade. So think about what is important to you and then combine the important features with the frills. There are certainly enough to choose from.