Throughout this article I will discover the best tents for car camping, provide a brief description for each tent and then at the very bottom of this post I will provide my final recommendation.
What tent is the best? Can you trust all the brands? I’m going to be answering these questions and many more inside this article.
There’s a ton of factors that come into play when you’re figuring out what tent works for you, however, luckily I have done the groundwork and laid out everything you need to know.
Because I’m a helpful guy, I want to help you. The internet has taught me a lot over the years, it’s the place where I got MOST of my camping tricks from.
So I want to give back to the internet world, I’m going to share with you some of my knowledge.
But you need to understand something first.
When you’re choosing a tent, you need to keep in mind the amount of occupants that will be sleeping in the tent and the location/conditions you’ll be camping in.
For the sake of this article, and to help you get the right tent that’s good for you, I’m going to assume you are camping during the summer time.
1. ALPS Mountaineering Chaos 2-Person Tent
Description
This manufacturers have made a huge emphasis on hassle-free with this tent.
They have claimed that you will stay bone dry and the zippers will stay snag-free, unlike other tents (where the zippers always get faulty and break).
They are large #8 zippers, making it a breeze to open and close.
This tent is freestanding and has a continuous pole design system.
It contains 2 doors and 2 vestibule areas. The vestibules are under the rain fly, they provide a place to store your gear.
The pole material is 7000 series aluminum and very lightweight.
The floor and rain fly are both factory seam sealed. No additional waterproofing will need to be done when it arrives.
The fly and flooring are also urethane coated, which helps even more with keeping the rain out, especially from under the tent.
The rain fly actually buckles to the tent. This offers a much more secure fly so you don’t have to worry about it blowing over in the night.
There is also a mesh roof to promote star gazing during the night while maximizing ventilation.
The manufacturers say that this tent makes a great choice for car camping since it’s extremely weatherproof and has great stargazing opportunities on hot summer nights.
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2. Coleman Sundome 4 Person Tent
Description
The Coleman Sundome 4 person tent has enough room to fit 4 campers and has a freestanding design.
The large entry/exit door makes it so much easier for people to climb in and out. This is D-shaped, as you can clearly in the picture above.
I find these doors to be a lot better than what other tents provide.
The hooded fly helps with the ventilation even if it’s raining.
This tent also contains a rear (hooded) window to provide maximum cross ventilation.
And just like the ALPS Chaos Tent, this one has a meshed roof (although not AS much). It is more for ventilation rather than stargazing.
The flooring material is a rugged 1000D polyethylene and bathtub-styled, which means the floor wraps up around the sides. This is to help stop the rain from leaking in through the bottom of the tent.
Furthermore, the welded flooring protects the bottom of the tent.
The walls of this tent and the rain fly are extra coated, allowing them to feel rugged and durable.
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3. Coleman Signature Naugatuck Tent
Description
The Coleman Signature Naugatuck Tent is designed to maximize luxury while your out staying in the outdoors.
I find it to have a very unique design, as it gets the looks from passerby and other camp goers – not to mention compliments too!
It can fit 2 queen-sized air mattresses, making it a viable option for a small or medium-sized family.
The hinged D-door on the front of this tent works wonders, especially when you have family walking in and out of the tent during the day.
What’s more?
The windows on this tent are set at an angle. This is so you can keep them open in light rain.
Dome tents are designed to stay standing in strong winds, and this one does that perfectly AND gives you maximum protection against the rain.
This tent does very well if you ask me.
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4. Kodiak Canvas Flex-Bow Deluxe 8-Person Tent
Description
This is a 4-season tent unlike the other tents mentioned already.
I decided to include it in this list because it has lots of great feedback and low negative.
It has been described to fit almost any occasion – whether that be while you’re out hunting with your buddies or camping with the family, this tent will do it.
The canvas is premium grade, Hydra-Shield, 100% cotton duck. It minimizes condensation as much as possible and stops mugginess in its tracks.
This tent also contains a flex-bow frame and spring steel rods to ensure it stays taut even in harsh wind conditions.
The flooring has been classed as puncture-resistant and heavy duty, while the 16 oz vinyl keeps the water out even if it’s been raining for hours.
Pitching this tent is surprisingly easy. 1 person can set it up in minutes once it has been staked out.
And because the tent is tall, it allows you to move and walk around comfortably (and yes, this is true for the tall people, as the ceiling is 6 feet and 6 inches high).
The zippers are extra large #10 YKK, so there will be no snagging or breaking. They will ACTUALLY feel smooth all-year round.
This tent contains 4 windows, 2 vents, and a screen mesh to stop bugs from getting inside.
Bottom line: It contains many features and high quality material that other tents don’t offer.
I could go on, but I think you get the point. I would rather you check it out for yourself, because it has lots to offer.
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5. Ozark Trail 10-Person 3-Room XL Family Cabin Tent
Description
This tent is absolutely huge!
The creators say that camping should be experienced more than everyone makes it out to be, and using this tent makes it feel exactly like that.
It can house up to 10 people and holds 3 air mattresses (all queen-sized), with plenty of room to spare.
Not only that, but it has a “hanging out” area right at the side entrance. People can sit and enjoy the outdoors without getting eaten by bugs.
But what REALLY caught my eye was the 2 room dividers, which creates 3 separate rooms. There is also one huge center door and 2 side entrances.
If privacy is important to you, then I have no doubts you will fall in love with this tent.
It has a total of 6 windows for the best ventilation and views of the outdoor world.
There are taped seams on the rain fly too, so there won’t be any leaks when you’re experiencing rain.
And of course, a massive carry bag is included in the purchase.
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Final Opinion
Not ALL brands are trustworthy and not all of them are going to provide us with great tents.
You have to realize that the internet is overflowing with different tent brands. It’s just a matter of time before you stumble across a company that DOESN’T serve you as good as the more trusted companies do.
Before it’s too late, you would have already purchased one of their so-called ‘great’ tents and ended up in a tent full of rain water when a deadly flash flood hits you at 2 o’clock in the morning!
And yes, rainstorms happen in every season, and most of the time they are completely unexpected.
I’m here to help you though.
The tents that I have mentioned above ARE ALL high quality. They are not going to let you down when you’re counting on them the most (when a rainstorm passes through the night).
The one tent that I’ve really grown to love though, and it’s one I recommend for you to try out as well, is definitely the Coleman Steel Creek 6 Person Tent.
Not just because of the awesome design, but because it’s highly affordable and extremely waterproof.